By Alessandro Speciale VATICAN CITY (RNS) – Pope Benedict XVI will soon become the first pope to resign since 1415, short-circuiting many of the initial stages of electing a new pope. But the Vatican says the transition to a new papacy shouldn’t be all that different from normal. Of course, the traditional rituals associated with […]

CLC Network, a national nonprofit that promotes the development of people with a variety of abilities and disabilities to live as active, integrated members of their communities, is now accepting applications in the following grant program: G.L.U.E. Grants. Recipients of the G.L.U.E. Grant will receive a copy of the CLC Network’s G.L.U.E. Training Manual, as […]

By Jeff Brumley “Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.” Thus read the sign recently in front of Madison Avenue Baptist Church, a New York City congregation whose pastor is all about convincing folks not to take themselves so seriously all the time. “My whole ministry is about putting […]

CHICAGO (ELCA) — The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus is severing its relationship with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the Church of Sweden and “those churches who have openly accepted same-sex marriage.” The action for “all Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus departments and institutions (at every level) to implement this decision” was ratified […]

By G. Jeffrey MacDonald (RNS) Amy Lester has followed Jesus for decades, but her keen appreciation for his sacrifice on the cross came only recently when she started eating like the prophet Daniel. During Lent, which starts Wednesday (Feb. 13), the 40-year-old mother of two keeps a type of Daniel Fast, which involves eating only […]

By Russ Rankin NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The majority of pastors in the Southern Baptist Convention believe Christians should include a legacy gift to a ministry or church, but 86 percent of SBC churches provide no assistance to their congregation to help with estate planning, according to a recent study. LifeWay Research conducted a survey of […]

LONDON /Christian Newswire – The Lausanne Movement announced today it has appointed Dr. Michael Oh, a 41-year-old Korean-American serving in Japan, as its new executive director/chief executive officer, effective March 1. “Michael is a cross-cultural bridge-builder, from East to West and across generations; he knows the overall Movement well and understands the complexity of this […]

Attorney Michael Peregrine’s January 14th article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy highlights the need for charities to implement stronger safeguards in handling matters related to conflicts of interest and compensation-setting. Peregrine’s article explains how a prominent charity in New York City ended up with a $5.5 million price tag from the state attorney general’s office […]

(RNS) The Obama administration on Friday unveiled new rules on its controversial birth control insurance mandate that broaden religious exemptions and give greater flexibility to faith-based organizations that have moral objections to providing contraception insurance. The proposals do not, however, offer relief to privately-owned businesses that make conscience claims. The latest accommodation was a long-awaited […]

Washington, D.C. – Growing at a faster rate than the overall U.S. economy, the nonresidential construction industry is expected to see solid, yet measured, increases in activity this year. The religious sector is expected to post a 2.6 percent increase of spending this year and 4.9 percent in 2014. High demand for hotels and retail […]