Latest Articles
Lesbian pastor to stand trial: Violated United Methodist ban
Though she previously escaped church court proceedings after outing herself to her bishop, a lesbian Methodist minister will stand trial for violating the church’s ban on “self-avowed practicing” g...
Data bite: Gallup's take on the influence of religion
A Gallup Poll says the number of Americans who think religion is increasing its influence on public life has dropped to its lowest percentage since 1995....
Bush defends war on Iraq, edges toward gay wedding ban: In State of the Union address
President Bush, speaking confidently and forcefully in his State of the Union address on January 20, defended the U.S.-led war on terrorism and efforts to establish democratic governments in Afghan...
SBC women's group backs Baptist Alliance: Woman's Missionary Union breaks ranks with SBC leaders
The leadership of the Woman’s Missionary Union, the 1-million-member women’s auxiliary to the Southern Baptist Convention, has voiced support of the Baptist World Alliance, breaking ranks with SBC ...
Salvation Army gets $1.5 billion bequest: From estate of philanthropist Joan Kroc
The Salvation Army, an evangelical denomination best known for its charitable work with the poor, says it will receive about $1.5 billion from the estate of philanthropist Joan Kroc to build 25 to ...
NCC joins in brief on prison detainees: Legal rights for Guantánamo prisoners
The National Council of Churches has joined a “friend of the court” brief at the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the legal rights of suspected terrorist detainees in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba....
Young adults missing from pews: Young singles may not contribute much money, but they often can give volunteer time
It’s not that they don’t care. In a recent study, 80 percent of people in their 20s said their faith is very important in their lives....
Tutu's daughter becomes a priest: Mpho Tutu ordained in Episcopal Church
As the daughter of a clergyman who was the public face of the antiapartheid movement, Mpho Tutu was accustomed to living in the shadow of her father, Archbishop Desmond Tutu of Cape Town, South Afr...
Briefly noted
President Bush used a special presidential prerogative January 16 to get one of his most controversial judicial nominees installed, temporarily, on a federal appeals panel....
Betting on the truth: Pete Rose's staged confession
What gives a human being the capacity to attend to the truth, and to grow in that capacity?” My friend’s question hung in the air, dangling over the center of the table as those of us in the room f...
Kinda sorry: Banal expressions of contrition
The Western world lost much when the confession-absolution dyad dropped God out of the equation....
Come on down: Exodus 34:29-35; Luke 9:28-36
Jesus leads his disciples up a mountain. He was forever making them go places with him that nobody much wanted to go. But this was different. Mountains are good, quiet, restorative places for Sabbath retreat, rest and renewal. The pace had been hectic, so they headed for the hills. But on the mountain everything changes. The disciples’ solitude is intruded upon by the dead. If Peter hoped to “find himself,” forget it. He is discovered by the two great figures of the faith—Moses and Elijah. There is stunning, transfiguring vision and inspired speech. Peter, jolted awake, listens in on the conversation between Jesus and the patriarchs.
Damn preacher (Luke 6:17-26)
Whereas my most “prophetic” sermons are in the imperative mood, Jesus preaches in the indicative.
Which Luther? A God-obsessed seeker: A God-obsessed seeker
I have lived with Martin Luther for 76 years, since I was christened with the reformer’s name. My father was a Lutheran teacher and organist....
Fog of war: Trouble ahead in Iraq
Contrary to what most Americans believe, the United States is in deep trouble in Iraq, and its policies are adrift. Especially ominous are problems surrounding the plan for June 30 elections....
Damn preacher: Luke 6:17-26
All I know about Jesus is what I heard him say. That’s all I know about almost anybody. It’s not true that “deeds speak louder than words.” Only words speak. The old “I’d rather see a sermon than hear one” is only partly true. Most ministerial speech these days tends to be in the affirmative mood. We pastors are, in the acerbic words of Stanley Hauerwas, a “quivering mass of availability.”
The Liberation of the Laity
Clergy sexual misconduct, the place of women in the church and issues of authority are all reasons for Roman Catho...