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The percentage of U.S. Protestant women serving as senior pastors has doubled over the past decade, according to the latest study by the Barna Group.Throughout most of the 1990s, just five percent of Protestant senior pastors were female. Since that time, the proportion has slowly but steadily risen, doubling to 10 percent in 2009.
The Brooklyn Tabernacle, a 3,500-seat evangelical prayer palace in downtown Brooklyn, was built in 1918 as one of the largest and grandest vaudeville houses in North America. It is still a hot ticket. Its youngish, racially diverse congregation packs the pews each week to praise God and bask in the sounds of a Grammy-winning 250-voice gospel choir. But the tabernacle is more than just a popular church. It is also a destination for evangelicals from all around the United States and beyond, laymen and ministers alike, who come as acolytes to study prayer.
Badgers senior free safety Chris Maragos’ life is made up of two separate journeys, each remarkable in its own right. Maragos has no doubt which has been the more important journey. "By far, the most important thing is my faith," he said. "Football is temporary.
Two new reports on the size and strength of American congregations present contrasting pictures of church life today. The newest trend in church growth is exemplified by the No. 2 ranked church’s cross-country reach. Lifechurch.tv transmits pastor Craig Groeschel’s worship services from the church’s studio home in Edmond, Okla., to 13 locations, reaching 26,776 people in average weekend worship attendance.
The New York Times obituary of "Green Revolution" pioneer Norman Borlaug did a great job of answering journalism’s basic Who, What, When, Where and How questions, providing a fascinating overview of Borlaug’s work with plant breeding and crop management, his global impact, and the debates that have surrounded his work.But the obit failed to address the big Why question, leaving readers wondering what motivated Borlaug’s lifelong crusade to combat hunger and famine by increasing food production [and didn’t mention Borlaug’s family roots in rural Dane County].
Jim Stevens of Cottage Grove swam, biked and ran through Sunday’s Wisconsin Ironman triathlon as a man on a mission. He was among 53 of the 2400 Ironman athletes who participated in Ironman’s Janus Charity Challenge, using the grueling event to raise donations for non-profit organizations.Stevens was able to raise $88,621.96 for Care Net Pregnancy Center of Dane County. To that Janus will add $8,000, since Stevens was the second leading Janus fundraiser for this event. He was the only local Janus participant among the top five fund raisers recognized at Monday’s Ironman banquet at Monona Terrace.
When it comes to ultimate Frisbee, the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia don’t mess around.On a recent afternoon, a dozen young sisters, dressed in full-length habits or in postulant uniforms — white shirts, black skirts, black vests — and wearing sneakers and blue aprons, gathered at the edge of the convent’s playing field.Then they screamed at the top of their lungs, and rushed another group of nuns as a white Frisbee flew overhead. "Did you see that?" said Sister Mary Emily, watching over her young charges. "They’re trying to intimidate the other team."There are 23 postulants this year at the…
Chester Cook knows he can always find a lost soul at the re-ticketing counter in Terminal A at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. So he goes there each day, plants himself near the line and scans faces. "I’m normally looking for someone who’s having a meltdown," Cook says.
COMMENTARYFor many years, Willow Creek Community Church outside Chicago was the model that many evangelical churches sought to copy. Its growth, facilities and programs seemed to scream “success.”That is, until Willow Creek took a closer look.The “look” was in the form of two-year comprehensive study that sought to determine which of its programs were helping it members to mature spiritually. The shocking answer was “not many.”
A veteran fashion photographer who is used to having his works featured in Vogue, GQ and Elle, is releasing his most “rewarding” collection – “Journeys with the Messiah” – on the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks."I was in New York prepping for a photo shoot a week after 9/11 and saw many people searching for something," recalled Michael Belk, who created the Jesus photo collection out of his Christian faith. "Similar to 9/11, I think many Americans don’t know where to turn in the midst of the current worldwide financial crisis.”