Bobby Ross Jr.

• Evangelical Financial Watchdog Faces Scrutiny over Backing of Errant Megachurch Thursday, May 30, 2019
  About five years ago, the Village Church of Barrington, a congregation northwest of Chicago with a $1.8 million annual budget and average weekly attendance of 600, decided to become accredited with...
• Judge Vacates Former Youth Minister’s Sex Abuse Convictions Monday, April 1, 2019
  A highly publicized Pennsylvania grand jury report last year identified more than 300 predator Catholic priests who had sexually abused more than 1,000 children going back decades. But because the...
• Dallas Church Intent on Seeking Justice in Botham Jean’s Death Monday, September 24, 2018
  The preacher stood wearily on stage, wiping tears from his eyes. The mayor, working to bring healing to a city of 1.3 million, sought solace on a front pew.
• In Red-state Oklahoma, Marijuana Ballot Question Splits People of Faith Thursday, June 7, 2018
  The vote — which will take place on the state’s primary day for governor and other state and federal offices — resulted from a petition signed by nearly 68,000 voters and presented to state...
• Minister ‘Still Wrestling’ with His Faith after Murder of His Wife and Son Thursday, May 31, 2018
• He’s a Major-League Pitcher — and a Plumber — Whose Faith Helps Keep Him Focused Monday, May 14, 2018
  In a Religion News Service interview during the Tigers’ three-game series with the Texas Rangers earlier this week, Fulmer said his goal — win or lose — is “to preach the Lord’s name.”
• Pompeo’s Kansas Church Asks God to ‘Give Him Strength’ in Senate Confirmation Process Wednesday, April 18, 2018
  Under fire from Muslim, Jewish and human rights groups for a record of anti-Muslim remarks, Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo is receiving spiritual support from his home church in Kansas.
• Oklahoma City Hosts Nearly 100-Year-Old Passion Play Wednesday, March 28, 2018
  Oklahoma’s version of old Jerusalem — mixing rough stone structures resembling those in the Holy Land with occasional sightings of buffalo and longhorn — provides the setting for what organizers...
• When Adoption Agencies Can Turn Away Gay Prospective Parents, What Happens to the Kids? Monday, March 26, 2018
  Oklahoma lawmakers may soon sanction private adoption agencies turning away same-sex couples and other prospective parents who don’t meet their religious criteria, a possibility cheered by the...
• What Should Be the Place of Religion in Public Schools? Tuesday, February 27, 2018
  Public school officials in one of the nation’s fastest-growing cities are being accused of violating the separation of church and state.
• Billy Graham Never Lived in Texas but Belonged to a Dallas Church for 54 Years Thursday, February 22, 2018
  Graham formally placed membership at First Baptist Dallas — where the late Rev. W.A. Criswell was the longtime pastor — even though he didn’t live in Texas. He never would. But Graham maintained...
• Texas Pastors Undergo Security Training a Month after Sutherland Springs Massacre Wednesday, December 6, 2017
  The event, titled “Church Security in the 21st Century,” was held at the 42,000-member Prestonwood Baptist Church exactly a month after the worst church shooting in American history.
• The Guy in the Red Apron: How a Salvation Army Bell Ringer Brings Heart to the Job Friday, December 1, 2017
  To hear Bruce Bachman tell it, he’s just a guy with a bell, a red apron and a heart to serve who gives a little of his time during the holiday season.
• Baylor’s First Woman President Brings Fresh Start to Baptist University Wednesday, June 28, 2017
  Two decades before she took office as the first woman president in Baylor University’s 172-year history, Linda Livingstone helped break down a different barrier in this Central Texas city.
• As Cities Crack Down on Panhandling, People of Faith Wrestle with Their Consciences Monday, May 29, 2017
  In Oklahoma City and major cities across the nation, elected officials increasingly are passing ordinances that crack down on panhandling.
• Bible Belt State with Nation’s Highest Execution Rate Considers Death Penalty Flaws Thursday, May 4, 2017
  Most Oklahomans believe the devil is real. State Rep. Mike Ritze thinks that’s why they overwhelmingly support capital punishment.
• Faith Helped Baseball Coach Tony Beasley Beat Cancer Friday, April 7, 2017
  Tony Beasley never lost faith, even when he was diagnosed with cancer.
• Stripping Away the Stigma: Christian Ministries Help Women Escape Sex Industry Wednesday, May 14, 2014
  While topless bars typically are legal businesses, a recent study found “an underground commercial sex economy in America that is diverse, organized and lucrative, extending far beyond the typical...