Author: Gordon Govier

Saying he wants to serve the city in a new way, the senior pastor of one of Madison’s largest congregations has announced he’s stepping down to join the Madison Police Department.

Kids with religious parents are better behaved and adjusted than other children, according to a new study that is the first to look at the effects of religion on young child development.Read more of this story.

The Madison Diocese’s blueprint for a future with an ever-diminishing number of priests calls for the merger of 40 percent of parishes in its 11-county region.In Dane County, 20 parishes are marked for merger — from those in downtown Madison to St. Michael’s in tiny Dane. An additional 33 parishes are recommended for merger in outlying counties.Read more of this story.

Ripon – Using a hidden video camera and a wireless microphone, two Ripon College students have gone beyond asking "What would Jesus do?" to find out what impact his parables are having on everyday people after nearly 2,000 years.Read more of this story.

Most physicians in the United States believe that religion and spirituality have a positive effect on patients’ health, according to a survey published last week, and that God at least occasionally intervenes on their behalf.Read more of this story.

An unusually diverse committee of about a dozen local Protestant clergy, ranging from Unitarian to Evangelical Free Church, arranged an Earth Day Celebration entitled "Faith, Food and Earth Day 2007," that took place yesterday afternoon at Lake Edge Lutheran Church, 4032 Monona Drive. Despite differing positions on theological issues, they all agreed that loving God includes loving and caring for His creation, the earth around us.

COMMENTARYIf you’ve been to a church at any time in the past 30 years, you have no doubt been subjected to the "worship wars." Contemporary vs. Traditional. Modern vs. Postmodern. The worship wars have been fought in virtually every evangelical church at some time during the past generation. Those on the traditional side say the conflict is ultimately a matter of theology. Those on the contemporary side say it is ultimately a matter of relevance.

While specific data are not available, you can bet that the "no religious preference" figure is higher in Madison, but don’t think that Madison is the ultimate secular city, either. We are home to the Freedom From Religion Foundation but also to the national headquarters of the Intervarsity Christian Fellowship.Read more of this story.

National Crime Victims’ Rights Week is April 22-29, when many communities across the United States will hold memorial services to remember victims of crime and to promote victims’ rights.Read more of this story.

Does Creation Care Matter to God? It is impossible to imagine that God is indifferent to the widespread destruction of what he has created. Indeed, the closing chapters of Job reveal God’s compassionate, protective concern for the mountain goat, the wild donkey, the young raven in its nest and countless other creatures. To think that we can claim on the one hand to love God and then to be indifferent to his creation, or even worse to live destructively, is tragic.Read more of this story.