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NEW YORK — Former President Trump headlined the New York Archdiocese’s annual Al Smith charity dinner on Thursday night, trading a few jabs with Vice President Kamala Harris while also using the event as an opportunity to connect with Catholic voters. Harris did not attend the event in person — the first time a presidential […]
(OPINION) To the shock of the state of North Carolina, where my wife Nancy and I have lived since 2003, Hurricane Helene wreaked massive devastation, taking at least 118 lives with at least 92 still missing. No one saw this coming, and it has brought unimaginable suffering to whole communities living in the mountains of […]
(ANALYSIS) If you’ve spent time on Facebook over the past six months, you may have noticed photorealistic images that are too good to be true: children holding paintings that look like the work of professional artists, or majestic log cabin interiors that are the stuff of Airbnb dreams. Others, such as renderings of Jesus made […]
Giving trends Most pastors say their offering plates were at least as full as expected this year, but few saw giving top their budget. Half (50%) say giving this year has been about what they budgeted. Only once since 2008 have as many pastors seen their giving line up closely with their budget. In 2019, […]
(ANALYSIS) It was the rare Trump quote that caused groans as it rocketed through conservative media. But this soundbite came from an upcoming memoir from former first lady Melania Trump: “Why should anyone other than the woman herself have the power to determine what she does with her own body? A woman’s fundamental right of […]
NASHVILLE — Hurricane Katrina’s destruction in 2005 to New Orleans and surrounding areas prompted a yearslong response by Southern Baptist churches and Disaster Relief personnel, with volunteer recruitment for the latter spiking up to 80,000. Coy Webb, director for Send Relief Crisis Response, wouldn’t be surprised to see something similar for the damage from hurricanes […]
Worshiping with instruments As for music, the elders said it was clear they should use a blended model of a cappella and instrumental music in the new church’s worship. Northside leaders hope the addition of instruments will help them better reach younger residents in a region where a cappella Churches of Christ are little known […]
(ANALYSIS) A sculpture of the Virgin Mary showing her giving birth to Jesus was recently attacked and beheaded. Called “Crowning” by the artist Esther Strauss, the sculpture had been part of a temporary exhibition of art outside the Catholic St. Mary Cathedral in Linz, Austria. The sculpture was controversial for its explicit depiction of birth; […]
BIG SPRING, Texas — Brad Borggren arrived at his new pastorate in December 2019 with observations shared by many of his peers. Salem Baptist Church wanted to grow. Many great pastors had stood behind its pulpit in the church’s 115-year history. One of them, Roy Fish, went on to become one of the most beloved […]
(OPINION) Warning: Read this column at your own risk. This is a nut-case alert. The nut-case in this instance being … me. For I’m about to go full-throttle holy-roller wackadoodle on you. I’m getting inquiries from folks about the broadening war among Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah and now Iran. Folks are asking, Is this it? The […]