News

Go Figure

Get the numbers on cancer patients, American Idol, and lay leaders.

11.3% Highly religious cancer patients who received mechanical ventilation during the last week of life, in a study of 345 advanced cancer patients.

3.6% Least religious patients who received mechanical ventilation.

(Source: Journal of the American Medical Association)

6 Number of the 11 American Idol finalists who regularly perform at places of worship.

3 Number who have worked as worship leaders at a church.

(Source: Associated Press)

31% Congregations that would accept a member of a cohabiting unmarried couple as a lay leader.

23% Congregations that would accept a member of an openly homosexual couple as a lay leader.

(Source: National Congregations Study)

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Related Elsewhere:

See our earlier Go Figure postings from April 2009, March 2009, February 2009, January 2009, December 2008, November 2008, October 2008, September 2008, August 2008, July 2008, June 2008, May 2008, April 2008, March 2008, February 2008, January 2008, December 2007, November 2007, October 2007, September 2007, and earlier issues.

Also in this issue

The CT archives are a rich treasure of biblical wisdom and insight from our past. Some things we would say differently today, and some stances we've changed. But overall, we're amazed at how relevant so much of this content is. We trust that you'll find it a helpful resource.

News

The Not-for-Profit Surge

John W. Kennedy

Books Uncommon and Offbeat

John Wilson

Keeping Holy Ground Holy

Nathan Bierma

Theology in Wood and Concrete

Gary Wang

Praying 'Deliver Us from Evil'

Compiled by Richard A. Kauffman

Surveying the Wondrous Cross

Review

Science and the Mystic

Abolishing Homelessness in Ten Years

My Top 5 Spiritual Memoirs

Lauren Winner

What Do Prayer Studies Prove?

Gregory Fung and Christopher Fung

News

More Giving, Less Taxing

A Christianity Today Editorial

News

Pressure to Prove Himself

Sarah Pulliam

News

'The Perfect Hybrid'

Sarah Pulliam

Review

What to Do with the Stranger?

Tony Carnes

Augustine's Origin of Species

Alister McGrath

From the Printing Press to the iPhone

Readers Write

Out of Step and Fine with It

Collin Hansen

News

Learning from Widows

Timothy C. Morgan

News

A Simple, Old-Fashioned Fundraiser

John W. Kennedy

CreationWatch

Why We Need Earthquakes

News

Passages

News

Be Careful What You Wish For

Sarah Pulliam

News

News Briefs: May 01, 2009

News

Quotation Marks

News

El Salvador's Values Voters

Deann Alford

Q & A: Carl Moeller

Interview by Timothy C. Morgan

News

Faith on the Frontera

C. L. Lopez

News

A Problematic Peace Accord

Compass Direct News

News

Caring for the Caregivers

Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra

News

Church Pink Slips

Bobby Ross Jr.

News

In Over His Pay Grade

View issue

Our Latest

The Bulletin

Sunday Afternoon Reads: Lord of the Night

Finding God in the darkness and isolation of Antarctica.

The Russell Moore Show

Why Do Faithful Christians Defend Harmful Things?

Russell answers a listener question about how we should perceive seemingly harmful political beliefs in our church congregations.

The Complicated Legacy of Jesse Jackson

Six Christian leaders reflect on the civil rights giant’s triumphs and tragedies.

News

The Churches That Fought for Due Process

An Ecuadorian immigrant with legal status fell into a detention “black hole.” Church leaders across the country tried to pull him out.

The Bulletin

AI Predictions, Climate Policy Rollback, and Obama’s Belief in Aliens

Mike Cosper, Clarissa Moll, Russell Moore

The future of artificial intelligence, Trump repeals landmark climate finding, and the existence of aliens.

Troubling Moral Issues in 1973

CT condemned the Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade and questioned the seriousness of Watergate.

Ben Sasse and a Dying Breed of Politician

The former senator is battling cancer. Losing him would be one more sign that a certain kind of conservatism—and a certain kind of politics—is disappearing.

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