Is the Jordan River too Polluted for Baptism Service?

Concerns about pollution and water quality have prompted an environmental advocacy group to call for the banning of baptisms in the lower Jordan River, where the Bible says Jesus was baptized. “For reasons of public health as well as religious integrity, baptism should be banned from taking place in the river,” said Gidon Bromberg, the [...]

Store Clerk Talks Down Robber, says Jesus Has Something Better for Him

Divine intervention took on new meaning when a gunman changed his mind about robbing a Pompano Beach MetroPCS cellphone store after the store manager told him Jesus wouldn’t approve. The incident took place at about 10 a.m. July 23, at the MetroPCS store at 1543 S. Cypress Rd. The suspect entered the store and feigned [...]

Black Baptist Groups Seek to Raise $50 Million for Haiti

A coalition of four Black Baptist groups have come together to form a volunteer association whose primary goal is to raise $50 million for Haitian relief. The Lott Carey Baptist Foreign Mission Convention, National Baptist Convention USA, Progressive National Baptist Convention of America and the National Missionary Baptist Convention of America make up the African [...]

What Pastors Should Know About the New Hate Crimes Act when Preaching Against Homosexuality

In October 2009, President Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Hate Crimes Act as part of the National Defense Authorization Act. This legislation created a firestorm of controversy, with exaggerated and unfounded claims being made on all sides. According to some, pastors who preach against homosexuality from the pulpit, or even [...]

Benny Hinn Asking for $2 Million in Donations

Televangelist Benny Hinn has posted a plea for $2 million in donations on his website. Hinn says he accumulated the deficit in the past few months because offerings at some international appearances did not cover expenses. Hinn’s reputation as an advocate of prosperity gospel has attracted millions of followers but has also drawn criticism from [...]

Lifeway President of Research Says There Is No Such Thing as “the Gift of Evangelism”

Recently, I spoke at the Church of God Triennial meeting in Decatur, IL. One of the things I talked about was my belief that there is no such thing as “the gift of evangelism.” Part of my concern is that I hear many people saying they don’t have the “gift of evangelism” and thus believing [...]

North Carolina Baptist Minister Arrested in Protest Over ‘Re-segregating’ School System

A North Carolina Baptist pastor said July 27 she does not understand why she was arrested July 20 for simply trying to attend a public meeting of a school board whose policy on integration she had earlier been arrested for protesting. Nancy Petty, pastor of Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh, and three others were [...]

Georgia Pastor Fights to Change High School Football ‘Demon’ Mascot

A Warner Robins pastor is on a crusade against something sacred to many in his middle Georgia town: high school football. The devil is at the center of a fight that seems to start every few years when someone new to Warner Robins realizes that the city’s oldest high school, which has one of the [...]

Young People Abandoning The Black Church; They Say Message Isn’t For Them

Sunday morning rolls around again, and I get the early wakeup call from my father. “Get up, Brandee. Get ready for church.” My first thought is to go right back to sleep, because I don’t want to go. It’s not a case of Sunday-morning laziness; I’d just rather not be there, and according to a [...]

Bernice King Will Not Take Top SCLC Post Next Month

Bernice King, the youngest child of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has decided she will not take the position of president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference at the group’s annual convention next month, a spokesman said Tuesday. Bernard LaFayette said King would wait until a Fulton County judge has resolved the months-long internal struggle [...]

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