Three pastors in western India have been criminally charged in retaliation for refuting a false account of a Hindu extremist attack on six Christians that left a teenage girl unconscious, sources said.
Source: Police in India File Charges against Pastors for Refuting False Account of Attack, Sources Say
Christians are far more likely to say their mothers had a bigger influence on their faith than did their fathers, according to a new Barna study that examines the roles that moms and dads play in the development of children.
Source: Moms Are Influencing Children for Christ. Dads? Not So Much, Survey Finds
Lately, wishing someone your “thoughts and prayers” has become supposedly meaningless – as if it is a substitute for actually doing something positive.
Source: What’s This Mantra Against 'Thoughts and Prayers'?
Golden Globe nominee actress Chrissy Metz plays the lead role in a new film, Breakthrough, that spotlights the power of prayer.
Source: Chrissy Metz of This Is Us Says It’s ‘Hard to Deny’ Power of Prayer
After collapsing from a serious brain injury last September, doctors did not believe college football player Christion Abercrombie would survive. Now the athlete is praising God that he is alive.
Source: College Football Player Thanks God He's Alive after Collapsing, Having Several Strokes
The idea of my children being “pastor’s kids” has always been a dreaded thought in the back of my mind. I’ve heard so many stories of PK’s, most of them more like nightmares. It’s not something any mother likes to think about- her children rejecting the Lord and turning from the Faith. And it seems PK’s wander at an extremely high rate. What’s a pastor and his wife to do? Hit their knees in prayer, that’s what. It’s our greatest defense and our only hope.
Source: The Joys and Pains Pastor's Kids Face: The Pastor's Mrs. [Part 2]
“The Pastor’s Wife” It’s how most people introduce me. Some have asked if that bothers me? I lean toward taking it as a compliment. Yes, I am my own person, and have my own identity. However, I learned long ago that my true identity is found in Christ… and Christ has called me to be a helpmate to this husband of mine, who just so happens to be a pastor. It is an honor to serve alongside him, and my privilege to be associated with him.
Source: The Joys and Pains of Being a Pastor's Wife [Part 1]
Over the past week, Senior Colson Fellow Glenn Sunshine has taken to Facebook to do something that much of the mainstream media—to its discredit—has neglected to do: alerting people to what is happening to Christians in places like Nigeria.
Source: Christians Die, Media Mum: Genocide in Nigeria
How to understand sinicization and where it falls between sinister oversight and needed contextualization for Chinese churches.
The headlines out of China last week sounded ominous. In strident language not heard in a long time, the head of China’s Protestant church gave a speech supporting the government’s policy of reducing Western influence on religion and making it “more Chinese,” a process dubbed sinicization in English.
Is the move a step toward tighter government control, an opportunity to further indigenize and contextualize the faith, or perhaps both? As with most things in China, the answer is complicated.
This sinicization campaign has been going on for a few years. While outsiders have observed it with growing alarm, many believers in China understand that though the government may have a political agenda, it might also provide opportunities for outreach.
The Chinese National People’s Congress, China’s legislature, convened at the beginning of the month in Beijing, and Premier Li Keqiang delivered his annual work report speech. According to the National Catholic Reporter, he reiterated the government’s commitment to “fully implement the [Communist] Party’s fundamental policy on religious affairs and uphold the sinicization of religion in China.”
The following week, Xu Xiaohong, chairman of the National Committee of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, which oversees Protestant Christianity in China, spoke on his support for the policy and vowed to press on with its own five-year sinicization plan. Xu claimed that anti-China forces were using Christianity to subvert state power.
“[We] must recognize that Chinese churches are surnamed ‘China’, not ‘the West,’” he told delegates to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. “The …
Hamas soldiers arrested several journalists in Gaza Sunday during protests between Hamas security officials and protestors demonstrating against Gaza’s economic state.
Source: People Protest Economic Situation in Gaza, Hamas Soldiers Raid Homes, Arrest Journalists