The Kirk plans to ordain lay members because it cannot find ministers for one in six of its parishes.. Senior officials at the Church of Scotland yesterday confirmed what they called a “bold experiment” to turn parishioners into fully-fledged preachers for the first time since the Reformation. The move breaks with the centuries-old tradition of... Continue Reading

Taking another step toward schism, a national Lutheran group angered by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s August vote to allow gay clergy said that it is developing a proposal for a new denomination for congregations and individuals interested in leaving the ELCA. “We don’t feel we have a choice,” said Paull Spring, a retired... Continue Reading

When Baby Boomers were born, the Protestant landscape of America was dominated by the six major mainline denominations. (Those bodies are typically considered to be the American Baptist Churches in the USA; the Episcopal Church; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; the Presbyterian Church (USA); the United Church of Christ; and the United Methodist Church.)... Continue Reading

A Christian group in Boise, Idaho will once again camp out in front of City Hall and offer to pay off up to $10,000 dollars in parking tickets for any passers-by. Organizers say the Dec. 12 event is an example of how easy it is to receive God’s grace. The Grace Gift Parable giveaway was... Continue Reading

The presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is suggesting that the Bible isn’t the last word on homosexuality. In a town hall meeting Sunday, Bishop Mark Hanson said, “the understanding we have of homosexuality today does not seem to be reflected at all in the context of the biblical writers.” Therefore, he... Continue Reading

Residents of the Hattiesburg Historic Neighborhood are busy folding paper bags and turning them into luminaries for the 33rd annual Victorian Candlelit Christmas, which will be held Dec. 12-13 in the 115-acre, National Register district just south of downtown. A portion of the activities will be at Bay Street Presbyterian Church, 202 Short Bay St.,... Continue Reading

The Archbishop of Canterbury today called on American Anglicans to block the appointment of a partnered lesbian bishop. Dr Rowan Williams warned that the selection of a new homosexual bishop could push the divided Anglicans over the edge into full-blown schism. The Archbishop spoke out after leaders of the Church of England’s sister church in... Continue Reading

On December 9, a five member panel of the Presbyterian Church in America’s (PCA) highest court, the Standing Judicial Commission (SJC), approved a proposed decision on a complaint arising out of Pacific Northwest Presbytery regarding its handling of the views of TE Peter Leithart on Federal Vision. This proposed decision will be discussed and finalized... Continue Reading

Peace Church, a congregation that has met for worship in the Lions Club Building on Hillandale Road since its organization eight years ago, is joining the ranks of Christian voices in the northern part of the county. This 50-member congregation has begun to worship in a new building located on an 8.3-acre site at 6114... Continue Reading

The Ohio Supreme Court has issued a controversial decision concerning church regional administrative headquarters. The 4-to-3 ruling in Church of God in Northern Ohio v. Levin means that while churches themselves are tax-exempt, a denomination’s administrative facility is not — because it is not used exclusively for worship or for charitable purposes. The court also... Continue Reading