Author: Bobby Ross Jr.

Bobby Ross Jr. is an award-winning journalist who has reported from all 50 states and 20 countries.
Christian Chronicle

A diverse church full of conversion stories

Far from the Bible Belt, a New York congregation led by first-generation Christians works to reach the lost. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle LINDENHURST, N.Y. — Prayer kneelers and organ pipes aren’t typical in a Church of Christ. Then again, the Long Island Church of Christ — a diverse body with members representing roughly two dozen nationalities — isn’t an ordinary congregation. Far from the Bible … Continue reading A diverse church full of conversion stories

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Christian Chronicle

The journey: Reporting the news of our fellowship

By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle About 2,800 miles separate Manhattan, N.Y., from Malibu, Calif. By car that trip would take roughly 41 hours, according to Google Maps. The good news for Christian Chronicle readers: We did the traveling for you. To be totally transparent, we didn’t drive. We relied on commercial flights to carry us to the scene of important news featured in this month’s Chronicle.  But the … Continue reading The journey: Reporting the news of our fellowship

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Christian Chronicle

Upper West Side Story

Diverse congregation in Manhattan counts members from five continents — but no Jets or Sharks. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle NEW YORK — A rap song by Eminem played in the lobby of a hostel where guests from around the world stay while visiting this city of 8.5 million. In a nearby hallway, the hip-hop beat gave way to the four-part harmony of Christians singing … Continue reading Upper West Side Story

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Religion Unplugged

🏈 Time to kneel again: Football coach who won Supreme Court prayer case returns 🔌

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged NEW YORK — Live from New York, it’s … Friday morning. I’m filing this edition of Weekend Plug-in from my temporary, 38th-floor apartment in Midtown Manhattan. I’ve spent the week enjoying a mix of work and fun in Metropolis. As I type this, Pope Francis has arrived in Mongolia, “becoming the first pope to visit the vast country with … Continue reading 🏈 Time to kneel again: Football coach who won Supreme Court prayer case returns 🔌

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Religion Unplugged

👣 March on Washington at 60: What the anniversary means for people of faith 🔌

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Good afternoon, Weekend Plug-in readers! Is it time for fall yet? We’re enduring yet another triple-digit day in my home state of Oklahoma, and I’m ready for cooler temperatures. But you signed up for religion news, not a weather report, so let’s start with this: Belief in the prosperity gospel is on the rise among churchgoers, according to a Lifeway … Continue reading 👣 March on Washington at 60: What the anniversary means for people of faith 🔌

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Religion Unplugged

For baseball star Clayton Kershaw and his wife, faith provides a foundation

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged LOS ANGELES — “Blue Heaven on Earth,” declares a sign behind the center field pavilion at Dodger Stadium. That description seemed fitting as Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw and his wife, Ellen, appeared on the stage before a recent Sunday afternoon game. A crowd clad in Dodgers blue cheered as the Kershaws reflected on their faith during a question-and-answer … Continue reading For baseball star Clayton Kershaw and his wife, faith provides a foundation

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Religion Unplugged

📝 Jesus didn’t lie on his resume, but this top Southern Baptist official did 🔌

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Good afternoon, Weekend Plug-in readers! It’s National Shameless Plug Day. Or maybe it’s really not, but I still want to share an in-depth feature I did on faith nights hosted by Major League Baseball teams. I traveled to San Diego and Los Angeles to report this story for ReligionUnplugged.com. But that’s enough shameless plugging for now. In major news … Continue reading 📝 Jesus didn’t lie on his resume, but this top Southern Baptist official did 🔌

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Christianity Today, Religion Unplugged

Jesus at the ballpark: Why MLB teams host faith nights

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged SAN DIEGO — At 8:15 p.m. on a recent Saturday, Texas Rangers catcher Mitch Garver swung and missed at an 86-mph slider from San Diego Padres closer Josh Hader. Garver’s strikeout secured a 4-0 victory for the home team in front of 42,677 fans at Petco Park. Three minutes later, an electric guitarist and a keyboardist from The Rock Church … Continue reading Jesus at the ballpark: Why MLB teams host faith nights

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Christian Chronicle

They were the foreigners

Brazil experience shapes former missionaries’ outreach to refugees and immigrants. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle OKLAHOMA CITY — In the late 1980s, as four buddies neared graduation from Oklahoma Christian University, they talked about moving around the globe.  Their hearts told them what they needed to do: Tell the story of Jesus Christ. God, they said, showed them where: a South American city where nearly half the … Continue reading They were the foreigners

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