Free Republic

As Florida business owner Joe Mills remembers it, all the questions about whether the 14,000-memberFirst Baptist Church Orlando is now affirming same-sex relationships began after he started a Bible study group on Facebook with two of his gay friends called The Gospel Gathering while actively participating at the church. The group, which describes itself as a gathering “of Christian believers who want to worship God in a safe and nonjudgmental environment where all are welcome,” has 98 members. It was launched in May 2021 by Mills and his friends, Kevin Copley and David Speight. All three men are gay but...

Controversial Arizona pastor Steven Anderson, the noted firebrand from the 300-member Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, AZ, has an adult son who has gone astray- and we mean really, really astray. Anderson, who is known for his rigorous Independent Fundamentalist Baptist theology, hatred of Calvinism, a famous clip about men pisseth-ing on walls, and open glee at the thought of homosexuals being frogmarched and killed in the streets, has twelve children, with his oldest being 22-year-old Isaac Anderson. We’ve known for a while that he’s been a troubled soul, but a recent article by the Friendly Atheist demonstrates how...

A 60-year-old black man was arrested in Atlanta last month after he allegedly vandalized a historic Baptist church with spray-painted imagery of swastikas as a hanging. Atlanta Police arrested James McIntyre on February 19 in connection to the vandalism after surveillance cameras caught him tagging Providence Missionary Baptist Church on Benjamin E. Mays Drive, according to Fox 5. Officials said that during the investigation, they found McIntyre sitting across the street from the scene of the crime.

At the independent, fundamentalist Baptist church I grew up attending in the 1980s, legalism was a staple, and the ‘rules’ were seemingly endless. Skirts (or something called ‘culottes’) for women and girls, long pants only for men and boys, and dresses and ties on Sunday morning. Good Christians didn’t dance or go to Hollywood movies. They didn’t smoke, cuss, or drink or hang around with those who did. Music wasn’t allowed unless it was Christian, and regardless of the lyrics, it wasn’t ‘Christian’ if it had drums, an upbeat tempo, or was written after 1895 (or thereabouts). And the “thou...

Two people have reportedly died and multiple others are seriously wounded following a mass stabbing at a California Baptist church on Sunday night. The San Jose Police Department tweeted just after 8:40pm local time that officers had responded to a series stabbings at Grace Baptist Church, located on the 400 block of E San Fernando Street. .. ...It's currently unclear what led to the stabbings. No services were being held at the church at the time, according to police. The SJPD said a number of 'unhoused' individuals had been brought inside the church in the hours prior 'get them out...

Sens. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) torched Georgia Senate Democrat candidate Raphael Warnock for hosting Cuban dictator Fidel Castro in 1995 during a rally on Wednesday. Rubio and Bonnie Perdue, Sen. David Perdue’s (R-GA) wife, held a rally at the Cobb County, Georgia, GOP headquarters.

More than 30 U.S. senators have joined a lawsuit filed against coronavirus limits placed on a Washington, D.C., Baptist church by the city’s mayor, according to a report. Mayor Muriel Bowser – who gained national attention by ordering the words “Black Lives Matter” painted in the street outside an Episcopal church near the White House that was visited by President Trump in June – has prohibited a different church, the historic Capitol Hill Baptist Church on A Street, from holding outdoor services in the city, citing efforts to slow the spread of the virus. But earlier this month the Department...

Dems using American tax dollars to promote killers, terror-sponsors, and anti-American revolutionaries. “I'm gonna actually have you participate with me in repeating some words from a leader by the name of Assata Shakur!” -- NAACP V.P. Jamal Watkins opening the We The People conference this week. “[The conference speakers] included 2020 Democratic White House contenders Cory Booker, Julián Castro, Beto O'Rourke, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Jay Inslee and Kirsten Gillibrand.” Now regarding that “leader” whose words seemed worthy of opening a conference showcasing the entire roster of the Democrat party’s Most-Likely-to-Succeed: On May 2013 the FBI announced a $1 million reward...

Dr. Paul Chappell personally supports Cruz for PresidentHOUSTON, Texas – Presidential candidate Ted Cruz today announced the personal endorsement of Dr. Paul Chappell, a nationally recognized leader of independent Baptist Christians."I am humbled and grateful to have the support of Dr. Chappell," said Cruz. "All across the country, people of faith are waking up to realize that their values are not being represented in Washington. I am encouraged by Dr. Chappell's leadership in getting Christians to understand that they must get involved."Cruz went on to point out that if even a fraction of evangelicals who routinely don't vote were to...

Sen. Ted Cruz’s wide appeal among conservatives was in high gear this weekend as he got rock star treatment at Texas and North Carolina events. Of six GOP presidential contenders who appeared at an evangelical gathering at the campus of a 7,000-seat mega-church in Texas, Cruz was clearly the favorite, frequently interrupted by cheers and standing ovations. And he was the winner of the North Carolina Tea Party Constitutional Caucus, in which he won 51 percent of the statewide vote, according to The Hill. Cruz’s popularity among conservatives is no accident. He has diligently courted evangelicals and Tea Party members...

In case you didn't see it live yesterday. Ted Cruz at the North Texas Presidential Forum (video) Jim Robinson: "Cruz is knocking it out of the park!!"

PLANO, Texas — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was asked by a pastor at a Texas presidential forum Sunday how individuals can pray for him — and the final point in his third-pronged response hit home with the church crowd. “How can we pray for you and your family?” Prestonwood Baptist Church pastor Jack Graham asked Cruz. “You know I’d say three things: peace and wisdom,” the Texas senator replied, “But then also especially you pray for our girls. Our girls Caroline and Catherine are here somewhere.” As Cruz’s family was spotted in the crowd and featured on the large screen,...

*Poster with burning flames put up at Attleborough Baptist Church, Norfolk *The sign read: 'If you think there is no God you'd better be right!!' *Robert Gladwin, 20, accused the sign of going against Christian traditions *Pastor forced to remove sign after police investigated it as a 'hate incident'A baptist church was at the centre of a police probe after a sign which suggested non-Christians would 'burn in hell' was investigated as a 'hate incident'. The offending sign at Attleborough Baptist Church in Norfolk, pictured burning flames below words which read: 'If you think there is no God you better...

We often like to read from and quote the prophets. But if you’ve ever met a real prophet you know that being in the presence of a real prophet can be very disturbing. Prophets love God’s people, but they love them too much to gainsay the truth.Prophets were famous for goring every one’s ox. No one left the presence of a prophet untouched.So troubling were the prophets of old, including Jesus, that most of them were persecuted, jailed, stoned, exiled and killed. Most of the Biblical prophets were beyond controversial, they were way over the top. Prophets denounced sin and...

Wounded Warrior Project Rejects Funds from Local Church By GOPUSA Staff February 2, 2013 7:13 am Here's a story that will leave you scratching your head. A Christian church and affiliated school in Florida held a fundraising drive to help the Wounded Warrior Project. Children in the school were excited about the task, but later were crushed when the funds were turned down, because the organization is "religious in nature."As reported by Todd Starnes at Fox Radio, the pastor of Liberty Baptist Church and Academy, Wallace Cooley, said that "they had already paid a $100 registration fee to raise money...

NEW BOSTON (March 19, 2010)— SNIPPET: "At least 35 bullet holes were discovered March 12 when a security light was changed at the church near New Boston. Authorities say they may have been made by shotgun pellets. Hilton told the Texarkana Gazette that it must have happened since January when the steeple was tightened, because the bullet holes weren’t there then. Bowie County Sheriff’s Office investigator Robby McCarver said Friday it looks like someone was trying to shoot out a street light and "the church was in the background and got hit."" SNIPPET: "New Boston is about 100 miles northeast...

Vandal Damages Church, Leaves Dog To Die POSTED: Sunday, April 5, 2009 JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The congregation at the Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church were challenged to show their forgiveness at Sunday services -- two days after vandals did thousands of dollars of damage to their place of worship. Someone broke in through a plate glass window, sprayed graffiti on walls and damaged a piano. The vandal entered with a pit bull and police believe both got hurt while inside because there was human and animal blood all over the church. When church members discovered the vandalism, the dog was still...

(IsraelNN.com) Muslim fundamentalists, aligned with Al Qaeda, bombed a Christian bookstore and two Internet cafes in Gaza on Saturday following previous attacks on churches as part of its religious crusade to replace the secular Fatah faction. The "Sword of Islam" terrorist group took responsibility for the bombings of Internet cafes and music stores, which they consider an offense to the Muslim religion because they represent Western society. The same group has issued warnings to Gaza women not to hang out in Internet cafes. The Swords of Islam has bombed more than a dozen Internet cafes in several weeks and destroyed...

Members of the Westboro Baptist Church found themselves outnumbered Sunday when they arrived to protest the funeral of U.S. Army Spc. Chris Sitton. A phalanx of flags held by more than 100 Patriot Guard Riders and volunteers stood between them and the grounds of Montrose High School, as people chanted the Pledge of Allegiance and more than 20 police officers monitored the scene. But Sara Phelps said she didn't care what others thought. "These people hold patriotic pep rallies for these dead soldiers and this is the time to tell them, 1. Don't worship the dead. And, 2., Don't worship...

By BosNewsLife Special Correspondent Eric Leijenaar with BosNewsLife News Center JAKARTA/AMSTERDAM (BosNewsLife) -- About 30 local officials backed by Muslim militants closed down a Baptist church in Bandung, the capital of the tense Indonesian province of West Java, investigators confirmed Thursday, August 10. On July 16 the group interrupted the Sunday worship service of the Batu Zaman Baptist Church and demanded to see an official permit, reported Open Doors, a Netherlands based organization investigating reports of persecution of Christians.