Generations of Pentecostals divided on doctrine of speaking in tongues Elders in the Assemblies of God are worried about what a younger generation's more practical theology might mean for the future of speaking in tongues. Glossolalia has become the church's real battle of the generations. (STLtoday.com)
Orthodox Christians in U.S. face obstacles before unifying As Orthodox Christians in the United States seek a new unity out of ethnic fragmentation, they must grapple with the fact that many who say they cherish the faith nevertheless ignore its teachings and practices. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Hopes rising for unifying Orthodoxy's U.S. churches America's Orthodox Christians, divided for decades among about 10 churches based on Greek or Serb or other ancestry, soon may be moving toward the formation of a united American Orthodox church. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
More Protestants Find a Home in the Orthodox Antioch Church The visible shift began in 1987 with the conversion of nearly 2,000 evangelical Christians. More recently, a wave of converts has arrived from such mainline Protestant denominations as the Episcopalian and Lutheran. (The New York Times)
White House at odds with bishops over abortion The White House is on a collision course with Catholic bishops in an intractable dispute over abortion that could blow up the fragile political coalition behind President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. (Associated Press)
Bishops discuss authority over Catholic colleges The decision by Notre Dame, the nation's flagship Catholic university, to honor Obama at its May commencement caused an uproar within the church (Associated Press)
Bishops reprise old abortion fight with higher stakes Thirty-three years ago this fall, a bitter, race-tinged fight over abortion matched Roman Catholic bishops and the House against the nation’s first popularly elected black senator, Republican Ed Brooke of Massachusetts. (Politico)
Zoning the Flock: Are Megachurches the New Walmart? Environmental activists and community groups have rallied against a proposed construction project in Maryland's rural Piedmont region, but their opponent is not a typical developer. (Politics Daily)
California Christians worship in a big way The state has more megachurches than anywhere else in the country, with the majority in the suburbs between Los Angeles and San Diego. Their upbeat approach is luring thousands each weekend. (Los Angeles Times)
Easy explanation to puzzling Barna survey? A new Barna survey shows that attendees of larger Protestant congregations are more likely than those in smaller ones to have orthodox beliefs, but that doesn't mean conservative Christians should start fleeing for mega-churches (Baptist Press)
Parish rift forms at prominent Florida megachurch Descendants of two of the country's most influential evangelical leaders — Billy Graham and the late D. James Kennedy — are feuding over control of a Florida megachurch that is a bedrock of the religious right (Associated Press)
Lesbians' testimony exposes church rift The testimony of a same-sex couple at an annual gathering of United Methodists in Jackson has kindled a controversy over the church's acceptance of homosexuals. (The Clarion-Ledger)
Anglican Church Gay Row Heats Up Just days after the conclusion of the Lambeth conference, the patient efforts of Rowan Williams to hold the Anglican communion together despite internal divisions over homosexuality lay in tatters following the leak of letters that show where his own sympathies lie on the matter. (Michael Brunton, Time)
Archbishop of Canterbury says gay ban needed to preserve unity The spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion said the communion will be in "grave peril" if its North American churches ignore temporary bans on gay bishops and same-sex unions. (Religion News Service)
Mexican Clergy Seek Global Help as Violence Grows Mexico's Roman Catholic clergy, increasingly caught in the middle of the nation's drug war, are meeting this week to draft a strategy for coping with the violence, aided by advice from colleagues who faced similar threats in Colombia and Italy. (NYTimes.com)
Hope for priests who would marry Vatican gesture to Anglicans seen as pointing toward an easing of position on celibacy (Washington Post)
When pastors' silent suffering turns tragic Those who counsel pastors say Christian culture, especially Southern evangelicalism, creates the perfect environment for depression. (USA Today)
Doctors recognize the healing power of spirituality According to a survey in the Archives of Internal Medicine, 89% of physicians said they had worked with a chaplain. Of those doctors, 90% said they were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the clergymen. (Los Angeles Times)
China blocks unregistered church service again Followers of an unapproved church in Beijing were again forced by the government to find a new place to worship Sunday, a move one analyst suggested would be a test for President Barack Obama on religious freedom during his first visit to the country. (Associated Press)
As a Minister Grows, So Does His Ministry The congregation’s members, a total of about 750, from toddlers to collegians, have an entire church building of their own. (Samuel G. Freedman, The New York Times)
Catholic archdiocese gives ultimatum to D.C. Church officials say that unless the city alters a proposed same-sex marriage law, the archdiocese will discontinue its social service programs. (Los Angeles Times)
Former clinic director: Church chilly to my pro-life turn She and her husband had been told by a Baptist and a nondenominational, "that because I worked at Planned Parenthood, we could not be members." She now feels unwelcome among Episcopalians. (Washington Times)
After trial by wildfire, Malibu Presbyterian Church returns Worshipers celebrate services in an interim sanctuary on the site where, two years ago, their church burned to the ground. 'It feels like home again,' a deacon says. (Los Angeles Times)
Burnt Offerings A church throws copies of Scripture into the flames. (Lauren Winner, The Wall Street Journal)
First Baptist in Dallas announces $130M expansion First Baptist in Dallas, one of the nation's largest Southern Baptist Convention congregations, will be growing into a more environmentally friendly campus. (Associated Press)
Gone to the dogs: LA church starts pet service The weekly dog service at Covenant Presbyterian is part of a growing trend among churches nationwide to address the spirituality of pets and the deeply felt bonds that owners form with their animals. (Associated Press)
Chronicle of a Death We Can’t Accept The wild blossoming of unconventional mortuary merchandise reveals that Americans are no longer sure what to do with the dead. (Thomas G. Long, The New York Times)
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