Illinois Clergy Members Support Same-Sex Marriage in Letter Signed by 260
“We dedicate our lives to fostering faith and compassion, and we work daily to promote justice and fairness for all”
Some signatories, though they emphasized the importance of religious leaders’ endorsing same-sex marriage, sought to distance the issue from religion. “This has nothing to do with doctrine”… “This has to do with how families live and how families exist and how families come together today. All are God’s children, and we are all worthy of... Continue Reading
One Year Later
“One year later after the passing of your wife, what have you learned?”
This past year has been not just the hardest, but the slowest of my life. I wake earlier than I wish, and lie awake at night while wanting to sleep. The things I once looked forward to no longer appeal. Isn’t half the blessing of a blessing having someone with whom to share it? ... Continue Reading
Frank Schaeffer on Christianity in America
(That would be Franky, the son, not Francis, the father)
(Frank) Schaeffer’s image of Jesus ignores where he says: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6), or declares “the way is narrow that leads to life” (Matthew 7:14) Frank Schaeffer, the son of well known evangelical missionaries and founders of... Continue Reading
Year in Review 2012: Down The Slippery Slope
By the staff of WORLD News Group
Doomsdayers who followed the Mayan calendar said the world would end with a bang on Dec. 21. Some economists say the economy would crash with a bang if we go over the fiscal cliff. Lots of conservatives have said that America would end as we know it if Barack Obama got re-elected president. God promised... Continue Reading
The odd Christmas story
We have no God problem. Anyone who thinks there is no God has a problem.
(Concerning the unbeliever): “The more intelligent he is, the crazier he is. He becomes a professor and forms an interdisciplinary group. He reads Dante for its mythic structure. He joins the ACLU and concerns himself with the freedom of the individual and does not once exercise his own freedom to inquire into how in God’s... Continue Reading
To find true persecution, look overseas
"The greatest curbs on religious freedoms take place in Muslim majority countries."
Still, Shortt notes the causes of conflict often are more mundane, such as differences in lifestyle, or fears that hard-working, thrifty and self-disciplined Christians may have an edge over their neighbors in the daily competition for survival. “I reject the…fantasy that holds Islam to be uniquely violent,” Book Review: Christianophobia, Rupert Shortt, 298 pp.... Continue Reading
The Religious ‘nones’ on the bus
One out of six people in the world are………., well, just what is it that they are or aren't, religiously speaking?
People with no religious affiliation make up the third-largest global group in a new study of the size of the world’s faiths, placing after Christians and Muslims and just before Hindus. The study, based on extensive data for the year 2010, also showed Islam and Hinduism are the faiths mostly likely to expand in the... Continue Reading
Culinary Christmas Traditions in the Holy Land
Christmas celebrations consist of more than just trees; delicious local holiday treats are also an important part the festivities.
Another tradition is to offer a Christmas chocolate, often in a shape of Santa Claus and a shot of a high quality liqueur, sweet wine or arak – an anise aperitif. Traditionally, it is not polite to refuse anything offered, however it is acceptable to say no to an alcoholic drink. The chocolate or a... Continue Reading
Christmas Sermon at Nicosia Community Church in Cyprus
Text Luke 1:46-55
Almighty God, it is through your word that we hear your Son speak and can understand how the Holy Spirit works in our lives…We humbly ask that you would reveal more of its truth and power to us this morning…and that its beauty would capture our hearts and bring all our thoughts and hopes into... Continue Reading
The Christmas Story
Let’s see what was written about Jesus by the prophets, hundreds and hundreds of years before He was born.
Editor’s Note: This sermon was submitted by a Scots pastor (in Scotland) who is a thoroughly committed Green Bay Packer fan. You have been warned. With the NFL regular season coming to a close, and the playoffs almost ready to begin, I’d like each one of us to make a prediction. A series of... Continue Reading