Urban blacks have been following the pattern of so-called "white flight" for the past several decades, leaving the city for the suburbs as they reach the middle class. Now their churches are beginning to follow, church leaders and observers say. December 2008 Archives
Christian
Urban blacks have been following the pattern of so-called "white flight" for the past several decades, leaving the city for the suburbs as they reach the middle class. Now their churches are beginning to follow, church leaders and observers say.
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Urban blacks have been following the pattern of so-called "white flight" for the past several decades, leaving the city for the suburbs as they reach the middle class. Now their churches are beginning to follow, church leaders and observers say.
Christian
God's Word brings us a comforting promise, along with an insightful command as we face a New Year: "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man shall do unto me" (Hebrews 13:5-6). Read More
National
President-elect Barack Obama's choice of Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural invocation drew one kind of protest. Whether the evangelical pastor offers the prayer in the name of Jesus may draw another.
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President-elect Barack Obama's choice of Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural invocation drew one kind of protest. Whether the evangelical pastor offers the prayer in the name of Jesus may draw another.
Opinion
Before Christmas I returned, after 45 years, to the country that as a boy I knew as Nyasaland. Today it's Malawi, and The Times Christmas Appeal includes a small British charity working there. Pump Aid helps rural communities to install a simple pump, letting people keep their village wells sealed and clean. I went to see this work.
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Before Christmas I returned, after 45 years, to the country that as a boy I knew as Nyasaland. Today it's Malawi, and The Times Christmas Appeal includes a small British charity working there. Pump Aid helps rural communities to install a simple pump, letting people keep their village wells sealed and clean. I went to see this work.
World
David Fulton, 60, a former Army major, and his wife, Fiona, 46, pleaded guilty to making seditious comments "with intent to bring hatred or contempt against the president or the government". Their sentence, in a country which has one of west Africa's worst human rights records, sparked concern after reports that other prisoners on similar charges have been poisoned while in jail.
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David Fulton, 60, a former Army major, and his wife, Fiona, 46, pleaded guilty to making seditious comments "with intent to bring hatred or contempt against the president or the government". Their sentence, in a country which has one of west Africa's worst human rights records, sparked concern after reports that other prisoners on similar charges have been poisoned while in jail.
National
Hurricane Katrina not only pulverized the Gulf Coast in 2005, it knocked the bully pulpit out from under President George W. Bush, according to two former advisers who spoke candidly about the political impact of the government's poor handling of the natural disaster. Read More
Christian
In an article written by Kimberly Hayes Taylor (Detroit News) it reports that David "Pop" Winans, patriarch of Gospel's dynamic Winans family, has reportedly suffered a series of four strokes, seizures and a heart attack since late September. Winans (74) was admitted to Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak on Sept. 30.
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In an article written by Kimberly Hayes Taylor (Detroit News) it reports that David "Pop" Winans, patriarch of Gospel's dynamic Winans family, has reportedly suffered a series of four strokes, seizures and a heart attack since late September. Winans (74) was admitted to Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak on Sept. 30.
African-American
As more and more black renters began moving into this mostly white San Francisco Bay Area suburb a few years ago, neighbors started complaining about loud parties, mean pit bulls, blaring car radios, prostitution, drug dealing and muggings of schoolchildren. Read More
African-American
An economist in Germany has noticed a curious trend among Americans: For the past 50 years, black women have been shrinking with each new generation. Read More
An economist in Germany has noticed a curious trend among Americans: For the past 50 years, black women have been shrinking with each new generation. Read More
Second Coming Watch/World
Israeli officials said Wednesday morning the country had decided to reject an immediate 48-hour pause in a devastating five-day offensive against Hamas in Gaza. Read More
National
With three weeks to go before his inauguration, President-elect Barack Obama has been beset by questions over the Rod Blagojevich scandal as well as criticism over his choice of Pastor Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural invocation. Read More
With three weeks to go before his inauguration, President-elect Barack Obama has been beset by questions over the Rod Blagojevich scandal as well as criticism over his choice of Pastor Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural invocation. Read More
National
A group advocating separation of church and state is suing to keep prayer out of the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration. The Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation and several of its members are among the 29 plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit filed Monday in Washington, D.C. Read More
World
Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics has released data on Christians in the nation compiled in 2007. According to a report in YNet News, there are 154,000 Christians living in Israel of whom 80% are Arabs. Christians, therefore, constitute 2.1% of the population. Read More
Sports
Matt Lepsis was living the good life last season, making millions in the NFL and finally fitting in when he locked himself in a closet and screamed for help: Please, God, help me kick this drug habit.
The Denver Broncos left tackle, who called it quits after last season and enrolled in seminary, admitted he was high on drugs for the first six games of his final season.
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National
Gov. Rod Blagojevich is expected today to name former Illinois Atty. Gen. Roland Burris to replace President-elect Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate. The action comes despite warnings by Democratic Senate leaders that they would not seat anyone appointed by the disgraced governor who faces criminal charges of trying to sell the post, sources familiar with the decision said.
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Gov. Rod Blagojevich is expected today to name former Illinois Atty. Gen. Roland Burris to replace President-elect Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate. The action comes despite warnings by Democratic Senate leaders that they would not seat anyone appointed by the disgraced governor who faces criminal charges of trying to sell the post, sources familiar with the decision said.
National
A teen convicted in the "Jena Six" beating case shot himself in the chest and was taken to the hospital Monday, days after his arrest on a shoplifting charge, police said. Mychal Bell's wound isn't life threatening, said Monroe Police Sgt. Cassandra Wooten. The 18-year-old used a .22-caliber firearm in the shooting around 7:40 p.m., she said.
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A teen convicted in the "Jena Six" beating case shot himself in the chest and was taken to the hospital Monday, days after his arrest on a shoplifting charge, police said. Mychal Bell's wound isn't life threatening, said Monroe Police Sgt. Cassandra Wooten. The 18-year-old used a .22-caliber firearm in the shooting around 7:40 p.m., she said.
World
A boat carrying international activists, including former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, and medical supplies to the embattled Gaza Strip sailed back into a Lebanese port on Tuesday after being turned back and damaged by the Israeli navy, organizers of the trip said.
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A boat carrying international activists, including former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, and medical supplies to the embattled Gaza Strip sailed back into a Lebanese port on Tuesday after being turned back and damaged by the Israeli navy, organizers of the trip said.
Christian
After years of renting makeshift quarters, Seabreeze Church finally bought a permanent home in 2004 -- a five-acre former tennis club in a beachside Southern California town.
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After years of renting makeshift quarters, Seabreeze Church finally bought a permanent home in 2004 -- a five-acre former tennis club in a beachside Southern California town.
Second Coming Watch/World
Israeli jets have attacked the Gaza Strip for a fourth day, with raids on a number of Hamas government buildings and security installations. Air strikes early on Tuesday killed at least 10 people, medical officials in the coastal enclave said. Read More
Israeli jets have attacked the Gaza Strip for a fourth day, with raids on a number of Hamas government buildings and security installations. Air strikes early on Tuesday killed at least 10 people, medical officials in the coastal enclave said. Read More
National
Republican Party reaction is divided over the decision of a candidate for party chairman to distribute a CD that features the parody tune "Barack the Magic Negro," with the majority of Chip Saltsman's political rivals criticizing the move Read More
Christian
Pastor Rudy Rasmus recently called the staff of St. John's Methodist Church downtown together for a meeting. The news wasn't good, and the timing couldn't be worse. Between Christmas and New Year's Day, the staff of 40 will be reduced by 20 percent.
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Pastor Rudy Rasmus recently called the staff of St. John's Methodist Church downtown together for a meeting. The news wasn't good, and the timing couldn't be worse. Between Christmas and New Year's Day, the staff of 40 will be reduced by 20 percent.
Opinion
The Associated Press recently described Global warming as "a ticking time bomb that President-elect Barack Obama can't avoid," and that "global warming is accelerating."
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The Associated Press recently described Global warming as "a ticking time bomb that President-elect Barack Obama can't avoid," and that "global warming is accelerating."
Christian
Evangelist Billy Graham is changing membership from a Dallas church to one near his retirement home in South Carolina.
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Health
Teenagers who promise to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have sex before that as those who don't take virginity pledges, according to a new study published in the January issue of Pediatrics. Read More
National
Barack Obama has long stressed the importance of religion in his life. But as his fellow Christians around the world attended Christmas services on Wednesday and Thursday, the president-elect and his family remained sequestered at their vacation compound on the windward coast of Oahu.
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Barack Obama has long stressed the importance of religion in his life. But as his fellow Christians around the world attended Christmas services on Wednesday and Thursday, the president-elect and his family remained sequestered at their vacation compound on the windward coast of Oahu.
Roger Babson, the famed statistician and writer on finance, said, "The test of a nation is the growth of it people intellectually and spiritually. Money and so-called prosperity are of very little account. Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome and Spain all had their turns in being the richest nations on the world. Then they declined. Instead of saving them, their wealth proved to be their ruin. Read More
Christian
Dressed in blue-and-orange prison suits and tennis shoes, the men came forward for Holy Communion singing an old spiritual. "Hallelujah, we're going to see the king," they sang in deep baritone voices. "Soon and very soon, we are going to see the king." Read More
Dressed in blue-and-orange prison suits and tennis shoes, the men came forward for Holy Communion singing an old spiritual. "Hallelujah, we're going to see the king," they sang in deep baritone voices. "Soon and very soon, we are going to see the king." Read More
Culture
After a life that touched three centuries, the oldest man in the United States has died in California at the age of 112, the Sacramento Bee newspaper reported on Monday. Read More
After a life that touched three centuries, the oldest man in the United States has died in California at the age of 112, the Sacramento Bee newspaper reported on Monday. Read More
National
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A man who was infected with the HIV virus by his stripper ex-wife is pleading for other men who may have had sex with her to get tested for the disease. "I know there were other men she slept with," Percy Whiteman claimed yesterday of his ex, Suwalee Iamkhong, who is fighting deportation from Canada.
Christian
If I'm serious about keeping my New Year's resolutions in 2009, should I add another one? Should the to-do list include, "Start going to church"? Read More
Christian
U.S. evangelicals say they are divided over a new "Green Bible" which embraces environmentalism and a need to protect the Earth. Read More
Culture
Joe Kaufman, 26, is perfectly open to dating opportunities. He lets friends fix him up. He's comfortable going to bars. He's tried several online dating services, including Yahoo! Personals, Match.com and OkCupid. But eHarmony? Unlikely. Read More
Second Coming Watch/World
Israel's air force obliterated symbols of Hamas power on the third day of its overwhelming assault on Gaza on Monday, striking a house next to the Hamas premier's home, devastating a security compound and flattening a five-story building at a university closely linked to the Islamic group.
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Israel's air force obliterated symbols of Hamas power on the third day of its overwhelming assault on Gaza on Monday, striking a house next to the Hamas premier's home, devastating a security compound and flattening a five-story building at a university closely linked to the Islamic group.
World
Iran's Supreme Leader issued a religious decree to Muslims around the world on Sunday, ordering them to defend Palestinians in Gaza against Israeli attacks "in any way possible", state television reported.
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Iran's Supreme Leader issued a religious decree to Muslims around the world on Sunday, ordering them to defend Palestinians in Gaza against Israeli attacks "in any way possible", state television reported.
World
Three million people in the highlands of the east African country of Tanzania will receive Scriptures in their own language for the first time by fall next year, a Bible translation ministry recently announced.
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Three million people in the highlands of the east African country of Tanzania will receive Scriptures in their own language for the first time by fall next year, a Bible translation ministry recently announced.
National
The paths taken by Colin Lampark and Rosalyn Bates help illustrate why Chicago is the most racially segregated big city in America. Both are young professionals with handsome earning potential. Both moved to the city a few years ago--Lampark, 28, to Lincoln Park; Bates, 31, to Bronzeville. And both chose neighborhoods reflecting their race, a practice common in Chicago. Read More
National
Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn said on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday that he is certain scandal-plagued Gov. Rod Blagojevich will be out of office in less than two months. Speaking from Chicago, Quinn said he believes the Illinois legislature will impeach Blagojevich by Abraham Lincoln's bicentennial birthday celebration Feb. 12.
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Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn said on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday that he is certain scandal-plagued Gov. Rod Blagojevich will be out of office in less than two months. Speaking from Chicago, Quinn said he believes the Illinois legislature will impeach Blagojevich by Abraham Lincoln's bicentennial birthday celebration Feb. 12.
African-American
The murder rate among black teenagers has climbed since 2000 even as murders by young whites have scarcely grown or declined in some places, according to a new report. Read More
National
A Democratic congressman compared Caroline Kennedy to Sarah Palin, saying the would-be senator hasn't proved she has the "guts and the gumption" to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton.
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A Democratic congressman compared Caroline Kennedy to Sarah Palin, saying the would-be senator hasn't proved she has the "guts and the gumption" to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton.
National
The media glare, the constant security appendage and the sheer production that has become a morning jog or a hankering for an ice cream cone - it's been closing in on Barack Obama for some time.
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The media glare, the constant security appendage and the sheer production that has become a morning jog or a hankering for an ice cream cone - it's been closing in on Barack Obama for some time.
Books
The publisher of a disputed Holocaust memoir has canceled the book, adding the name Herman Rosenblat to an increasingly long list of literary fakers and ending with a heartbreaking crash his story _ embraced by Oprah Winfrey among others _ of meeting his future wife at a concentration camp. Read More
The publisher of a disputed Holocaust memoir has canceled the book, adding the name Herman Rosenblat to an increasingly long list of literary fakers and ending with a heartbreaking crash his story _ embraced by Oprah Winfrey among others _ of meeting his future wife at a concentration camp. Read More
National
Will one of President-elect Barack Obama's New Year's resolutions be to quit smoking once and for all? His good-humored waffling in various interviews about smoking made it plain that Mr. Obama, like many who have vowed to quit at this time of year, had not truly done so. Read More
Will one of President-elect Barack Obama's New Year's resolutions be to quit smoking once and for all? His good-humored waffling in various interviews about smoking made it plain that Mr. Obama, like many who have vowed to quit at this time of year, had not truly done so. Read More
National
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said Friday that if what he's done as Illinois governor is an impeachable offense, he's living on the "wrong planet" and is in the "wrong place." Speaking to a WLS-TV reporter outside a Chicago law office, the governor said he was hired to fight for the people of Illinois and that's what he's been doing. Read More
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said Friday that if what he's done as Illinois governor is an impeachable offense, he's living on the "wrong planet" and is in the "wrong place." Speaking to a WLS-TV reporter outside a Chicago law office, the governor said he was hired to fight for the people of Illinois and that's what he's been doing. Read More
National
The two most influential women in President George W. Bush's White House -- first lady Laura Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice -- are strongly defending the president's legacy against critics who are calling his administration one of the worst in history.
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World
Oil prices rose sharply on Monday, touching nearly 42 dollars in London, amid rising unrest in the Middle East and evidence that OPEC members have begun complying with agreed output cuts, traders said. Read More
Sports
They'd known for weeks it was possible, each loss bringing them one stumble closer to a mark no team wants--or even wants to think about. Yet when it finally happened, the Detroit Lions were still stunned, unable to find words to adequately describe the shame in their accomplishment.
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They'd known for weeks it was possible, each loss bringing them one stumble closer to a mark no team wants--or even wants to think about. Yet when it finally happened, the Detroit Lions were still stunned, unable to find words to adequately describe the shame in their accomplishment.
Christian
A best-selling atheist author claims that Christianity not only falsely takes credit for good in the world, but actually promotes immorality. In a recent debate against a Christian scholar and pastor, Christopher Hitchens argued against the idea that Christianity is accountable for the spreading of moral principles such as how it is wrong to murder and steal. Read More
National
A group of Christian leaders in the United States has called on President-elect Barack Obama to make the Israeli-Palestinian peace process an immediate priority during his first year in office.
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A group of Christian leaders in the United States has called on President-elect Barack Obama to make the Israeli-Palestinian peace process an immediate priority during his first year in office.
Sports
Donovan McNabb flexed his muscles, seemingly mocking Terrell Owens. The always stoic Andy Reid played cheerleader, encouraging the crowd to make noise. Many fans may not want the quarterback or coach back for another season. But they'll be here for at least one more game -- a playoff game.
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Donovan McNabb flexed his muscles, seemingly mocking Terrell Owens. The always stoic Andy Reid played cheerleader, encouraging the crowd to make noise. Many fans may not want the quarterback or coach back for another season. But they'll be here for at least one more game -- a playoff game.
National
Reaction on the right to Saltsman's distribution of a song called "Barack the Magic Negro" in his quest to become the new chairman of the RNC has been mixed. One of Saltsman's rivals in the race for RNC chair, Ken Blackwell, an African-American himself, has defended Saltsman, dismissing the criticism as "hypersensitivity in the press": Read More
Reaction on the right to Saltsman's distribution of a song called "Barack the Magic Negro" in his quest to become the new chairman of the RNC has been mixed. One of Saltsman's rivals in the race for RNC chair, Ken Blackwell, an African-American himself, has defended Saltsman, dismissing the criticism as "hypersensitivity in the press": Read More
Second Coming Watch/World
Israel launched air strikes on Gaza for a second day on Sunday, piling pressure on Hamas after killing more than 270 people in one of the bloodiest days in 60 years of conflict between the Palestinians and the Jewish state.
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Israel launched air strikes on Gaza for a second day on Sunday, piling pressure on Hamas after killing more than 270 people in one of the bloodiest days in 60 years of conflict between the Palestinians and the Jewish state.
World
The Arab world reacted with outrage at Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip on Saturday, launching scattered protests and calls for retaliation against Israel. The Arab League announced a gathering of foreign ministers Wednesday would focus on the attack, said the organization's chairman Amr Moussa.
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The Arab world reacted with outrage at Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip on Saturday, launching scattered protests and calls for retaliation against Israel. The Arab League announced a gathering of foreign ministers Wednesday would focus on the attack, said the organization's chairman Amr Moussa.
National
The most thoughtful and interesting debate of the two-year-long presidential campaign occurred last August at Saddleback Church between John McCain and Barack Obama, moderated by Saddleback pastor Rick Warren. So it is notable that President-elect Obama's choice of Rick Warren to give the invocation at his Inauguration next month has brought forth hyperpartisan invective from the Democratic left.
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The most thoughtful and interesting debate of the two-year-long presidential campaign occurred last August at Saddleback Church between John McCain and Barack Obama, moderated by Saddleback pastor Rick Warren. So it is notable that President-elect Obama's choice of Rick Warren to give the invocation at his Inauguration next month has brought forth hyperpartisan invective from the Democratic left.
National
The Illinois House committee considering the removal of Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich has rejected a request from the governor's lawyer to subpoena two top advisers to President-elect Barack Obama, the committee's chairwoman said Saturday. Read More