⚠️ Warning: Baptisms, funerals and giant fish can be hazardous to preachers’ health 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged EDMOND, Okla. — A glitch washing away a tall man’s sins. A mishap at a military veteran’s graveside service. An accident inside the huge fish — an inflatable … Continue reading ⚠️ Warning: Baptisms, funerals and giant fish can be hazardous to preachers’ health 🔌
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🚜 Off the beaten path: It’s where to find some of the best faith stories 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged MIDVALE, Idaho — I’ve reported from most of the nation’s largest cities. New York. Chicago. Los Angeles. Houston. Washington. I love covering the news in such important … Continue reading 🚜 Off the beaten path: It’s where to find some of the best faith stories 🔌
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144-year-old Idaho church survives and thrives
Pacific Northwest congregation celebrates its history while embracing renewed life. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle MIDVALE, Idaho — Sunflowers and knee-high yellow grass line U.S. Highway 95, the two-lane blacktop through this blink-and-miss-it farm town. Little green signs at each edge of Midvale — known as Middle Valley until the post office adopted the shortened name in 1903 — give the population as 222. Amid … Continue reading 144-year-old Idaho church survives and thrives
🎬 ‘The Chosen’ films the Crucifixion: How it’ll be different from Mel Gibson’s ‘Passion’ 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged OKLAHOMA CITY — More than two decades ago, I covered the opening of Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” movie for The Associated Press. I wrote … Continue reading 🎬 ‘The Chosen’ films the Crucifixion: How it’ll be different from Mel Gibson’s ‘Passion’ 🔌
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✝️ Forgiving Charlie Kirk’s killer: Grieving widow, Trump offer differing theologies 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged PARIS — “I forgive him.” Erika Kirk’s emotional words Sunday concerning her 31-year-old husband’s assassin reached all the way across the Atlantic Ocean. I heard them in … Continue reading ✝️ Forgiving Charlie Kirk’s killer: Grieving widow, Trump offer differing theologies 🔌
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Oklahoma SPJ again honors Bobby Ross Jr. as Print Reporter of the Year
By Bobby Ross Jr. OKLAHOMA CITY — I was pleased to receive the Print Reporter of the Year award in the Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists’ 2025 annual contest. I earned this honor for the second year in a row and the third time in five years. In the 2025 contest, I was recognized for a portfolio of five stories I wrote for The Christian Chronicle: 1. “Culture warrior, MAGA … Continue reading Oklahoma SPJ again honors Bobby Ross Jr. as Print Reporter of the Year
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⚾️ Home runs are nice, but these MLB players pursue a higher calling 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers boast an estimated $243 million annual payroll. The MLB team — presumed dead in the pennant race two weeks ago but suddenly … Continue reading ⚾️ Home runs are nice, but these MLB players pursue a higher calling 🔌
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🇺🇦 As war drags on, Ukrainian-born Christian keeps serving refugees in Alaska 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The war in Ukraine was just a few months old when I first met Zori Opanasevych in April 2022. I connected with the mother of … Continue reading 🇺🇦 As war drags on, Ukrainian-born Christian keeps serving refugees in Alaska 🔌
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🛢️ Detour to a culture war: Chicken, dumplings and food for thought at Cracker Barrel 🔌
Editor’s note: Every Friday, “Weekend Plug-in” meets readers at the intersection of faith and news. Click to join nearly 10,000 subscribers who get this column delivered straight to their inbox. Got feedback or ideas? Email Bobby Ross Jr. By Bobby Ross Jr. | Religion Unplugged NAMPA, Idaho — I exited off Interstate 84 and straight into the nation’s latest culture war. Unintentionally, I should stress. A reporting trip brought me to the Pacific … Continue reading 🛢️ Detour to a culture war: Chicken, dumplings and food for thought at Cracker Barrel 🔌
Faith. Family. Fastballs. 