News

Go Figure

Recent numbers on female senior pastors, abortion, and the megachurch.

10% Senior pastors of Protestant churches who are female, double the proportion of a decade ago. 58% Of all female senior pastors, those who are in mainline churches. 23% Of all male pastors, those who are in mainline churches. Source: Barna Research

*  *  *

8% Self-described liberal Democrats who say abortion is a critical issue. 34% Liberal Democrats who said this a year ago. Source: Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life

*  *  *

47% Americans who say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, 54% Americans who said this last year. Source: Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life

*  *  *

34% Megachurch pastors who are involved with a sports league outside their church 32% Megachurch pastors who are part of a denomination. Source: Leadership Network

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Related Elsewhere:

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

Songs of Justice, Missions of Mercy

Mark Moring

Excerpt

'Tithing' by Douglas LeBlanc

An excerpt by Douglas LeBlanc

A Middle Way

Joel Hartse

Review

Mourning as Gospel Drama

Rob Moll

Quick Media Takes

My Top 5 Movies on Thankfulness

Annie Young Frisbie, CT Movies critic and blogger at SuperFastReader.com

The Green Baptist

Tim Stafford

The Next Redesign

'A Voice for Sanity'

Sarah Pulliam Bailey

Trees Of Life

Deann Alford in the Dominican Republic

Review

The Cleaner

Todd Hertz

Christ at the Center

Wilson's Bookmarks

'O, Evangelicos!'

The Best and Worst New Tech

Brad Abare, Mark Kellner, and John Dyer

Readers Write

News

A Different Kind of Neighbor

Mark Moring

News

Beauty Will Rise

Mark Moring

News

Less Charity, More Justice

Mark Moring

News

Clean Water, Clean Blood

Mark Moring

My Top 5 Books on Life Ethics

Paige C. Cunningham, executive director, the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity

Review

Mystic with a Spreadsheet

The Mushroom Hunt

Chris Armstrong

Let us Tell You a Story

Chris Armstrong

Matrix: International Religious Liberty Advocates

Editorial

Looking for Clear Signals

A Christianity Today Editorial

News

Most Improbable Dialogue

Richard N. Ostling

News

Not All Evangelicals and Catholics Together

Collin Hansen

News

The Litmus Test

Charles Honey

News

Splitting Babies

Ken Walker

News

Nigeria: Christian Movie Capital of the World

Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra

News

Should Christians Fast During Ramadan With Muslims?

Compiled by Ruth Moon

Sin: The Rest of the Story

News

Quotation Marks

Destiny or Free Will?

Todd Hertz

News

Mass Arrest: Christianity and the Deadly Mexico Drug War

American Idols

Interview by Sarah Pulliam Bailey

View issue

Our Latest

News

Facing Arrest, Cuban Christian Influencers Continue Call for Freedom

Hannah Herrera

Young people are using social media to spread the gospel and denounce the Communist regime.

Public Theology Project

Against the Casinofication of the Church

The Atlantic’s McKay Coppins told me about problems that feel eerily similar to what I see in the church.

Wire Story

The Religion Gender Gap Among the Young Is Disappearing

Bob Smietana - Religion News Service

Women still dominate church pews, but studies find that devotion among Gen Z women has cooled to levels on par with Gen Z men.

Attempts at Cultural Crossover

From Pat Robertson’s soap opera to creation science, CT reported evangelical efforts to go mainstream in 1982.

Just War Theory Is Supposed to Be Frustrating

The venerable theological tradition makes war slower, riskier, costlier, and less efficient—and that’s the point.

Will the Church Enter the Guys’ Group Chat?

Luke Simon

Young men are looking for online presence. The church needs to offer more than weekly breakfasts.

The Russell Moore Show

Karen Swallow Prior on Birds, Bees, and Babies

How should the church address infertility and childlessness?

Wire Story

Young, Educated, and Urban Pastors Are Most Likely to Use AI

Aaron Earls - Lifeway Research

A survey found denominational differences in pastors’ use of the technology, as well as widespread skepticism about its reliability.

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