Can Churches Build when the Walls Seem to Be Falling Down?

by Kay Ahmed | Dec 5, 2019 | 21stCenturyReligion, ChurchChange, From Our Archives

This past January, the church I pastor, Pleasant Hope Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland, had its own “come to Jesus” moment during our Annual Church Meeting.  I had done my due diligence all year — studying the latest data regarding church growth trends and...

Growing by Half

by social@thebtscenter.org | Jun 23, 2017 | 21stCenturyMinistry, Bearings Review 2017, ChurchChange, Incubator

One year ago, I began studying a rare but important species that many church officials wrongly believe doesn’t exist: the mainline Protestant congregation that finds vitality after doing away with the full-time pastorate. To be sure, it wasn’t always the easiest...

What Do We Mean When We Say, “All Are Welcome”?

by social@thebtscenter.org | May 12, 2017 | 21stCenturyMinistry, Bearings Review 2017, ChurchChange

I’ve driven by that church—you know, the one with the giant banner that says, “All Are Welcome.” I often ask myself, “If I walked through the doors, would I be embraced?” I’m an educated, queer, Black, Progressive, Transgender Christian. Would I, with all that I...

This is the Way We’ve Always Done Things …

by social@thebtscenter.org | Mar 17, 2017 | ChurchChange, DigitalMinistry

This is the way we’ve always done things. Now, there’s a phrase that brings about a sense of impending doom in my heart, especially when it comes to the practices of communities of faith. In part, our love of familiar practices comes from finding comfort in the...

#NeverthelessSheResisted

by social@thebtscenter.org | Mar 2, 2017 | 21stCenturyCulture, Bearings Review 2017, ChurchChange

Three weeks ago, Senate Republicans silenced Senator Elizabeth Warren for criticizing attorney general nominee Senator Jeff Sessions. Warren had attempted to read civil rights activist Coretta Scott King’s 1986 letter against Sessions’ nomination for a federal...

A Quality of Life Check for an Aging Church

by social@thebtscenter.org | Nov 3, 2016 | 21stCenturyMinistry, 21stCenturyMission, Bearings Review 2017, ChurchChange

Six months ago we took our Old Lady Cat to the vet for what they call a “quality of life check.” She had recently turned 20 and had been deaf for several years. She also had begun to show signs of kidney failure, specifically excessive thirst. Her hunt for water had...