Free Republic

A New York pastor surprised churchgoers with the extraordinary revelation that he is transitioning into a woman and will now use she/her pronouns. Reverend Phil Phaneuf, 51, who was born male, shared that she has been undergoing a gender transition with her congregation at North Chili United Methodist Church (UMC) during Sunday service. 'I get to announce with joy that I am transitioning. I am affirming and saying to all of you that I am transgender,' the veteran pastor, wearing a rainbow stole, declared this past Sunday. 'The best way to put this is that I'm not becoming a woman,...

A reckoning is inevitable. Blasphemers who pass themselves off as clergy have been given more than enough rope to hang themselves with. Consider Rebecca Todd Peters. Via Brave: Rebecca Todd Peters is a feminist Christian social ethicist, ordained Presbyterian minister (PCUSA), and Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University, where she also founded and directs the Poverty and Social Justice Program. Her scholarship centers on globalization, economic and environmental justice, and reproductive justice. “Reproductive justice” is Liberalese for killing babies as a political cause. The unholy minister has hands-on experience. Hear her preach: “I felt God’s presence with me as...

Theologically speaking, scholars generally regard the book of Hebrews to be second in importance only to Paul’s letter to the Romans in the New Testament. No other book so eloquently defines Christ as high priest of Christianity, superior to the Aaronic priesthood, and the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. This book presents Christ as the Author and Perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). However, both the authorship and audience are in question. VIDEO AT LINK................... The title “To the Hebrews,” which appears in the earliest known copy of the epistle, is not a part of the original manuscript....

Most Believers I speak to today firmly believe we are in the Last Days. Many have become almost obsessed with trying to interpret and unravel the Bible’s mysterious End-Time prophecies, and keep a keen eye on politics and world events—especially those that involve Israel or the Middle East. The news is scrupulously analyzed by many watching for specific prophetic signs: a ten nation confederacy, the Antichrist’s emergence and identity, the mark of the beast, the rebuilding of the Third Temple, the Bear of the North—Russia, and the cataclysmic rise of catastrophes and natural disasters. Although these signs are indeed found...

The United Methodist Church’s financial leaders are sounding the alarm that the denomination is about to be in a world of financial hurt, declaring ‘The church’s financial house is on fire’ during the UMC’s Finance and Administration meeting last week. The ominous comments were made by Bishop David Graves, General Council on Finance and Administration board president, who added ‘My intent is not to create fear but to address the reality with honesty and urgency.” The UMC has lost more than 7500 churches over the last three years, the result of church mass departures and disaffiliations over the denomination’s all-out...

It all began with 48-year-old businessman and “evangelist to the inner city”, Jeremiah Lanphier, who gave up his business, determined to besiege the throne of Grace for the success of the Gospel in New York City, among both the poor of the lower East Side and among the prosperous Manhattanites of Wall Street. Mr. Lanphier invited one and all to meet at the Consistory of the North Dutch Reformed Church at noon on September 23, 1857 to join him in prayer, to implore God to convict sinners and bring repentance in the midst of the great city. By 12:30pm only...

How did Brits feel about MANDATORY Digital IDs?

“I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you.” (Proverbs 1:26) When God laughs, it is never lighthearted. His laughter is the echo of justice in a world that has mocked Him too long. Somewhere this past weekend, a drag clown twirls beneath stained glass, and the people who should be trembling before His name instead clap for caricatures of women in corsets. The sanctuary has become a stage for blasphemy and pulpit, a prop for sexual deviancy. And God looks down—not with amusement, but with fury restrained only by mercy. Yet, when He looks...

The Catholic Beliefs of Protestant ReformersModern day Protestants are further away from Luther, Calvin and Zwingli than these original revolutionaries were from the Catholicism from which they severed themselves.Today, October 31, marks “Reformation Day,” which commemorates the unfortunate split between Protestants and Catholics in 1517. When we look back at the upheaval of the 16th century, we tend to picture the Protestant Reformers as men who rejected Catholicism in its entirety. Yet a closer look reveals something more nuanced—and even ironic. Martin Luther, John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli, and Thomas Cranmer all held to beliefs that were profoundly Catholic, many of...

Former Fox News host and analyst Tucker Carlson continued his descent into rank antisemitism on Tuesday, publishing an interview with far-right podcaster Nick Fuentes, who has engaged in open holocaust denial and praised Hitler in the past. Despite former disagreements between them, Carlson and Fuentes bonded over their shared suspicion of “these Jews,” as well as their distaste for Christian Zionism and its supporters among the Republican Party. The self-identified lapsed Episcopalian Carlson lauded Fuentes for his criticism of Israel and U.S. support for it, “because it’s insane and it hurts us. We get nothing out of it. I completely...

Jeremy Fair, the senior pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Tulsa, OK was arrested late last week in a prostitution sting after being nabbed allegedly meeting up with a prostitute for sex. A member of the Hills and Plains Presbytery, the married father of four was caught up in a sting staged by police, who also nabbed a firefighter who was set to be married the next day and a business owner who drove in from out of state. He was released on a $1000 bond. According to law firm Cannon & Associates “A conviction for prostitution in Oklahoma can...

Southern Baptist professor Matthew Barrett has ignited a theological controversy across social media platforms following his announcement that he is leaving both Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and the Southern Baptist Convention to seek ordination in the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). The Kansas City-based theologian made his intentions public on July 24, 2025, through a post on X (formerly Twitter) that linked to a 6,000-word Substack essay detailing his reasons for the denominational switch. Dr. Barrett, known for his work in systematic theology and “classical retrieval” scholarship, cited what he termed three “cracked pillars” in Southern Baptist life...

Social media buzzed with reaction when Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary theology professor Matthew Barrett announced his departure from the SBC to become an Anglican. He cited the “beauty of Anglicanism” and claimed its practices better align with “how Christians have worshipped across history.” But a cadre of Baptist theologians who focus on connecting Southern Baptists with the broader Christian tradition disagree. They say Baptist churches are fertile ground to draw from the Christian church’s theological roots—including fourth- and fifth-century formulations of the doctrines of the Trinity and the person of Christ. Baptists must retrieve “the roots of our own...

I have a niche hobby of looking at church websites. I consider myself a super sleuth, combing through church websites to figure out their theology and politics. Though I am not especially religious anymore, there is nothing I love more than uncovering secret, conservative evangelicals. Church Clarity. It was also born of necessity. I’ve lived in Boston for over a decade where you must be able to read between the lines on a church’s website or social media as more conservative churches try to fly under the radar in this notoriously secular city. As a scholar of religion, I’ve also...

Earlier this month, a body known as GAFCON — the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans — declared it was “now the Global Anglican Communion.” In the Oct. 16 declaration, entitled “The future has arrived,” the alliance of conservative Anglican church leaders said it had resolved to “reorder” the Anglican Communion, the world’s third-largest Christian communion after the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodoxy. “Today, GAFCON is leading the Global Anglican Communion,” said the statement signed by Rwandan Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, chairman of GAFCON’s Primates’ Council. “As has been the case from the very beginning, we have not left the Anglican Communion;...

The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, the second-highest-ranking cleric in the Church of England, acknowledged the pain the decision would cause. “We believe we have done the right thing,” he said, citing legal and theological guidance, “but we know it will be difficult and disappointing for some.” The Church of England has once again found itself caught between the demands of doctrine and the pressures of a changing world. In mid-October, its bishops voted to suspend a long-anticipated plan that would have tested separate blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples — a move hailed by traditionalists and lamented by reformers. The...

Gafcon, a movement claiming to represent the majority of Anglicans worldwide, particularly in the Global South, has officially rejected the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury and related institutions such as the Lambeth Conference — declaring itself the true “Global Anglican Communion.” The declaration marks a formal split in the Anglican Church, following years of mounting concern among Gafcon leaders over what they view as the mainstream Communion’s departure from biblical teaching. Their announcement comes after recent controversies, including the appointment of the Rt. Rev. Cherry Vann, a practicing lesbian, as Archbishop of Wales, and the naming of Dame Sarah...

In fairness to the English remnant of the Church of England, let’s hear what Archbishop of Canterbury and LGBT advocate Sarah Mullally has to say about protecting children from perverts who groom them for sexual exploitation: *must see video on link* That must be what people mean when they say, “The silence was deafening.” You can see why the church’s Christian contingent has broken off.

The unity of Church of England has been dealt a major blow to the denomination in a punishing reminder that theological treason has consequences, after a group representing nearly 40 million members—ten times the number of Anglicans in the UK—announced they are the real Anglican Communion and will no longer be in communion with their progressive counterpart, dividing the denomination in two while declaring “We cannot continue to have communion with those who advocate the revisionist agenda, which has abandoned the inerrant word of God as the final authority.” Over the past two decades, the denomination has been liberalizing at...

Dame Sarah Mullally was named the first female archbishop of Canterbury last week, and received immediate criticism over her apparent support for abortion. Key Takeaways: * The Church of England announced its first female archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally. * Mullally has made comments that indicate support for abortion despite the Anglican Church's pro-life stance. * She has been criticized for "scandalous views on abortion" and has also said she believes in "choice" for parents of preborn children with Trisomy 18. The Details: The Church of England has maintained a largely pro-life stance, believing that abortion should be allowed in...