When does faith become fraudulent? Philip Jenkins asks, Should truth in advertising laws apply to religious claims? Should governments be in the business of defining authentic miracles? Which pastors are genuine, and which are fakes? Every society has its own versions of Elmer Gantry, people who use religious deception as a money-making tool. The question then arises of […]
Religious and Pro-Life Conscience Unwelcome in Healthcare: Wesley Smith offers this op-ed summary of cases in which the healthcare industry and its regulation has taken a distinctly secularized turn. Students can survey his examples, search others that are similar and different, and consider the case.
U.S. Public Wary of Biomedical Technologies to ‘Enhance’ Human Abilities: Americans are more worried than enthusiastic about using gene editing, brain chip implants and synthetic blood to change human capabilities. The survey examines public attitudes about the potential use of three emerging technologies that could fundamentally improve people’s health, cognitive abilities or physical capacities. See also Christians to […]
Why You Should Use Stats in Ministry: Church agencies too often rely on anecdote and dramatic stories. Ed Stetzer of LifeWay Reseach makes a case for responsible use of data in church work, arguing that statistics can help us define a given situation, teach people, and make informed decisions.
Research: Unchurched Will Talk About Faith, Not Interested in Going to Church — Americans who don’t go to church are happy to talk about religion and often think about the meaning of life. They’re open to taking part in community service events hosted at a church or going to a church concert. But only about a third say […]
The Queerness of Christian Ethics: A Conversation with Rev. Elizabeth Edman — Edman is a granddaughter of a president of Wheaton College. This book interview presents her views on LGBTQ experience and her perception of Christian ethics. Students can examine it as a current perspective, and assess it in terms of Law and Gospel, source […]
Scopes of Religious Exemption: A Normative Map — (Note: one free download allowed) Religious exemptions take a variety of forms, with distinct logical shapes and normative underpinnings. This paper identifies eight ideal types of religious exemptions, grouped into three larger rubrics, representing a series of different analytic and justificatory structures, to help make sense of what […]
Nova Scotia law society can’t block graduates of evangelical school: The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal has upheld a decision allowing graduates of a controversial Christian university law school to practice in the province. The court dismissed an appeal from the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society fighting accreditation for graduates of Trinity Western University law school, which […]
Church Meeting Not Totally Immune From Judicial Examination: In Barrow v. Living Word Church, (SD OH, July 25, 2016), an Ohio federal magistrate judge refused to apply the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine to dismiss a suit by a former volunteer pastor who was removed from his position and from church membership, saying in part: “If a church meeting […]
Streaming Church Services: “We are looking at the popularity of Facebook Live, Snapchat and Periscope, so churches want to be there where they can reach people,” says DJ Chuang, consultant and leading expert on social media, the Internet and the church. This 8 min. video clip and transcript looks at the pros and cons.
