01: Gospel brunches are attracting a growing clientele to their blending of church and entertainment functions. These brunches are booming in Washington, DC, where the gatherings are hosted by nightclubs and theatres, because they offer both the musical offerings of area choirs and soul food. The brunches are clearly viewed by these venues as a […]

Soul Children choirs are an international phenomenon spreading gospel choir music to places where it is basically unknown. The movement started in Chicago as an outlet for at-risk youth, but has spread to Norway and other parts of Europe and Asia, including Japan, Indonesia and Bangladesh. The participants often see their singing as a means […]

01: Charlotte ONE is an attempt to model a ministry to young adults, the least-churched age group, based on cooperation rather than competition or “sheep-stealing.” The ministry, involving evangelical and mainline churches in the Charlotte, NC area, is based on the premise that pooling efforts to appeal to young adults will prevent the tendency of […]

01: Because blacks register a low level of atheism, in February, African Americans for Humanism (AAH) launched an advertising campaign showcasing religious skepticism in the black community. The campaign targets six U.S. cities (New York City; Washington, DC; Los Angeles; Chicago; Atlanta; Durham, North Carolina; and Dallas), using the slogan “Doubts about religion? You’re one […]

Remembering stories about heroic “Bible smugglers,” few people in the West realize that one of the largest Bible printing plants in the world, the Amity Printing Company, is located in Nanjing, China. It is reported that 55 million copies of the Bible for Christians in China have been printed there since the printing plant was […]

01: At a time when about 100 million people a year make religious pilgrimages, new initiatives are planned to avoid heavy consequences of this activity for the environment. The Green Pilgrimage Network was launched at a meeting of the Alliance of Religions and Conservation in Assisi, Italy. A number of projects for the network have […]

01: The formation of two new Christian pressure groups during the U.S. government deadlock over raising the debt ceiling in early August showed both new and old fault lines in religious political engagement. The concern about possible cuts in social services rallied together a group of Christian leaders who called themselves the Circle of Protection. […]

01: The appointment of Jim Daly as president of Focus on the Family, succeeding founder James Dobson, suggests a transition in the organization from its more political stance to a more irenic posture stressing its original family concerns. Since his appointment in 2009, Daly has eschewed the often-heated political rhetoric employed by Dobson and has […]

Amahoro is the African version of “emergent” Christianity, which is generally considered a “post-modern,” post-denominational movement seeking to restore the importance of community and worship among Christians. In the last several years, emergent Christian leaders, such as Brian MacLaren, have sought to make the movement less focused on organizations, such as Emergent Village, while taking […]

01: Confession: A Roman Catholic App is the first time an iPhone/iPad application has been given an imprimatur, or church approval. The app is designed to be used in the confessional, providing a personalized examination of conscience for each user and a step-by-step guide to the sacrament. Modeled on the printed guides that have been […]