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Annual baptisms in South­ern Baptist churches have declined by 100,000 in the past 12 years and last year dropped to the lowest number in 64 years....

Weeks after authorizing a continued investigation of American nuns, Pope Francis told a group of nuns and priests from Latin America not to worry if they found themselves under similar scrutiny....

Bishops in the Church of England, who had strenuously opposed a bid to allow same-sex marriage, have signaled that they won’t try to derail the bill after it received an overwhelming vote of suppor...

Exodus International, a group that billed itself as “the oldest and largest Christian ministry dealing with faith and homosexuality,” announced June 19 that it was shutting its doors....

The money in the farm bill is dominated by food stamps. The debate over it is dominated by everything else. But debate or no debate, the Senate wants to cut food stamps a little, the House wants to cut them a lot more, and now GOP Rep. Mike Conaway of Texas wants to bring House Democrats around to the farm bill by making sure food stamps will get slashed regardless.

Midway through Sunday worship, I realized my sermon didn’t fit with Father’s Day. I had a Father’s Day prayer to use during the pastoral prayer, but it felt perfunctory to read the words....

New today from the Century: Patricia Appelbaum reviews Geoffrey Plank, why Chris Brundage doesn't call God "Father" (or "Mother"), more.

People tend to remember John Woolman as a heroic individual, both a reformer and a saint. Geoffrey Plank takes a broader view.

This collection draws on Carrie New­comer’s dozen releases on Rounder, adding two new tracks that continue in her tradition of exploring spiritual dimensions in everyday life....

Faith House wants people to engage other faiths—not by focusing on commonalities but by entering into a sacred space on its own terms.

c. 2013 USA Today...

“P.S. please excuse this scribble and burn it as soon as you read it. Good by.” If you spend days in university archives reading the chicken scratches of everyday folks from the 19th century, then you will run into lines like this. And when you do, your eyes may get big. A request to destroy or keep private a letter oftentimes means there is something juicy.

New today from the Century: Jesse James DeConto on religious boundary crossing, Steve Thorngate on the people who don't fact-check David Brooks, more.

David Brooks says some silly stuff, but his June 14 column included a doozy even for him: "In Corinthians, Jesus tells the crowds..." The text was soon corrected to identify the letter as First Corinthians and its writer as Paul, though as of today it still has him telling crowds things. Whatever. Michael Peppard finds the error ironic.

c. 2013 Religion News Service...

c. 2013 Religion News Service...

“I have decided to follow Jesus.” These words begin a well-known hymn, but for me they will always be about Gordon and Mary Cosby, cofounders of the Church of the Saviour in Washington, D.C....

Closing a church is like eating the last slice of bread—somehow if you eat the last slice, you’re responsible for consuming it all (never mind that someone else ate the last 27 slices). A church can be declining for 40 years, but if a pastor comes in and starts to talk about closing a congregation, then she closed the church. Many people don’t want to be that pastor.

For most of my life now, I’ve been sucked ever deeper into various forms of Americana music....

New today from the Century: LaVonne Neff reviews Robert Lustig, Kathy Grieb on the lectionary, more.