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Archives For November 30, 1999

Tuesday Briefing: Indiana ruckus shows religious liberty is new ‘wedge’ in culture wars

Meredith Flynn —  April 7, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

The uproar over Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act continued as lawmakers introduced changes to the bill that opponents say put business owners at risk to be forced to compromise their beliefs.

The original RFRA, signed into law March 26 by Gov. Mike Pence, came under national fire from corporations, celebrities, and others who said it would allow discrimination against gay people. Supporters of the law said it would protect the religious liberty of business owners by shielding them from government action if they refused to provide services for same-sex weddings.

The_BriefingThe changes to the law, signed by Pence one week after he approved the original RFRA, say “no member of the public may be refused services by a private business based on sexual orientation or gender identity,” Baptist Press reports.

The controversy, wrote Philip Bethancourt of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, has served to make religious liberty “a new culture war wedge issue.”

“One indication of this change is the frequent use of ‘religious freedom’ in scare quotes, suggesting that it is merely a cover for something more malicious,” Bethancourt wrote on ERLC.com. “Danger arises when our first freedom becomes a second-class culture war issue.”

Christians in Kenya grieved on Easter Sunday for 148 people killed at a university last week by terror group al-Shabaab. The Associated Press reported on the Easter service at Our Lady of Consolation Church in Garissa, where Bishop Joseph Allessandro said, “We join the sufferings of the relatives and the victims with the sufferings of Jesus. The victims will rise again with Christ.”

During the April 2 terror attack at Garissa University College, the shooters separated Christian students from Muslims and killed the Christians, AP reported.

What do Americans believe about Jesus? According to new research by Barna, most say he was a real person, a little over half believe he was God, and 62% say they have made a personal commitment to him that is still important in their life today.

And what about the church? LifeWay Research found that while 55% of Americans say the church in America is declining, 65% believe attendance is admirable.

More interesting research: Pew says current trends forecast that Muslims will almost equal Christians in number by 2050, and the global percentage of “nones” who have no religious affiliation will actually decrease.

“We’ve got a long way to go” on race relations, said Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission President Russell Moore at a March summit on racial reconciliation and the gospel. “Our sin keeps wanting us to divide up. But to the faithful, Jesus promises, ‘You will be called overcomers.’” Read the Illinois Baptist‘s coverage of the summit here at ib2news.org.

Did you catch the premiere episode of “A.D.: The Bible Continues” on Sunday? Christianity Today is recapping each installment of the new miniseries produced by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, which details the history of the early church following Jesus’ death and resurrection.

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Tuesday Briefing: First PC(USA) church leaves following marriage decision

Meredith Flynn —  March 31, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

Brighton Presbyterian Church in Rochester, N.Y., is the first church to leave the Presbyterian Church (USA) after a majority of the denomination’s districts voted to change its definition of marriage. The amendment to the group’s constitution, which will become official this summer, alters the marriage definition from “a man and a woman” to “two people, traditionally a man and a woman.”

The_Briefing“Our reason for leaving is centered on the status of biblical interpretation within the PC(USA),” Brighton spokeswoman Kerry Luddy told The Christian Post. “We believe that Scripture’s meaning and intent should not be altered to fit a current culture.”

“Heaven visitation resources” like Don Piper’s book “90 Minutes in Heaven” are no longer available from LifeWay Christian Resources. Spokesman Marty King told Baptist Press LifeWay stopped ordering “experiential testimonies about heaven” last summer, and has pulled the remaining products from stores and its website.

LifeWay’s decision followed the adoption of a resolution on “the sufficiency of Scripture regarding the afterlife” by messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting last summer.

Legislators introduced this month a bill that would allow adoption and foster care agencies to operate within their religious convictions concerning placing children with same-sex couples. “This commonsense bill simply ensures that these child welfare providers can keep doing what they do best and are treated the same as the rest,” said Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), according to a WORLD News Service report.

Illinois is one of four states where agencies have discontinued adoption and foster care services because they would have been required to place children with same-sex couples.

More than 83,000 Bibles were shipped to Cuba this month through a partnership between Southern Baptist agencies, churches and individual donors. The Eastern Cuba Baptist Convention, which will receive 32,000 Bibles, reported more than 29,000 professions of faith last year, said Kurt Urbanek, International Mission Board strategy leader for Cuba. “The growth is so incredible, that’s why Bibles are so important.”

“If it wasn’t for the Baptists, I don’t know what I would do,” said one homeowner whose basement was repaired after severe flood damage wrought by Hurricane Sandy. More than two years after the storm devastated parts of New York and New Jersey, volunteers working through Southern Baptist Disaster Relief are still rebuilding and repairing homes in the region.

 

 

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Tuesday Briefing: What do Millennials think of your church?

Meredith Flynn —  March 10, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

While 30% of the Millennial generation say going to church isn’t important at all, 30% also say church attendance is very important. And 40% are in the middle. The reasons why vary, as detailed in research by Barna Group. Among all Millennials, the researchers found, 66% say American churchgoers are judgmental, and 44% believe it seems like an exclusive club.

Better news: 65% say church is a place to find answers to live a meaningful life.

A Peoria, Ill., woman committed to wear a traditional Muslim head covering during Lent in order to “remember what it feels like to be an outsider.” “People end up grouping all Muslims with extremists. I want to remember that people are individuals, and so by doing this I’m remembering to welcome and include people no matter what they look like,” Jessey Eagen told The Christian Post.

Phyllis Sortor, a missionary with the American Free Methodist Church who was kidnapped in Nigeria in February, has been released, The Christian Post reports. “It appears she was kidnapped by a criminal gang, and there is no evidence this event is associated with terrorism or religion,” said David W. Kendall in a news release from the denomination’s Board of Bishops.

Sortor’s kidnappers originally demanded $300,000 for her release, the details of which will not be discussed publicly, Kendall said.

Franklin Graham, son of famed evangelist Billy Graham and president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, told Fox News on Sunday, “I believe we’re going to see persecution in this country. We’ve already seen many laws that have been passed that restrict our freedom as Christians.”

The Washington florist who came under fire for refusing to provide services for a same-sex wedding said she would hug her accuser if he walked into her shop. “The same faith that tells me that I can’t be a part of Rob’s wedding is the same faith that tells me to love him as Christ does,”

Barronelle Stutzman told Baptist Press. The 70-year-old Southern Baptist church member was found guilty last month of violating her state’s non-discrimination law. She is appealing the verdict.

 

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Tuesday Briefing: Florist ‘cannot sell’ freedom for financial settlement

Meredith Flynn —  February 24, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

The Washington florist found to be in violation of her state’s non-discrimination law rejected a settlement that could have mitigated some of the damage to her financial well-being, The Christian Post reports.

The_BriefingWhen Baronelle Stutzman refused to provide florist services for a same-sex wedding, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed suit against her. Following the Feb. 18 verdict, Ferguson offered to let Stutzman pay $2,001 in penalties and fees, as long as she committed “not to discriminate in the future.” Stutzman said no.

“Washington’s constitution guarantees us ‘freedom of conscience in all matters of religious sentiment.’ I cannot sell that precious freedom,” she wrote in a letter. “You are asking me to walk in the way of a well-known betrayer, one who sold something of infinite worth for 30 pieces of silver. That is something I will not do.”

Controversial author and former pastor Rob Bell told Oprah Winfrey that church culture is turning toward acceptance of same-sex marriage. “Lots of people are already there,” he said on the Feb. 15 episode of Winfrey’s “Super Soul Sunday.”

“We think it’s inevitable and we’re moments away from the church accepting it.”

Messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting this June will vote on a key change to the ministry statement of the North American Mission Board. If approved, according to Baptist Press, NAMB personnel could provide assistance to the International Mission Board in planting churches overseas.

“War Room” is the newest movie from the Georgia brothers who created “Facing the Giants,” “Fireproof,” and “Courageous.”

“This film is about the power of prayer, and the necessity of prayer in our lives,” Alex Kendrick says in a video on warroomthemovie.com. He and his brother, Stephen, produced their earlier films with Sherwood Pictures, based in their Baptist church. “War Room” will be distributed by Worldwide Distribution for Sony Pictures, Baptist Press reported. Bible teachers Priscilla Shirer and Beth Moore both appear in the film.

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Tuesday Briefing: State stats, Johnny Football, and the Court gets religious

Meredith Flynn —  February 10, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

Three-dimensional map of Illinois. USA.It’s “State of the States” time at Gallup, and the researcher is releasing new findings every other day. Last week’s data covered President Obama’s job approval rating, political party identification, and ideology–each measured by state. To see how Illinois ranked (a quick preview: The state had the 10th highest approval rating for the President), go to Gallup.com.

Phillip Bethancourt examines “Johnny Manziel, Rehab and the Gospel” on FaithStreet.com, in light of the Cleveland quarterback’s entry into a treatment center earlier this month. “As Christians, our response to the collapse of Johnny Manziel should not be an ‘I told you so’ triumphalism or an ‘anyone could see that coming’ dismissiveness,” wrote Bethancourt, executive vice president for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. “Instead it should be a ‘such were some of you’ recognition that, apart from Christ, we might also be there.”

Pew Reseach reports the U.S. Supreme Court could face some religion-themed decisions this year, including two very different cases related to employment. In one, a would-be employee at Abercrombie & Fitch is arguing for her right to wear a head covering. In the other, religiously affiliated non-profits say they shouldn’t have to comply with the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate.

At the Feb. 5 National Prayer Breakfast, President Barack Obama compared current acts of terrorism committed by ISIS and other groups to past movements–including the Crusades–he said were often committed or justified in the name of Christ.

“His flawed comparison to atrocities that happened hundreds of years ago minimizes the severity of ISIS and other groups that are brutalizing and killing innocent people,” Southern Baptist Convention President Ronnie Floyd told Baptist Press. “Instead of focusing on the past, America needs heroic leadership in the present–leadership that champions religious liberty for all people.”

Christian rapper Lecrae Moore gave credit where credit is due during his Grammy acceptance speech Sunday night.  “…You can’t celebrate gifts without celebrating the giver of all gifts. So I want to celebrate Jesus for gifting us all with the gift of love and sacrifice.” Lecrae’s song “Messengers” (featuring for KING AND COUNTRY) won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Christian Song/Performance. Read more at ChristianPost.com.

 

 

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Tuesday Briefing: President Obama advocates for Pastor Abedini

Meredith Flynn —  January 27, 2015
Image from a May 2012 YouTube video Saeed Abedini made before his imprisonment.

Image from a May 2012 YouTube video Saeed Abedini made before his imprisonment.

THE BRIEFING | At a meeting last week with the wife and children of imprisoned pastor Saeed Abedini, President Barack Obama said securing his release is a top priority, according to a release from the American Center for Law and Justice.

“The President was focused and gracious – showing concern to me and my children,” said Naghmeh Abedini. “I know that this meeting could not have occurred without prayer and I am grateful to the many people around the country and world who continue to pray for Saeed’s release.”

Obama reportedly told the Abedinis’ young son that he would try to have his father home by the boy’s birthday in March. The pastor, an American citizen, was arrested in Iran in 2012 and charged with “undermining national security,” Christianity Today reports. Last June, he was awarded a religious liberty award by the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, which his wife accepted on his behalf.

Jury selection started yesterday in the trial over Houston’s Equal Rights Ordinance, spearheaded by a coalition of ministers who collected petitions to repeal the ordinance passed by the City Council last May. (The city disqualified many of the 50,000 signatures collected.) The complicated case also included an effort to subpoena communications and sermons by five Houston ministers; the subpoenas were eventually dropped.

Opponents of the Houston ordinance recently aided Plano residents in collecting signatures to stop a similar ordinance in their city, Baptist Press reported.

A rumored protest by Westboro Baptist Church didn’t come to fruition at a Quad Cities-area Illinois Baptist church, but representatives of the infamous Kansas congregation (which is not affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention) did visit some churches in the area, and were met with counter-protestors. Prior to Sunday, January 25, Westboro protestors were scheduled to be at Northcrest Calvary, an Illinois Baptist State Association church in Rock Island.

Alabama is the most recent state to face a challenge to its ban on same-sex marriage, Baptist Press reports. Judge Callie V.S. Granade ruled the ban unconstitutional Jan. 23, in a case involving a lesbian couple who married in California but were denied adoption rights in Alabama. The state’s association of probate judges–who are responsible for issuing marriage licenses–said Granade’s ruling doesn’t impact anyone not named in the case.

The struggle continues between New York City public schools and churches that want to rent their space for Sunday worship, Christianity Today reports. The most recent development is an apparent change of heart by Mayor Bill de Blasio.

George Perdikis, who co-founded The Newsboys in the 1980s, has officially renounced his Christian faith, The Christian Post reports. The musician wrote in a recent post on Patheos.com: “I always felt uncomfortable with the strict rules imposed by Christianity. All I wanted to do was play rock and roll.”

Where does your city rank when it comes to “Bible-mindedness?” Barna and the American Bible Society released their annual list of the most Bible-minded cities in the U.S. Four Illinois cities landed in the top 50; see which ones at Barna.com.

 

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Tuesday Briefing: Praying for France

Meredith Flynn —  January 13, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

International Mission Board workers called for prayer in the wake of devastating terrorist attacks in France, Baptist Press reports. “There exists today a delicate tension in France that teeters toward breaking, and [Wednesday’s] tragic events will likely serve to further stir up the tension,” said Mark Stone, a church planter in southern France. The outbreak of violence started Jan. 7 with a shooting that left 12 people dead at the headquarters of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo.

“We are praying that the outcry against these heinous acts committed by religious extremists will not become outcries against anyone who claims to have any sort of religious belief,” IMB worker Tara Chaney told Baptist Press.

“Right now, we are praying that the people of France will turn toward God and not away from Him.”

The_BriefingThe Muslim actor who will play Jesus in an upcoming National Geographic Channel said he didn’t believe Jesus would judge him for playing the part. “I cannot speak for Jesus, but I can quote his teachings and He said, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself,'” Haaz Sleiman told Entertainment Weekly. “…How would He react to me playing Jesus? He wouldn’t judge it. He wouldn’t judge His own enemy…playing this part highlights His teaching in a very nice way.”

Sleiman will portray Christ in “Killing Jesus,” a miniseries based on a book by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard. Read the full story at ChristianPost.com.

North Korea is atop Open Doors’ annual World Watch List for the 13th consecutive year, followed by Somalia, Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. The list tracks the countries “where it is most dangerous and difficult to be a Christian.”

“Under no circumstances have I been discriminatory or hateful towards any member of the department in the LGBT community or a member of the LGBT community at large,” former Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran told Baptist Press Jan. 6. Cochran was fired after an investigation into his self-published book which briefly mentions homosexuality as an immoral behavior, BP reports. Cochran teaches Sunday school and serves as a deacon at Elizabeth Baptist Church, which is affiliated with the Georgia Baptist Convention.

Where do the majority of Congressional representatives fall, faith-wise? Pew Research breaks down the religious makeup of the current U.S. Congress in this full report.

Wondering what else happened in Louis Zamperini’s life that didn’t make it into the recently released feature film Unbroken? Check out this half-hour documentary from the Bill Graham Evangelistic Association about the war hero’s conversion to Christianity.

We’ll give this a few weeks to see how it checks out: LifeWay Research recently found only 15% of churchgoers said they would skip worship to watch their favorite football team.

 

 

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The Briefing: Is racial justice a ‘gospel demand?’

Meredith Flynn —  December 9, 2014

Leaders debate in wake of grand jury decisions

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

The Christian Post reports on a disagreement among some Southern Baptist leaders, following a grand jury’s decision not to indict Police Officer Darren Wilson in the death of Missouri teenager Michael Brown.

The_Briefing“Seems to me that racial reconciliation is a good thing and is a social issue, not a doctrinal or theological issue, and certainly not a “gospel demand,'” blogged Texas pastor Randy White. “If there is something Biblical that expresses racial reconciliation as a gospel demand, I’ve missed it.”

White’s Nov. 26 post at randywhiteministries.org was in response to Southern Seminary vice president Matthew Hall, who wrote about racial injustice after a Missouri grand jury decided not to indict former Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in Brown’s death. Hall blogged the gospel demands racial reconciliation and justice, and gave five reasons why Christians ought to heed its instruction on the issues.

“…It’s high time that we start listening to our African-American brothers and sisters when they tell us that they’re experiencing a problem in this country,” Russell Moore said after a Staten Island grand jury did not indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo in the death of Eric Garner. In a Questions & Ethics podcast recorded after the verdict was announced Dec. 3, the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission President denounced racial divisions in and among churches.

As a 13-year-old, Christian rapper Lecrae went free after harassing people with a pellet gun, he said in a Dec. 3 Facebook post. “One officer decided not to arrest me years ago but instead challenged me to get in my Bible.” The post was published on the same day as the Cleveland funeral of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was shot and killed by a police officer while carrying a pellet gun.

A Southern Baptist pastor in Florida was killed Dec. 4 by a gunman who also took the lives of two women. Baptist Press reported police arrested Andres Avalos in Bradenton two days after the murders of Pastor Tripp Battle, Amber Avalos (Andres Avalos’ wife), and Denise Potter. Battle was the pastor of Bayshore Baptist Church in Bradenton; his father-in-law, Keith Johnson, was formerly on staff at FBC Machesney Park and Vale Church (Bloomington) in Illinois.

Six in ten Americans say the government shouldn’t define or regulate marriage, according to this recent LifeWay Research study, and more than half say clergy should no longer be involved in the state’s licensing of marriage.

A group of religion leaders, including Pope Francis, have pledged to do everything they can to end human slavery by 2020.

Religion News Services wonders how Christians will respond to “Unbroken,” the Louis Zamperini biopic from director Angelina Jolie. The film reportedly doesn’t deal with Zamperini’s Christian faith, chronicled in Laura Hillenbrand’s 2010 book from its beginnings at a 1949 Billy Graham Crusade.

 

 

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Tuesday Briefing: Marriage, movies, crime worries and baseball

Meredith Flynn —  October 28, 2014

THE BRIEFING | A Baptist professor who once taught at the convention’s most historic seminary is poised to publicly announce his shift on homosexuality at a national conference in November. Mercer University professor David Gushee, who taught at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary from 1993-96, will reportedly tell the audience at a conference hosted by The Reformation Project that, “I will seek to stand in solidarity with you who have suffered the lash of countless Christian rejections.”

The_BriefingHis proposed remarks, reported by Religious News Service, do not come as a surprise to Baptist leaders who have known Gushee and watched his theological path over the years, Baptist Press reports. “Gushee is not the future of evangelicalism,” blogged Boyce College professor Denny Burk. “He is the future of ex-evangelicalism. He joins a chorus of others who have left the faith once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3) and who no longer represent what evangelical Christianity is all about.”

A week after Houston pastors were subpoenaed amid their involvement in a campaign to defeat a city ordinance, Southern Baptists leaders and others in Arkansas are working toward the repeal of a similar ordinance in Fayetteville. Adopted by the city council in August, the ordinance is part of an effort by the Human Rights Campaign to expand equality for the LGBT community in southern states, Baptist Press reports. But some pastors and Christian leaders say their religious liberty is at stake.

Southern Baptist Convention President Ronnie Floyd will take part in a Nov. 2 simulcast designed to show support for the five subpoenaed ministers in Houston. Sponsored in part by Family Research Council, “I Stand Sunday” also will feature former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee and Alan and Phil Robertson from TV’s “Duck Dynasty.”

“Life does not end when tragedy comes into your life,” says Travis Freeman, a one-time high school football player whose life changed drastically when an illness cost him his eyesight. The two-time graduate of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary is the subject of “23 Blast,” a new film released in Oct. 24. Read more about Freeman and the movie at BPNews.net.

In other movie news, Christian Bale says Moses was “barbaric” and “likely schizophrenic.” Bale portrays the biblical hero in the upcoming Ridley Scott film “Exodus: Gods and Kings.”

Having their credit card information stolen tops the list of crimes Americans worry about most, according to a poll by Gallup. 69% of people said they frequently or occasionally worry about computer hackers stealing the credit card info they use at stores, followed by 62% of Americans who worry about their computer or cell phone being hacked. Farther down the list: having your car stolen or broken into (42%), getting mugged (31%), and being a victim of terrorism (28%).

Winning baseball games isn’t the top priority for San Francisco Giants assistant general manager Bobby Evans. “You want your life to point people to Christ,” he told Baptist Press. “It starts for me with my own relationship with Christ. That’s going to direct and dictate what influence I have for Christ in my family, in my marriage and in the workplace.”

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The Briefing: Houston won’t specifically subpoena pastors’ sermons

Meredith Flynn —  October 21, 2014

Religious liberty advocates say city still asking too much

THE BRIEFING | Subpoenas requiring pastors to turn over their sermons are a violation of their First Amendment rights, religious freedom advocates argued in the wake of action by the Houston’s mayor and city attorney.

The five subpoenaed ministers had been part of an effort to repeal Houston’s Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO), adopted by the city council in May. The subpoenas are for a lawsuit brought by ordinance opponents, who collected thousands of signatures on a petition to repeal HERO. But the city disqualified enough of the signatures to prevent a vote, Tom Strode and Bonnie Pritchett reported for Baptist Press.

On Friday, Oct. 17, Houston City Attorney Dave Feldman removed “sermons” from the subpoenaed materials, which also include text messages, e-mails, speeches and presentations related to the ordinance, the referendum to overturn it, Mayor Parker, homosexuality, or gender identity.

The removal of the word “sermons” isn’t enough, said the attorneys representing the pastors. And Mayor Parker “acknowledged the new subpoenas do not explicitly preclude sermons from being produced,” the Houston Chronicle reported.

After the initial subpoenas, the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission called Christians to support the five ministers by using the Twitter hashtag #4Houston5. The Southern Baptist agency also encouraged pastors everywhere to send their sermons on marriage and sexuality to Mayor Parker.

“A government has no business using subpoena power to intimidate or bully the preaching and instruction of any church, any synagogue, any mosque, or any other place of worship,” blogged ERLC President Russell Moore.

“…The separation of church and state means that we will render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s, and we will. But the preaching of the church of God does not belong to Caesar, and we will not hand it over to him. Not now. Not ever.”

Pastors participate in month-long Pulpit Freedom Sunday emphasis
Hundreds of pastors so far have participated in an annual effort to encourage free speech in church pulpits, even if that expression is about politics. Alliance Defending Freedom, who sponsors Pulpit Freedom Sunday, reported on their website Oct. 10 that 1,517 pastors had “preached sermons presenting biblical perspectives on the positions of electoral candidates and signed a statement agreeing that the IRS should not control the content of a pastor’s sermon.” Additionally, 242 pastors signed the statement only. The campaign began Oct. 5 and extends through Election Day (Nov. 4).

Christianity Today noted that on that before this year’s emphasis began, Pew Research reported  49% of Americans say churches and other houses of worship should express their views on day-to-day social and political questions.

Leaders may return to Mars Hill after Driscoll’s resignation
Pastor Mark Driscoll’s Oct. 14 resignation after 18 years at Mars Hill Church could result in the return of leaders who previously had left the church and Driscoll’s leadership, The Christian Post and other media sources have reported. Former worship coordinator Kevin Potts told KING5 News: “A faith in Christ is a faith in redemption and healing, and if we’re not willing to put that foot forward and say, “I will help with that,” what right do we have to call ourselves followers of Christ?”

Driscoll had been on a leave of absence since August amid charges of anger and unbiblical leadership. Following his resignation, Mars Hill’s Board of Overseers released a statement saying Driscoll had not been asked to resign and that they were “surprised” to receive his resignation.

Bishops’ final report reflects controversy, differences of opinion
After a meeting of Catholic bishops seemed to point to a drastic shift in the Church’s teaching on same-sex lifestyles and relationships, the group’s final report showed the most controversial topics are still unresolved, Catholic News Service reported. The Oct. 13 mid-term report from the Synod of Bishops on the family included a section titled “Welcoming homosexual persons,” and pondered whether Catholic churches could accept and value same-sex lifestyles, “without compromising Catholic doctrine on the family and matrimony.”

That section of the synod’s final report, released Oct. 18, was amended by the bishops, according to CNS, but still failed to receive the super majority usually needed for approval, along with two paragraphs on divorced and remarried Catholics receiving Communion. The Church will hold a world synod on the family in 2015.

Hillsong pastor addresses same-sex marriage views
Pastor Brian Houston sparked controversy when he didn’t clearly define his church’s stance on same-sex marriage at a press conference last week. Now, the pastor of Hillsong Church is clarifying his views, reported The Christian Post. “Nowhere in my answer did I diminish biblical truth or suggest that I or Hillsong Church supported gay marriage,” Houston said in a statement. “I challenge people to read what I actually said, rather than what was reported that I said. My personal view on the subject of homosexuality would line up with most traditionally held Christian views. I believe the writings of Paul are clear on this subject.”

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