African-American Christians and other believers are facing a new pluralism, both with new religious movements emerging and in practices that are causing new divisions. That  was one of the conclusions of a  conference on “The Spiritual State of Black America” which drew hundreds of church leaders, activists, scholars, and laity to Atlanta in May. In the online […]

The same nationalistic fervor leading Canada to diverge from the U.S. on economic and social issues is having a parallel in the churches, reports the Canadian evangelical magazine Faith Today (March/April). Canadian churches, particularly of the evangelical variety, that were once part of American-based denominations are striking out on their own, forming separate identities. Last year, the […]

The theme of cultural exile popular in  predominantly mainline American Protestant theology is more recently influencing the teachings and social ministry of evangelicals. Richard J.Mouw, President of Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, writes that this new theme is steadily emerging in several books. In a sympathetic review essay in Christianity Today magazine (April 24), Mouw cites two […]

A movement mixing classical learning and conservative Christian teaching is finding a place in many Christian schools. The curricula movement known as classical Christian education stresses a return to the “great books” and other elements of elite learning traditionally found in private schools in order to reinforce the conservative Christian worldview. Started by conservative Reformed […]

For several years,  accredited American seminaries have been searching for ways to help make the typical “new seminary student” prepared for parish service. As the average age reaches well above 30 for these second career seekers, leaders at the schools are facing “enormous challenges” according to an analysis in the Chronicle of Higher Education (April 7). The major […]

Evangelicals are charging that a pattern of discrimination has gone unchecked for too long in the Navy, and they are now taking their case to court. The Washington Post (April 9)  reports that both in the Navy and the Marines, evangelicals find they are less represented in the chaplaincy and that their chaplains are criticized and passed up […]

The closer ties between evangelicals and Catholics in the U.S. and Canada on theological and social issues is also taking root in Britain, according to the Catholic magazine The Tablet (Jan. 29). Elaine Storkey writes that the old posture of  separatism between Catholics and evangelicals in Britain of 20 years ago has given way to a new mood […]

American Sikhs are becoming increasingly involved in political life, according to the Los Angeles Times (March 21). The paper  reports that the new Sikh participation, termed a “political coming out,” includes “contributing to political campaigns as never before, with an estimated $7.7 million in donations to federal candidates in the last three elections,” the rising number of Indian […]

The traditional desirability of having a church, even a storefront congregation, next door in many Southern towns is no longer the case as this region undergoes an economic rebound and many downtown areas are being revitalized, reports the Wall Street Journal (March 15). These “sanctuaries, once considered beyond anyone’s reproach in the Bible Belt, are now targets […]

The growth of parachurch institutions and other networks outside of denominations and the new influence of women in churches will have significant effects in religious giving. A recent roundtable panel on the present and future of religious giving, particularly among evangelicals, highlighted these and other trends, according to leadExplorer (March 13), an online newsletter of Leadership Network. […]