News

Future Leadership Foundation, a non-profit headquartered in Jefferson City, Mo., that works to develop Christian leaders across the globe, hosted a June gathering for Baptist leaders across Eastern Europe. Nine Missourians trekked to the Ukraine Baptist Seminary in Lviv, Ukraine, to meet Baptists from Belarus, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia and Ukraine. 

(RNS) — Since the earliest days of the AIDS epidemic, many communities of faith have supported millions of people living with HIV and kept future generations free from HIV through their prevention efforts.

Today, communities from all faith traditions are engaged in the HIV response. Their continued leadership in ensuring respect for human dignity, justice and rights is critical.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Elected officials in North Carolina violated the Constitution by opening meetings with Christian prayers and inviting audience members to join, a federal appeals court ruled Friday (July 14) in a closely watched case that could end up in the Supreme Court.

(RNS) Summer is in full swing. For many of us, that means trips to the pool or the beach to cool off from the summer sun. So what are the options for people — women in particular — whose religion dictates modest dress? Deciding what to wear in the water as a conservative or plain clothes dresser varies by religion, and among individuals within a faith.

(RNS) Paul M. Sutter teaches astrophysics at Ohio State University but reaches a far broader audience through his “Ask a Spaceman” podcast and on social media, where he fields questions — in plain, entertaining and conversational English — from anyone who wonders about the cosmos.

Central Seminary has announced a new partnership with Sharon and Dan Buttry related to their work in peace and non-violence.

Peace and non-violence are not new areas of interest for Central, but, by working more collaboratively with the Buttrys, Central hopes to enhance the ongoing efforts in these areas the intention of developing an even closer relationship with the Buttrys’ work. 

Churches and religious organizations are the most highly regarded among U.S. institutions, according to the Pew Research Center.

Fifty-nine percent of U.S. adults hold a positive view of faith-based institutions.

(RNS) — While the Roman Catholic world digests a Vatican letter confirming the church’s prohibition on gluten-free wafers, Protestant churches continue to place orders for a Eucharist that won’t bother the gluten-intolerant.

Gluten or no gluten — the difference is theological.

Baptists from nearly 50 nations focused on religious liberty concerns in multiple nations during the annual gathering of the Baptist World Alliance in Bangkok, Thailand, the first week of July.

Through resolutions, presentations and advocacy, the historic Baptist concern for religious liberty led to attention given to Iraq, Myanmar, Russia, Thailand, the United States and elsewhere.

(RNS) The latest in a long line of studies, now numbering in the hundreds, if not thousands, shows that church attendance is good for your health.

But even as the studies pile up and the literature appears close to conclusive, many questions about the association between religious service attendance and health have yet to be answered.