IL. abortion bill stalled
A bill to expand abortion practices in Illinois is stalled in committee, due in part to a large pro-life rally at the Capitol rotunda. A March 20 pro-life rally and march at the Illinois Capitol protested The Reproductive Health Act, SB 1942 and HB 2495, which would repeal the 1975 Illinois Abortion Law, the state’s partial birth abortion ban, and regulations banning anyone other than physicians from performing abortions.

China closes fourth major underground church
A prominent house church in Beijing was shut down after government and police officials raided Bible classes at two of the church’s locations. The officials changed the locks and banned the congregants from gathering to worship. Shouwang Church, which draws more than 1,000 attendees, is the fourth major underground congregation shut down by the Communist government over the past several months.

8 yr. old chess champion gives back to God
A young immigrant from Nigeria is giving credit to God for lifting his family out of poverty. After Tanitoluwa Adewumi, a third grader, won a New York State chess championship in his age bracket, a GoFundMe campaign was set up to help remove the family from their homeless shelter in New York. Of the $246,000 raised, Adewumi’s family has vowed to sow ten percent back into their local church and use the rest to benefit other African immigrants settling in the United States. “To whom much is given, much is required,” Tanitoluwa’s dad wrote in an update on the page.

Survey: moms more influential than dads in child’s faith
Christians are far more likely to say their mothers had a bigger influence on their faith than did their fathers, according to a new Barna study. The study, which examines the roles that moms and dads play in the development of children, found that 68 percent of U.S. Christians who grew up with someone who influenced their faith say their mother’s faith impacted them. That was followed by the father (46 percent) and a grandparent (37 percent).

‘Unplanned’ movie receives backlash from media
A new pro-life movie, “Unplanned,” is receiving backlash from media on the film’s depiction of abortion. The movie, produced by Pure Flix, tells the true story of a Planned Parenthood clinic director’s subsequent conversion to pro-life views. Many cable networks refused to air commercials for the movie and many other channels declined to advertise it due to its “sensitive nature,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie began airing in theaters March 29.

Sources: Illinois Baptist, Christian Post, CBN, Christian Headlines, Baptist Press