Disagreements between the scientific community and people of faith have recently been reignited through attempts to use embryonic stem cell research as a method of advancing cures and treatments against certain medical conditions. With President Barack Obama’s removal of the eight-year ban on embryonic stem cell research established by former President George W. Bush, pro-life groups […]
14 INEXPENSIVE DATE IDEAS FOR VALENTINE’S DAY
Fun Excursions both Economical and Ecological
You can do something more meaningful that giving chocolates on your Valentine’s Day this year. What are some inexpensive ways to have fun and enjoy this season, and at the same time respect and help our environment, God’s creation? Even with these challenges you don’t have to be dateless or bored. It is possible to […]
EGYPTIAN COPTIC CHRISTIANS
Writings and photographs by Alexa Wan
In bare, weakly sun-lit rooms nestled under Cairo’s Mokattam Hills, known locally as Garbage City, walls are littered with religious artifacts and most floors strewn in heaps of trash, waiting for sorters. At the break of dawn men collect up to 13,000 tons of waste daily, roving among the winding streets balanced atop trucks and […]
MAKING ROOM AT THE INN
The Spirit of Las Posadas
Christmas is our day to celebrate Jesus’ birthday. But in the shuffle of the holiday season, the original intent of the holiday can also get swept up in holiday busy work, no matter how well-intended we are. But we can take out a page from the cultural traditions of Mexico to reflect upon this Christmas. […]
BEING A GOOD SAMARITAN
A DVD series about making a difference
If someone were to sit down and contemplate the state of the world right now, it would be easy to find sadness, unfairness, and inexplicably awful things that can’t fully be comprehended. We have mass poverty, pandemic diseases, social injustice, gender inequality and political oppression, just to name a few ills. Then on top of […]
JUSTICE OR COMPASSION?
The consequences of gossip as seen through the film Doubt.
A woman was gossiping with her friend about a man whom they hardly knew – I know none of you have ever done this. That night, she had a dream: a great hand appeared over her and pointed down on her. She was immediately seized with an overwhelming sense of guilt. The next day she […]
DISCERNMENT
How do you know that you’re hearing from God?
Prayer is a critical part of the Christian life – the Bible is clear on this. So it becomes very important that we nail down what a life of prayer looks like. A key question might be, how should we pray? Christ’s disciples asked Him that directly (Luke 11:1), which He answered with a prayer […]
ARE CHRISTIANS SHELTERED?
In the book UnChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity: And Why It Matters, Kinnaman and Lyons, with research from the Barna group, highlight the ways Christians are viewed in a negative light, especially among Americans aged 16 to 29. The authors present research indicating that Christians are best known for the things […]
WOMEN IN CHURCH LEADERSHIP
Examining the Christian perspectives surrounding women in church leadership
If you want to get a group of Christian women — or men, for that matter — talking, then just bring up the question of whether or not women should be allowed in church leadership. The opinions on this matter are as diverse as the people who hold them, but the importance of their consequences […]
FINDING JOY APART
Coping when you feel disconnected
In today’s world we have so many options available to help us feel connected. Between our MySpace pages, our Facebook status updates and our tweeting on Twitter, it seems that we can keep track of every moment of our days and our friends’ days as well. Yet with all of this technology designed to keep […]