Christian Portal News

Read the Full Article at Compass Direct News

ISTANBUL, April 14 (Compass Direct News) – In a bold move, Egypt’s Coptic Church has issued its first-ever certificate of conversion to a former Muslim, supporting his petition to have his national identification card denote his Christian faith. Maher Ahmad El-Mo’otahssem Bellah El-Gohary’s request to legally convert is only the second case in Egypt of a Muslim-born citizen trying to change his religious affiliation to Christianity on identification documents. Lawyers presented the Coptic Church’s conversion certificate to a court clerk on Saturday (April 11). “We know that the judge has seen the certificate, but we have no indication whether it is acceptable or not,” said Nabil Ghobreyal, one of three lawyers representing El-Gohary. “We will have to wait until May 2 to find out the final verdict.” Despite efforts to maintain the secrecy of El-Gohary’s whereabouts, he has received written death threats on more than one occasion since appearing in court on April 4 to register an official statement. “I do not leave the house – my life is in real danger and my daughter is in real danger,” said El-Gohary. “The pressure is too much. I am thinking seriously that I should leave Egypt.”

(author unknown) Church Issues, Conversion, Coptic, Court, Egypt, Judge, Muslim

Read the Full Article at International Christian Concern

The Coptic Church of Egypt for the first time issued a certificate of conversion for a convert from Islam to Christianity. But Maher al-Gohari’s conversion has not yet been recognized by Egyptian authorities.

(author unknown) Church Issues, Conversion, Coptic, Egypt

Read the Full Article at sentinelsource.com

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Its entire existence is a rebuke to the Christian right, a subset within evangelicalism that has been accused of politicizing and polarizing Christianity.

This is Amplify Church, a parish of young evangelicals in Colorado Springs, Colo., who just happen to worship in a bar where Miller Lite and Budweiser posters, not crosses, hang on the walls.

The pastor — forgoing suit and tie in favor of worn jeans, sandals and T-shirt — is as casual as the setting.

“All I want is a church full of people who are real,” the Rev. Dan MacFadyen, 26, told his 23 congregants at the Parrot that night.

aBetterWay Church Growth, Church Issues, Cross, Emergent Church, Evangelical, Evangelicals, Pastor, People, Worship

Read the Full Article at Telegraph Religion

Some of the country’s finest places of worship will be preserved with the help of £2.6million in grants.

aBetterWay Church Issues, Worship

Read the Full Article at Front Page Stories

Can churches host Super Bowl parties and escape the wrath of the NFL?

aBetterWay Church Issues, Sports

Read the Full Article at News2

Millions of Americans go to church on Christmas Eve. They crowd shoulder-to-shoulder in pews to sing “Silent Night” and light candles and listen to soloists belt out “O Holy Night.” More than a few watch nativity plays that recreate the birth of Jesus with a cast of 10-year-olds in bathrobes. When the service is over, they exchange hearty “Merry Christmas!” wishes before getting in their cars and heading home. –

Time reports And they stay home the next day. Or they drive to Grandma’s, or go to the movies. But however they spend Christmas Day – “the feast of Christmas” on the Christian liturgical calendar – one way most Americans don’t celebrate it is by going to church. While demand for Christmas Eve celebrations
is so high that some churches hold as many as five or six different
services on the 24th of December, most Protestant churches are closed
on the actual religious holiday. For most Christians, Christmas is a
day for family, not faith.

If that sounds like the triumph of culture over religion, it is. By the middle of the 20th century, Americans had embraced a civil religion
that among other things elevated the ideal of family to a sacrosanct
level. The Norman Rockwell image of family gathered around the tree
became a Christmas icon that rivaled the baby Jesus. And Christmas Eve services
- with their pageantry and familiar traditions – became just one part
of the celebration, after the family dinner and before the opening of
presents.

That schedule of Christmas events is now the default tradition for most Americans

aBetterWay Christmas, Church Issues, Civil Religion, Cult, Culture, Family, Jesus, Nativity, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

“Who gives $700,000, 700, 700?” he called out. One man, a representative for a local bank, raised his finger. The auctioneer tried in vain to nudge the price up. “Sold!” he cried. St. Andrew Anglican Church had just been bought by the bank that had started foreclosure proceedings against it. –

The Wall Street Journal reports During this holiday season of hard times, not even houses of God have
been spared. Some lenders believe more churches than ever have fallen
behind on loans or defaulted this year. Some churches, and at least one
company that specialized in church lending, have filed for bankruptcy.
Church giving is down as much as 15% in some places, pastors and
lenders report.

aBetterWay Anglican, Church Issues, Financial, God, Pastor, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

Germans who attend church only on high holidays such as Christmas should not be allowed to take pew space from regular church members, two politicians are insisting.
–

CNSNews.com reports Seating room at the popular Christmas Eve services should be reserved
for those who pay church taxes, Thomas Volk of the ruling Christian
Democratic Union (CDU) and Martin Lindner of the Free Democrats told
the Bild newspaper on Tuesday.
 
“I’m in favor of having church services on December 24 open only for people who pay church tax,” said Volk.
 

aBetterWay Christmas, Church Issues, People, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

Ken Johnson, Phantom Pew Sitter, sounds like the title of a dime novel. A “phantom pew sitter,” a title coined by Johnson, is a church’s answer to the secret shoppers who slip through retail stores to assess the sales staff and facility. Johnson, now retired, has been a church consultant, preacher, church business manager, church music director and held other pivotal roles. He’s booked this time of year. –

The Denver Post reports “The three most important times of the
year for churches are the Sunday before Christmas, Easter Sunday and
the Sundays in late July and August,” Johnson said.

“In summer, young couples with children have moved before
school starts and are trying to find a church. Most churches have a
tendency to lie back and relax in August. The pastor goes on vacation.
The choir takes a month off. But that’s the time when you need the real
service — the service people are going to be used to if they start
coming to church here.”

Johnson has his phantom pew sitter consulting service down to
a science. Before visiting a church, he checks its website and calls
its main number, at night, to hear the recorded message.

aBetterWay Business, Christmas, Church Growth, Church Issues, Easter, Music, Pastor, People, Santa, School, Science, Web

Read the Full Article at News2

With the recession of 2008 hitting home before the holidays, Americans are turning to religion for solace and support in greater numbers since the days after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. –

The Republican Newsroom [MA, USA] reports In Greater Springfield, requests for assistance have gone beyond
food, clothing and fuel bills to include monthly mortgage payments even
as religious organizations are struggling with their own financial
woes.

Reflecting the dire economic climate, donors who
contributed in past years are seeking help this year, says Vickie L.
Riddle, director of Catholic Charities for the Roman Catholic Diocese
of Springfield.

aBetterWay Catholic, Church Issues, Financial, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

Worship services may still be the USA’s most segregated hour, but fewer congregations are now completely white, finds a study comparing churches, synagogues and mosques last year with a decade ago. –

USA Today reports The study, in the journal Sociology of Religion, compared 1,505
congregations in 2006-07 with 1,234 in 1998. It was based on surveys by
the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.
Margin of error was plus or minus 2.5 percentage points for the 2006-07
data and 3 percentage points for 1998 data.

Worship is not only more diverse, it’s also “more informal and more
enthusiastic by every measure,” Chaves says, with more shouting,
clapping and hands raised overhead in praise. Use of drums in worship
jumped 70% in eight years, from 20% in 1998 to 34% in 2006-07. “We find
drums almost everywhere, even in Catholic and Jewish services,” he
says.

aBetterWay Catholic, Church Growth, Church Issues, Santa, Survey, University, Worship

Read the Full Article at News2

Is it written somewhere in the Bible that people must get gussied up for church? No, it is not. So Jim Butcher preaches in blue jeans. –

AP reports Inspired by a big nudge from God, the 39-year-old pastor has started a new kind of church aimed at the disenchanted.

“It had been a burden in my heart for a long time that a lot of
churches are just going through the motions. Eighty percent of the
churches in America have reached a plateau or the membership is
declining. They aren’t reaching people in a very effective way.”

aBetterWay Bible, Church Issues, God, Orthodox, Pastor, People, Santa, Worship

Read the Full Article at News2

Congregations are grappling with a new state law that prohibits certain sex offenders from being within 300 feet of child care centers, which include church nurseries and playgrounds. If worship services are held in close proximity to church child care, the law could prevent some from attending. –

The Gaston Gazette [NC, USA] reports Included in a batch of tough new laws for North Carolina’s registered
sex offenders that took effect Dec. 1, the boundary rule applies only
to offenders whose victims were under 16. Those affected can’t go
“(w)ithin 300 feet of any location intended primarily for the use, care
or supervision of minors when the place is located on premises that are
not intended primarily for the use, care or supervision of minors.”

aBetterWay Abuse, Church Issues, Jesus, Santa, Worship

Read the Full Article at News2

Rebecca Hancock told FOXNews.com that Grace Community Church, a non-denominational church in Jacksonville, Fla., was against her relationship with boyfriend Frank Young because the two were sexually active but not married. –

Fox News reports When she wasn’t willing to
obey the church’s orders to leave him, she decided to leave the church
instead, allowing her two children to remain active members.

Now,
she says, church elders have given her the worst ultimatum yet: In a
Dec. 8 letter, they told her she either has to meet with them and end
her “immoral” relationship or she will face public humiliation.

“Bottom
line, on January they 4th they are going to the church publicly with my
sins, and my children will be sitting in church at the time,” Hancock
told FOXNews.com.

Click here to see a copy of the letter (pdf).

aBetterWay Church Issues, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

While tens of thousands of Americans have been laid off in recent months and religious leaders have blamed corporate greed for the economic crisis, churches have not seen a jump in attendance numbers as many might have expected, according to a new poll. –

The Christian Post reports Over the last three months, about 42 percent of Americans reported
that they attended church, synagogue, or mosque weekly or almost every
week, which the Gallup Poll found to be the same percentage reported
earlier in the year.

History has shown that a significant crisis usually results in
fuller pews, as was seen after the September 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks. During this latest crisis of economic challenges, some reports
have indicated that houses of worship have drawn larger crowds.

But while some churches have seen higher numbers, the recent
Gallup Poll found “absolutely no change” in church attendance after
reviewing almost 300,000 interviews Gallup conducted throughout this
year.

aBetterWay Church Growth, Church Issues, Financial, History, Santa, Survey, Worship

Read the Full Article at News2

The leadership of their order, the Sisters of Mercy, decided to shutter the place and scatter the sisters to other homes and nursing facilities after realizing it would cost more than $20 million to fix serious structural and accessibility problems in the fortresslike building on Willoughby Avenue in Clinton Hill. –

The NY Times reports The Sisters of Mercy, known as the Walking Sisters because working
outside the convent was unusual for nuns in the 19th century, have been
in Brooklyn since 1855, when five young nuns from Manhattan answered Bishop John Loughlin’s
call to work with the poor and sick. They went from the ferry at Fulton
Landing to the nine-room convent of St. James parish on Jay Street,
where they lived and worked.

Legend has it that five boys were
left in their care one day, not an uncommon occurrence during a time
when illness often claimed the lives of work-weary immigrant parents.
As the nuns’ work grew along with their reputation, they moved in 1862
to the much larger quarters of their present convent, in what was then
a solidly Irish neighborhood.

aBetterWay Bishop, Catholic, Church Issues, Nun, Nuns, Santa, Unusual

Read the Full Article at News2

For the Southern Baptist Convention, 2008 was filled with bad news. –

USA Today reports Baptisms reached a 20-year low. Church
membership dropped, prompting fears the Nashville-based Baptist body
was on a downward slide. And its outgoing president warned that within
20 years, more than half of Southern Baptist churches could die off.

In response, the Baptists announced a new
national evangelism strategy called “God’s Plan for Sharing.” Nicknamed
“GPS,” the new strategy would spread the Gospel throughout the U.S. and
Canada by 2020, said Geoff Hammond, president of the North American
Mission Board.

But critics within the denomination say the new
initiative is in danger of failing. Some blame a lack of funding.
Others wonder if the mission board leadership is up to the task.

aBetterWay Baptist, Canada, Church Growth, Church Issues, Denominations, Evangelism, God, Gospel, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

The Rev. Robert Chase, the founding director of Intersections, a multicultural and multifaith initiative of Collegiate, acknowledged that the church is “using a variety of techniques from the advertising world” to help disseminate “a sacred message.” –

The NY Times reports (with video) The most visible current campaign is an assertive effort from the
Collegiate Churches of New York, with a budget estimated at more than
$1 million. The campaign is being described as the first from the
church to use a variety of media, including television, print, posters
and the Internet (collegiatechurch.org).

The campaign’s theme is expressed in ads that carry headlines like
“You’re invited. So are your questions,” “Faith is a verb,” “You don’t
have to accept everything to be accepted” and “Diversity is what unites
us.”

aBetterWay Business, Church Growth, Church Issues, Cult, Evangelism, Internet, Santa

Read the Full Article at News2

New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church on the North Side, in foreclosure, owes creditors $840,000 after its expansion and stopped paying the retirement of a former longtime pastor. –

The Columbus Dispatch [OH, USA] reports The Rev. Marcus L. Martin and church leaders envisioned a grander
church than the small, aging one from which he preached on Joyce Avenue
on Columbus’ North Side.

Last year, the church added a new sanctuary, giving the people of
Galilee Missionary Baptist Church a more impressive place to worship.

In January, Martin borrowed $723,613 from Huntington National Bank.
But the loans went unpaid. The Columbus-based bank filed for
foreclosure Dec. 2 and, three days later, the church admitted to a
judgment that it owed nearly $750,000.

Scott also has faced foreclosure, on his own home, after the church failed to pay into a retirement package promised him.

He led Mount Galilee Missionary Baptist Church for nearly 30 years.
The church sent him off with a written promise of a $1,100-a-month
retirement payment and other benefits.

aBetterWay Baptist, Church Issues, Errant Christians, Pastor, People, Santa, Worship

Read the Full Article at News2

It’s that time of year when millions of Canadians wonder about venturing into the church of their youth for a Christmas service. –

The Vancouver Sun [CA] reports The Canadians who are most likely to be feeling an unusual tug to again
try out church at Christmas — who have kept only a loose link to their
Christian identity– are typically mainline Protestants.  

Evangelicals, by contrast, have a higher rate of regular church attendance than mainline Protestants. And Catholics
seem more polarized about the church in which they were raised: They
either remain highly active in it, or they harshly reject it.

Mainline Protestants – such as members of the liberal United Church of Canada, as well as Anglicans, Lutherans and Presbyterians – tend to be in-betweeners.

aBetterWay Anglican, Canada, Catholic, Christmas, Church Growth, Church Issues, Culture, Evangelical, Evangelicals, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Santa, Unusual, Youth