‘I Kissed Dating Goodbye’ writer announces ‘massive shift’ away from faith
A week after announcing his separation from his wife of 20 years, author Joshua Harris posted online that he’s no longer a Christian. “By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian,” Harris wrote on Instagram July 26. “Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now.”
Harris wrote the pro-courtship book “I Kissed Dating Goodbye” in 1997, chronicling his relationship with his future wife.
Village Church sued for neglect in sexual assault case
A Southern Baptist church in Texas is facing a $1 million lawsuit that claims it hasn’t done enough to resolve sexual assault that occurred at a church camp in 2012. The suit against The Village Church says the church acted with “conscious indifference or reckless disregard” for a woman referred to as Jane Doe.
Former Village staff member Matthew Tonne was arrested in January on charges of indecency with a child and is awaiting trial, The Dallas Morning News reported.
Willow Creek struggles to move forward after Hybels
Christianity Today reports Willow Creek Community Church held a meeting in July to try to find closure more than a year after the resignation of founding pastor Bill Hybels, who stepped down in April 2018 amid allegations of sexual misconduct. The Chicago megachurch’s elder board also resigned, and the church has since seen declines in giving and attendance, according to CT.
Baptists travel to U.S. border on ‘fact-finding mission’
Marshall Ausberry and Todd Unzicker met with immigrants in Mexico and Baptist leaders on both sides of the border to find out how the SBC can minister there amid the growing crisis. Ausberry, the SBC’s first vice president, and Unzicker, an associate pastor at The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, will report their findings to SBC President J.D. Greear as he formulates ideas for Baptist ministry at the border.
Quiz sheds light on Americans’ religious knowledge
87% of Americans know an atheist is someone who doesn’t believe in God, but only 24% know Rosh Hashana is the Jewish New Year. And just under half think “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” is one of the Ten Commandments. Those are among the findings of Pew’s quiz of American adults on a variety of religious topics.
Sources: The Christian Post, The Dallas Morning News, Christianity Today, Baptist Press, Pew Research Center
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