By Gregory Tomlin, Christian Examiner SPRING, Texas (Christian Examiner) – The first "Greater Church of Lucifer" will open later this month in a Houston suburb and just in time for Halloween, organizers of the venture have said. According to organizer "Jacob No," a nom du guerre, the church will open in an aged house in Old Town Spring to offer people a different kind of "church experience." "We do not have a preacher. We do not have somebody saying this is the way it has to be, that you have to live this way," No told Houston's KPRC, but without facing the camera. "We're giving a platform for people to explore themselves with ultimate freedom, to be able to look in the mirror and say I understand you better." The church insists it is not a Satanist church – that is, a church that worships Satan – because they are imitating, rather than worshipping Lucifer, the traditional name ascribed to the angel that rebelled against God and took a third of the angels with him. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]
Luter challenges worshippers to read Bible, follow its rules at National African American Fellowship Kingdom Symposium
By Diana Chandler, Baptist Press PHILADELPHIA (BP) -- Christians can lead holy lives by the same power the Apostle Paul called on in his struggle between the flesh and the Spirit recorded in Romans 7, immediate past Southern Baptist Convention President Fred Luter told worshippers at a Philadelphia gathering of black Southern Baptist pastors and leaders. "The reason Southern Baptists … I am convinced that we can win this battle is because of this fact. You're not fighting this battle on your own. You're not fighting this battle under your own strength," Luter said in the Sept. 30 keynote sermon of the National African American Fellowship Kingdom Symposium at Nazarene Baptist Church. "The reason we can win this battle … is because of the Jesus that's in you, because of the power of Christ that is in you." Luter's sermon, "The Super Bowl for Your Soul," capped presentations by seven other pastors and denominational leaders at the event hosted by NAAF president and Nazarene Baptist Church Pastor K. Marshall Williams Sept. 29–30 at the church in the historic Germantown community. "Living Holy and Clean in 2015: What shall we say to these things?" was the symposium theme. "The enemy is after your mind, your marriage, your … [Read more...]
EXCLUSIVE: Football coach says he will defy school’s prayer ban
By Todd Starnes, Fox News BREMERTON, Wash. (Christian Examiner) - There's a scene in the great football film "Facing the Giants" when the coach decides to implement a new coaching philosophy – to praise God no matter what the result. Joe Kennedy, a football coach at Bremerton High School in Washington, was so inspired by the film he decided to embrace that philosophy – knowing that to do so could cost him his job. I'll explain why in just a few more paragraphs. Kennedy, a Desert Storm and Desert Shield combat veteran, made national headlines in September after the Bremerton School District launched an investigation into his post-game prayer. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]
Macel Falwell, Jerry Falwell’s wife, dies at 82
By Joni B Hannigan, Christian Examiner LYNCHBURG, Va. (Christian Examiner) - Macel Pate Falwell, 82, who described herself as "a prim and proper lady who'd been raised in the arms of a protective Christian family" before marrying Jerry Falwell, has died. The Falwells were married April 12, 1958, and were married for 49 years. The Rev. Jerry Falwell, founder of Thomas Road Baptist Church and Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, died in 2007. They are survived by two sons and a daughter: Jerry Falwell Jr., Jonathan Falwell, and Jeannie Falwell Savas -- and their families. A memorial page appears on the website of Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia today. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]
U.S. int’l religious freedom interest downgraded to special ‘advisor’ from ‘envoy’
By Kelly Ledbetter, Christian Examiner WASHINGTON (Christian Examiner) - International religious freedom now has its own "special advisor" -- which reports to an ambassador, rather than a "special envoy" which reports to the Secretary of State, the White House has announced. And Senator James Lankford (R-Okla.) is challenging how that approach to key U.S. foreign policy objectives works -- especially since the "special envoy" position has been vacant for a while. "The Administration has taken the position that 'promoting and protecting religious freedom is a key objective of U.S. foreign policy,'" the senator wrote in an open letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, "yet the Ambassador-at-Large for religious freedom is buried in layers of bureaucracy rather than reporting directly to you like the Ambassadors-at-Large for the Office of Global Women's Issues and the Office of Global AIDS Coordinator." A special envoy reports directly to Secretary Kerry, while a special advisor may report to an envoy or ambassador. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]
REVIEW: ‘Woodlawn’ tackles racism & revival in the Red Zone
By Michael Foust, Christian Examiner HOLLYWOOD (Christian Examiner) - The best sports movies aren't even about sports. Instead, the best sports movies use sports as a backdrop to tell the story of something far more significant and important, something that even non-sports fans can embrace. Such is the case with "Woodlawn" (PG), which hits theaters this weekend and recounts the true story of a newly integrated high school football team in Birmingham, Ala., that is the source of racial tension until most of the players accept Christ and spark a city-wide revival. Set in the early 1970s, "Woodlawn" is the best sports movie I've ever seen, although that label really doesn't do it justice. That's because it's simply a great movie – even without the sports – and it's among the most inspiring and uplifting films I've watched. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]
‘Woodlawn’ star: Movie ‘timely’ in wake of Ferguson & Baltimore riots
By Michael Foust, Christian Examiner TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (Christian Examiner) – Caleb Castille, the lead actor in the new movie "Woodlawn," is accustomed to the audibles and last-second changes that make football so fun, having played the sport himself in college and having watched his father and two of his brothers join NFL teams. But even he was a little surprised by the "audible" that Woodlawn's moviemakers tossed at him less than a week prior to the first day of filming. Castille was set to be a stunt double for the lead actor in the film when the lead actor pulled out. Soon, Castille got a life-changing phone call. "Three days before production they called and said, 'We're looking at a few new guys and you're one of them.' So I went back through a three-day audition process and at the end of those three days, I was the one," Castille said. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]
More Canaanite evidence found by New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary dig team
By Gary D. Myers, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary communications KARMEI YOSEF, Israel (BP) - Added evidence that an ancient water system at Tel Gezer in Israel could be the product of Middle Bronze Age Canaanites living between the time of Abraham and the Israelite conquest was uncovered by New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary's archaeology team during a challenging dig season this summer. The Bible provides a tantalizing parallel to the Gezer system in the accounts of King David. In 2 Samuel 5:6-9, David's men utilized a "water shaft" to invade and conquer the fortress of Zion/Jerusalem. This rock-hewn system has been located in Jerusalem's "City of David" area. Visitors can walk the entire length of that Canaanite system. Based on all the available data, Dan Warner, co-director of the NOBTS Gezer dig, believes the City of David tunnel and the Gezer system are both products of the Middle Bronze Age. The Gezer water system excavation is a joint project of the Moskau Institute for Archaeology at NOBTS and the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA). The dig is co-directed by Dan Warner, an NOBTS professor, and INPA chief archaeologist Tsvika Tsuk. Jim Parker, NOBTS professor and executive director of the … [Read more...]
Planned Parenthood Federation of America change shows its guilt, pro-lifers say
By Tom Strode, Baptist Press WASHINGTON (BP) -- Planned Parenthood's decision to forego federal reimbursements for fetal tissue donation serves as an admission of its guilt and should not halt the congressional effort to defund the organization, its critics say. The Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) announced Tuesday (Oct. 13) that none of its centers will accept federal reimbursement in the future for expenses accrued in tissue donations from aborted babies for research. In a letter, PPFA President Cecile Richards said the action was taken to "completely debunk the disingenuous argument" used by opponents in the wake of undercover videos providing evidence the country's leading abortion provider trades in baby body parts. Richards' letter to Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, followed the release of 10 secretly recorded videos that show various Planned Parenthood officials in different locations discussing the sale of organs from aborted children. The videos recorded and released by the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) also display PPFA employees acknowledging their willingness to manipulate the abortion procedure to preserve body parts for sale and use. In addition, the videos … [Read more...]
Democratic debate: race, climate change prominent
By David Roach, Baptist Press LAS VEGAS (BP) - Race relations, marijuana legalization, climate change and gun control were among the moral issues highlighted Oct. 13 at a Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas involving five candidates. The issues of abortion and same-sex marriage came up only in passing and were mentioned only a few times during the two-hour debate. Perhaps the most extended reference to sanctity of life issues came when frontrunner Hillary Clinton alleged Republicans suspend their typical opposition to "big government" to regulate Planned Parenthood and limit access to abortions. "It's always the Republicans or their sympathizers who say, 'You can't have paid [maternity] leave. You can't provide health care,'" Clinton said. "They don't mind having big government to interfere with a woman's right to choose and to try to take down Planned Parenthood. They're fine with big government when it comes to that. I'm sick of it." Russell Moore, president of Southern Baptists' Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, responded on Twitter, "Secretary Clinton, it isn't 'big government' to stop the government from funding Planned Parenthood." Former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chaffee … [Read more...]
