Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.
In today's edition:
- N.T. Wright Retiring as Bishop of Durham
- Survey: Millennials 'More Spiritual than Religious'
- Journalists Are Latest Victims in Nigeria Violence
- Theology Student Dies in Attack in Madhya Pradesh, India
N.T. Wright Retiring as Bishop of Durham
Christianity Today reports that leading New Testament theologian N.T. Wright has announced his retirement as the Bishop of Durham. Wright, 61, will take up a chair in New Testament and Early Christianity at St. Andrew's in Scotland after August 31. "This has been the hardest decision of my life," Wright said in a statement. "But my continuing vocation to be a writer, teacher and broadcaster, for the benefit (I hope) of the wider world and church, has been increasingly difficult to combine with the complex demands and duties of a diocesan bishop. I am very sad about this, but the choice has become increasingly clear." Wright and pastor John Piper found themselves at the center of the debate on a new interpretation of the Apostle Paul's writings after Wright released "Justification: God's Plan & Paul's Vision."
Survey: Millennials 'More Spiritual than Religious'
USA Today reports that most young adults today don't pray, don't worship and don't read the Bible, a major survey by a Christian research firm shows. The LifeWay survey complements a similar Pew Forum in February. Both found that the Millennial generation - young adults between 18 to 29 years old - are "mushy Christians" at best. "The more precisely you try to measure their Christianity, the fewer you find committed to the faith," said Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources. He believes "the Millennial generation will see churches closing as quickly as GM dealerships." The survey found that 65 percent of the Millennials rarely pray with others, and 38 percent don't pray by themselves either. About two-thirds don't attend religious services or read the Bible. "We have dumbed down what it means to be part of the church so much that it means almost nothing, even to people who already say they are part of the church," Rainer says.
Journalists Are Latest Victims in Nigeria Violence
Christian Solidarity Worldwide reports that two journalists working for a Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN) publication have become the latest casualties of the violence that has afflicted Plateau State since January. The bodies of Nathan Sheleph Dabak, Deputy Editor of The Light Bearer, and reporter Sunday Gyang Bwede were found in the mortuary of the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) on April 25, a day after they left their office to interview a local politician. The men were allegedly intercepted and stabbed to death by a mob at Gadan-Bako, Nassarawa Gwong as they travelled to interview the Hon. Bulus Kaze, the member representing the Jos East constituency. The alarm was raised after a friend Dabak the next and reported that his phone had been answered by a stranger who said, "We have killed all of them; you can do your worst." Plateau State has been wracked with violence since Sunday 18 January, when around 200 Muslim youths launched an attack on church goers in the Nassarawa Gwong area of Jos.
Theology Student Dies in Attack in Madhya Pradesh, India
Compass Direct News reports that Hindu extremists raided Christian events in India's Madhya Pradesh state this month, leaving a visiting theology student dead and several other Christians injured. The body of 23-year-old Amit Gilbert was recovered from a well 25 near the site of a Christian revival meeting that 15 to 20 Hindu extremists attacked on April 17 in Gram Fallaiya, Post Pathakheda, Betul district. With covered heads and carrying iron rods and bamboo clubs, members of the Hindu extremist Dharam Sena and Bajrang Dal cut electricity at the night-time event. They began striking, sending the more than 400 in attendance running, Christian leaders said. Eyewitnesses said the assailants chased Gilbert, of Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh state, and beat him. Police in the state controlled by the Hindu extremist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said that for the moment they believe Gilbert accidentally fell into the well amid the chaos, but Christians present said that is unlikely.
