Church congregations are shrinking in the United States, and it may be felt most in rural areas. The latest Faith Communities Today survey also found a median attendance decline of 7 percent. ...
Read More »Pastors feeling overwhelmed, survey finds
More than six in 10 pastors of evangelical and historically black Protestant churches agree that “the role of being a pastor is frequently overwhelming,” with 21 percent strongly agreeing, a new Lifeway ...
Read More »A century after partition and civil war, Ireland’s churches are cooperating
Leaders from Ireland’s main Christian traditions held a “Service of Reflection and Hope” in Armagh, Northern Ireland on Oct. 21, 2021, marking 100 years since “the partition of Ireland and the formation ...
Read More »Alliance for Life assists organizations working for the unborn
Now more than ever, the fight for the lives of the unborn has waged into a widescale war. An administration that does not believe in the sanctity of human life, courts that ...
Read More »Christian Employers Alliance sues Biden administration over transgender mandates
Two Biden administration mandates that force religious nonprofit and for-profit employers to pay for or perform gender transition surgeries, procedures, counseling and treatments in violation of their religious beliefs are being challenged in ...
Read More »Study: Attendance hemorrhaging at small & midsize US congregations
A new survey of 15,278 religious congregations across the United States confirms trends sociologists have documented for several decades: Congregational life across the country is shrinking. The most recent round of the ...
Read More »Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church to return $4.4 million in PPP loans
Joel Osteen’s megachurch, Lakewood Church in Houston, will repay the more than $4.4 million in loans it received under the U.S. government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The decision came after critics, including ...
Read More »Abundant Life Church, Jackson County settle lawsuit over COVID-19 restrictions
Abundant Life Church in Lee’s Summit and Jackson County have reached a settlement in a lawsuit over COVID-19 restrictions. The county will pay the church $146,750 and agree that any future health ...
Read More »Large group of American missionaries kidnapped in Haiti
Seventeen missionaries, including children, were kidnapped by a gang in Haiti on Saturday. The abductions were not reported by the U.S. Embassy in Haiti, but through a voice message sent to various ...
Read More »Online church likely is here to stay, researchers find
Because of COVID-19, more than three in four evangelical Protestants in the United States have experienced watching church online instead of in person. More important is that going forward, the majority who ...
Read More »The story behind Keith and Kristyn Getty and “In Christ Alone”
The melody that changed the life of Keith Getty was first scratched out on the back of an electric bill in a humble flat in Northern Ireland. This isn’t great, he thought ...
Read More »U.S. Christians play vital role in restoring Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem
Christians in the United States have pitched in to help restore the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, which is thought to be the birthplace of Jesus. The United Nations had considered ...
Read More »Southern Baptist executives defy vote of members on sexual abuse issue
The Southern Baptist Convention continues to wrestle with questions about how to handle sexual abuse allegations. Earlier this week, the executive committee defied the will of the denomination’s members, or “messengers,” by ...
Read More »SoCal Harvest gospel stadium event could set pandemic gathering record
Few states have suffered more from the pandemic and resulting lockdowns than California. Pastor Greg Laurie of Harvest Church in Riverside, Calif., will bring SoCal Harvest, a message of hope, to thousands ...
Read More »Biola conference will explore Jesus Movement revival of 1970s
Fifty years ago, Christian revival sparked during the Jesus People Movement. Aiming to fuel the flame of the same type of revival, Biola University will host a new annual Bible conference — ...
Read More »TGIW celebrates 20 years of serving spiritual needs of men
Rod Handley welcomes more than 100 men to the 20th-anniversary celebration of the TGIW men’s ministry on Wednesday morning at the Stanley Event Space in downtown Lee’s Summit. Handley reminisced about the ...
Read More »Fire at historic Kansas City church being investigated as arson
Federal authorities are investigating a fire at historic Harlem Baptist Church in Kansas City as arson. The fire last Saturday gutted the front of the church and left half of its eight ...
Read More »Lutheran denomination installs first transgender bishop
An openly transgender person was installed as a bishop last weekend by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Sixty-five bishops and more than 150 pastors attended the ceremony in San Francisco. Bishop ...
Read More »YouVersion Bible, illumiNations set ambitious goal to provide translations to 95 percent of world by 2033
The YouVersion Bible app team is teaming up with the Bible translation team illumiNations to provide access to scripture to 95 percent of the global population by 2033. “There’s a lot of ...
Read More »Nonprofits may be on track for best fundraising year ever, new survey finds
A new report on charitable giving suggests America’s nonprofit organizations are on track for possibly their best fundraising year ever, even in the midst of the continued government mandates and a bad ...
Read More »Sam Brownback joins Open Doors USA to combat Christian persecution
Sam Brownback, former Ambassador for International Religious Freedom under President Donald Trump, has joined Open Doors USA as a senior fellow. “Open Doors USA is a leading global advocate for Christians and ...
Read More »Catholic university refuses to issue religious vaccine exemptions
A Catholic university is refusing to issue its own students religious exemptions for the Covid vaccine. Creighton University in Nebraska is now being sued for violations of religious freedoms. The lawsuit was ...
Read More »FCA’s inspiring Fields of Faith to take place on October 13
As millions of American schoolchildren settle back into their classrooms and their athletic programs this month, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) has announced that its key peer-to-peer autumn event, Fields of Faith, ...
Read More »K-LOVE listeners raise money for 400 Convoy of Hope hurricane relief trucks
K-LOVE listeners across the country raised enough money for Convoy of Hope to send the equivalent of more than 400 trucks filled with relief supplies to survivors of Hurricane Ida. “In their ...
Read More »California, Los Angeles settle with John MacArthur’s church for $800K
California is paying a steep price for the way it treated John McArthur’s Grace Community Church during the lockdown. The state and the city of Los Angeles have agreed to pay $800,000 ...
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