Latest Articles
Surveys support openly gay in the military
The long-awaited Pentagon survey of military personnel found that the majority sees little negative impact if and when gays are allowed to serve openly in the U.S. armed forces....
Fewer ‘Middle Americans’ marry or attend worship
Marriage among Americans who have graduated from high school but not
college is on the decline, and their religious attendance has dropped at
the same time, a new report shows....
An astonishing life
A few weeks ago, on my way home on a crowded rush-hour train, I was
slouched down in my seat trying to hide my uncontrollable crying. I was sobbing...
Sunday, December 19, 2010: Matthew 1:18-25
When the lectionary tells me I can skip a few verses, I am not suspicious. I don't ask what secret is being kept from me or what doctrine is being protected....
King James Bible still exerts influence, literary scholar argues
New York, December 7 (ENInews)--The King James Bible may not be the dominant cultural reference point it once was in the United States, but it still influences contemporary letters in the country, ...
Most Protestant pastors think Bush, Palin are Christians but not Obama
WASHINGTON (RNS) The vast majority of Protestant pastors think
former President George W. Bush is a Christian, but less than half think...
First-call congregation: A place for rookies
Of the 16 pastors serving Calypso Presbyterian since the end of World War II, 15 have come straight from seminary.
A princess story I can get behind
I am not a fan of Disney princesses. I can deal with the
tiaras and the pink, but I'm disturbed by the sexualized visions of thinness,...
Mitsuo Fuchida and the cycle of love
Today is the 69th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor,
which drew the U.S. into World War II. The Japanese attack was led by Mitsuo...
Entwined with us
The birth of Jesus contradicts the idea of a God who "lay above the earth like a layer of icy cirrus." The birth means that we encounter God, not only in elegant theology but in work and in our enjoyment of beauty, friendship and love—in love particularly.
Pope gets gloves from ecumenical leader to warm relations
Rome, December 6 (ENInews)--The head of the World Council of Churches in his first official meeting with Pope Benedict XVI has said he wants to strengthen cooperation with the Roman Catholic Church...
Survey: Typical atheist is white son of religious parents
WASHINGTON (RNS) The typical member of a fast-growing atheist
association is a highly educated, married white male who grew up with
religious parents.
...
Churches push hard on last-minute legislation
WASHINGTON (RNS) With three weeks left before the 111th Congress
adjourns, faith groups are mounting a full court press on Capitol Hill...
Suspect's family fled bloodshed, now faces new despair
PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) Mohamed Mohamud was born into chaos, his family
fleeing a bloody civil war in Somalia to a crowded refugee camp in...
On ethics, clergy get middling grade
What do nurses, soldiers, pharmacists, elementary school teachers,
doctors and police officers have in common? Americans say they are all...
Name-calling
We
typically think of name-calling as trash talk, violent speech, all harm and no
good. Often it is. In the aftermath of the midterm elections, I'm well past my
quota of derogation and defamation. But not all name-calling is violence.
The endurance of rural congregations
The
little rural church I serve, along with two other retired clergy, has
two dozen members, if you carefully count everyone whether there or...
A review of The Abundant Community
The mantra of the real estate business is "location, location, location." In this attention-meriting book, the mantra is "local, local, local." John McKnight (professor emeritus at Northweste...
How the church grew in south Sudan
Philip Jenkins has argued that Christianity's future is an African one. If so, what does the area poised to become Africa's newest independent nation tell us about Christianity's future?