Shepherding: Where the Shepherds Are Shaped by the Sheep

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April 23, 2022

At our final evening prayer service before we left Shanghai to repatriate to the States, our church members took the time to tell us how thankful they were for themselves. Sounds a bit pretentious, doesn’t it? But, in a sense, it’s true. I’ll explain. After a difficult 2019, we prayerfully decided to transition from the church where I had served as the senior pastor for the past six years. This congregation is incredibly sweet, generous, and encouraging; I’ve been so thankful to the Lord for the opportunity to serve them. I can’t imagine a better scenario or a sweeter season for my first pastorate. I learned that in shepherding, the sheep shape the shepherd.

As we were on our way out, our congregation really went over the top to encourage us, bless us, and serve us. In the aforementioned prayer meeting, another elder opened up a portion of the time for church members to share thoughts of thankfulness for me and my wife, Kim. And then the church parlayed those categories of praise into a time of prayer for us and for the whole church.

It all felt a little like one of those encouragement sessions from a mission trip or a summer camp. You’re in the “hot seat,” feeling somewhat awkward while people say nice things about you. Part of you wants it to end as quickly as possible and another part of you is filled to the brim with godly encouragement. You hate it but you love it. You want to avoid it but it gives you life.

As the meeting concluded, the presiding elder looked my way and said: “Unless, Jason, you have anything you’d like to say.”

I instinctively said, “Yeah”—and then I wiped some tears from my eyes, stalling while I thought about what I should say.

My mind raced back over all the encouraging things that had been said about us in the last half hour. Then this truth hit me: they were responsible for the things they were thanking us for!

So I spoke up: “Thank you guys so much for all of those kind words. But let me point out that all of the positive things you have said are things that were forged through our friendships with you. So, in a weird sense, I guess you’re thankful for yourselves.”

That last line was said half-jokingly, but I believed it. And the more I’ve thought about it, the more I realize how true and essential it is. There’s a necessary and proper symbiosis.

For example, one church member said they felt challenged by our practice of hospitality. But it was the Wards and the Tylers and the Ans and the Lius who had challenged us in hospitality. They pushed us to be more sacrificial with our time, to look for people on the fringes of our community, to ask good questions, to do a lot with a little, and many other lessons.

John Piper Imparts Wisdom From His Five Decades of Ministry and an Article He Wrote Titled ‘Missions and Masturbation’

By

Jesse T. Jackson

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April 22, 2022

Mark Dever interviewed theologian John Piper on Wednesday night after his message at Together for the Gospel (T4G) regarding his 50 years of ministry service.

The 76-year-old encouraged the 12,000 in attendance with words of wisdom from a lifetime of pastoral ministry. “It’s a great calling,” Piper said. “I love it. I loved it. God was so good to me.”

Piper, who stepped down from Bethlehem Baptist Church’s senior pastor in 2013 after 33 years and still attends the church as pastor emeritus, is currently the chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary and continues to teach through books, conferences, and DesiringGod.org, which he founded in 1994.

The self-proclaimed “Christian Hedonist” also had the crowd of mostly pastors in an uproar of laughter when he discussed the time he released an article he titled “Missions and Masturbation” in his church newsletter.

Piper wrote the article after going to hear a message from George Verwer, founder of Operation Mobilization, in the 1980s. In that message, Verwer preached about what keeps young people off the mission field. Verwer explained it was “masturbation and sexual failure,” Piper told the T4G crowd.

“So I come over fired up and I write an article for our church newsletter called “Missions and Masturbation,” Piper shared while Dever put his face in his hands and the crowd howled with laughter.

The “Desiring God” author told those in attendance, “It’s gets better,” as he asked Dever, “You sure you want me to go on?”

Dever replied, “I think they do!”

Piper explained that, at the time he wrote the article, his church was filled with older single women, saying, “One of them stopped at door the next Sunday, and she took my hand and she said, ‘You’re sick.’”

A leader in the church sat down with their pastor and told him, “John! What are you thinking?”

To the amazement and laughter of the crowd, Piper told said, “I think I would do it again,” elaborating that he received letters from all over the country, including one from the chaplain of West Point telling Piper he handed the article out to all the cadets.

“I said okay that’s good enough,” Piper said. Dever turned to his T4G co-founder Ligon Duncan sitting in the crowd asking him, “Are you sure you didn’t want to do this interview?”

As the interview went on, Piper shared that he misses the interactions with the church elders, that they used to energize him in ministry, and that he is saddened when he hears stories of elder conflicts within the church today.

“I never, ever experienced it that way. They knew all my marital problems. They knew all my kid problems. We had an absolutely glorious fellowship on that council,” Piper said of the elder board, which grew from 12 elders to 40 elders by the time he stepped down as senior pastor.

Piper said that the “greatest thing in the world” for him during his 33 years of pastoring at Bethlehem Baptist Church were the older people in the church.

Praying Football Coach Asking Supreme Court for His Job Back

By

Gene Johnson

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April 22, 2022

Praying Football Coach — FILE - Bremerton assistant football coach Joe Kennedy, obscured at center in blue, is surrounded by Centralia High School football players as they kneel and pray with him on the field after their game against Bremerton on Oct. 16, 2015, in Bremerton, Wash. After losing his coaching job for refusing to stop kneeling in prayer with players and spectators on the field immediately after football games, Kennedy will take his arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, April 25, 2022, saying the Bremerton School District violated his First Amendment rights by refusing to let him continue praying at midfield after games. (Meegan M. Reid/Kitsap Sun via AP, File)

SEATTLE (AP) — The clock ran down at the end of the homecoming game and spectators stormed the football field, knocking over members of the high school band — all to gather around an assistant coach as he took a knee in prayer, surrounded by uniformed players.

Six years later, after losing his coaching job and repeatedly losing in court, that former Washington state coach, Joe Kennedy, will take his arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, saying the Bremerton School District violated his First Amendment rights by refusing to let him continue praying at midfield immediately after games. Four conservative justices have already expressed concerns with how his case has been handled.

Kennedy’s effort to get his job back helped earn him an appearance at a 2016 Donald Trump rally and quickly became a cultural touchstone, pitting public school employees’ religious liberties against what his critics describe as longstanding principles separating church and state and protecting students from religious coercion.

Lawyers for the school district say officials had no problem letting Kennedy pray separately from students or letting him return to the field to pray after the students left. But allowing him to pray at midfield immediately after games with students there risked being seen as government endorsement of religion.

While Kennedy insists he never cared whether students participated in the prayers and he never asked them to join him, at least one player — anonymously — later reported participating contrary to his own beliefs, for fear of losing playing time.

“This case is challenging well-established case law that has protected students’ religious freedom for decades, and that has been supported by conservative and liberal justices alike,” said Rachel Laser, chief executive of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which is representing the school district. “If the court rules the wrong way, teachers and coaches could pressure students to pray in every public school classroom across the country.”

For Kennedy’s supporters, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ holding in the case would force public school employees to drop their religious identities at the schoolhouse door — something they say the Constitution does not require.

“If a teacher prays over her lunch in the cafeteria and students can see her — just that little blessing over her salad — that’s enough to terminate that teacher, according to the school district,” said Jeremy Dys, an attorney with First Liberty Institute, which is representing Kennedy.

Kennedy, a former Marine whose day job was at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, began coaching football at Bremerton High in 2008. He was new to religion and coaching, and said he was inspired by the movie “Facing the Giants” — about a Christian high school football coach — to give thanks to God “on the battlefield” after each game.

What began as a solitary practice soon attracted students. He agreed, citing the district’s policy of neither encouraging nor discouraging student prayer. Over the years he began leading locker room prayers before games, as well as group prayers and religious motivational talks at midfield after them.

The school district said it did not learn Kennedy was leading players in prayer until it heard it from another team’s coach in September 2015. Administrators told him he was not to participate in religious activities with students, and any of his own religious observation must be either non-demonstrative or should occur without students.

Former Harvest Pastor James MacDonald Shares News of Reconciliation

By

Stephanie Martin

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April 22, 2022

More than three years ago, pastor and broadcaster James MacDonald was fired from Harvest Bible Chapel, a Chicago-area megachurch. The messy controversy was marked with vitriol and numerous resignations and lawsuits. Now, however, hopeful signs are emerging of restoration and reconciliation.

On Facebook last week, MacDonald posted photos of him riding motorcycles with one man who helped end the pastor’s tenure at Harvest. “Recently had another reconciling conversation with one of the Elders from the board that fired me back in 2019,” MacDonald writes. “This time Marcel Olar, praising God to be reconciled to this dear brother. #mutualhumility #forgiveoneanother #gratefultoGod”

Reconciliation: ‘The Best Testimony of Your Life’

More than 6,000 people have liked MacDonald’s post, with many offering encouraging words about the relational progress. “The essence of our Lord is as a peacemaker,” one person writes. “The best testimony of your life would be to be reconciled one to another to [each] leader involved. ‘As far as it depends on you’ be at peace with all men. It does take two willing parties. Praise be to God.”

Someone writes, “In God’s timing and under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, forgiveness, peace, reconciliation and restoration can happen!! GLORY TO GOD!!” Another comment reads: “Your attitude of Biblical forgiveness to those that wronged you throughout all of this continues to inspire me to be more like Christ brother!”

Someone else notes: “I’ve learned walking through almost 40 years of church ministry, elders are like all of us. They are broken and jacked up like everyone else, sometimes they just have to get to the recognition.” Another comment reads: “I can’t imagine the [loss] and grief you’ve experienced from this. Praise God there’s communication and hopefully More healing and reconciliation on the way.”

James MacDonald and Harvest: Years of Discord

ChurchLeaders has reported extensively on MacDonald and Harvest, which began experiencing unrest back in 2013. The headlines really heated up after the December 2018 publication of “Hard Times at Harvest,” a lengthy exposé by investigative journalist Julie Roys.

Roys detailed evidence from former Harvest elders, employees, and members that alleges MacDonald engaged in “an ongoing pattern of relational and financial abuse, a lack of transparency and outright deception.” MacDonald sued several of his critics—something that would happen more than once.

After Harvest elders fired MacDonald in February 2019, calling him “harmful” to the church, the two parties went through arbitration regarding his former broadcast ministry Walk in the Word. Several elders and leaders at Harvest resigned during all the upheaval.

Last June, MacDonald launched a public attack on Roys, calling her website a “millstone ministry.” The former pastor is still after Roys, tweeting earlier this month that she’s hosting a “faux #discernment [conference] = Slanderers For Jesus.” MacDonald linked to a Protestia.com article about a “fake charity,” regarding a request for donations through a partnership with Judson University.

Jesus Would Be Called a ‘Groomer’ Were He ‘Alive Today,’ Says MSNBC Political Analyst

By

Dale Chamberlain

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April 22, 2022

MSNBC political analyst Matthew Dowd is making waves after saying that Jesus would be accused of being a “groomer” were He preaching today.

Dowd’s words came in an appearance on MSNBC’s “Deadline: White House,” where a panel discussed a recent feud between Michigan state senators Lana Theis and Mallory McMorrow, wherein Theis accused McMorrow of wanting to “groom” and “sexualize” kindergartners and teach “that 8-year-olds are responsible for slavery.”

While the term “grooming” has most often been understood in the context of human trafficking, wherein a trafficker gains the trust of a victim to ensnare them into sexual slavery, some Republicans have recently employed the word in reference to Democrats who oppose legislation that would limit how LGBTQ issues are discussed in public school classrooms.

A similar battle of language has been fought around Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill, which Florida governor Ron DeSantis recently signed into law. While the legislation was referred to by its opponents as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, its supporters touted it as an “Anti-Grooming” bill. This trend seems to be mainstreaming the once fringe notion among far-right conspiracy theorists that leadership within the Democratic Party is riddled with pedophiles.

Theis’ criticism of McMorrow also referenced Critical Race Theory, another legislative battleground when it comes to public school curriculums.

In the panel discussion regarding the feud, Dowd said, “We are in a culture war. This has been a culture war launched by many Republicans against the country—not only against Democrats, but against the country as a whole.”

Dowd served as a political strategist for a number of Republican politicians, including for George W. Bush’s 2004 presidential bid, before becoming a political analyst for ABC. He briefly ran for Texas lieutenant governor as a Democrat in 2021 before returning to political commentary, this time with MSNBC.

“You don’t win a culture war by talking about ‘Build Back Better.’ You don’t win a culture war by talking about ‘you fixed a road,’” Dowd went on to say. “You win a culture war by presenting an argument on the opposite side of the culture war and win the day.”

Referencing the fact that the feud between the two Michigan state senators began near Easter weekend, Dowd said, “The entire message of the gospels of the Easter holidays was, ‘Love one another.’ And I have said this before and I’ll say it again: if Jesus Christ was alive today, He would be called a groomer. He would be called woke. And He would be called a socialist, if He was alive today.”

The Vineyard Was Built on Friendship and Shared Values. Then a Leading Pastor Split.

By

Bob Smietana

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April 22, 2022

(RNS) — When Dave King heard his Anaheim, California, church was about to call Alan Scott to be its pastor in 2018, he was thrilled.

King, who had long been part of the Vineyard movement of churches, known for their charismatic practices and popular worship music, had met Scott and his wife, Kathryn, while visiting their home country of Scotland and had been impressed.

The Scotts, King felt, were the kind of leaders Vineyard Anaheim needed. A onetime booming congregation under John Wimber, a legendary Vineyard leader who died in 1997, the Southern California church had struggled in recent decades and needed a shot in the arm.

Alan Scott, King felt, could help turn the church around.

“The truth was, no one pushed harder for the Scotts than me and my wife,” said King. “I thought he was my friend.”

Things went well at first. The Scotts settled in and began attracting new people to the church, located just 10 miles from Disneyland. Then COVID-19 hit, shutting down in-person worship services. During the pandemic, the Anaheim church’s board of directors turned over. Most of the people who had been there before the Scotts were gone, replaced by friends and allies of the pastor and his wife.

In an early February dinner meeting with Vineyard USA leaders, the Scotts made a surprise announcement. God had spoken to them, and Vineyard Anaheim would cut ties with the national movement.

“As per our conversation tonight, we are writing to formally notify you of our decision to withdraw Vineyard Anaheim as a member of the Association of Vineyard Churches USA with immediate effect,” they wrote in a letter dated Feb. 24.

According to an account of the dinner, distributed to Vineyard USA leaders, the Scotts gave few specifics about their decision to leave, saying mostly that God had told them to do it. They did, however, mention King twice, complaining about a small group gathering King had been leading in his backyard during COVID-19.

Alan Scott, lead pastor of the Vineyard Anaheim in Anaheim, California, preaches on Feb. 27, 2022. Video screen grab

The disassociation letter was met with shock, dismay and dozens of questions — along with frantic efforts by national Vineyard leaders to try to head off Vineyard Anaheim’s departure, or at least to slow it down to give the movement time to get used to the idea.

Those efforts failed.

Though Alan Scott would eventually apologize for “missteps” in how the decision to leave was communicated — he and his wife, backed by the church’s board of directors, did not back down or change their minds.

Nationwide Teacher Shortage, Lingering Effects of COVID Shutdown Contribute To Massive Needs in Schools

By

Scott Barkley

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April 22, 2022

teacher shortage — Libbie Drake (left), a middle school counselor and member of CrossWinds Church in Wyoming, Mich., helps prepare hats and mittens for school children. (Photo from CrossWinds Church)

WYOMING, Mich. (BP) – As a middle school counselor, Libbie Drake feels she’s seen it all. And at the same time, knows she’s going to see more.

Stressed teachers. Unmotivated students. Increases in failure rates, truancy and behavior issues. While responding to questions for this article, a sixth-grader told her one of his friends was vaping in the bathroom.

It’s not just at the urban school where she works, either. “It’s being seen around the country,” she told Baptist Press. “My brother teaches in a rural school and they’re having major behavioral issues. We’re also fighting social media trends that are encouraging kids to steal things.”

The role of the educator has long been labeled a calling. And while America’s public schools have endured unsteady times before – unrest in the 1960s and integration efforts come to mind – it’s difficult to nail down a season when a potential Great Resignation of teachers looms as students continue to recover in numerous ways from a worldwide pandemic.

At least a year before COVID-19 became a household term, a teacher shortage was seen as real, large and growing. Those schools with the greatest needs typically get hit hardest all while politicians and other leaders demand high test scores and attendance rates. It’s a situation leading many to ask “How bad could it get?”

Whatever the challenge, CrossWinds Church in Wyoming, Mich. will be there to respond, said David Drake, pastor and Libbie’s husband.

“Anything the school needs, they know they can call us,” said David, who was also an assistant high school football coach for 12 years before resigning so he could serve as a board member for Godwin Heights Public Schools. He continues to coach, though, now as an unpaid volunteer.

Those calls from the school have led CrossWinds to provide lunches and classroom supplies for teachers and backpacks filled with clothes and jackets for students.

“For years we provided hats and mittens to every student at one of the local elementary schools,” he said. “This week, we’re helping with kindergarten registration and providing school supplies.”

As at CrossWinds, several members at Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in Colonial Heights, Va., work and volunteer in area schools.

It took a number of years after Joe Mayes joined MPBC as student pastor, but eventually a level of trust was built with the local high school. Then, Garrett Oppel came on board as children’s minister and focused on the elementary schools.

“I started Good News Clubs there and it helped bridge a great relationship with those principals,” Oppel said. “We also started giving the schools money each month to help pay for students who couldn’t afford lunch.”

Christians in Mozambique Under Growing Islamic Attack

By

Diana Chandler

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April 22, 2022

CABO DELGADO, Mozambique (BP) — Islamic insurgents have increasingly attacked northern Mozambique as Christianity increases there, the international evangelistic ministry Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) said in its latest special report.

Radical Islamists have killed nearly 3,000 and displaced more than 800,000 Christians and moderate Muslims “in recent years” who refused to recite certain creeds, VOM said in its report. A focal point includes Cabo Delgado where the Christian population has grown to 40 percent Christian since 2017. VOM cites an influx of Christians working in Cabo Delgado and growing conversions among Muslims.

In a 2020 attack that killed 70 residents of a Cabo Delgado village, Islamists decapitated all affirmed Christians.

“Islamists gathered everyone in Pastor Matateu’s village and asked each of them a single question: ‘What is your religion?’ Those who answered ‘Christian’ were decapitated, and pastors and their families were killed in especially gruesome, torturous ways,” VOM said. “The insurgents then reportedly raised an Islamic flag and declared the establishment of Sharia, or Islamic law. Pastor Matateu and his family hid in the bush for more than a month.”

The terrorists are members of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jamaah, translated as “adherents of the prophetic tradition,” remnants of an extremist group from Tanzania. The group initially targeted police and government buildings, VOM said, but began targeting Christians and entire towns after pledging allegiance to the Islamic State in 2019. Locally, the insurgents are known as al-Shabab, but are not affiliated with the Somalian Islamists of the same name.

Among the towns that have been attacked is the Indian Ocean port city of Mocimboa de Praia, once home to 120,000 people, which has been devastated and largely abandoned since 2019.

Todd Nettleton, VOM chief of media relations and message integration, said pastors are especially persecuted.

“When one of our VOM staff members arrived in Pemba, Mozambique earlier this year, he was immediately taken to lunch with four pastors, all of whom had experienced Islamist attacks firsthand,” Nettleton said. “One pastor, who had been separated from his wife while fleeing attackers, still didn’t know if his wife was alive or dead months after the attack. And another pastor had suffered the traumatic experience of finding the mutilated body of his young son, who was murdered by the Islamists.”

Nettleton cited the pastors’ perseverance in faith and Christian service, encouraging prayers that Mozambique Christians remain faithful, be comforted as they comfort others, and have opportunities to show Christ’s love to their persecutors.

“Jesus is being lifted up in northern Mozambique. His great name is being glorified by men and women who value Jesus Christ more than their own safety or comfort, men and women who ‘loved not their lives even unto death,’” Nettleton said, referencing Revelation 12:11.

VOM quoted Matateu as saying, “What could separate me from God? Death, no! The war, no! So of course, I will continue to serve my God. Because He gave Himself, I will always give myself.”

Nationwide, 54 percent of Mozambique’s 32.3 million people are Christian, persecution watchdog Open Doors said in its 2022 World Watch List that ranked Mozambique as the 45th most dangerous country for Christians. It is the country’s first time on the list of the 50 countries where Christians suffer the most persecution and danger.

Constitutionally identified as a secular country with religious freedom, Mozambique “generally … has limited religious freedom,” Open Doors has said. “However, the persecution of Christians is severest in the northern Cabo Delgado Province due to ISIS-affiliated extremists carrying out violent attacks there.”

Open Doors also linked expanded persecution to Mozambique’s withdrawal of its army from the area and the presence of drug cartels.

VOM’s free report, “Mozambique: A Faithful Witness Amid a Brutal Islamic Insurgency,” is available here.

This article originally appeared at Baptist Press.

States Still Acting To Protect Life as They Await Supreme Court Ruling

By

Tom Strode

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April 22, 2022

NASHVILLE (BP)—State lawmakers continue to adopt pro-life protections this year in hopes the U.S. Supreme Court will return abortion policy to their jurisdictions in a ruling expected by this summer.

Florida and Kentucky are the latest states to enact abortion prohibitions during legislative sessions that have seen more than 500 pro-life measures introduced in 2022. Those states, which both approved bans on abortion after 15 weeks gestation, joined others that have enacted pro-life laws that include a nearly total prohibition on abortion and bans at different stages of pregnancy.

Various states have taken such actions as the country awaits a decision by the Supreme Court regarding Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case regarding Mississippi’s 15-week abortion prohibition. Many pro-life and abortion-rights advocates believe the justices are likely not only to uphold the law but to reverse the 1973 Roe v. Wade opinion that legalized the procedure nationwide. Such a ruling by the Supreme Court would return abortion policy to the states.

“As states continue to pass laws to protect preborn life, we eagerly await the Supreme Court’s decision in the Dobbs case and are hopeful that a culture of life will be established in all states,” said Chelsea Sobolik, director of public policy for the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC).

“We must continue to advocate for laws that protect life, and Christians should simultaneously be working towards a day when abortion is also unthinkable and unnecessary,” she said in written comments for Baptist Press.

Denise Burke, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, told BP, “[T]his has been one of the most consequential pro-life legislative years we have seen in a decade, demonstrating yet again that the vast majority of Americans oppose the Roe regime of unrestricted abortion-on-demand and that our officials are anticipating a significant ruling in Dobbs.

“Our laws should protect all innocent lives because life is a human right,” she said in written remarks. “Over 60 million American lives have been lost since Roe was decided in 1973. This devastating loss of innocent life results from refusing to recognize the dignity and worth of every human person.”

Burke also said, “Overturning Roe will place demands on all of us – the church, the state and the broader pro-life community — to resource, equip and build the vital institution of the family. Those that have worked to promote the pro-life cause are demonstrating true leadership and dedication to protecting the lives and health of unborn children and their mothers.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a 15-week abortion ban April 14, a day after Kentucky’s legislature overrode a veto by Gov. Andy Beshear of legislation that included prohibitions on abortion after 15 weeks gestation and the mailing of abortion pills. The enactment of Kentucky’s new law prompted the state’s two licensed abortion providers to close for the time being.

Florida and Kentucky are among nine states that have enacted a total of 33 pro-life laws so far this year, the Guttmacher Institute reported April 15. Another 28 pro-life protections have gained passage by at least one legislative chamber in 11 states, according to Guttmacher. A total of 536 abortion restrictions have gained introduction in 42 states in 2022, according to the report.

Guttmacher is a research and policy organization affiliated with the abortion-rights movement.

Among other pro-life laws enacted this year in addition to those in Florida and Kentucky in preparation for a possible post-Roe era:

— Oklahoma prohibited abortion except to save the life of the mother in a bill signed April 12 by Gov. Kevin Stitt. A person convicted of performing or attempting to perform an abortion may receive a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and/or a fine of as much as $100,000.

— Arizona banned abortion after 15 weeks gestation in legislation signed March 30 by Gov. Doug Ducey.

7 Money Lessons From the Wisdom of the Proverbs

By

Dale Chamberlain

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April 22, 2022

thank you notes for children’s ministry volunteers

Money is powerful. It’s a determining factor in where we live, what we eat, what we wear, and often what we do with our days. So we would be wise to consider how we can manage our money well.

But even more than that, in order to live a joyful and God-honoring life, we need to exercise wisdom in how we relate to money—how we feel about it, what space it has in our hearts, and how it factors into our relationship with Jesus. This conversation consumes key facets of our lives.

That’s probably why the bible talks about money so much. There’s so much to consider and seek to get right. In particular, throughout the Proverbs, Solomon gives us advice on a number of key topics related to money. Since he was both one of the richest and wisest men to ever live, we would be wise to listen to his words and apply them to our lives.

Here are seven money lessons from the ancient wisdom of the Proverbs.

1. Wealth Is a Good Thing, but It Isn’t the Ultimate Thing.

Too often, Christians assume that money is inherently evil. But what Paul tells us in 1 Timothy 6:10 isn’t that money is the root of all kinds of evil, but that an unhealthy love for it is.

Wealth, when you obtain it by honorable means, is actually a sign of God’s blessing on your life and the work that you do.

The blessing of the Lord brings wealth,
without painful toil for it.
(Proverbs 10:22)

Sometimes, God multiplies your efforts and gives you a return disproportionate to what you could have hoped or dreamed for. And that’s a good thing. You should be grateful to God for it.

But you should also always bear in mind that this blessing isn’t a guarantee. While God’s grace and his provision in your life will be a constant, he never promised us lifelong financial freedom. We live in a fallen world, and wealth is ultimately fleeting.

Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone,
for they will surely sprout wings
and fly off to the sky like an eagle.
(Proverbs 23:5)

Sometimes, you find yourself in financially difficult situations due to poor choices. But, other times, a person’s money seems to fly away through no fault of their own. In either case, wealth is a divine blessing but never a sure thing.

2. Greed is Toxic.

Throughout the Proverbs, Solomon sternly warns us against greed—especially when that greed causes us to deal underhandedly with others.

The greedy bring ruin to their households,
but the one who hates bribes will live.
(Proverbs 15:27)

If you’re motivated by greed, you will ultimately end up in a place where you self-destruct. And when you self-destruct, you tend to take down everyone around you. You’ll also stir up conflict wherever you go.

The greedy stir up conflict, but those who trust in the LORD will prosper.
(Proverbs 28:25)

No one wants to be around someone who is going to penny-pinch them. A person who’s obsessed with always “getting what they deserve” or “what’s owed” to them is typically a toxic person.

3. Debt is Dangerous.

Regardless of how much money you make or how hard you work, debt will always be a limiting factor in your financial goals. Those to whom you owe money have considerable control over your life.

The rich rule over the poor,
and the borrower is slave to the lender.
(Proverbs 22:7)

Sometimes, debt is unavoidable. Few of us can pay for our college educations, commute vehicles, or homes simply by writing a check. And it would be unreasonable to assume that we could–especially if you’re young and just starting out.

Thoughts on Restoration for Fallen Pastors

By

Jared C. Wilson

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April 22, 2022

When a pastor has disqualified himself from his ministry, is he disqualified from ministry altogether? If so, for how long? Forever? Can he ever be restored? If so, how soon?

These sorts of questions are not new, but they do seem more relevant than ever. While there are lots of articles out there on “fallen pastors,” I’ve been surprised to discover few deal with these questions in an in-depth way. I won’t pretend to provide a comprehensive treatment of this difficult subject in this post, but I do want to share some biblical reflections and practical implications I’ve been ruminating on for a while. This subject hits fairly close to home, as I think it does for many. It behooves us to think carefully and biblically about these matters.

What Disqualifies a Pastor?

What I find interesting these days is not how many pastors have fallen into disqualification but how many have not. We live in a day and age where any guy with a speaking gift and an entrepreneurial, creative spirit can plant a church and even be successful with it. But gifting is not qualification. Some seem to discuss this subject as if we do not have clear biblical guidance on what qualifies a man for the office of elder/pastor. Except that we do. Here is a rough list, a composite from the three primary qualification passages (1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, and 1 Peter 5):

1. Sexually/maritally faithful
2. Good manager of household
3. Humble
4. Gentle
5. Sober
6. Peaceful
7. Financially responsible
8. Hospitable
9. Self-controlled
10. Upright in character
11. Committed to holiness
12. Able to teach
13. Spiritually mature (not a new convert)
14. Respectable (and respected by outsiders)
15. A good example to the flock

Evangelicals seem to most often discuss disqualification as it relates to adultery—which, to be clear, is disqualifying!—but we rarely bring in the disqualification conversation as it relates to short-tempered, argumentative or otherwise un-self-controlled pastors. The “fall” of Mark Driscoll is probably the closest my particular tribe has come to reckoning with the full-fledged (dis)qualifications for ministry, but it is still not a widely understood concept in the age of the celebrity minister. In fact, I think in many tribes and traditions, the “other biblical qualifications for ministry” have been neglected for a long time. How else to explain that it is typically only once a domineering, financially irresponsible, unsober pastor commits adultery that he is finally removed from his office?

The bottom line is that the bar for the pastoral office is set rather high. It is not open to anybody who “feels called.” Beyond giftedness and ambition, it requires maturity, testing and a long obedience in the same direction. Because of this, when a pastor has become disqualified, we are dealing with a problem at a different level than even the serious problem of discipline-worthy sins among the laity. It’s not because pastors are supposed to be super-Christians or have more favor with God than laypeople, but rather that the leadership office demands a higher standard.

Can Disqualified Pastors Be Restored?

The first thing we should say is that we are often talking about two different kinds of restoration without knowing it. Many of evangelicalism’s problems with the scandals of celebrity pastors who disqualify themselves stem from an inability—an unwillingness?—to distinguish between a restoration to vocational ministry from a restoration to the fellowship. In regards to the latter, the answer ought to be an unequivocal yes. Any believer who has fallen morally, pastor or not, ought to be fully restored to the Christian community, given their repentance and the restoration process of their church.

This is why we must be careful with our criticism, as well! Sometimes when we argue against the restoration of certain ministers to the pulpit, it sounds as though we are denying their ability to rejoin the fellowship of believers. And sometimes when we are upset about the high standard some set for the pulpit, we call others graceless when they are in fact ready to welcome any repentant sinner to the warmth of Christian fellowship.

Sharing the Peace – What Does it Mean?

By

Ben Sternke

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April 22, 2022

Sharing the peace, often called the “Passing of the Peace” is one of the liturgical moves I wonder if we should modify now that we’re able to come back together for worship. If people are afraid to touch each other, obviously hugs and handshakes won’t work. Maybe we’ll do elbow bumps, or perhaps a “profound bow,” honoring the presence of Christ in the other. How should we continue sharing the peace?

Sharing the Peace

These liturgical disruptions are an opportunity to remember why we do these actions, and what they are meant to signify and effect. So what are we doing when we share the Peace with one another? Here’s what Theodore, Bishop of Mopsuestia wrote in his Catechetical Instruction in 428 AD:

Each of us gives the Kiss of Peace to the person next to us, and so in effect gives it to the whole assembly, because this act is an acknowledgement that we have all become a single body of Christ our Lord, and so must preserve with one another that harmony that exists among the limbs of a body, loving one another equally, supporting and helping one another, regarding the individual needs as concerns of the community, sympathizing with one another’s sorrows and sharing in one another’s joys.

Sharing the Peace is meant to signify the unity of the body, which is expressed not just in a single gesture on a Sunday morning, but in ongoing mutual love and support for one another, standing in solidarity with one another as one Body.

This unity is much easier to signify and remember when we sharing the peace on Sunday morning. When I see your face and touch your hand, I remember that I belong to you, and you belong to me, and that our lives are bound up with each other. But during “Coronatide,” and any other time we find ourselves physically distanced from one another, it is much more difficult to hold this unity in our minds and hearts.

One of the marvels of Paul’s letters to me is his deep affection and sense of connection to Christians he was physically distant from:

“God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus” (Phil 1:8).
“My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you” (Gal 4:19).

Whether or not we touch physically sharing the Peace with each other is to, through prayer, cultivate a greater awareness of our deep unity with and connection to each other as the Body of Christ.

This article about sharing the peace originally appeared here, and is used by permission.

Stressed Out Teens: 4 Ways Youth Ministers Can Ease Kids’ Anxieties

By

Youth Ministrycom

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April 21, 2022

Want to help stressed out kids in your youth group and church? Want to help ease some of the pressures they face? Then ponder these tips from a veteran youth minister.

The current generation of students often faces fears of failure and public scrutiny. Everyone blames technology and social media for the pressure teens now face. Thanks to the likes of Instagram, kids must present themselves more as the person they want to be than who they truly are.

We expect perfection from teens at every turn. Constant access to information provides them with the inability to ever answer a question with, “I don’t know.” Today’s culture makes it confusing for kids to know who they are.

As we pour into this stressed out generation, youth ministers see the growing need for kids to have their identity settled in Christ. We know the only way to combat pressure is for them to grab hold of what Jesus thinks of them. Yet because stress constantly bombards teens, youth workers may find it difficult to get them to actually step out in the truth of who they are to God.

Now more than ever, youth ministers must be creative when addressing identity. How can you help this stressed out generation? Read on for four helpful suggestions.

4 Tips for Ministering to Stressed Out Teens

1. Go deeper.

First off, realize this. The days of merely saying, “Don’t believe that” or “Your identity is in Jesus” are over. We must give students safe places to question these statements and find out what they mean. Dig deeper than assemblies and large-group talks to deal with this topic.

Throwing around statements make us feel better because we’ve said them. But kids still wonder what it all means. They want to know how to apply the truth in their setting.

2. Stop treating stress as a one-sided issue.

Part of my frustration with talking about identity and insecurity is that we often label it as a “female” issue. Books, curriculum, and articles focus on girls’ emotions and pressures.

Having worked with teens for decades, I can say: Both girls and guys struggle to understand who they are in Christ. But they simply focus on different things. All students need to grasp the depth of who they are beyond who they present themselves to be.

Earth Day Craft for Children’s Ministry: New Life With Jesus

By

ChildrensMinistry.com

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April 21, 2022

God’s creation is amazing. So is his free gift of eternal life through Jesus! Celebrate both in your Sunday school classes and children’s church with this fun Earth Day craft.

For this craft, you’ll get to clean up your supply closet and recycle leftovers. Plus, kids will learn about having a new life with Jesus! So enjoy “creating” this Earth Day craft with your little learners.

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:17

You’ll need:

Bible
green paper plates
blue play dough
various recyclables and extra craft supplies (toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, egg cartons, old bolts and screws, colored craft sticks, pompom balls, chenille wires, and so on)
permanent markers

Earth Day Craft: Salvage and Recycle

Say: This week we’re celebrating Earth Day. It’s a day set aside to appreciate and care for God’s creation. One thing we can do to care for the earth is recycle. That helps make the earth’s resources last longer. Recycling goes back pretty far in history. In fact, the Bible says Jesus recycled us!

Read 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Ask:

What do you think are some old things Jesus gets rid of in us?
How has Jesus transformed you into something amazing?

Say: Today we’re going to recycle and repurpose old things to make a new creation.

To begin this Earth Day craft, have kids roll the play dough into a ball and press it flat onto the center of the plate. Then kids can create their salvage sculptures by arranging supplies into the play dough base.

Women in Ministry Need More Than To Be Told They Can’t Be Pastors, Says Kristen Padilla

By

Jessica Lea

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April 21, 2022

Whatever you believe about women holding leadership roles in the church, all women in ministry have needs that are easy to overlook. This was a point Kristen Padilla emphasized in a recent interview on the Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast.

“Women are discipling women in the church,” said Padilla. “Whether we like it or not, they’re writing books, they’re speaking at conferences, they’re on podcasts, they’re writing hymns, they are discipling the women in your church.” The question is, has your church equipped them for these tasks?

Women in Ministry: What Do They Need From Churches?

Kristen Padilla has an M.Div. from Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama, and serves as Beeson’s marketing and communications director. In early 2021, she launched The Center for Women in Ministry at Beeson, and she is also the author of “Now That I’m Called: A Guide for Women Discerning a Call to Ministry.”

Some might assume that a discussion on the topic of women in ministry will be about supporting women as pastors. However, the Center for Women in Ministry serves students who are complementarian and egalitarian, and Padilla was clear that, whatever a church’s position on women in leadership, there is more that all churches can do to support the women in their midst.

One area Padilla drew attention to was the need to be proactive about supporting women in ministry. “If I had not had [supportive parents],” she said. “I don’t know that I would have pursued any kind of formal ministry leadership role.”

Churches can start by clarifying their vision for how to support women. “I would encourage churches to really wrestle with, write down, articulate a theological vision for both ministers and ministry and women—and make it clear,” said Padilla. “I think a lot of churches that I’ve encountered just haven’t done that…when the church does not communicate clearly what it believes, it can actually be hurtful for women.”

One of the most significant areas Padilla highlighted for churches to be aware of was that it is common for people to expect that men serving in ministry will have theological training, but they often do not expect the same of women. “Why is it,” she asked, “that when the men leave the room and we have women and children, we all of a sudden are not caring, so to speak, who’s teaching them or what kind of training they have?”

Regarding her own journey, Padilla said, “If I was going to be in ministry, I felt a very strong conviction that I needed to be theologically trained…I need to be an astute teacher. I need to do the same training that men are doing in preparation for ministry.”

She pointed out that neglecting to equip women to serve in their churches will have consequences whether or not church leaders see doing so as important. Said Padilla, “If women are being discipled or receiving teaching that is not according to God’s Word, it’s affecting their marriages, their homes, their workplaces. So we can’t just sit back and think, ‘Well, as long as we keep women out of this position or from doing X, we’re biblical.’”

Don’t Tell Unbelievers, ‘God Loves You’: Tweet by Texas Pastor Sparks Online Debate

By

Stephanie Martin

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April 21, 2022

When Pastor Gabriel Hughes tweeted, “You should not tell an unbeliever, ‘God loves you,'” social media took note. He continued, “The apostles never shared the gospel this way. The Bible says God’s wrath is upon unbelievers (John 3:36, Romans 1:18). Help them see their sin, warn them of the judgment of God, and give them the gospel.”

The post has received more than 1,000 likes and dozens of replies. Hughes is associate pastor at First Baptist Church in Lindale, Texas, the congregation led by Southern Baptist Convention pastor Tom Buck. Last year, Hughes had a role in the Ed Litton plagiarism scandal, sharing a sermon clip that someone recognized as similar to the words of J.D. Greear.

God Loves You? What To Say to an Unsaved Person

Several people agree with Hughes. “One of the absolute worst things we can say to an unsaved person,” notes one. Another comment reads, “[A]men brother. We are a young church plant and had a family leave our church over this very truth being preached.” One reply states, “The jailer ask Paul and Silas ‘what must I do to be saved.’ ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved—you and your household.’ Don’t add to or take away.”

Others, however, point to apparent scriptural contradictions in Hughes’ words. Several people mention John 3:16. “Yikes,” reads one comment. “For God so loved THE WORLD. I’m so sorry if you’ve been shown otherwise. So very sorry. Truly.” Another person says John 3:16 reveals that “God’s LOVE was his MOTIVATION for sending Jesus to die for our sin. There would not be any Good news (Gospel) without God’s love.”

Also pointing to John 3:16, someone writes, “I know it might be outside your paradigm to understand the concept of God literally being the embodiment of love, but please try. The fact that God loves everyone doesn’t guarantee a great outcome for everybody, that’s clear; but let’s not pretend it’s not there for the taking.”

“We can’t stop at love but we surely are no effective witness without it,” someone writes. “Just love them,” says another. “That’s really all you need to do to share God.”

“This seems like love to me,” a reply states, quoting Romans 5:8. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

One comment calls Hughes’ tweet “a direct denial of Matt. 5:43-48,” noting: “Why would God call us to be like him by loving our enemies if he didn’t love his? You do not have authority to deny the love of common grace when Jesus himself calls it love with no ambiguity.”

In defense of Hughes, someone writes, “[Gabe’s] point, I believe, is that we need to not coddle people to Hell. We have to let them know that God is wrathful, and they will experience that wrath if they do not believe. I’m sure he understands common grace just fine.”

God Loves You: People Share Their Own Evangelism Experiences

In the conversation, some people point to their own experiences. “I shared Christ with three young men last week and in each occasion I told them God loved them enough to send His Son to pay for their sin against God,” one writes. “Each man received Christ with utmost joy. I’ll stick with that method while everyone else sits around and argues.”

SBC Presidential Candidate Bart Barber Responds to ‘Wild Accusations’; Shares Thoughts on CRT, Vision for Peacemaking

By

Dale Chamberlain

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April 21, 2022

Bart Barber, who serves as pastor for First Baptist Church in Farmsville, Texas, is expected to accept a nomination for SBC president from SBC Pastors’ Conference president Matt Henslee at the annual meeting of the denomination in June.

Since his candidacy was announced on April 7, Barber has emphasized civility among Southern Baptists and has even begun using a Twitter hashtag to reflect that vision. On April 18, he tweeted, “Apparently, you’re supposed to have a hashtag. I think I’ll go with #ArmyOfPeacemakers.”

Fellow SBC presidential candidate Tom Ascol has been employing the hashtag #changethedirection, emphasizing his belief that the SBC has been drifting toward progressive ideologies and must alter course.

For the last couple of weeks, Barber has been fielding questions on Twitter about his vision for his SBC presidential bid, as well as a range of other topics. However, on Tuesday (April 19), he expressed frustration that, due to the nature of the platform, questions often splinter out into a complex network of threads.

“For that reason, later today I will be revealing a web page that will be a public repository of all of my answers to the questions most frequently asked of me,” Barber tweeted. “I’m not afraid of questions. I believe in transparency and accountability for people who serve our family of churches. I’m just trying to find the most efficient way to answer whatever good-faith questions people may have.”

On that webpage, which is housed on FBC Farmville’s website, Barber explains his understanding of how the role of the SBC president should function, why he is building his platform on the idea of peace, and the particulars of his theological convictions. He also shares his thoughts on Critical Race Theory and sermon plagiarism, and he responds to what he calls the “rogue’s gallery of wild accusations” against him.

Barber on His Vision for SBC Presidency

Barber, who says that he only chose to accept a nomination when he “came to the end” of his stubbornness, says that “the Southern Baptist Convention is healthier when we follow the consistent, long-term vision set by the messenger body than when a new vision arises every year or two as we elect new officers.”

“My vision, then, is to fix our focus not on ‘my vision’ but on our vision,” Barber says. “The president protects the rights of the messenger body by conducting the meeting fairly and according to our rules of order. The person holding that gavel on the platform is there not to advance an agenda but to receive one.”

Further discussing his hashtag #ArmyOfPeacemakers, Barber explains where the idea came from.

“I stared in disbelief and laughed out loud when, while performing research for my dissertation, I discovered that way back in 1902, when the Arkansas Baptist State Convention faced a looming split, they appointed a ‘Peace Committee,’” Barber says. “It was such a startling discovery for me because I had lived through the time when in 1987 the Southern Baptist Convention had convened a ‘Peace Committee’ during the Conservative Resurgence. Neither effort achieved its goals.”

Benedict XVI Turns 95 As Book Focuses on Anomaly of 2 Popes

By

Nicole Winfield

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April 21, 2022

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI turned 95 this past weekend, a significant milestone on its own but even more given he has now been a retired pope longer than he was a reigning one.

To mark the occasion, a new book sets out to examine the current state of Vatican affairs not so much through the lens of Pope Francis’ nine-year papacy, but via Benedict’s nine-year retirement. And it isn’t pretty.

Veteran Italian commentator Massimo Franco’s “The Monastery,” published in Italy on Thursday, shifts the focus of most books about the Holy See by using Benedict’s retirement home in a converted monastery in the Vatican gardens as the prism to view the unprecedented anomaly of having two popes, one reigning and one retired, living together in the Vatican.

In real-life scenes befitting the Netflix drama “The Two Popes,” the book paints a picture of two papal courts that started out on excellent terms: Francis referred to Benedict as a “wise grandfather” to whom he turned for advice, and Benedict treated Francis with the deference owed to a pope.

But in retelling the past nine years with unusual access to Benedict’s team and his allies, Franco notes that Vatican turf wars and the progressive shift of the church in places like Benedict’s native Germany have essentially turned “The Monastery” into the symbolic headquarters of the Francis opposition. And Benedict, he writes, has become the unwitting and unwilling point of reference for right-wing, Catholic traditionalists who loathe Francis.

“The Monastery is the place where people hurt by Francis go to be healed,” Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, who himself was sacked by Francis early on as the Vatican’s doctrine chief, told Franco.

The book takes as its starting point Benedict’s 2013 revolutionary decision to retire — the first pope in 600 years to do so. Benedict stepped down because he said he no longer had the strength to carry on. But the book traces many of the problems afflicting the church today to the unhealed “trauma” that his abdication, and unexpectedly long retirement, have caused.

The problems “are not Francis’ fault or Benedict’s fault,” Franco said in an interview. “It’s the byproduct or the inevitable, unavoidable product, of The Resignation.”

For a church that prizes unity and sees in the figure of the pope Christ’s vicar on Earth, confusion about who is really pope or the specter of a parallel papacy is no small thing. And most Vatican watchers agree that Benedict’s experiment with resignation will have to be corrected and regulated with a set of norms before any future pope decides to follow suit.

Franco, a columnist with leading daily Corriere della Sera, recounts some of the key hiccups that have characterized the last nine years, starting with Benedict’s refusal in 2018 to endorse an 11-volume set of books about Francis’ theology because it included authors who had criticized his own papacy. Benedict’s endorsement had been sought by Francis’ then-communications guru, Monsignor Dario Vigano, precisely to show the continuity between the two popes and to quiet traditionalist critics who considered Francis’ theology wanting.

ERLC Event: Serving Refugees Part of Great Commission

By

Tom Strode

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April 21, 2022

ERLC refugees — ERLC acting president Brent Leatherwood (top left) hosted panelists Bryant Wright (clockwise from top right), Matthew Soerens and Bri Stensrude to discuss how Christians can best s serve refugees in their communities.

NASHVILLE (BP) – Ministering to the world’s refugees can be an outgrowth of a Great Commission culture in a church, the audience for a Southern Baptist-sponsored webinar was told Tuesday (April 19).

The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) hosted an online event titled “How Christians Can Serve Refugees” at a time when millions of people have fled Ukraine, Afghanistan and other countries as a result of wars and political instability. While many Ukrainians and Afghans have left their homes in recent months for nearby countries, some are seeking resettlement in the United States, providing American Christians opportunities to serve them and share the Gospel of Jesus.

“[I]f there’s one thing that has unified evangelical Christians through the years and Southern Baptists through the years, it is the Great Commission,” Send Relief President Bryant Wright told the webinar audience. “Evangelical culture is passionate about the Great Commission, and [ministry to refugees] is an area to build on that passion of the Great Commission, of sharing the Good News with folks.

“[L]et’s begin with Christ’s mission. Let’s begin with the Great Commission,” Wright said when asked to give advice to pastors. “And when that culture begins to develop in the life of the church, then ministry to refugees is just one part of carrying out Christ’s Great Commission.

“[W]hen a church becomes passionate about the Great Commission, and a church begins to go, a church begins to send people on mission to the different people groups around the earth, then that church begins to have a different heart about the world, a different heart about people who are different from us.”

The Great Commission refers to Jesus’ message to His followers at the close of the New Testament book of Matthew to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.”

Care for refugees is one of the focus areas of Send Relief, the Southern Baptist Convention’s compassion ministry carried out through the cooperative efforts of the North American Mission Board and International Mission Board. Send Relief encourages churches to proclaim the Gospel while meeting practical needs. Its current projects in 2022 are serving nearly 487,000 displaced people in Eastern Europe. Last year, Send Relief served 171,287 people in its ministry to care for refugees and mobilized 2,445 people to serve.

More than 26 million people around the world are refugees, and a total of 84 million people are forcibly displaced, nearly 50 million within their countries, according to the latest statistics from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The UNHCR reported April 20 that 5 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded in February. More than 10½ million people – nearly a quarter of Ukraine’s population – have been displaced either within the country or abroad as refugees, according to the U.N. agency.

People “are forced to make the decision to migrate for survival. That is the overarching reason for migration,” said Bri Stensrud, director of Women of Welcome, a nonpartisan group that advocates for refugees and immigrants.

The specific reasons for migration include war, civil unrest, persecution, political power struggles and decisions by world leaders, such as the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan last year and the Russian invasion of Ukraine this year, Stensrud said.

Archbishop Resigns From Anglican Church of Canada Over Sexual Misconduct

By

Kathryn Post

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April 21, 2022

(RNS) — An archbishop in the Anglican Church of Canada has resigned due to “acknowledged sexual misconduct,” according to a letter from the denomination’s top official.

“With regret and sorrow, the Church announces receipt of allegations of sexual misconduct concerning Archbishop Mark MacDonald,” the April 20 announcement said, noting his resignation was effective immediately.

“This is devastating news,” the letter said. “The sense of betrayal is deep and profound when leaders fail to live up to the standards we expect and the boundaries we set.”

MacDonald had been national Indigenous Anglican archbishop of the ACC since 2019. He became the denomination’s first national Indigenous Anglican bishop in 2007, giving him oversight of Indigenous members of the denomination. He was previously bishop of Alaska in the Episcopal Church, from 1997-2007, and is known for his climate justice advocacy.

In March, MacDonald was awarded a Cross of St. Augustine by the archbishop of Canterbury “for outstanding service to support the Communion’s role in creation care and climate justice, including the voice of Indigenous peoples,” according to the archbishop of Canterbury’s website.

In MacDonald’s absence, ACC top official Primate Linda Nicholls has appointed Bishop Sidney Black, who is currently an Indigenous bishop within the Diocese of Calgary, as interim national Indigenous bishop.

“The ripple effects of this misconduct will be felt throughout the Church both in Canada and internationally, but most especially within the Sacred Circle and Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples,” Nicholls wrote in her letter. “We mourn with them.” Sacred Circles are national gatherings of Indigenous Anglicans, according to the ACC website.

Nicholls also called for prayers for the complainant, as well as for MacDonald and his family.

The announcement from the ACC’s General Synod, or governing body, said the group is in the process of reviewing its sexual harassment policy, especially in regard to trainings and procedures.

Reconciliation: ‘The Best Testimony of Your Life’

James MacDonald and Harvest: Years of Discord

1. Wealth Is a Good Thing, but It Isn’t the Ultimate Thing.

2. Greed is Toxic.

3. Debt is Dangerous.

What Disqualifies a Pastor?

Can Disqualified Pastors Be Restored?

Sharing the Peace

4 Tips for Ministering to Stressed Out Teens

1. Go deeper.

2. Stop treating stress as a one-sided issue.

Earth Day Craft: Salvage and Recycle

Women in Ministry: What Do They Need From Churches?

God Loves You? What To Say to an Unsaved Person

God Loves You: People Share Their Own Evangelism Experiences

Barber on His Vision for SBC Presidency

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