Church

Three immigrants who have resided in houses of worship to avoid deportation were granted one-year stays of removal this week, a move faith-based immigrant rights advocates framed as a “Christmas gift” years in the making.

In this edition of A Public Witness, we study the newest debate over the supposed tension between Baylor’s Christian commitments and a research emphasis. We also quiz what this false dichotomy teaches us more broadly about Christian integration of the head and the heart. 

A Pennsylvania church with a 221-year history held its final service and is scheduled to close at the end of the year because of declining membership and attendance. 

An Idaho church has replaced a stained-glass window honoring Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee with an image of the first African American woman bishop elected in the United Methodist Church. 

The Angel Tree program of Prison Fellowship and similar ministries are part of an effort by some faith groups and congregations to bring Christmas cheer — and connection — to prisoners and their kids.

The Washington National Cathedral — whose policies often set the tone for churches in the area — said they were moving all services online during the holiday season. Washington, D.C. currently has the highest COVID-19 case rates in the country.

In this issue of A Public Witness, we attend First Baptist’s “special” Christmas service to detail the clash of liturgies. We give special attention to the inherent political implications of Jesus’s birth. As a benediction, we reflect on the damage moments like this do to the witness of the Church.  

Polls shows how dramatically church attendance fell during the worst of the pandemic last year, even as many say they are now returning to regular service attendance. Churches large and small have taken hits in attendance.

For Mark Lowry, almost every day is Christmas. Whenever the storyteller and singer takes the stage for a concert, he always closes the show with the same song — “Mary Did You Know?” — no matter what time of year it is.

After riding out the violent tornado that devastated their town in a tunnel under their church, Rev. Wes Fowler knew what to do next: glorify God amid the suffering, and serve those in need.