G - PEOPLE FILES
- Steve Gaines - Stanley Gale - Billy Galloway - Richard L Ganz - Jim & Mary Garlow - Frances Taylor Gench - Anthony George - Ian M Giatti - John Gibbs - Judy Gibson - Louie Giglio - Grayson Gilbert - Keith Giles - Peter Gillquist - Tom Gjelten - Jon Gleason - Kenneth Glasgow - Mary Glazier - Ariel Gold - James Golden - Lydia Goodman - Megan Goodwin - Cary Gordon - Chris Goswami - Paul Gould - Amanda Grace - Jack Graham - Micelle Graham - Anthony Granado - Stan Grant - Ken Graves - Marlena Graves - Mark Grayson - Joel Green - Julie Green - Jonathan Greenblatt - JD Greear - Julie Green - Mark Greene - Myal Greene - Adam Greenway - Steve Gregg - Joel Gregory - Crawford Gribben - Wendell Griffen - PJ Grisar - Emauel Grozea - Wayne Grudem - Anna Grummitt- Michael Gryboski - Kushil Gunasekera - Matthew Gunter - James C Guy -
steve gAINES
John Steven Gaines (born December 31, 1957) is an American Southern Baptist pastor, and the 61st President of the Southern Baptist Convention. He is currently serving at Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova
(a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee), one of the largest congregations in the Southern Baptist Convention and has visited Israel 16 times. On Sunday, July 10, 2005, the Pastor Search Committee of Bellevue Baptist Church presented Dr. Steve Gaines to the church congregation. At the conclusion of the services the Bellevue family overwhelmingly voted to call Steve Gaines as the seventh Pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church. Gaines succeeds the longtime Bellevue pastor Adrian Rogers.
(a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee), one of the largest congregations in the Southern Baptist Convention and has visited Israel 16 times. On Sunday, July 10, 2005, the Pastor Search Committee of Bellevue Baptist Church presented Dr. Steve Gaines to the church congregation. At the conclusion of the services the Bellevue family overwhelmingly voted to call Steve Gaines as the seventh Pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church. Gaines succeeds the longtime Bellevue pastor Adrian Rogers.
Steve Gaines Files
“Charles Stanley was a pioneer in Christian broadcasting. For decades his television ministry, In Touch, reached millions of people with the Gospel of Christ. He was a great man of God and he will be missed.”--Steve Gaines, former SBC president; April 18, 2023
stanley gale
Rev. Stanley D. Gale is a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America and author of several books, including Finding Forgiveness: Discovering the Healing Power of the Gospel, A Vine-Ripened Life: Spiritual Fruitfulness through Abiding in Christ and What Is Spiritual Warfare?.
Stanley Gale Files
“Humility functions in the fear of the Lord. Such fear makes God large in our eyes. We are completely and continually dependent upon Him. We exist by Him and for Him. We live through Him. In Him we live and move and have our being. The greater the presence of humility in our hearts, the greater we will see ourselves as debtors to grace and the more in awe of God we will be. James tells us that God 'gives more grace,' asserting that 'God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble' (4:6). Humility is a conduit of grace. — Stanley Gale; Vine Ripened Life
“Humility functions in the fear of the Lord. Such fear makes God large in our eyes. We are completely and continually dependent upon Him. We exist by Him and for Him. We live through Him. In Him we live and move and have our being. The greater the presence of humility in our hearts, the greater we will see ourselves as debtors to grace and the more in awe of God we will be. James tells us that God 'gives more grace,' asserting that 'God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble' (4:6). Humility is a conduit of grace. — Stanley Gale; Vine Ripened Life
billy galloway
March 31, 2015: Picayune Item: Local churches to celebrate Easter with services
This week, a number of churches across Pearl River County are commemorating Easter Sunday. “Easter is the wonderful story of the resurrection of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ,” Central Baptist Church Pastor Rev. Billy Galloway said.
This week, a number of churches across Pearl River County are commemorating Easter Sunday. “Easter is the wonderful story of the resurrection of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ,” Central Baptist Church Pastor Rev. Billy Galloway said.
Richard L Ganz
Richard L Ganz
Take your disabling thoughts captive through confession. Paul urges us to "take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (Rom. 12:21). Confront your disabling thoughts. Turn them over to God and become who He sees you can be. It will take work to take your thoughts captive each time they pop into your mind. But it is possible with the help of the Holy Spirit.......It is possible. It is not easy to retrain your thoughts or to respond in new Christ-like ways. Take heart: as God empowers you to focus your mind on the right things, it will become easier. You can develop a new frame of reference, based on what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. --Richard L Ganz
Jim & Mary Garlow
July 11, 2023: Bucks County Beacon: Pennsylvania’s Prayer Warrior: Abby Abildness And Her Dominionist Crusade In The Commonwealth
We initially reported on the NAR in August last year. As stated in that report, some of the NAR’s most prominent leaders include:
We initially reported on the NAR in August last year. As stated in that report, some of the NAR’s most prominent leaders include:
- Cindy Jacobs
- John Benefiel
- Lance Wallnau
- Abby Abildness
- Dutch Sheets
- Chuck Pierce
- Ché Ahn
- Lou Engle
- Jim Garlow
- Steve Strang (Charisma News)
- Steve Shultz (Elijah List).
May 25, 2023: Right Wing Watch: Kingdom In Politics Is Training Right-Wing Christians to Run for Office for the Purpose of ‘Bringing Heaven to Earth’
While WPN founders, right-wing activists Jim Garlow and Mario Bramnick, often use the program as a conduit for the promotion of wild conspiracy theories, Wednesday night’s program featuring a conservative Christian political strategist named Aamon Ross who runs a political consulting business called Kingdom In Politics, the purpose of which is to “prepare and inspire believers to take an active role in politics.”
While WPN founders, right-wing activists Jim Garlow and Mario Bramnick, often use the program as a conduit for the promotion of wild conspiracy theories, Wednesday night’s program featuring a conservative Christian political strategist named Aamon Ross who runs a political consulting business called Kingdom In Politics, the purpose of which is to “prepare and inspire believers to take an active role in politics.”
April 25, 2023: Church Leaders: Christian Group To Organize Prayer, Evangelism Campaign at Sold Out SatanCon
The social media broadcast featured pastors Jentezen Franklin, Paula Cain White, Samuel Rodriguez, and Jim Garlow; author Eric Metaxas; worship leader Sean Feucht; American Association of Christian Counselors president Tim Clinton; James Dobson; and the former president himself, who noted in his remarks his belief that “we’re being discriminated against as a faith.”
The social media broadcast featured pastors Jentezen Franklin, Paula Cain White, Samuel Rodriguez, and Jim Garlow; author Eric Metaxas; worship leader Sean Feucht; American Association of Christian Counselors president Tim Clinton; James Dobson; and the former president himself, who noted in his remarks his belief that “we’re being discriminated against as a faith.”
Feb 23, 2023: God TV: ASBURY UNIVERSITY LEADERS HALT NON-STOP WORSHIP TO SHIFT REVIVAL TO ‘SENDING’ MODE
Asbury revival attendee, Jim Garlow, shared on Facebook his conversation with the President of Asbury University, Kevin Brown. It was the first time he met him on Sunday night. He also attached a photo of him inside the Hughes Auditorium along with the post.
Asbury revival attendee, Jim Garlow, shared on Facebook his conversation with the President of Asbury University, Kevin Brown. It was the first time he met him on Sunday night. He also attached a photo of him inside the Hughes Auditorium along with the post.
Feb 14, 2023: Charisma: Jim Garlow: Is Asbury Revival the Third Great Awakening?
People across social media are calling out what is going on at Asbury University as the start of a revival. Jim Garlow was one of the first people to post about the Asbury University revival and what he was hearing from leaders at the auditorium. I sat down with Garlow to talk about whether or not this move of God is the start of the Third Great Awakening.
"I'm praising God. This is a remarkable moment that we've cried out for. Now we'll see what God's going to do with this. I think this could be the big one, the one we have longed for, the revival that could go global," Garlow says.
People across social media are calling out what is going on at Asbury University as the start of a revival. Jim Garlow was one of the first people to post about the Asbury University revival and what he was hearing from leaders at the auditorium. I sat down with Garlow to talk about whether or not this move of God is the start of the Third Great Awakening.
"I'm praising God. This is a remarkable moment that we've cried out for. Now we'll see what God's going to do with this. I think this could be the big one, the one we have longed for, the revival that could go global," Garlow says.
Jan 31, 2023: Baptist News Global: Museum of the Bible to host Wednesday morning event to pray for God’s judgment on America, and breakfast is not included
Well Versed is led by Jim and Rosemary Garlow. He is a former pastor who served on Donald Trump’s Faith Advisory team for four years and has a daily radio commentary. She identifies herself as a relative of Oskar Schindler (of Schindler’s List) and is active in various causes supporting Israel, including making more than 70 trips or spiritual pilgrimages to Israel.
Well Versed is led by Jim and Rosemary Garlow. He is a former pastor who served on Donald Trump’s Faith Advisory team for four years and has a daily radio commentary. She identifies herself as a relative of Oskar Schindler (of Schindler’s List) and is active in various causes supporting Israel, including making more than 70 trips or spiritual pilgrimages to Israel.
francis taylor gench
Frances Taylor Gench is a Presbyterian minister, New Testament scholar, and the Herbert Worth & Annie H. Jackson Professor of Biblical Interpretation at Union Presbyterian Seminary. Gench is ordained in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and has served as parish associate at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. She has previously served as a member of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly's Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church (2001-2006), and has served as a faculty member at Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg (now a part of United Lutheran Seminary).
Scripture, by the power of God’s Spirit, continues to form and reform us, shaping our vision of the world and guiding us to new understandings of what God is calling us to be and do. This is why Presbyterians and other Reformed Christians take as their motto the ancient words “church reformed, always reforming” (Ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda) or, as the Book of Order fully translates it: “The church reformed, always to be reformed according to the Word of God” in the power of the Spirit (Ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda secundum verbum Dei). (For more, read here.) This important point – that Scripture itself continues to form and reform the church – is often overlooked in the midst of contentious ecclesial debates where one “side” claims faithfulness to Scripture and declares that the “other side” has abandoned it. Often, there is biblical logic and integrity to an opponent’s point of view.
--Francis Taylor Gench; Presbyterian Outlook; On women pastors and biblical authority: A Presbyterian reflection 7.6.23
--Francis Taylor Gench; Presbyterian Outlook; On women pastors and biblical authority: A Presbyterian reflection 7.6.23
anthony george
Dec 17, 2022: Frederick News-Post: Some Georgia pastors push back against spread of Christian nationalism
First Baptist Atlanta senior pastor, the Rev. Anthony George said he prefers to call himself a “patriotic Christian instead of a Christian nationalist.”
A patriotic Christian means “You’re proud of our country and proud of the things your country stands for,” George said.
What’s in a name?
First Baptist Atlanta senior pastor, the Rev. Anthony George said he prefers to call himself a “patriotic Christian instead of a Christian nationalist.”
A patriotic Christian means “You’re proud of our country and proud of the things your country stands for,” George said.
What’s in a name?
ian m giatti
Ian Michael Giatti is a seasoned ministry leader whose first passion is teaching the Word of God for audiences of all ages. In addition to his career in broadcast and digital journalism, Ian has served as a Sunday School teacher, in ministry leadership, and has led Bible studies for inmates and staff at local jails. Giatti and his family live in Texas.
What happens when you tweet in 2023 that God is not “feminine”?
Denny Burk, a professor of Biblical Studies at Boyce College, the undergraduate school of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, found out firsthand after he shared a few quotes from the book The Christian Family, written by Dutch Calvinist theologian Herman Bavinck. In a blog post Monday, Burk shared a statement from Bavinck in which the author wrote, “God is never portrayed or presented as being feminine” in the pages of Scripture. After receiving “a lot of negative interaction” following the tweet, Burk offered additional context for Bavinck’s statement in which Bavinck discusses how the Bible portrays God with respect to the exclusiveness of sexual characteristics. --Ian M Giatti; Christian Post: Christian prof faces backlash on Twitter for sharing theologian's quote saying God is not 'feminine' 1.12.23
Denny Burk, a professor of Biblical Studies at Boyce College, the undergraduate school of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, found out firsthand after he shared a few quotes from the book The Christian Family, written by Dutch Calvinist theologian Herman Bavinck. In a blog post Monday, Burk shared a statement from Bavinck in which the author wrote, “God is never portrayed or presented as being feminine” in the pages of Scripture. After receiving “a lot of negative interaction” following the tweet, Burk offered additional context for Bavinck’s statement in which Bavinck discusses how the Bible portrays God with respect to the exclusiveness of sexual characteristics. --Ian M Giatti; Christian Post: Christian prof faces backlash on Twitter for sharing theologian's quote saying God is not 'feminine' 1.12.23
john gibbs
Feb 21, 2023: Politico: What It Looks Like When the Far Right Takes Control of Local Government
In their first meeting, the new board members adopted a series of measures that changed things in Ottawa County. They fired the county administrator and replaced him with John Gibbs, a former Trump administration official, Christian missionary, failed congressional candidate and election denier who once suggested women should not have the right to vote.
In their first meeting, the new board members adopted a series of measures that changed things in Ottawa County. They fired the county administrator and replaced him with John Gibbs, a former Trump administration official, Christian missionary, failed congressional candidate and election denier who once suggested women should not have the right to vote.
judy gibson
April 28, 2023: Laurinburg Exchange: Methodist churches share thoughts on disaffiliation decisions
“We knew what we had in the United Methodist Church,” shared Judy Gibson, chairperson of the FUMC church council, and that the older congregation was more comfortable with staying put. “We decided to stay with what we felt secure in and didn’t want to deal with the hullabaloo of disaffiliating and not knowing exactly what we were getting into.”
“We knew what we had in the United Methodist Church,” shared Judy Gibson, chairperson of the FUMC church council, and that the older congregation was more comfortable with staying put. “We decided to stay with what we felt secure in and didn’t want to deal with the hullabaloo of disaffiliating and not knowing exactly what we were getting into.”
Louie Giglio
Louie Giglio is the pastor of Passion City Church, and the founder and visionary of the Passion movement, which exists to call a generation to leverage their lives for the fame of Jesus. Louie is the national-bestselling author of over a dozen books including his newest release, Seeing God as a Perfect Father, as well as Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table, Goliath Must Fall, Indescribable: 100 Devotions about God & Science, The Comeback, The Air I Breathe, I Am Not But I Know I Am, and others. He and his wife, Shelley, lead the teams at Passion City Church, sixstepsrecords, Passion Publishing, and the Passion Global Institute. Louie and Shelley live in Atlanta, Georgia.
Louie Giglio
It’s been said that you can’t understand someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes. Well, Jesus walked way more than a mile; He walked thirty-three years in human skin. He knows how hard life can be in a broken, sinful world. He knows how difficult it is to be part of that world and still remain connected to the Father. But there’s something even more startling to realize. Not only did Jesus walk on earth and face the same struggles you face, but Jesus wants to walk with you. It’s why He created you, so you can know Him and make Him known. --Louie Giglio
grayson gilbert
Grayson Gilbert
Simply by reading this passage, one can see there is a bit more going on here than the fact that someone is judging another person. As we can see in v. 2, the conjunction “for” explains the reason behind the command not to judge. The way or manner in which we judge will be used against us. In other words, the same standard we apply for others will be the standard by which we are judged. There is an inherent warning here for people—that much is clear.
The implication is rather simple: judge and you will also be judged. How you judge someone is the same way you will be judged, hence why Christ explains we ought to first examine our own motives and actions first. --Grayson Gilbert; The Chorus in the Chaos
The implication is rather simple: judge and you will also be judged. How you judge someone is the same way you will be judged, hence why Christ explains we ought to first examine our own motives and actions first. --Grayson Gilbert; The Chorus in the Chaos
keith giles
Apr 14, 2023: Spiritual Brewpub: Top 10 Reasons for Thoroughly Deconstructing Evangelicalism
My friend Keith Giles recently wrote a blog entitled “Top 10 Reasons to Deconstruct Your Faith.” I’d like to flip those reasons and offer the top ten elements of a harmful faith. We deconstruct to expose and leave these things behind
My friend Keith Giles recently wrote a blog entitled “Top 10 Reasons to Deconstruct Your Faith.” I’d like to flip those reasons and offer the top ten elements of a harmful faith. We deconstruct to expose and leave these things behind
peter gillquist
Feb 13, 2023: The Daily News: Orthodox Church offers 'new' denomination of Christianity
The Rev. Peter Gillquist, head of missions and evangelism for the Antiochian Orthodox Church, has been overwhelmed with such interest, especially from Protestants. He told the Washington Post as far back as 1992, “There are so many inquiries, I don’t have time to scratch up new contacts. My one question is: Can a non-ethnic (English-speaking person) make it in Orthodoxy? I say yes. If 2,000 ‘Campus Crusade’ and ‘Billy Graham’ types can make it (here), anyone can.”
The Rev. Peter Gillquist, head of missions and evangelism for the Antiochian Orthodox Church, has been overwhelmed with such interest, especially from Protestants. He told the Washington Post as far back as 1992, “There are so many inquiries, I don’t have time to scratch up new contacts. My one question is: Can a non-ethnic (English-speaking person) make it in Orthodoxy? I say yes. If 2,000 ‘Campus Crusade’ and ‘Billy Graham’ types can make it (here), anyone can.”
tom gjelten
Oct 21, 2022: Religion News: Best In Religion Journalism: Religion News Association Presents Its Annual Awards
Among the highlights:
• Tom Gjelten, retired religion correspondent for NPR, won for Religion Story of the Year for his piece “An inconvenient genocide: Why we don’t know more about the Uyghurs” for Moment magazine. (Last week’s Plug-in highlighted the other finalists.)
Among the highlights:
• Tom Gjelten, retired religion correspondent for NPR, won for Religion Story of the Year for his piece “An inconvenient genocide: Why we don’t know more about the Uyghurs” for Moment magazine. (Last week’s Plug-in highlighted the other finalists.)
kenneth glasgow
Feb 27, 2023: 1819 News: Dothan pastor, Al Sharpton half-brother Kenneth Glasgow facing up to 20 years after pleading guilty to tax evasion, mail fraud, drug conspiracy
Reverend Al Sharpton's half-brother Kenneth Glasgow is facing up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion, mail fraud and drug conspiracy charges on Friday.
Glasgow, a pastor and founder of two non-profits in Dothan, entered a plea deal in Montgomery federal court to avoid a trial that was set to start in March.
Reverend Al Sharpton's half-brother Kenneth Glasgow is facing up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion, mail fraud and drug conspiracy charges on Friday.
Glasgow, a pastor and founder of two non-profits in Dothan, entered a plea deal in Montgomery federal court to avoid a trial that was set to start in March.
mary glazier
Jan 10, 2023: Baptist News Global: The New Apostolic Reformation drove the January 6 riots, so why was it overlooked by the House Select Committee?
Unfortunately for Engle and the apostles, that awakening never happened with George W. Bush as president. So in 2008, the charismatic apostles pushed one of their own into the limelight, Sarah Palin.
Palin embodied everything the new apostles hoped for. Her church was led by Mary Glazier, who was a member of the Apostolic Council of Prophetic Elders. She had spent years being mentored with this charismatic spiritual warfare mindset. But in the end, she also couldn’t give them the dominion they craved.
Unfortunately for Engle and the apostles, that awakening never happened with George W. Bush as president. So in 2008, the charismatic apostles pushed one of their own into the limelight, Sarah Palin.
Palin embodied everything the new apostles hoped for. Her church was led by Mary Glazier, who was a member of the Apostolic Council of Prophetic Elders. She had spent years being mentored with this charismatic spiritual warfare mindset. But in the end, she also couldn’t give them the dominion they craved.
jon gleason
Jon Gleason was a bi-vocational pastor in Glenrothes, Scotland, pastoring Free Baptist Church. He supports his family by working as a computer programmer. He and his wife Terri have six children. He blogs at MindRenewers.com.
Jon Gleason Files
"Proverbs 5:19 is God-inspired Scripture, yet those who speak reverently of God’s gift of marriage and are careful about purity rarely teach it. This is understandable, for both the Hebrew and English wording are very direct on the pleasures of marriage. Yet, it creates a problem, for into the gap have stepped the kind of preachers who think it is a good idea to preach God’s Word while wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt, preachers who may often misuse this passage.
The verse, understood properly, refutes the pleasure-worship which pervades society and mars many Christian marriages. Many modern translations neglect a wordplay in the original Hebrew. In this post, we’ll look at just enough Hebrew to help English readers understand why the Authorized Version translators handled this verse as they did, but mainly we’ll look at what this verse says to believers living in a pleasure-crazed world." -Jon Gleason; Mind Renewers; 6.17.13
The verse, understood properly, refutes the pleasure-worship which pervades society and mars many Christian marriages. Many modern translations neglect a wordplay in the original Hebrew. In this post, we’ll look at just enough Hebrew to help English readers understand why the Authorized Version translators handled this verse as they did, but mainly we’ll look at what this verse says to believers living in a pleasure-crazed world." -Jon Gleason; Mind Renewers; 6.17.13
ariel gold
Ariel Gold is Executive Director, Fellowship of Reconciliation | Middle East Policy Analyst | Social Justice Advocate, Specialization in Israel/Palestine. Holds a Bachelors in Policy Analysis and Management from Cornell University and a master’s degree in Social Work from Binghamton University.
Ariel Gold Files
Christian nationalism is the belief that America is blessed by God to be a Christian nation, as it was founded, and that civic life and Christianity should be fused together. Connected to white supremacy, nativism, patriarchy and the like, it envisions Jesus not as the humble Semitic man who turned the other cheek and washed his disciples’ feet, but a broad-shouldered, white man with thick biceps and a sword (or if one had been available at the time, an AR-15) at his hip..........Aside from white militia groups and the extremists who led the Jan. 6 insurrection, some gun manufacturers appear to be among the most out front proponents of the connection between guns and Christian nationalism. They see their businesses as both patriotic and the fulfillment of a sacred religious duty.
--Ariel Gold; Waging Nonviolence; 5.1.23
--Ariel Gold; Waging Nonviolence; 5.1.23
May 4, 2023: Word & Way: Faith Leaders Ask Biden to Mark Mother’s Day With Prayer Day Against Gun Violence
“In the wake of mass shootings, the constant refrain from these Christian nationalists is only that Americans need to pray more while acting as though it would be sacrilegious to consider any limitations at all on gun access,” said FOR Executive Director Ariel Gold in a statement. “We have called on religious leaders to sign on to our Mother’s Day initiative, because this melding of Christian faith and white supremacist violence needs to be called out for what it has always been: a perverse manipulation of faith into a form of control, coercion, and domination.”
“In the wake of mass shootings, the constant refrain from these Christian nationalists is only that Americans need to pray more while acting as though it would be sacrilegious to consider any limitations at all on gun access,” said FOR Executive Director Ariel Gold in a statement. “We have called on religious leaders to sign on to our Mother’s Day initiative, because this melding of Christian faith and white supremacist violence needs to be called out for what it has always been: a perverse manipulation of faith into a form of control, coercion, and domination.”
james golden
May 16, 2023:
National and state Christian leaders spoke out against the white supremacist ideology espoused during two recent Christian nationalist rallies in South Florida. Christians Against Christian Nationalism and Faithful America organized a livestreamed event as a counter perspective to the May 11 “Pastors for Trump” reception and the May 12 ReAwaken America Tour rally, both held at the Trump Doral resort in Miami. “We are here today as Christians who are horrified to see the faith we hold dear being used to spread lies, violence and authoritarian theocracy,” said Amanda Tyler, executive director of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and lead organizer of Christians Against Christian Nationalism. Tyler was joined at All Angels Episcopal Church in Miami Springs by Nathan Empsall of Faithful America, Russell Meyer of the Florida Council of Churches, Jennifer Butler of Faith in Public Life Action, James Golden of Pastors for Florida Children and Charles Toy of The Christian Left. More at Baptist News Global
National and state Christian leaders spoke out against the white supremacist ideology espoused during two recent Christian nationalist rallies in South Florida. Christians Against Christian Nationalism and Faithful America organized a livestreamed event as a counter perspective to the May 11 “Pastors for Trump” reception and the May 12 ReAwaken America Tour rally, both held at the Trump Doral resort in Miami. “We are here today as Christians who are horrified to see the faith we hold dear being used to spread lies, violence and authoritarian theocracy,” said Amanda Tyler, executive director of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and lead organizer of Christians Against Christian Nationalism. Tyler was joined at All Angels Episcopal Church in Miami Springs by Nathan Empsall of Faithful America, Russell Meyer of the Florida Council of Churches, Jennifer Butler of Faith in Public Life Action, James Golden of Pastors for Florida Children and Charles Toy of The Christian Left. More at Baptist News Global
lydia goodman
Lydia Goodman Files
This “Word of Faith” mess, that blessings are somehow related to the words and actions of the believer and not to the grace of God alone; is dangerous in that it becomes a faith of works to somehow “get something from God”. I submit that, for the less mature Christian, this is a dangerous doctrine--capable of heaping condemnation on the heads of those struggling in various areas of their lives. “I must not be spiritual enough,” they say to themselves. “I must have some sin in my life that is hindering God’s flow of blessings upon me.” How sad that so many of us are blinded to the realities of the Christian life by, most of the time, well-meaning men in the pulpit who themselves have been taken in by “wolves in sheep’s clothing”. God does promise that He knows the plans He has for us...to prosper us, not to harm us, and that He has a plan to give us a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). But.. exactly where does it say that Christians are supposed to have economic security and that HIS prosperity should be equated with financial success?" --Lydia Goodman; Want a Blessing Don't Name it and Claim It; 6.27.15
megan goodwin
Megan Goodwin, Ph.D., is a scholar of gender, race, sexuality, politics, and American religions. She is the author of Abusing Religion: Literary Persecution, Sex Scandals, and American Minority Religions (Rutgers 2020). “With Ilyse Morgenstein Fuerst, she cohosts Keeping It 101: A Killjoy’s Introduction to Religion Podcast and is currently cowriting Religion Is Not Done with You (Beacon 2024). Her next book is tentatively entitled Cults Incorporated: The Business of Bad Religion.
Jan 30, 2023: New Republic: Ron DeSantis and His Christian Crusaders Are Stealing Trump’s Religious Thunder
Over the last few decades, there has been a dramatic “Catholicization of public morality.” Religion scholar Megan Goodwin introduced this phrase in her book Abusing Religion: Literary Persecution, Sex Scandals, and American Minority Religions to describe the adoption of historically Catholic positions on matters like abortion, as well as conservative evangelicals’ increasing willingness to support Catholic politicians whose religion they privately disparage. If DeSantis has benefitted from this process, he is also accelerating it.
Over the last few decades, there has been a dramatic “Catholicization of public morality.” Religion scholar Megan Goodwin introduced this phrase in her book Abusing Religion: Literary Persecution, Sex Scandals, and American Minority Religions to describe the adoption of historically Catholic positions on matters like abortion, as well as conservative evangelicals’ increasing willingness to support Catholic politicians whose religion they privately disparage. If DeSantis has benefitted from this process, he is also accelerating it.
Abusing Religion: Literary Persecution, Sex Scandals,
and American Minority Religions by Megan Goodwin; July 2020
Sex abuse happens in all communities, but American minority religions often face disproportionate allegations of sexual abuse. Why, in a country that consistently fails to acknowledge—much less address—the sexual abuse of women and children, do American religious outsiders so often face allegations of sexual misconduct? Why does the American public presume to know “what’s really going on” in minority religious communities? Why are sex abuse allegations such an effective way to discredit people on America’s religious margins? What makes Americans so willing, so eager to identify religion as the cause of sex abuse? Abusing Religion argues that sex abuse in minority religious communities is an American problem, not (merely) a religious one.
and American Minority Religions by Megan Goodwin; July 2020
Sex abuse happens in all communities, but American minority religions often face disproportionate allegations of sexual abuse. Why, in a country that consistently fails to acknowledge—much less address—the sexual abuse of women and children, do American religious outsiders so often face allegations of sexual misconduct? Why does the American public presume to know “what’s really going on” in minority religious communities? Why are sex abuse allegations such an effective way to discredit people on America’s religious margins? What makes Americans so willing, so eager to identify religion as the cause of sex abuse? Abusing Religion argues that sex abuse in minority religious communities is an American problem, not (merely) a religious one.
cary gordon
Cary Gordon Files
“When you look at those four things, you know, that's what I would expect out of a kindergarten teacher. I would train my children to live like this. And I would never turn over the nuclear codes to someone who doesn't meet these four basic plumb-line levels of having some moral strength. But Americans seem real, I'll use the word ‘hellbent’ on playing the game of lesser evil-ism.” --Rev. Cary Gordon of Cornerstone Church in Sioux City; Weighing Trump with Exodus 18:21; 5.7.23
March 5, 2022:
Pastor Cary Gordon (Sioux City, Iowa; Cornerstone World Outreach) has an article posted at "The Gatekeepers" titled "Destruction of liberty must continue in America until we repent for how we elect our leaders." In it he lists 9 bullet points which describes how a person should be picked as President. He used Deuteronomy 17 as his framework. His first point is that the leader "Must be chosen by God (Vs. 15) through God's delegated ecclesiastical authority, not by lawless populism." and it goes on in a way any Christian Nationalist would be quite proud of. It does more than erode Democracy but destroys it completely..which may be insight as to why the GOP nationalists dont seem bothers by their anti democratic efforts. I would be curious if Trump is still the one "chosen by God" or many of the other Republican congressmen and governors who seem to be making effort to usurp America as it is and create their own government. His article ends with "American antinomianism has usurped every single one of these immutable and wise plumb-line standards for office-holders. Destruction of liberty must continue in America until we repent for costuming our political and legal foolishness with counterfeit grace arguments to justify disobedience." Though in his mind it is clear he means something else but he is essentially a gospel of fascism.
Pastor Cary Gordon (Sioux City, Iowa; Cornerstone World Outreach) has an article posted at "The Gatekeepers" titled "Destruction of liberty must continue in America until we repent for how we elect our leaders." In it he lists 9 bullet points which describes how a person should be picked as President. He used Deuteronomy 17 as his framework. His first point is that the leader "Must be chosen by God (Vs. 15) through God's delegated ecclesiastical authority, not by lawless populism." and it goes on in a way any Christian Nationalist would be quite proud of. It does more than erode Democracy but destroys it completely..which may be insight as to why the GOP nationalists dont seem bothers by their anti democratic efforts. I would be curious if Trump is still the one "chosen by God" or many of the other Republican congressmen and governors who seem to be making effort to usurp America as it is and create their own government. His article ends with "American antinomianism has usurped every single one of these immutable and wise plumb-line standards for office-holders. Destruction of liberty must continue in America until we repent for costuming our political and legal foolishness with counterfeit grace arguments to justify disobedience." Though in his mind it is clear he means something else but he is essentially a gospel of fascism.
Nov 1, 2021: Christianity Daily: What Happened To American Christianity? New Must-Watch Documentary Exposes What Christians Need To Know Before It’s Too Late
During a three-year investigation, the short film "Enemies Within: The Church" was created to expose the social justice gospel that is corrupting and destroying churches, Bible schools, and seminaries throughout the world. The producer addressed the topic at hand during a brief conversation with a media entrepreneur.
Charisma Magazine Founder Stephen Strang interviewed Pastor Cary Gordon of Cornerstone Church in Sioux City, Iowa for yet another special episode of The Strang Report. They discussed Pastor Gordon's motivation for making the film and his appeal for Christians everywhere to stand up for the truth.
During a three-year investigation, the short film "Enemies Within: The Church" was created to expose the social justice gospel that is corrupting and destroying churches, Bible schools, and seminaries throughout the world. The producer addressed the topic at hand during a brief conversation with a media entrepreneur.
Charisma Magazine Founder Stephen Strang interviewed Pastor Cary Gordon of Cornerstone Church in Sioux City, Iowa for yet another special episode of The Strang Report. They discussed Pastor Gordon's motivation for making the film and his appeal for Christians everywhere to stand up for the truth.
chris goswami
Chris Goswami worked for 30 years in the telecoms industry starting as a Software Engineer in the UK, and ending as a Vice President at Enea Openwave, originally a Silicon Valley start-up. He is an experienced speaker having spoken and chaired events in many countries, and in the late 1980s was involved in some of the earliest research into “CDMA” — the basis for mobile telephony worldwide. Brought up a Hindu, Chris became a Christian at 19 and has served in many roles in local churches.Today he works as Associate Minister at Lymm Baptist Church and Chaplain to Manchester Airport. He was formerly Associate Minister at Brownley Green, Baptist Church in Wythenshawe, Manchester
Chris Goswami
1 in 3 Americans call themselves evangelical Christians, and 60 per cent of the Republican electorate are evangelicals. This is a nationalist Christian movement that blends together patriotism, politics, and God. It is powerful and profoundly influential to an extent those of us outside the US find hard to grasp.
Some base their support for Trump on the Bible, likening him to the Old Testament character King Cyrus. Despite being an unbelieving Persian ruler from another religion, Cyrus is anointed in Isaiah 44-45 as God’s “shepherd” to help deliver ancient Israel from Babylonian captivity. This concept of an “imperfect vessel used for greater good” has often been applied to Trump.
Many evangelicals don’t personally like Trump but their relationship with him is transactional - they vote for him and he shapes the country to their liking. They hold their nose and vote for policy over character.
Other evangelicals of course love the man himself. They see Trump’s enemies as God’s enemies. In their eyes he can do no wrong and he really was robbed of the 2020 election. These extremist opinions tend to get the press coverage. --Chris Goswami; Premier Magazine; Why US evangelicals are still saying ‘Amen’ to Trump 8.3.23
Some base their support for Trump on the Bible, likening him to the Old Testament character King Cyrus. Despite being an unbelieving Persian ruler from another religion, Cyrus is anointed in Isaiah 44-45 as God’s “shepherd” to help deliver ancient Israel from Babylonian captivity. This concept of an “imperfect vessel used for greater good” has often been applied to Trump.
Many evangelicals don’t personally like Trump but their relationship with him is transactional - they vote for him and he shapes the country to their liking. They hold their nose and vote for policy over character.
Other evangelicals of course love the man himself. They see Trump’s enemies as God’s enemies. In their eyes he can do no wrong and he really was robbed of the 2020 election. These extremist opinions tend to get the press coverage. --Chris Goswami; Premier Magazine; Why US evangelicals are still saying ‘Amen’ to Trump 8.3.23
Paul M. Gould is an associate professor of philosophy of religion and director of the M.A. Philosophy of Religion program at Palm Beach Atlantic University. Gould earned his doctorate in philosophy from Purdue University. He is the author or editor of ten scholarly and popular-level books including Cultural Apologetics, Philosophy: A Christian Introduction, and The Story of the Cosmos. He has been a visiting scholar at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School’s Henry Center, working on the intersection of science and faith, and is the founder and president of the Two Tasks Institute. He is a widely sought-after speaker in apologetics and philosophy. He speaks regularly at universities, churches and ministries around the country, including Summit Ministries, the C.S. Lewis Institute and the Evangelical Philosophical Society’s annual apologetics conference
Paul M Gould Files
“The work of establishing the Christian voice, conscience, and imagination within a culture so that Christianity is seen as true and satisfying.” --Paul M Gould defining cultural apologetics; Cultural Apologetics; Renewing the Christian Voice, Conscience, and Imagination in a Disenchanted World Paperback – 2019
“The work of establishing the Christian voice, conscience, and imagination within a culture so that Christianity is seen as true and satisfying.” --Paul M Gould defining cultural apologetics; Cultural Apologetics; Renewing the Christian Voice, Conscience, and Imagination in a Disenchanted World Paperback – 2019
amanda grace
May 15, 2023:
Following are a few of the most bizarre things that was preached last night at the REAwaken Tour, which is essentially a Christian Nationalist Lovefest for Donald, the sexual predator, Trump. Michael Flynn's remarks (below) are dehumanizing and dangerous.
MAGA cultists gathered at The Trump National Doral resort last night for a "Pastors For Trump" event that kicked off with a prayer asking God to "intervene in the affairs of this nation" by giving Trump "divine wisdom" and "divine discernment."
Self proclaimed "Prophet" Amanda Grace, in one of the most bizarre messages, warned of technologically advanced “mermaids and water people” spreading perversion and told the crowd, “we are meant for hand to hand combat.”
Ex-American Idol contestant and Flat-Earther right-wing activist Jimmy Levy resurrected a conspiracy theory that was championed by QAnon. These people are drinking the blood of children," Levy proclaimed. "These (Hollywood) people are injecting a chemical called adrenochrome that they extract from children that are scared." (apparently because he was on American Idol he is an expert on all things Hollywood ¯\_(ツ)_/¯).
Pastor Mark Burns cited the Bible to suggest that violence is needed to take power: "You got to get to the point where you realize that when they smack you in the face you smack them back two times harder," Burns said, quoting Matthew 5:38-40, which reads, "If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also." He then suggested violence as he noted that the "Bible says the violent take it... and we take it by force," in reference to Matthew 11:12, which reads, "And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.""We are here ready to take this nation back," said Burns during the event this week. "And I believe without a shadow of a doubt, the only man that God has anointed him...to be the next President of the United States of America and that is Donald Trump. That's why we got to declare war on this transgender agenda that tried to destroy our children's minds in the United States of America."
Michael Flynn weighed in, of course: "The other side is an ideology that they don't have faith. They don't believe in God. They have no soul. They have no consciousness......When we think about something, we go, you know, black and white right and wrong, good and evil. They don't see things like that. They don't see in those terms."
Baptist Pastor Brian Kaylor said that Flynn's comment is a "dangerous dehumanizing rhetoric," and that he's "painting this as a battle between God's people & soulless creatures."
If they can keep pushing the idea that anyone left of them is soul-less..........they are doing the same thing Hitler did in German with the Jews. Soul-less people are easier to kill. And they will do it to purify whatever race or creed they are claiming. Last night, after he cancelled his Iowa rally, Trump called Michael Flynn and told him he would "bring him back" in his next administration. The "Reawaken" tour came to the Trump National Doral Miami for a three-day conference.
Following are a few of the most bizarre things that was preached last night at the REAwaken Tour, which is essentially a Christian Nationalist Lovefest for Donald, the sexual predator, Trump. Michael Flynn's remarks (below) are dehumanizing and dangerous.
MAGA cultists gathered at The Trump National Doral resort last night for a "Pastors For Trump" event that kicked off with a prayer asking God to "intervene in the affairs of this nation" by giving Trump "divine wisdom" and "divine discernment."
Self proclaimed "Prophet" Amanda Grace, in one of the most bizarre messages, warned of technologically advanced “mermaids and water people” spreading perversion and told the crowd, “we are meant for hand to hand combat.”
Ex-American Idol contestant and Flat-Earther right-wing activist Jimmy Levy resurrected a conspiracy theory that was championed by QAnon. These people are drinking the blood of children," Levy proclaimed. "These (Hollywood) people are injecting a chemical called adrenochrome that they extract from children that are scared." (apparently because he was on American Idol he is an expert on all things Hollywood ¯\_(ツ)_/¯).
Pastor Mark Burns cited the Bible to suggest that violence is needed to take power: "You got to get to the point where you realize that when they smack you in the face you smack them back two times harder," Burns said, quoting Matthew 5:38-40, which reads, "If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also." He then suggested violence as he noted that the "Bible says the violent take it... and we take it by force," in reference to Matthew 11:12, which reads, "And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.""We are here ready to take this nation back," said Burns during the event this week. "And I believe without a shadow of a doubt, the only man that God has anointed him...to be the next President of the United States of America and that is Donald Trump. That's why we got to declare war on this transgender agenda that tried to destroy our children's minds in the United States of America."
Michael Flynn weighed in, of course: "The other side is an ideology that they don't have faith. They don't believe in God. They have no soul. They have no consciousness......When we think about something, we go, you know, black and white right and wrong, good and evil. They don't see things like that. They don't see in those terms."
Baptist Pastor Brian Kaylor said that Flynn's comment is a "dangerous dehumanizing rhetoric," and that he's "painting this as a battle between God's people & soulless creatures."
If they can keep pushing the idea that anyone left of them is soul-less..........they are doing the same thing Hitler did in German with the Jews. Soul-less people are easier to kill. And they will do it to purify whatever race or creed they are claiming. Last night, after he cancelled his Iowa rally, Trump called Michael Flynn and told him he would "bring him back" in his next administration. The "Reawaken" tour came to the Trump National Doral Miami for a three-day conference.
jack graham
April 18, 2023: Baptist Press: SBC leaders, former presidents react to death of Charles Stanley
“Charles Stanley’s legacy as a preacher of the Gospel and teacher of God’s Word will live for generations. Loved and beloved by millions he is now in the presence of Jesus and rewarded for a life and ministry done well to God’s glory.”--Jack Graham, former SBC president
“Charles Stanley’s legacy as a preacher of the Gospel and teacher of God’s Word will live for generations. Loved and beloved by millions he is now in the presence of Jesus and rewarded for a life and ministry done well to God’s glory.”--Jack Graham, former SBC president
michelle graham
Michelle Graham loves to help women discover how much they are loved and treasured by God. She debunks the popular messages of culture that tell women their worth is only based on beauty and sexuality. As a staff member and popular speaker for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Michelle helps women of all ages develop the courage to live differently in today's culture and to rise up as world changers.
Michelle Graham loves to help women discover how much they are loved and treasured by God. She debunks the popular messages of culture that tell women their worth is only based on beauty and sexuality. As a staff member and popular speaker for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Michelle helps women of all ages develop the courage to live differently in today's culture and to rise up as world changers.
Michelle Graham Files
Those who live in God's grace, Paul says, will be changed. The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say 'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age." (Titus 2:11-12). When we realize that our bodies are made to collectively bear the image of God, we live free of the "world passion" of appearance and obsession. When we rest in God's deep satisfaction in creating our body, we will stop worrying about what others think of us. When we know that out body is a priceless gift from a loving Father, we will take care of it well. When we live in the reality that God does not reject out body, we will stop hiding in shame.
-Michelle Graham; Wanting to be Her; 2005
-Michelle Graham; Wanting to be Her; 2005
anthony granado
Feb 11, 2023: Charisma: Faith-Based Groups at Border Stand Against Federal Persecution
Anthony Granado, vice president of government relations for Catholic Charities USA, found the lawmakers' claim insulting, saying it "threatens the core ministry of the church." The urgency of the organization's response was necessary because, Granado said, the work of Catholic Charities "has traditionally been met with a great level of respect by Republicans and Democrats alike."
"We have not seen such a level of direct ... attack against Catholic Charities USA," Granado told Religion News Service. "We will continue to do this work. We will not apologize for it. The gospel compels us to do so. If that's unpopular with certain members of Congress, so be it."
Anthony Granado, vice president of government relations for Catholic Charities USA, found the lawmakers' claim insulting, saying it "threatens the core ministry of the church." The urgency of the organization's response was necessary because, Granado said, the work of Catholic Charities "has traditionally been met with a great level of respect by Republicans and Democrats alike."
"We have not seen such a level of direct ... attack against Catholic Charities USA," Granado told Religion News Service. "We will continue to do this work. We will not apologize for it. The gospel compels us to do so. If that's unpopular with certain members of Congress, so be it."
stan grant
Stan Grant
Lament is described in Paul’s Letter to the Romans as “sighs too deep for words” (8:26). I know that sigh. I know what it is to breathe in despair. I know lament.
“Lament” is not a word we use too often today. It is a word that has fallen from favour. We speak of reconciliation, of rights, of justice. Sometimes we speak of healing, or even of truth. But these words fall short for me. They are simply too convenient. They are words designed to convince; words to measure ourselves by.
These are words of politics. And I am not a person of politics. I seek the impossibility of existence — the reach for eternity — in a world where politics reduces us only to what is possible. For I am a person of faith. I am a person of belonging. I am a person of country. I am person of kinship. I seek the things that endure — the things of our soul. And I am a person of sorrow.
Lament is a place of deep sorrow. It is a place of cries. But there is, as the writer and musician Michael Card has put it, something sacred about sorrow. It is the way we reach towards God.
But we have lost the words of lament, haven’t we? We have replaced those words with political words. So here I want to speak the unfashionable language of lament, and try to reclaim these and other words that have passed out of circulation, or have lost their true meaning — words like love, like divine. I want to use those words to speak back to the age. Lament is described in Paul’s Letter to the Romans as “sighs too deep for words” (8:26). I know that sigh. I know what it is to breathe in despair. I know lament.
“Lament” is not a word we use too often today. It is a word that has fallen from favour. We speak of reconciliation, of rights, of justice. Sometimes we speak of healing, or even of truth. But these words fall short for me. They are simply too convenient. They are words designed to convince; words to measure ourselves by.
These are words of politics. And I am not a person of politics. I seek the impossibility of existence — the reach for eternity — in a world where politics reduces us only to what is possible. For I am a person of faith. I am a person of belonging. I am a person of country. I am person of kinship. I seek the things that endure — the things of our soul. And I am a person of sorrow.
Lament is a place of deep sorrow. It is a place of cries. But there is, as the writer and musician Michael Card has put it, something sacred about sorrow. It is the way we reach towards God.
But we have lost the words of lament, haven’t we? We have replaced those words with political words. So here I want to speak the unfashionable language of lament, and try to reclaim these and other words that have passed out of circulation, or have lost their true meaning — words like love, like divine. I want to use those words to speak back to the age. The theologian Mark Vroegop has written that “lament invites us to grieve and trust, to struggle and believe”. We First Nations people know that struggle, that grief, that challenge of trust when our trust is betrayed. But it is not our struggle alone. It is the struggle we share. We grieve — all of us — because we want to trust. We need to believe. But we are all betrayed by an age of division, of ruthless contests for power, of rapacious exploitation of people and the planet, of cynical opportunists pretending to be leaders.
We are betrayed by an age of media that thinks debate is finding the point of difference and widening it — stoking the fires of a toxic social media with its self-righteous and performative anger, its craven need for validation, for “likes”, its online pile-ons and cancellations. We live in an age of prosecution without process: no truth but our own truths. No wonder this has been called an “age of anger”.
Lament, too, can be an expression of anger, but not the self-righteous anger of our time. No, an eternal, humble, righteous anger. We have the right — even the responsibility — to be angry, but not the right to hate. For me, lament is ultimately a holy state of grace.
--Stan Grant; ABC Religion & Ethics; “This is the way healing begins”: Recovering the language of lament in a disenchanted age 8.20.23
“Lament” is not a word we use too often today. It is a word that has fallen from favour. We speak of reconciliation, of rights, of justice. Sometimes we speak of healing, or even of truth. But these words fall short for me. They are simply too convenient. They are words designed to convince; words to measure ourselves by.
These are words of politics. And I am not a person of politics. I seek the impossibility of existence — the reach for eternity — in a world where politics reduces us only to what is possible. For I am a person of faith. I am a person of belonging. I am a person of country. I am person of kinship. I seek the things that endure — the things of our soul. And I am a person of sorrow.
Lament is a place of deep sorrow. It is a place of cries. But there is, as the writer and musician Michael Card has put it, something sacred about sorrow. It is the way we reach towards God.
But we have lost the words of lament, haven’t we? We have replaced those words with political words. So here I want to speak the unfashionable language of lament, and try to reclaim these and other words that have passed out of circulation, or have lost their true meaning — words like love, like divine. I want to use those words to speak back to the age. Lament is described in Paul’s Letter to the Romans as “sighs too deep for words” (8:26). I know that sigh. I know what it is to breathe in despair. I know lament.
“Lament” is not a word we use too often today. It is a word that has fallen from favour. We speak of reconciliation, of rights, of justice. Sometimes we speak of healing, or even of truth. But these words fall short for me. They are simply too convenient. They are words designed to convince; words to measure ourselves by.
These are words of politics. And I am not a person of politics. I seek the impossibility of existence — the reach for eternity — in a world where politics reduces us only to what is possible. For I am a person of faith. I am a person of belonging. I am a person of country. I am person of kinship. I seek the things that endure — the things of our soul. And I am a person of sorrow.
Lament is a place of deep sorrow. It is a place of cries. But there is, as the writer and musician Michael Card has put it, something sacred about sorrow. It is the way we reach towards God.
But we have lost the words of lament, haven’t we? We have replaced those words with political words. So here I want to speak the unfashionable language of lament, and try to reclaim these and other words that have passed out of circulation, or have lost their true meaning — words like love, like divine. I want to use those words to speak back to the age. The theologian Mark Vroegop has written that “lament invites us to grieve and trust, to struggle and believe”. We First Nations people know that struggle, that grief, that challenge of trust when our trust is betrayed. But it is not our struggle alone. It is the struggle we share. We grieve — all of us — because we want to trust. We need to believe. But we are all betrayed by an age of division, of ruthless contests for power, of rapacious exploitation of people and the planet, of cynical opportunists pretending to be leaders.
We are betrayed by an age of media that thinks debate is finding the point of difference and widening it — stoking the fires of a toxic social media with its self-righteous and performative anger, its craven need for validation, for “likes”, its online pile-ons and cancellations. We live in an age of prosecution without process: no truth but our own truths. No wonder this has been called an “age of anger”.
Lament, too, can be an expression of anger, but not the self-righteous anger of our time. No, an eternal, humble, righteous anger. We have the right — even the responsibility — to be angry, but not the right to hate. For me, lament is ultimately a holy state of grace.
--Stan Grant; ABC Religion & Ethics; “This is the way healing begins”: Recovering the language of lament in a disenchanted age 8.20.23
ken graves
Oct 26, 2022: NC Policy Watch: North Carolina Republican leaders embrace Christian nationalism
Conservative pastors, political allies aim to tear down any wall between church and state
When Pastor Ken Graves took the podium at Calvary Chapel Lake Norman in Statesville last month, he cut an imposing figure.
Conservative pastors, political allies aim to tear down any wall between church and state
When Pastor Ken Graves took the podium at Calvary Chapel Lake Norman in Statesville last month, he cut an imposing figure.
marlena graves |
Marlena Graves received her M.Div. from Northeastern Seminary in Rochester, New York. Graves writes for various venues and is a by-lined writer for Christianity Today’s Her.meneutics Blog, Gifted For Leadership Blog, and Missio Alliance. Graves belongs to INK: A Creative Collective and the Redbud Writers Guild.
Graves has a book through Brazos Press called: A Beautiful Disaster Finding Hope in the Midst of Brokenness.
Dec 2, 2022: Christian Science Monitor: Worship by other means
For some, the decline of Christianity among Western nations and its growth elsewhere offers an opportunity to focus less on how it defines nations than on how it uplifts societies through individuals’ practice. “Isn’t Christianity steady, even on the rise, in the majority of the world?” Marlena Graves, an adjunct professor at Winebrenner Theological Seminary in Findlay, Ohio, asked Sojourners. “Our sustenance is to do the will of God whom we serve: loving God, neighbors, and enemies in practical ways, not in our imaginaries.” Qualities of thought, like salt, neither decline nor perish.
For some, the decline of Christianity among Western nations and its growth elsewhere offers an opportunity to focus less on how it defines nations than on how it uplifts societies through individuals’ practice. “Isn’t Christianity steady, even on the rise, in the majority of the world?” Marlena Graves, an adjunct professor at Winebrenner Theological Seminary in Findlay, Ohio, asked Sojourners. “Our sustenance is to do the will of God whom we serve: loving God, neighbors, and enemies in practical ways, not in our imaginaries.” Qualities of thought, like salt, neither decline nor perish.
June 11, 2021: Christianity Today: For Popular Twitter Seminarian, Sassiness Is a Spiritual Gift
While previous generations found encouragement from women leaders without formal theological training, ordination, or local church support, many women today are learning from seminary-educated leaders like Kat Armstrong, Marlena Graves, Sharon Hodde Miller, Tish Harrison Warren, Sandra Glahn, and Carmen Imes, who runs a Facebook group for women members of the Evangelical Theological Society.
While previous generations found encouragement from women leaders without formal theological training, ordination, or local church support, many women today are learning from seminary-educated leaders like Kat Armstrong, Marlena Graves, Sharon Hodde Miller, Tish Harrison Warren, Sandra Glahn, and Carmen Imes, who runs a Facebook group for women members of the Evangelical Theological Society.
Mar 28, 2015: Marlena Graves: The Higher Place: Wilderness Cell
June 2012: Marlena Graves: Christianity Today: Prodigal Children: If It Can Happen to John Piper, It Can Happen to Yo
mark grayson
Feb 15, 2023: Religion News Service: A 300-year-old church hopes to connect with spiritual but not religious neighbors
Mark Grayson, a former children’s television executive and member of the Trinity church vestry, said the idea for the center grew out of some planning the nearly 300-year-old church was doing as members envisioned their next 100 years of ministry. The group had been working for several years on a strategic plan and realized that while the church could remain healthy, there were needs in the community it was not addressing.
Mark Grayson, a former children’s television executive and member of the Trinity church vestry, said the idea for the center grew out of some planning the nearly 300-year-old church was doing as members envisioned their next 100 years of ministry. The group had been working for several years on a strategic plan and realized that while the church could remain healthy, there were needs in the community it was not addressing.
jd greear
James David "J.D." Greear (born May 1, 1973) is an evangelical American religious leader who is the pastor of The Summit Church in Durham, North Carolina. He served as the 62nd president of the Southern Baptist Convention from 2018 to 2021. He entered the PhD program at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1999, graduating in 2003 with a doctorate in philosophy, concentrating primarily on Christian and Islamic theology. His dissertation was titled Theosis and Muslim Evangelism: How the Recovery of a Patristic Understanding of Salvation Can Aid Evangelical Missionaries in the Evangelization of Islamic Peoples.
JD Greear
This is about as harsh as you can get. God looked at us, and he didn’t see wayward children, or pitiful lost causes. He saw enemies. We may want to gloss over that, but if we do, we miss the majesty of God’s forgiveness. When he chose to push anger away and bring compassion near, it wasn’t like me forgiving my daughter after she lied to me. It’s more like me choosing to love and adopt into my family an ISIS member who beheaded my own daughter.
Yes, our sin was that bad. But against the dark backdrop of our sin, the glory of the gospel stands out in stunning contrast. This is why Donald Grey Barnhouse says that there is no greater wonder in the universe than the love of God for us. We see God choose love over wrath, and we can only say, “I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene, and wonder how he could love me–a sinner, condemned, unclean.”
We need not, we dare not, water down the wrath of God. For without knowing God’s wrath, we would never know the amazing depths of his love. --JD Greear
Yes, our sin was that bad. But against the dark backdrop of our sin, the glory of the gospel stands out in stunning contrast. This is why Donald Grey Barnhouse says that there is no greater wonder in the universe than the love of God for us. We see God choose love over wrath, and we can only say, “I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene, and wonder how he could love me–a sinner, condemned, unclean.”
We need not, we dare not, water down the wrath of God. For without knowing God’s wrath, we would never know the amazing depths of his love. --JD Greear
JD Greear
"This amendment forces conformity down to tertiary levels in ways that will both violate local church autonomy and are inconsistent with our past practice. If we continue down this road, we might become a Convention that spends its time focused on who is in and who is out instead of on the best ways to reach our communities and glorify Jesus. If you want a harbinger of that, just take a look at Southern Baptist social media feeds right now. Is this what we want our Convention to be about? I'm tired of micromanaging churches; I want to be about the Great Commission. There are too many people on their way to Hell for us to get quagmired in policing each other."
--JD Greear; Christian Headlines; J.D. Greear Supports National African American Fellowships' Challenge of SBC's Ban on Woman Pastors 7.14.23
--JD Greear; Christian Headlines; J.D. Greear Supports National African American Fellowships' Challenge of SBC's Ban on Woman Pastors 7.14.23
JD Greear
All of Jesus’ promises about the greatness of the Church....are tied to sending out, not gathering in. Jesus once promised His disciples that they would do greater works than Him (John 14:12). That’s a staggering promise. How many pastors claim to do greater works than Jesus? But Jesus didn’t mean that our works would be greater in quality. He meant that the reach and extent of His works would be greater when His Spirit rested on every believer than when that power was concentrated upon one person.
Churches that understand this will devote themselves not to gathering and counting, but empowering and sending. Sending capacity, not seating capacity, ought to be the measure of success for any New Testament church.
This attitude is something a lot of churches are missing. It’s easy to get caught up in drawing people into our churches instead of sending members out into the world, on building audiences instead of multiplying disciples.
But in our day, the act of sending has become more important than ever. Even those in our own backyards will likely have to be reached outside the church. The “nones” in Western society (those who check “none” for religious affiliation) grow each year at an astounding rate. “Nones” don’t casually make their way back into church because the pastor is engaging, the music is cool or the guest services are Disney-esque. They have to be reached outside the Church.
It’s time we returned to Jesus’ strategy for reaching our nation. To do that, those in Christian leadership especially are going to have to first die to ourselves—to our ambitions in ministry, to our dreams, to our hopes of a comfortable life. We should remember we are called by one who came not to be served but to serve, who, though He was rich, for our sakes became poor so that we through His poverty might become rich, and beckons us to follow Him. He said, “Except a grain of wheat fall to the ground and die, it abides alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). --JD Greear
Churches that understand this will devote themselves not to gathering and counting, but empowering and sending. Sending capacity, not seating capacity, ought to be the measure of success for any New Testament church.
This attitude is something a lot of churches are missing. It’s easy to get caught up in drawing people into our churches instead of sending members out into the world, on building audiences instead of multiplying disciples.
But in our day, the act of sending has become more important than ever. Even those in our own backyards will likely have to be reached outside the church. The “nones” in Western society (those who check “none” for religious affiliation) grow each year at an astounding rate. “Nones” don’t casually make their way back into church because the pastor is engaging, the music is cool or the guest services are Disney-esque. They have to be reached outside the Church.
It’s time we returned to Jesus’ strategy for reaching our nation. To do that, those in Christian leadership especially are going to have to first die to ourselves—to our ambitions in ministry, to our dreams, to our hopes of a comfortable life. We should remember we are called by one who came not to be served but to serve, who, though He was rich, for our sakes became poor so that we through His poverty might become rich, and beckons us to follow Him. He said, “Except a grain of wheat fall to the ground and die, it abides alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). --JD Greear
May 19, 2023: Only Sky: The Southern Baptist Convention had its worst EVER membership drop in 2022
If someone doesn’t understand this ratio’s drastic importance, not much else about Southern Baptists will make sense. It’s how J.D. Greear could claim that the Southern Baptist Convention has been in decline for forty years: Their baptism ratio began to tank in the mid-1980s. Even though their membership continued to grow by leaps and bounds, their baptism ratio told the true story: their recruitment simply wasn’t as effective as it’d once been.
If someone doesn’t understand this ratio’s drastic importance, not much else about Southern Baptists will make sense. It’s how J.D. Greear could claim that the Southern Baptist Convention has been in decline for forty years: Their baptism ratio began to tank in the mid-1980s. Even though their membership continued to grow by leaps and bounds, their baptism ratio told the true story: their recruitment simply wasn’t as effective as it’d once been.
April 18, 2023: Baptist Press: SBC leaders, former presidents react to death of Charles Stanley
“I grew up being discipled by listening to the preaching of Dr. Charles Stanley as I rode around town in the backseat of my parents’ car. Dr. Stanley set an example of preaching that was expository, faithful, evangelistic, and Spirit-filled. His effect on a whole generation of preachers and preaching is incalculable.”--J.D. Greear, former SBC president
“I grew up being discipled by listening to the preaching of Dr. Charles Stanley as I rode around town in the backseat of my parents’ car. Dr. Stanley set an example of preaching that was expository, faithful, evangelistic, and Spirit-filled. His effect on a whole generation of preachers and preaching is incalculable.”--J.D. Greear, former SBC president
joel green
Dr. Joel B. Green is professor of New Testament interpretation and associate dean for the Center for Advanced Theological Studies at Fuller. He has written, cowritten, or edited over 50 books and has years of experience in pastoral ministry.
Dr. Joel B. Green is professor of New Testament interpretation and associate dean for the Center for Advanced Theological Studies at Fuller. He has written, cowritten, or edited over 50 books and has years of experience in pastoral ministry.
Joel Green Files
“The narrator apparently pictures Joseph and Mary arriving in Bethlehem and staying there for some time before the delivery of Mary’s baby (cf. 2:6, ‘while they were there’), not their inability to locate lodging on the night of their arrival resulting in the birth of the child in a stable.”
“The term Luke employs here for ‘guest room’ is often translated in English as ‘inn.’ However, the same term appears in 22:11 with the meaning ‘guest room,’ and the verbal form occurs in 9:12 and 19:7 with the sense of ‘find lodging’ or ‘be a guest.’
Moreover, in 10:34, where a commercial inn is clearly demanded by the text, Luke draws on different vocabulary. It is doubtful whether a commercial inn actually existed in Bethlehem, which stood on no major roads. It may be that Luke has in mind a ‘kahn or caravansary where large groups of travelers found shelter under one roof,’ but this does not help our understanding of Mary’s placing the child in a manger.”
“That ‘guest room’ is the more plausible meaning here is urged by the realization that in peasant homes in the ancient Near East family and animals slept in one enclosed space, with the animals located on a lower level. Mary and Joseph, then, would have been the guests of family or friends, but their home would have been so overcrowded that the baby was placed in a feeding trough” (p. 128-9).
-Joel Green, The Gospel of Luke (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).
“The term Luke employs here for ‘guest room’ is often translated in English as ‘inn.’ However, the same term appears in 22:11 with the meaning ‘guest room,’ and the verbal form occurs in 9:12 and 19:7 with the sense of ‘find lodging’ or ‘be a guest.’
Moreover, in 10:34, where a commercial inn is clearly demanded by the text, Luke draws on different vocabulary. It is doubtful whether a commercial inn actually existed in Bethlehem, which stood on no major roads. It may be that Luke has in mind a ‘kahn or caravansary where large groups of travelers found shelter under one roof,’ but this does not help our understanding of Mary’s placing the child in a manger.”
“That ‘guest room’ is the more plausible meaning here is urged by the realization that in peasant homes in the ancient Near East family and animals slept in one enclosed space, with the animals located on a lower level. Mary and Joseph, then, would have been the guests of family or friends, but their home would have been so overcrowded that the baby was placed in a feeding trough” (p. 128-9).
-Joel Green, The Gospel of Luke (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).
julie green
Julie Green
"Another indictment against my David [Trump] will be announced, but yet another one will fail. None of these attempts to stop him or this election will prosper, and they will not succeed...........Another whistleblower will come forward with proof on how Nancy Pelosi and the establishment set up January 6 to impeach Trump and to completely remove him from any chances to run again." -Julie Green; self appointed prophetess. 8.30.23
Chris Hume
“Anti-intellectualism and emotionalism have given us modern day evangelicalism, which is a mile wide and an inch deep. And we are exporting this garbage to the nations........(Julie) Green’s shenanigans are just one example of how the co-opting of certain conservatives is creating a mass of duped people, ignorant of what God’s Law-Word actually says regarding salvation, revelation, and civil government.” -Chris Hume; Managing Editor of the Lancaster Patriot
October 29, 2022:
Julie Green, of Julie Green Ministries, has received another “prophetic word” from God. God says Herschel Walker will win, MAGA candidates will win every place elections were “stolen” in 2020, and Biden will be replaced. So sayeth the Lord. (Her video has 151,000 views since last night).
Yahoo News: Doug Mastriano says he's not extreme. So why do many say he is?
Get Religion: New stories on New Apostolic Reformation, Sean Feucht keep assuming a right-wing takeover
New Republic: The Right-Wing Christian Sect Plotting a Political Takeover
Julie Green, of Julie Green Ministries, has received another “prophetic word” from God. God says Herschel Walker will win, MAGA candidates will win every place elections were “stolen” in 2020, and Biden will be replaced. So sayeth the Lord. (Her video has 151,000 views since last night).
Yahoo News: Doug Mastriano says he's not extreme. So why do many say he is?
Get Religion: New stories on New Apostolic Reformation, Sean Feucht keep assuming a right-wing takeover
New Republic: The Right-Wing Christian Sect Plotting a Political Takeover
jonathan greenblatt
Nov 2, 2022: Religion News: Trump’s Twitter return sparks concern among faith groups
Shortly after Elon Musk officially took charge of Twitter last month, Jonathan Greenblatt, head of the Anti-Defamation League, joined a group of civil rights advocates for a meeting with the newly minted social media mogul.
Among advocates’ chief concerns: that Musk, a self-declared “free speech absolutist,” would reactivate previously banned accounts — including that of former President Donald Trump, a figure who rights advocates say both perpetuates and magnifies online hate speech.
Shortly after Elon Musk officially took charge of Twitter last month, Jonathan Greenblatt, head of the Anti-Defamation League, joined a group of civil rights advocates for a meeting with the newly minted social media mogul.
Among advocates’ chief concerns: that Musk, a self-declared “free speech absolutist,” would reactivate previously banned accounts — including that of former President Donald Trump, a figure who rights advocates say both perpetuates and magnifies online hate speech.
mark greene
Feb 15, 2023: Religion News Service: A 300-year-old church hopes to connect with spiritual but not religious neighbors
It’s also hosted speakers, including Kimberly Wilson, who performed “A Journey,” her one-woman show about Black women who shaped American history; writer Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, author of “Hollywood to the Himalayas,” which details her life as a Hindu convert; and the Rev. Matthew Wright, an Episcopal priest and Sufi practitioner who teaches about contemplation. A current series features author Mark Greene, host of the “Remaking Manhood” podcast.
It’s also hosted speakers, including Kimberly Wilson, who performed “A Journey,” her one-woman show about Black women who shaped American history; writer Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, author of “Hollywood to the Himalayas,” which details her life as a Hindu convert; and the Rev. Matthew Wright, an Episcopal priest and Sufi practitioner who teaches about contemplation. A current series features author Mark Greene, host of the “Remaking Manhood” podcast.
myal greene
Mar 31, 2023: Baptist News Global: Evangelical leaders beg DeSantis and Florida Legislature not to make them criminals for transporting immigrants to church
The minsters who participated in the call included three Southern Baptists, an Assemblies of God pastor, a Church of the Nazarene official and the leader of an Evangelical Free Church congregation. Moderator Myal Greene, president of World Relief, joined them in pleading for a rewording or rescinding of the legislation.
The minsters who participated in the call included three Southern Baptists, an Assemblies of God pastor, a Church of the Nazarene official and the leader of an Evangelical Free Church congregation. Moderator Myal Greene, president of World Relief, joined them in pleading for a rewording or rescinding of the legislation.
adam greenway
May 12, 2023: Baptist News Global: The hidden battle in Christian higher education: A conversation with Scott Okamoto
Additional stories of power struggles in Christian higher education continue with Joe Rigney’s resignation at Bethlehem Seminary due to his embrace of Christian nationalism, Adam Greenway’s resignation at Southwestern Seminary due to financial liabilities and declining enrollment, the potential closing of The King’s College amidst financial chaos and a lack of transparency, and Karen Swallow Prior leaving Southeastern Seminary while citing that she does not share “the same vision for carrying out the Great Commission” and believes she is “not well-suited to the politics of institutional life in the SBC.”
Additional stories of power struggles in Christian higher education continue with Joe Rigney’s resignation at Bethlehem Seminary due to his embrace of Christian nationalism, Adam Greenway’s resignation at Southwestern Seminary due to financial liabilities and declining enrollment, the potential closing of The King’s College amidst financial chaos and a lack of transparency, and Karen Swallow Prior leaving Southeastern Seminary while citing that she does not share “the same vision for carrying out the Great Commission” and believes she is “not well-suited to the politics of institutional life in the SBC.”
steve gregg
Mar 31, 2023: Baptist News Global: Evangelical leaders beg DeSantis and Florida Legislature not to make them criminals for transporting immigrants to church
The legislation presents a potential dilemma for churches accustomed to obeying the law and living out their callings at the same time, said Steve Gregg, associate pastor at Creekside Community Church, an Evangelical Free congregation in Gainesville.
The legislation presents a potential dilemma for churches accustomed to obeying the law and living out their callings at the same time, said Steve Gregg, associate pastor at Creekside Community Church, an Evangelical Free congregation in Gainesville.
JOEL GREGORY |
Dr. Joel C. Gregory holds the George W. Truett Endowed Chair in Preaching and Evangelism and serves as the Director of the Kyle Lake Center for Effective Preaching at George W. Truett Theological Seminary of Baylor University. Last year he spoke or taught 170 times in 32 churches and 20 conferences in 18 states, Greece and Oxford, UK. He has just completed a sabbatical at Regent’s Park College, Oxford University where he did research in applied homiletics and 19th century British Baptist history for a forthcoming book and article. He will bring the concluding message at the Baptist World Congress in Durban, South Africa this summer. He also serves on the BWA Commission on Worship and Spirituality.
July 8, 2021: Baptist News Global: Where’s the line between finding inspiration in another pastor’s sermon and plagiarizing it?
Joel Gregory, professor of preaching at Baylor University’s Truett Seminary and arguably one of the best-known Baptist preachers of the late 20th century, offered some basic principles on how preachers can avoid confusion and stay out of trouble.
Mar 6, 2016: LinkedUp Church: The Blessing of Answered Prayer, Finale – Pastor Joel E. Gregory
Aug 4, 2015: Ethics Daily: Best, Worst, Most Unexpected Moments at Baptist World Congress -
The most captivating sermon - the one most likely to be repeated scores of times across the world - was preached by Truett Seminary's Joel Gregory. He developed the Congress theme of "Jesus Christ, the Door" from 1 Corinthians 16:9, where Paul wrote that a great and energetic door had been open to him and that there were many adversaries. "God has a door for you ... He is the opener of that door. ... Don't leave the door that God has given you," he said. Gregory warned, "If you are going to live and work for Jesus Christ, opportunity and opposition will always go hand in hand."
Joel Gregory, professor of preaching at Baylor University’s Truett Seminary and arguably one of the best-known Baptist preachers of the late 20th century, offered some basic principles on how preachers can avoid confusion and stay out of trouble.
Mar 6, 2016: LinkedUp Church: The Blessing of Answered Prayer, Finale – Pastor Joel E. Gregory
Aug 4, 2015: Ethics Daily: Best, Worst, Most Unexpected Moments at Baptist World Congress -
The most captivating sermon - the one most likely to be repeated scores of times across the world - was preached by Truett Seminary's Joel Gregory. He developed the Congress theme of "Jesus Christ, the Door" from 1 Corinthians 16:9, where Paul wrote that a great and energetic door had been open to him and that there were many adversaries. "God has a door for you ... He is the opener of that door. ... Don't leave the door that God has given you," he said. Gregory warned, "If you are going to live and work for Jesus Christ, opportunity and opposition will always go hand in hand."
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May 2, 2018: Christianity Today: Tim Keller, John Piper, and Andy Stanley Among the 12 ‘Most Effective’ Preachers
Joel C. Gregory, endowed chair in preaching and evangelism at the George W. Truett Theological Seminary of Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Gregory—a contributor to Preaching Today—recently celebrated 50 years of preaching around the world, and through his ministry, he taught 170 times in 32 churches and 20 conferences last year alone. |
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October 1994: Texas Monthly: The Private Hell of Joel Gregory
All his life, Joel Gregory strove to become pastor of Dallas' First Baptist Church. What torments then drove him to cast aside his position as the most powerful Baptist in the land and mysteriously flee from his pulpit?
All his life, Joel Gregory strove to become pastor of Dallas' First Baptist Church. What torments then drove him to cast aside his position as the most powerful Baptist in the land and mysteriously flee from his pulpit?
crawford gribben
April 28, 2023: 9 Marks: Book Review: Survival and Resistance in Evangelical America, by Crawford Gribben
Amidst growing societal pressure and a waning consensus on the best manner of Christian political engagement, American evangelicals face a torrent of suggestions for how to relate to the public square. Some opt for direct action on local, state, and national levels. Others avoid such activism. Some seek to build think tanks, schools, and other institutions in global centers of power. Others call for a strategic retreat in order to build a new society.
Each movement has its arguments and growing body of literature. But it’s this last group that forms the subject of Crawford Gribben’s Survival and Resistance in Evangelical America: Christian Reconstruction in the Pacific Northwest. What’s appealed to survivalists in previous generations has now found a following among American evangelicals. In particular, hundreds of evangelicals have moved northwest in the hopes of building a better society.
Amidst growing societal pressure and a waning consensus on the best manner of Christian political engagement, American evangelicals face a torrent of suggestions for how to relate to the public square. Some opt for direct action on local, state, and national levels. Others avoid such activism. Some seek to build think tanks, schools, and other institutions in global centers of power. Others call for a strategic retreat in order to build a new society.
Each movement has its arguments and growing body of literature. But it’s this last group that forms the subject of Crawford Gribben’s Survival and Resistance in Evangelical America: Christian Reconstruction in the Pacific Northwest. What’s appealed to survivalists in previous generations has now found a following among American evangelicals. In particular, hundreds of evangelicals have moved northwest in the hopes of building a better society.
wendell griffen
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March 10, 2023: Baptist News Global: Griffen and Ravitch warn Floridians of dangers of DeSantis’ attack on public education
Baptist minister and retired Arkansas judge Wendell Griffen stood before an audience of faith leaders and education advocates in Tallahassee, Fla., March 9, pointed to his lapel and dared Gov. Ron DeSantis to have him apprehended for being politically and racially aware. |
Griffen, a BNG columnist and pastor of New Millennium Church in Little Rock, urged the in-person and virtual interfaith and multiracial audience to be equally defiant of Florida’s political leaders. “Be a community of prophets but teach as one and correct, confront, organize, interact, defy, dissent, disrupt.” 3.10.23 |
pj grisar
Oct 21, 2022: Religion News: Best In Religion Journalism: Religion News Association Presents Its Annual Awards
Among the highlights:
Other big winners included Jack Jenkins of Religion News Service for Excellence in Religion Reporting at Large Newspapers and Wire Services, Peggy Fletcher Stack of the Salt Lake Tribune for Excellence in Religion Reporting at Small-to-Mid-sized Newspapers and PJ Grisar of The Forward for Excellence in Religion Feature Writing.
Among the highlights:
Other big winners included Jack Jenkins of Religion News Service for Excellence in Religion Reporting at Large Newspapers and Wire Services, Peggy Fletcher Stack of the Salt Lake Tribune for Excellence in Religion Reporting at Small-to-Mid-sized Newspapers and PJ Grisar of The Forward for Excellence in Religion Feature Writing.
emanuel grozea
March 9, 2023: Baptist Press: WEEK OF PRAYER: Romanian planter starts multicultural church in diverse area of New York City
When the Romanian-speaking Maranatha Baptist no longer spoke the language of the majority of their neighbors, they lost their ability to engage people with the gospel. Most of the remaining members didn’t live in the neighborhood. It seemed to be only a matter of time before the church folded.
That’s when the church called Romanian Pastor Emanuel Grozea as the next pastor.
When the Romanian-speaking Maranatha Baptist no longer spoke the language of the majority of their neighbors, they lost their ability to engage people with the gospel. Most of the remaining members didn’t live in the neighborhood. It seemed to be only a matter of time before the church folded.
That’s when the church called Romanian Pastor Emanuel Grozea as the next pastor.
wayne grudem
Are all sins the same in God’s eyes, or are some sins worse than others? All sins are the same in the sense that each renders a person guilty and worthy of God’s wrath. The root of all sin is autonomy and replacement of God with self. However small a sin may seem, it is an assertion that the person is acting independently of God. Eating fruit from a tree in a garden, like Adam and Eve did, might not seem immoral and may seem minor compared to other crimes, but it was an act of iniquity that had grave consequences for the human race. Breaking any command is an assault against the divine Lawgiver. James declared, “For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. For he who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law” (James 2:10–11). Grudem is correct that “in terms of our legal standing before God, any one sin, even what may seem to be a very small one, makes us legally guilty before God and therefore worthy of eternal punishment.”1 Even one sin against an infinitely holy God demands an infinite punishment. --John MacArthur
anna grummitt
Youth Editor at Centre for Public Christianity
Studies at Sydney Missionary & Bible College
Studied TESOL at UTS: University of Technology Sydney
Studied BA Media Communications at University of Sydney
Lives in Sydney, Australia
Studies at Sydney Missionary & Bible College
Studied TESOL at UTS: University of Technology Sydney
Studied BA Media Communications at University of Sydney
Lives in Sydney, Australia
Anna Grummitt
Outsider and unbeliever though I am, he made me feel like a member of his search party. … And he made me feel loved—by him and by his God.”
Last Friday, Timothy Keller, one of this generation’s best-known Christian leaders, died after a three-year battle with pancreatic cancer.
Although I never met him, Tim Keller had a profound impact on my life. His 2008 bestselling book The Reason for God solidified my faith and became a go-to gift for friends with questions about Christianity. His small-group studies helped me integrate my beliefs with my whole life. His sermon on Psalm 42 encouraged me in a period of doubt, and his Atlantic article ‘Growing my Faith in the Face of Death’ strengthened me when cancer hit my own family.
But after reading tributes to him, I’ve been struck not just by the huge influence he had on Christians like me, but also by how he is remembered by those who aren’t in his camp.
In particular, the above quote from journalist Jonathan Ranch stood out to me. As an atheist, Ranch admits he “can’t understand Tim’s world.” But through Keller, he says, he got “glimpses of it”—glimpses of a world with humility, love, and grace at its core. -Anna Grummitt; CPX: May 23, 2023
Last Friday, Timothy Keller, one of this generation’s best-known Christian leaders, died after a three-year battle with pancreatic cancer.
Although I never met him, Tim Keller had a profound impact on my life. His 2008 bestselling book The Reason for God solidified my faith and became a go-to gift for friends with questions about Christianity. His small-group studies helped me integrate my beliefs with my whole life. His sermon on Psalm 42 encouraged me in a period of doubt, and his Atlantic article ‘Growing my Faith in the Face of Death’ strengthened me when cancer hit my own family.
But after reading tributes to him, I’ve been struck not just by the huge influence he had on Christians like me, but also by how he is remembered by those who aren’t in his camp.
In particular, the above quote from journalist Jonathan Ranch stood out to me. As an atheist, Ranch admits he “can’t understand Tim’s world.” But through Keller, he says, he got “glimpses of it”—glimpses of a world with humility, love, and grace at its core. -Anna Grummitt; CPX: May 23, 2023
michAEL GRYBOSKI
March 9, 2023: Christian Post: 'Full of surprises': Understanding stunning moments, realities at the heart of the Asbury revival
Americans are still discussing, dissecting and exploring the impact of the massive revivals that unfolded last month at Asbury University and other American campuses.
Christian Post reporter Michael Gryboski joined the most recent episode of “The Inside Story” to give the full scoop on what unfolded, why it matters — and to explain why these spiritual moments and movements were filled with so many surprises.
Americans are still discussing, dissecting and exploring the impact of the massive revivals that unfolded last month at Asbury University and other American campuses.
Christian Post reporter Michael Gryboski joined the most recent episode of “The Inside Story” to give the full scoop on what unfolded, why it matters — and to explain why these spiritual moments and movements were filled with so many surprises.
kushil gunasekera
March 10, 2023: Religion News: ‘Spiritual exemplars’ change the media narrative about religion
Here are a few of those we profiled:
Kushil Gunasekera left his successful career in sales to serve more than 400,000 people in 400 villages in Sri Lanka, providing scholarships and computer training to young people, paying medical costs for the elderly and upgrading living conditions, risking his own financial solvency. Living by a credo of “the more you give, the more you have to give,” the Buddhist Kushil credits his daily 30 minutes of meditation for helping to sustain his motivations for good.
Here are a few of those we profiled:
Kushil Gunasekera left his successful career in sales to serve more than 400,000 people in 400 villages in Sri Lanka, providing scholarships and computer training to young people, paying medical costs for the elderly and upgrading living conditions, risking his own financial solvency. Living by a credo of “the more you give, the more you have to give,” the Buddhist Kushil credits his daily 30 minutes of meditation for helping to sustain his motivations for good.
matthew gunter
Mar 7, 2023: Christian Post: Frank Griswold, former head of Episcopal Church, dies at age 85
The Rev. Matthew Gunter, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, took to Twitter on Sunday to give his condolences, noting his personal history with the former presiding bishop.
The Rev. Matthew Gunter, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, took to Twitter on Sunday to give his condolences, noting his personal history with the former presiding bishop.
Nov 22, 2023: ENS: Wisconsin Dioceses Launch Cooperative Ministry
“For many years, there has been conversation about coming together for camp,” Bishop Matt Gunter of Fond du Lac notes. “The positive comments about this idea has grown, especially these past two years. I’ve heard from youth and adults, clergy and laity, campers and staff, asking why we aren’t doing camp together” Bishop Jeff Lee of Milwaukee also heard similar comments. Fond du Lac summer camp sessions in 2021 and 2022 included campers and staff from the Dioceses of Eau Claire and Milwaukee.
“For many years, there has been conversation about coming together for camp,” Bishop Matt Gunter of Fond du Lac notes. “The positive comments about this idea has grown, especially these past two years. I’ve heard from youth and adults, clergy and laity, campers and staff, asking why we aren’t doing camp together” Bishop Jeff Lee of Milwaukee also heard similar comments. Fond du Lac summer camp sessions in 2021 and 2022 included campers and staff from the Dioceses of Eau Claire and Milwaukee.
- James C Guy - David Guzik -