Back in the 1960's, the Armenian-American Demos Sharkarian wrote The Happiest People on Earth, about the Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship International and full-Gospel Christians in general. Now Spengler--who I feature frequently--tells us that Israel, celebrating its 60th anniversary, is in fact the happiest nation on earth: In a world given over to morbidity, the state …
“Evangelicals are Being Shunned”
The new Lord Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, is spot on with this one: In an interview with ReligiousIntelligence.com, he said that the good work done by many Christian and evangelical groups is often just ignored and derided. “I think there is a culture now in our society where if something is even vaguely Christian, …
When people come forward in his church to accept Jesus as their savior, I don’t say: ‘Do you have papers?’
Should we? It's a good question in Pentecostal churches where Hispanic congregations are growing and voting: Gonzalez and other Hispanic pastors across the country seized on the debate to come together as a political force gaining momentum. Hispanic Pentecostals, some experts say, can become an important swing vote in the 2008 elections in key demographic …
Book Review: Sex God
Rob Bell has become a major voice in "post-modern" Evangelicalism with books such as Velvet Elvis and the NOOMA series of videos. He likes to travel on the edge, and so when he came out with a book entitled Sex God, it's tempting to think that he's gone over it. But before I explore the …
The Other Sheep of Jeremiah Wright
Now we can discuss something really important about Jeremiah Wright: On Monday, Pastor Jeremiah Wright had the following exchange with the moderator at the National Press Club (transcript): MODERATOR: “Jesus said, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the father but through me.’ Do you believe this? And do …
Wealth Accumulation and Consevative Protestants: More Biblical Than We Thought?
For all the years of prosperity teaching, conservative Protestants still do not match the wealth accumulation of others in the U.S.: According to data analyzed by Keister, a Duke University sociologist, the median net worth for conservative Protestants in 2000 was $26,000, compared to the national median of $66,200. Why the gap? Keister says it …
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One Church of God Weighs in on Obama and Osama
The Jonesville (SC) Church of God and its pastor are making a stir with their latest sign out in front of the church: Pastor Roger Byrd said that he just wanted to get people thinking. So last Thursday, he put a new message on the sign at the Jonesville Church of God. It reads: "Obama, …
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The Example of Ambrose
Travis Johnson's proposal concerning the election of state Administrative Bishops in the Church of God is an interesting one. From its start the Church of God has appointed its state and regional (diocesan, for you Anglicans and Roman Catholics) prelates centrally at the biennial General Assembly. It's easy to draw from this (and current Roman …
Barna and Tithing
It's inevitable that George Barna would chime in on the subject of the tithe: "Born again adults remain the most generous givers in a country acknowledged to be the most generous on the planet," said the veteran researcher. "But their donation decisions must be seen in the larger context of the changes occurring in a …
Church Building, Church Tomb
Johnathan Stone has picked another hot topic on buildings and churches. We see so many churches putting so much of their resources into physical plant these days, only to struggle with payments. My response from a business standpoint is as follows: You sure know how to pick sore subjects! For me, this is high on …
Positive Infinity 