Thinking Critically . . . Acting Faithfully

Soul freedom Believer’s baptism Priesthood of every believer Local church autonomy Religious liberty for all people, and the separation of church and state so that both can operate freely Bedrock Baptist principles, each and every one of these. From Thomas Helwys on, Baptists have gone to prison and died because of their conviction that faithfulness Read more . . .

Last week, Harold Camping admitted he was wrong and confessed his “sin.” Two years ago, the radio preacher had begun predicting that Jesus would return on May 21, 2011. He boldly declared, “the Bible guarantees it.” Now he belatedly admits that critics who pointed out that his prediction contradicted Jesus’ own declaration that “no one Read more . . .

At Texas Baptists Committed, we try to talk less about the “Baptist battles” than we used to. Most Baptists today, we’re told, don’t want to hear about what happened in the 1980s and 1990s. I understand that. We who went through the Baptist battles are battle-weary; we want to turn the page to a new story, hoping that Read more . . .

A few days ago, a current presidential candidate attacked the speech presented by Senator John F. Kennedy to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association during his 1960 campaign against Vice-President Richard Nixon. This candidate said that Kennedy’s speech made him want to “throw up.” Of course, much of what he accused Kennedy of saying was a total Read more . . .

Siriusly Sinatra. That’s the name of my favorite radio station, and now I don’t even have to be in my car to listen to it. For an extra $3 a month, I get to listen to Sirius Satellite Radio on my home computer or my iPhone. Nice. Siriusly Sinatra. No, not quite all Frank all Read more . . .

Gratuitous personal attacks are easy. Thoughtful discussion of issues is hard. A friend and I often discuss political and religious issues. There are times, when he’s criticizing the position of some politician or preacher – and, by extension, their followers – he will begin attacking their intelligence, their character, or their motives. Epithets will begin to fly Read more . . .

Fifty years ago today, an American astronaut orbited the earth for the first time. On February 20, 1962, Col. John Glenn of Ohio became the third American in space. The previous year, Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom had completed sub-orbital flights, each lasting about 15 minutes. But John Glenn orbited the earth three times. Each Read more . . .

When my two kids left home for college – the first in 2000, the second in 2004 – I gave each of them the same final word of advice, which was some variation of the following: “Be sensitive to the presence of ‘giants’ in your life – those people who care enough to invest themselves Read more . . .

One sentence gave me pause. “LifeWay canceled the project last year amid reports that some Komen affiliates gave money to Planned Parenthood.” It appeared in an Associated Baptist Press article about criticism leveled by Thom Rainer, head of LifeWay Christian Resources – the publishing arm of the Southern Baptist Convention – at Susan G. Komen Read more . . .

I’m taking a momentary (only momentary, as you’ll see) break from writing about things Baptist, because there was a monumental occurrence last night that has prompted me to come clean about a secret known heretofore only to my very closest friends and family members. Yes, the truth can finally be told, and I’m relieved to Read more . . .