Many Christians Claim Unbiblical Spiritual Gifts, Survey Finds
A surprising number of Americans who said they were familiar with spiritual gifts identified ones that are not listed in the Bible as gifts, a new survey found.
About one-fifth (21 percent) of respondents who said they have heard of spiritual gifts claimed to have gifts such as a sense of humor, singing, health, life, happiness, patience, a job, a house, compromise, premonition, creativity, and clairvoyance – ones that are not among those deemed to be spiritual gifts in the passages of Scripture that teach about gifts, according to the report.
Several politically conservative evangelicals said in interviews that they do not want to be identified with the “Religious Right,” “Christian Right,” “Moral Majority,” or other phrases still thrown around in journalism and academia.
The vice president of media and public relations for Focus on the Family said that when writers include terms like "Religious Right" and "fundamentalist," they can create negative impressions.
I was reminded of the time I learned of my religious heritage on my father's side. A while back, as part of preparation for a family reunion, my Aunt Weezie sent me a booklet in which a cousin had written the genealogy of Dad's family. I won't reveal my maiden name here, but it was a name of German derivation . . . let's say it was Wienerschnitzel. The family book on the Wienerschnitzels was exhaustively researched, going back several generations.
I learned about how the first Wienerschnitzels came from Germany and settled in the Allegheny Mountains. And then I read something that stopped me cold:
"The first Wienerschnitzels to settle in the United States were all drunkards."
Long out of print and now only infrequently stumbled upon in the odd truck stop bathroom (as all good religious witnessing tracts should be) YMB is now able to present to you "Galactus is Coming!"
First and foremost, I wouldn't take money out of the pockets of my followers for cheap third-world slave-labor-manufactured trinkets with four silly little initials on them. That money had better be going to feeding the hungry or housing the homeless: Lance Armstrong gave the profits from his armbands to a good cause - these folks claiming to speak for The Son Of God had better keep philanthropic pace with a dude who wore skin-tight lycra shorts for a living.
When journalist Gregory Warner took his accordion to Afghanistan, he hoped the music would help him where his phrasebook failed. The instrument turned out to be a better ambassador than he ever imagined.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma filed a federal lawsuit charging that school officials violated 15-year-old student's rights when they accused her of casting a hex that resulted in a teacher’s illness.
“These outlandish accusations have made the student’s life at school unbearable,” said the Executive Director of the ACLU of Oklahoma. “I for one would like to see the so-called evidence this school has that a 15-year-old girl made a grown man sick by casting a magic spell.”
An analysis of more than 350,000 interviews conducted by Gallup in 2008 finds Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Arkansas to be the most religious states in the nation. Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts are the least religious states.
There are a number of ways to measure the relative religiosity of population segments. For the current ranking, Gallup uses the responses to a straightforward question that asks: "Is religion an important part of your daily life?" The rankings are based on the percentage of each state's adult (18 and older) population that answers in the affirmative.
For those who would like to move the denominational headquarters, it appears that Illinois is no less religious that Maryland (or Pennsylvania).
A literal understanding of the biblical chronologies places the Flood no earlier than about 2,500 B.C. and the creation no earlier than about 6,000 B.C. (Allowance for unlisted names in the biblical chronologies pushes back these dates, but not much). However, the long Bristlecone Pine chronology, comprised of hundreds of live and dead trees, is over 8,000 years long. The presence of fossiliferous sediment under the Bristlecone Pines rules out any of them being pre-Flood. So there is a biological history that exceeds the theoretical young age of the Earth.
Congress has pushed back its mandate that the last day for transmissions to be broadcast in analog by 4 months to the date of June 12, 2009. Transmissions will be in digital only after that date. If you reading the Gospel Messenger Blog, the type of browser you use is very important. A digital browser will allow you to continue to read blog posts after February 17, 2009. However, if you have an analog browser, you will need a digital-to-analog converter box to continue to receive blog posts. This converter box will also enable you to see any additional multicast programming that your interweb provider is offering.
The Gospel Messenger will be doing a test broadcast this afternoon between 1:00 and 1:15pm. If you can read this post at that time, this means that your browser is compatible with digital broadcasts.
2010 National Youth Conference July 17-22, 2010 Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, CO Theme: "More than meets the Eye" Based on II Corinthians 4: 6-10; 16-18
The theme for National Youth Conference 2010 is “More Than Meets the Eye.” Chosen by the National Youth Cabinet, it is taken from 2 Corinthians 4:6-10, 16-18. It reminds us that God does great things through each person. In trouble times we are challenged not to lose heart because God is the rock that will help us overcome. Even though we may seem like simple jars of clay, with God’s light we are more that meets the eye.
In a bold move, the National Youth Cabinet opted to kick off a promotional campaign during last weekend's Super Bowl with its "More Than Meets The Eye" commercial.
"NYC has always been a revenue producer for the Church," said a M&M Board spokesperson. "We felt that the initial expense would be justified based on the increase in registrations that we are expecting."
No matter who (if anyone) is correct in their beliefs about a deity or deities and the nature of any afterlife that may or may not exist, at least two-thirds of humanity is wrong.
An image of what believers see as the Virgin Mary has been defaced again, this time with demonic graffiti that has lingered for more than two weeks, police said early today.
The image underneath the Kennedy Expressway at Fullerton Avenue on the North Side drew crowds in 2005 after Obdulia Delgado spotted it while driving home from work at St. Elizabeth Hospital.
It now draws worshipers who place flowers, candles and artwork around it, as well as graffiti taggers who have previously traced faint eyes and a gaping mouth onto it as if mocking Munch's "The Scream."
Police said today that the Illinois Department of Transportation would be responsible for eradicating the graffiti and that although visitors still frequent the shrine, police have not received many complaints about the most recent vandalism.
While you can, escape into 450 acres of the most picturesque, rolling hills, woodlands, and prairies that Southern Ohio has to offer. Find yourself hiking on one of the many marked trails or relax poolside on a sunny afternoon. Experience nature with the family or group outings.
