In the world of celebrity authors, speakers, and pastors, we have pledged our allegiance to people we do not even know. Much of the time we seem willing to follow them without hesitation. This leadership comes with incredible responsibility. When a leader makes a statement regarding abuse allegations or stands by someone against whom others... Continue Reading

One of the most common objections to Christianity is that the divinity of Jesus was “created” by later Christians long after the first century.  No one in primitive Christianity believed Jesus was divine, we are told.  He was just a man and it was later believers, at the council of Nicea, that declared him to... Continue Reading

Reverend Mark Yackel-Jullen is the director for small town and rural ministry at Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa. While he is not one to sound the death knell for Iowa churches just yet, he does admit that this decline is hurting rural churches the most.   Evelyn Birkby started having children a few decades... Continue Reading

“Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising the Church of England and churches that are historically tied to it or have similar beliefs, worship practices and church structures. With a membership estimated at around 80 million members worldwide, the Anglican faith (including both those within the Anglican Communion and Anglicans outside of it) is the third largest... Continue Reading

Fewer than half of all adults can name the four gospels. Many Christians cannot identify more than two or three of the disciples. According to data from the Barna Research Group, 60 percent of Americans can’t name even five of the Ten Commandments. “No wonder people break the Ten Commandments all the time. They don’t... Continue Reading

“First and foremost, prepare to simply be patient and shepherd the souls of the people who are there when you arrive. This allows a pastor to do what he can do and allows God time to do what only he can do.”   So many of the mistakes and missteps a pastor makes in a... Continue Reading

Don’t be deceived by all the hurt faces, the expressions of “pain” and “sadness” and “deep concern”. There’s rage beneath it all and you can bet it is going to come out full strength. Behind the scenes they will go for those who they perceive as their enemies and it will be ruthless. The African... Continue Reading

The Central Presbyterian session scheduled a Jan. 24 vote on whether the church should secede from the Presbyterian Church in the USA, the mainline Presbyterian denomination in the United States, and affiliate with a more conservative branch of Presbyterianism. But the Administrative Commission of the Northeast Georgia Presbytery dissolved the Central session this week and... Continue Reading

A member of the church told VOL that the inaction and complicity of Bishop White leading to the resignation of Fr. Erdman was a betrayal of trust of the Episcopal Church. The Church seemed to foster an atmosphere of theological diversity, but only if members went in the direction Bishop White wanted to go. The... Continue Reading

Carmen Fowler LaBerge, president of The Layman, disagrees. “Wiley’s analysis assumes that those surveyed are Calvinists. That’s a huge assumption among active PCUSA clergy today. His analysis also assumes that people answering a quarterly survey are parsing the questions as he has. In order to explain away the “Jesus is the only way to salvation”... Continue Reading