By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. The Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting is a hot ticket once again. Flash back to 1985: At the height of the battles between the denomination’s conservatives … Continue reading Coming soon: Southern Baptist Convention’s biggest annual meeting in a quarter-century

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. After sticking close to home for over a year, I’ve returned to in-person worship at my church in Oklahoma. I’ve joined my sons and 2-year-old grandson … Continue reading Do you believe in medical miracles? The timely subject of religion and COVID-19 vaccines

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. Guilty. Guilty. Guilty. This week’s big news — former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s conviction on all counts in George Floyd’s murder — is a story … Continue reading Murder conviction in George Floyd’s death: Why the power of faith is important

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. Another week. Another mass shooting. Another 21-year-old suspect. Last week’s news coverage of Robert Aaron Long, charged in the deaths of eight people — including six … Continue reading Double standard? Treatment of Boulder suspect’s religion raises the question

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. In a little-noticed, late-night Twitter conversation on March 3, prominent author and speaker Beth Moore indicated that her Living Proof Ministries had ended its longtime partnership … Continue reading Beth Moore, Southern Baptists and the story behind the scoop that broke the internet

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. My wife has lupus and autoimmune diseases that make her high-risk if infected with COVID-19. Because of that, we’ve adhered strictly to masking, distancing and other … Continue reading Is Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 shot morally compromised? It’s complicated

By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” features analysis, fact checking and top headlines from the world of faith. Subscribe now to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. at therossnews@gmail.com. “You preach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other.” That’s what Bishop Timothy Clarke, an Ohio senior pastor, said in a … Continue reading Bible in one hand, newspaper in the other: Tips for stressed-out preachers