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Southern Baptist congregations saw growth in baptisms, worship attendance and small group participation in 2023, while membership decline slowed compared to recent years, according to the Annual Church Profile (ACP) compiled by Lifeway Christian Resources.The 2023 ACP, a statistical census of Southern Baptist congregations that included responses from about 7 in 10 churches in the denomination, found that membership dropped for the 17th consecutive year, dipping below 13 million for the first time since the 1970s. However, the 1.8% decline was smaller than in previous years.Total baptisms grew by nearly 26% to more than 226,000, approaching pre-pandemic levels. Average weekly...

Comedian and actor Russell Brand recently announced that he is going to be baptized as a Christian. The famous actor, comedian, and podcast host made the announcement in a brief video he shared to social media on the morning of April 26, In it, he also remarked on how it seems that other people are also turning to Christianity as the modern world loses meaning. "This Sunday, I’m taking the plunge. I’m getting baptized," he declared while filming himself standing outside. Noting his fascination with the Christian sacrament, he continued, "What’s been explained to me is, it’s an opportunity to...

Hulk Hogan and his wife, Sky Daily Hogan, were baptized at the Indian Rocks Baptist Church in Florida. The wrestling icon announced the news through an Instagram post on Wednesday. Two-time WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan is clearly saying his prayers and eating his vitamins, even as he enters his seventies, proving it by getting baptized alongside his better half. The Hulkster and Skye performed a Swanton bomb off the top rope and dove headfirst into their faith. No, not literally. The couple were fully submerged in water as part of the holy christening process. Hogan described the experience...

A Georgia high school football coach was fired after he held a baptism on school grounds for his players. Isaac Ferrell was terminated from his coaching position at Tattnall County High School after 20 players were baptized on October 23 behind the Battle Creek Warriors football field by a local pastor. Ferrell has admitted to organizing the ceremony for the team after he posted videos of it on his Facebook that have since been deleted. Tattnall County Schools Superintendent Kristen Waters said Ferrell was fired from his coaching position after the baptism and another undisclosed incident but still works in...

Indi Gregory was mandated to die by the courts despite offers of continued treatment and legal protection by the Italian government and Vatican leaders. Indi Gregory, the 8-month-old infant who was forced off life support by the United Kingdom courts system, was baptized before her death despite her family not originally being religious. Dean Gregory, Indi's father, said before her death that he was inspired to baptize his daughter by Christian legal volunteers who fought to keep her alive. Dean said he became convinced of the existence of the devil by his family's treatment in the courtroom. "I am not...

On Oct. 3, the famed tattoo artist and “LA Ink” star posted a video of her getting baptized on Instagram, more than a year after she announced she was giving up witchcraft. The clip, which is captioned only with a sign of the cross, captures some of the people at the baptism, while angelic music plays before the camera settles in on her.... On Oct. 3, the famed tattoo artist and “LA Ink” star posted a video of her getting baptized on Instagram, more than a year after she announced she was giving up witchcraft. The clip, which is captioned...

World-renowned makeup and tattoo artist Kat Von D has shared with the world that she has given her life to Jesus Christ. The 41-year-old shared a video to Instagram of her getting baptized, publicly declaring she was putting her faith in the Lord. "Katherine von Drachenberg, upon your profession of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in obedience to His Divine command, I baptize you, my sister, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit," the pastor said before submerging a white robe-clad Von D.

More than 200 students at an Alabama college were baptized in one night this week after a campus worship program that was reportedly attended by hundreds. The baptisms took place Tuesday night in a lake at Auburn's Red Barn venue, which is located about half a mile from Auburn University's Neville Arena, the site of a "Unite Auburn" worship event that drew a massive crowd. The "Unite Auburn" event featured performances by Christian worship band Passion and saw speakers such as Jennie Allen, a Christian author, and Rev. Jonathan Pokluda, lead pastor of Harris Creek Baptist Church in Waco, Texas....

“The Sacrament of Holy Baptism: How Can Water Do Such Great Things?” Today we continue our series on the six chief parts of the catechism, and we come to the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. And the catechism has some pretty impressive things to say about Baptism: “It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this.” “Wow! That’s quite a list! And you’re telling me that Baptism does all of that? That Baptism actually works? That it accomplishes such marvelous things? You’re kidding me, right? Just pouring some water over...

The differences between traditional baptism and the new rite matter: here’s whyAll of the new sacramental rites bear the mark of ecumenism, but one of the most striking is certainly the new rite of baptism.(LifeSiteNews) — Since Benedict XVI’s Summorum Pontificum, released in 2007, many more Catholics and clergy have had the opportunity to discover the Traditional Latin Mass. Those who discover this rite are led, sooner or later, to compare it to the Novus Ordo Missae of Paul VI. The recent restrictions placed on the old rite by Pope Francis have perhaps intensified these comparisons. Any such comparative study...

“Final” is not a word you often hear in Christian teaching. Most Christians leave the final things until, well, the End. But this is not the language of the fathers nor of the Church. A good illustration can be found in the Orthodox service of Holy Baptism. During the blessing of the waters the priest prays: And grant to [this water] the grace of redemption, the blessing of Jordan. Make it the fountain of incorruption, the gift of sanctification, the remission of sins, the remedy of infirmities; the final destruction of demons, unassailable by hostile powers, filled with angelic might....

“The Centrality of Baptism: On Pentecost and in Your Life” (Acts 2:1-42) Today is the Day of Pentecost, one of the three great festivals of the Christian church year, along with Christmas and Easter. This festival commemorates the day of Pentecost that we read about in Acts chapter 2. And what happened that day--the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, Peter’s preaching of Christ crucified and risen and repentance and forgiveness in his name--what did that result in? The baptism of 3,000 souls that day. And we even see what happened in the life of the newly baptized in the days...

MOSCOW, ID — To accommodate people who prefer sprinkling donuts with coffee instead of fully immersing their donuts in coffee, Dunkin’ Donuts recently announced plans to open new branches of their popular donut shops in communities with a large number of practicing Presbyterians.

A man suspected of being a member of El Chapo's Sinaloa drug cartel was arrested last week in the middle of a baptism being held in a Mexican church. Jose Bryan Salgueiro Zepeda was in attendance at the baptismal Mass at a church in Culiacán, Sinaloa, when agents interrupted the proceedings to arrest him. Widely-shared footage of the dramatic events shows Salgueiro Zepeda standing alongside three other people in the church while a priest can be heard speaking off-camera. See the footage below: In the clip, the priest can be heard saying in Spanish: 'Do you renounce Satan? Do you...

The Diocese of Phoenix said 'all of the baptisms he has performed until June 17, 2021, are presumed invalid'"The issue with using ‘We’ is that it is not the community that baptizes a person, rather, it is Christ, and Him alone, who presides at all of the sacraments, and so it is Christ Jesus who baptizes," Olmsted said.

WILLIAMSTOWN, KY—The wildly popular Ark Encounter attraction in Kentucky will soon be joined by a baptismal-themed log flume ride. The log ride will have guests tossed to and fro by the water rapids of sin before experiencing a 3-story drop into the water so they can be raised to walk in newness of life. Riders will then gently glide by a giant animatronic Ken Ham statue that will fill them in on all the next steps they need to take as new believers. "Our Ark Encounter is specially designed to offer a full gospel message to everyone who visits the...

When Jesus was baptized by St. John the Baptist, it wasn’t just any body of water, or puddle, but the Jordan river. This is significant, as this spot wasn’t random, but has profound biblical symbolism. When the people of Israel were led to the “Promised Land,” they had one final hurdle to overcome: the Jordan river. The entire nation had to cross the Jordan river in order to claim the land that God had marked out for them. This action is narrated in the book of Joshua. The people then followed Joshua across the Jordan river and were saved from...

“Epiphany, Baptism, and a Tale of Two Herods” (Matthew 2:1-12; Luke 3:15-22) Every year, the Epiphany of Our Lord always falls on January 6, which was this past Thursday. The Gospel reading for Epiphany is the visit of the wise men, from Matthew 2. On the first Sunday after the Epiphany, which is today, we always observe the Baptism of Our Lord. And this year the Gospel reading is the account from Luke. This past Thursday, we had to cancel our Epiphany service. So now today, I decided to combine the readings for the two services, the Epiphany of Our...

A Catholic diocese in Michigan has instructed its pastors to deny baptism, confirmation and other sacraments to transgender and nonbinary people unless they have “repented” — possibly the first diocese in the United States to issue such a sweeping policy about those who identify with a gender other than their sex assigned at birth. The guidance issued by the Diocese of Marquette also stipulates that transgender people may not receive Communion, in which Catholics believe the body and blood of Jesus Christ are truly present. In most circumstances, they cannot receive the anointing of the sick, which is meant to...

TUSCALOOSA, AL—The leadership of 4th Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa has just approved baptism "boosters" for their entire congregation starting at 5 years old. Elders believe these boosters will be at least 70% effective at saving those who weren't quite saved after their first and second baptisms. "We recommend people attend this year's week-long revival and get their boosters," said head pastor Dale Smithers. "Sometimes the first baptism doesn't quite do the trick and it's always best to be safe! AAA-MEN? AMEN!" Sources say teens are best protected against eternal damnation in the lake of fire, as they routinely get booster...