Religion Today Summaries - September 21, 2011

Compiled & Edited by Crosswalk Editorial Staff | Crosswalk.com | Published: Sep 20, 2011

Religion Today Summaries - September 21, 2011

Daily briefs of the top news stories impacting Christians around the world.

In today's edition:

  • Missionary's Wife Dies in Earthquake
  • Task Force to Study Possible Southern Baptist Convention Name Change
  • Student Group Launches New Pro-Life Initiative
  • National Survey Shows Many See God Steering Economy

 

Missionary's Wife Dies in Earthquake

A Gospel for Asia-supported missionary's wife died Sunday when a 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck Sikkim, India, the Christian Newswire reports. Pastor B. Tamang and his wife, Nirmala, were with other Christians in their home, located just below their church building on a mountainside terrace, when the quake struck. As everyone in the Tamangs' house ran for safety, the church building collapsed and Nirmala was crushed beneath one of the falling walls. Pastor Tamang and others remain hospitalized for serious injuries, and the church building was completely destroyed. K.P. Yohannan, Gospel for Asia President, said, "Gospel for Asia has lost a vibrant Christian woman who served as an example of what it means to love the Lord your God with all your heart."

Task Force to Study Possible Southern Baptist Convention Name Change

Southern Baptist Convention President Bryant Wright announced the appointment of a presidential task force to study the prospect of changing the 166-year-old convention's name, according to Baptist Press. Wright mentioned challenges with having such a region-specific name and said a change could "maximize [the] effectiveness in reaching North America for Jesus Christ in the 21st century." Some executive committee members expressed concern, saying such a move could be divisive, but Wright said any proposed name change must be approved by a majority at two consecutive annual meetings, in accordance with the convention's constitution. Previous motions to study a name change have been presented to the convention, most recently in 2004, but failed. 

Student Group Launches New Pro-Life Initiative

According to the Guttmacher Institute, 46 percent of all abortions nationwide are performed on women in college. WORLD News Service reports that Students for Life has launched a new program to help pregnant college students give birth to their babies — and stay in school. The Pregnant on Campus Initiative is giving students tools to make their campuses more welcoming to pregnant girls and new mothers, such as lactation stations, diaper-changing decks and affordable on-campus housing.

National Survey Shows Many See God Steering Economy

The new Baylor Religion Survey shows that about 20 percent of Americans believe that God is actively engaged in the daily workings of the world, and have an economic conservative view that opposes government regulation, USA Today reports. "They say the invisible hand of the free market is really God at work," said sociologist Paul Froese, co-author of the survey. Eighty-one percent of political conservatives say there is one "ultimate truth in the world, and new economic information of cost-benefit analysis is not going to change their mind about how the economy should work," Froese said. On the flip side, another 20 percent of Americans believe that God does not operate in their daily lives, and they favor reducing wealth and inequality through taxation.

Publication date: September 21, 2011

Religion Today Summaries - September 21, 2011