The pastor of a Missouri church landed himself in hot water after preaching that autism is caused by “demonic” powers — insisting parents should “just cast the demon out” to cure their children. Pastor Rick Morrow, of the Beulah Baptist Church in Richland, sparked outrage among parishioners following the live-streamed sermon when he made the controversial... Continue Reading →
Scholars Publish New Papyrus with Early Sayings of Jesus
For all of Christianity’s influence today, the archeological evidence for the first two centuries of the religion’s existence is notoriously thin. This is why the publication of a previously unknown second-century fragment of early Christian writing this week is so significant. Written before the formation of a New Testament or even the widespread recognition of a collection... Continue Reading →
Alabama United Methodists Want to End Ban on Gay Marriage
United Methodists meeting in the North Alabama Conference on Friday voted to call for the upcoming international meeting of the denomination to drop all mention of homosexuality from the Book of Discipline, the book of church law. The Book of Discipline currently says “the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christianity,” and bans the blessing... Continue Reading →
Southern Baptists Expel Churches Over Female Pastors
Southern Baptists finalized the expulsion of two churches with female pastors on Wednesday, after a dramatic clash at their annual convention over moves by an ultraconservative wing on multiple fronts to reverse what it sees as a liberal drift. The ousted congregations are the Saddleback Church in Southern California, one of the denomination’s largest, and... Continue Reading →
Transgender Christian Confronts Pastor During Anti-LGBTQ+ Sermon
A transgender Christian publicly confronted a Catholic pastor in Cleveland, Ohio, after the pastor denounced an LGBTQ+ nonprofit in a sermon at St. Raphael Parish on Sunday. The LGBTQ+ community has been at the center of a culture war, with conservative political figures working to create anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, such as Tennessee banning public drag shows... Continue Reading →
Catholic School Board Member Calls Christian Men ‘Dangerous’ Sparking Anger
A Canadian Catholic school board collectively walked out of its meeting Monday night after a crowd called for a member's resignation over her tweets disparaging Christian men. School board meetings, notably across the United States, became plenty more contentious throughout the COVID-19 pandemic due to the implementation of various safety stipulations, as well as debates on book bans and critical... Continue Reading →
Vatican Reveals ‘Extraordinary Exchange’ Between Pope and Accused Cardinal
At a session of the Vatican’s corruption trial on Thursday (March 9), the Vatican’s chief prosecutor, Alessandro Diddi, presented the court with an extraordinary exchange of letters between Pope Francis and Cardinal Angelo Becciu, one of the trial’s 10 defendants, in which the cardinal pleaded with the pontiff to back his version of events and drop... Continue Reading →