Can This Texas Pastor Lay Hands on an Inmate During Execution?
Q&A with SBC minister Dana Moore on the power of prayer in a state death chamber. Read full piece
Death-Row Inmate Sues for Pastor’s Touch During Execution
A Texas death-row inmate has sued state prison officials to allow his pastor to lay hands on him as he dies from a lethal injection. John Henry Ramirez, 37, is scheduled to be put to death in the Texas death chamber on Sept. 8.
In Sermon, Stacey Abrams Supports Texas Democrats ‘in Exile,’ Preaches on Voting Rights
Former Georgia House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams used a virtual Washington, D.C., pulpit to preach a message supporting efforts to push back on voting rights restrictions.
The Plantation Lived on through Texas Baptist Evangelism
Before and during the Civil War, white Texas Baptist leadership tied their theology of the gospel and plans for evangelism directly to Southern plantation patriarchy and support of the Confederacy. Read full piece
Caught in a Culture War, this Multiracial Family Navigates a Predominantly White Evangelical World
Deacon Ivey is used to the lingering stares in restaurants and on vacation. As a biracial teenager with White evangelical parents, Deacon said he often feels uncomfortable going into public with his multiracial family in their predominantly White community in Texas. Read full piece
Texas Ends Ban on Clergy, Spiritual Advisers in Death Chamber
Texas prisons have resumed allowing clergy as well as spiritual advisers in the death chamber, reversing a two-year ban created after the U.S. Supreme Court halted the execution of an inmate who had argued his religious freedom was being violated.
Faith Leaders Across US Join in Decrying Voting Restrictions
In Georgia, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, and elsewhere, many faith leaders perceive a threat to voting rights that warrants their intervention in a volatile political issue. Here is what some of the faith leaders are saying.
Texas Faith Leaders Condemn New Election Bills as Jim Crow Dressed Up in a ‘Tuxedo’
Faith leaders in Texas condemned a pair of controversial election bills Wednesday working their way through the state Legislature, accusing lawmakers of trying to “dress up Jim and Jane Crow in a tuxedo.”
Plans for a New Logsdon Seminary in San Antonio Announced
A group of Hardin-Simmons University alumni, former faculty and friends have announced plans to launch a freestanding Logdson Theological Seminary in San Antonio, Texas, and they are seeking the blessing of university trustees for their effort. Read full piece
Texas Gambling Opponents Ready for Battle
With major professional sports teams supporting efforts to legalize sports betting and one of the world’s largest gambling companies backing a multimillion-dollar lobbying effort on behalf of casinos, gambling opponents recognize the potential for a David-and-Goliath battle in the Texas Legislature. Read full piece