Opinion
4 Service Offerings Will Be at Heart of Good Faith Media
When EthicsDaily and Nurturing Faith unite to form the faith-based media company Good Faith Media, our mission will be to offer reflection and resources at the intersection of culture and faith through an inclusive Christian lens.
‘Our Muslim Neighbors’
A vast majority of the world’s 1.8 billion Muslims – over 97% – are upright citizens who defy combative, radicalized stereotypes and caricatures portrayed on the news. That’s the point in Victor Begg’s book, ‘Our Muslim Neighbors.’
The temple beneath the bridge …
Beneath a huge bridge on the main road from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, just past a huge subdivision called Mevaseret Zion and less than four miles northwest of the Old City, one can find the remains of an ancient temple that may have been used to worship both Yahweh and...
Bible study, really?
By John D. Pierce What’s passed off as group Bible study is often mere opinion sharing — perhaps after reading and disregarding a verse or two. Or perhaps the chance to rehash Saturday’s ballgame, and to reinforce each other’s political preferences and prejudices —...
Emerging Voices | Logsdon Seminary Affirmed Women in Ministry
Like many other women, I was called to ministry as a teen in a Southern Baptist church that did not affirm women serving in ministry. Logsdon Seminary was a place where women called to ministry could thrive.
When Your Struggle with Self-Hatred, Guilt Can Be Healthy
People from all religious backgrounds blame their religious upbringing for the struggles they have with self-hatred and guilt. Such struggles can’t be blamed solely on religion. Moreover, that struggle is not always unhealthy.
Read, reflect and learn
By John D. Pierce The March/April issue of Nurturing Faith Journal is rolling off the presses and heading to mailboxes. Get your copy (or digital subscription) at nurturingfaith.net. Chocked full of ORIGINAL content, the journal features insightful analysis of issues...
With Abrupt Announcement, Logsdon Seminary is Gone
An abrupt announcement on Feb. 7 said Logsdon Seminary at Hardin-Simmons University in Texas would close after a vote by trustees. Few details were provided; questions remain unanswered. And just like that, the seminary is gone.
Washington Gladden Balanced Social Activism, Spiritual Focus
Washington Gladden, an early leader in the Social Gospel movement, modeled a Christian life that understood the yin and yang that interwove social activism and spiritual centeredness. You can’t have one without the other.
It’s a good time for Good Faith
By John D. Pierce At a time when bad faith reveals a departure from truth as fact, and Christianity gets redefined apart from following Jesus, enter Good Faith Media! After a year of prayer, deliberation and growing enthusiasm, two independent, national organizations...
Emerging Voices | Uncovering What Happened to Texas
Texas Baptist life has shifted widely. The institutions built by the generation before us, intended to keep a spirit of inclusion in our state Baptist convention, have shown considerable decline. What happened?
Questioning Society Discovers Jesus in Comic Books
Many people, especially young adults, claim to have no religious affiliation, but pop culture features Jesus’ story in three comic books, illustrating that what Jesus taught and stood for is still timely.
Look Back | Why You Should Help Someone Who May Rip You Off
No one likes to be conned. It’s enough to make you angry when it happens to you. However, gifts, once given, are no longer ours to worry over. Gifts given in love retain the love, even if the recipient attempts to discard it.
When Our Institutions Fail the People, Where Do We Turn?
With its vote, the US Senate declared there is no longer any institutional check on the power of the president. How did we get here? Racism, racial anxiety, white privilege and white fragility are central factors.
When Life’s Spinning Carousel Dulls Your Senses
We all face seasons in life when our senses are dulled because we have been kicked into survival mode. When you feel like you’re riding a carousel watching the world blur by, it’s vital to ground yourself in the here and now.
Lord, Give Us Leaders Who Care for Suffering People
Many of our leaders seem to have lost the ability to cry for their people, to see human suffering and be moved to action. While both sides play politics, they are distracted from the tired, the poor, the jobless and the hungry.
Music Matters | Embracing Emotion in Worship Music
Some suggest we should not sing worship songs that elicit strong emotions because it can lead people astray, but we deceive ourselves if we think we can divorce musical meaning from musical feeling. Each contributes to the other.
5 Healthy Traits to Help Your Church Call Your Next Pastor
When your church searches for your next pastor, are you making a hire or extending a call? There are distinct differences. Vocational ministry is a unique calling. These 5 traits will help you establish a healthy call process.
Will US Become Sanctuary for Refugees Fleeing for Their Lives?
People uproot themselves for many reasons to come to the US, but it is rarely out of a simple desire to leave home. Some come here fearing for their safety. Woe to those who turn away people claiming to be fleeing for their lives.
Why You Can’t Allow Fear to Eclipse Justice, Equality
Love of a white nationalistic agenda is neither truly American nor Christian. Certain pious politicians and politicized preachers act in the same self-serving ways their predecessors enabled and excused gender and racial inequality.
Stuck in the Swamp: When Evangelicals are Enmeshed in Politics
While Christians absolute loyalty is to God’s kingdom, we are not called to withdraw from the kingdoms of the world. We can celebrate the good accomplished by a political system, but not to the exclusion of exposing evil and injustice.
Our Churches Must End Sin of Neglecting Next Generation
Churches are gifted with multiple generations, all at different paths on the journey, with so much to give each other. Yet, we often don’t know each other’s names. We must stop neglecting the next generation within our walls.
Fear rules
By John D. Pierce It would be hard to overestimate the impact fear of losing white male cultural dominance is having on America and American churches. It is strong enough that many who consider themselves good, even Christian, will willingly cast aside basic ethics in...
Who Can You Help Stop Walking Through Life in Circles?
So many of us walk through life aimlessly. But when we have other folks in our lives, we can receive a sense of purpose. In a world where so many people seem without direction, who can you help to stop walking in circles?
Look Back | Do Goodwill Baptists Welcome Women in Ministry?
Goodwill Baptists value diversity, but many are still closing the doors of leadership on women and minorities. Even Baptist churches claiming openness to women in ministry are not necessarily including them in all leadership levels.
Join us for Smoked Gouda Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Oh! and to honor David & Colleen
By John D. Pierce Anderson, S.C., is the place to be on Thursday, April 16, when Nurturing Faith presents its 20th annual Judson-Rice Award to David and Colleen Burroughs, founders of Passport Camps. The dinner event will feature a video tribute, a “conversation” with...
Why Trump’s Middle East Peace Plan is Doomed to Fail
President Trump unveiled his Middle East peace plan, but his roadmap is doomed to fail because it can’t be carried out without a solid moral foundation rooted in justice, equality and love. Here’s what’s missing.
‘Joker’
‘Joker’ is the most successful R-rated film ever, winning Golden Globes and amassing 11 Oscar nods. However, this bleak and gritty origin story of the iconic DC Comics villain delivers a troubling depiction of mental illness.
Your Pastor’s Big Decision: The Exit or the Entrance?
Pastoral ministry and leadership must evolve and adapt if their churches are going to be life-giving spiritual communities in the present or future. Pastors can choose one of two doors. Some choose the exit, others the entrance.
Eve’s Role as ‘Helper’ Didn’t Make Her Any Less Equal
I believe all humans are made equal. So reading in Genesis that Eve was Adam’s helper left me with growing unease. That’s because I assumed ‘helper’ meant someone who was subordinate. It’s another thing I got wrong about the Bible.