After his wife died in a fire, this single father found hope in an unexpected place
Children’s home expands its mission to serve fast-growing segment of the U.S. population. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle MOUNT DORA, Fla. — In an instant, Neil Zierden’s world fell apart. An accidental explosion at Firepoint Products Inc., the Florida business Zierden co-owned with his 40-year-old wife, Rhonda, killed her and an employee, George Harthman, 54. Zierden was lost in his own grief … Continue reading After his wife died in a fire, this single father found hope in an unexpected place
As major cities crack down on panhandling, many wrestle with their consciences
In a number of cities, the ordinances are sparking legal battles with civil liberties advocates, who accuse communities of treating the homeless as ‘human blight.’ Third Place, Government Reporting, Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists By Bobby Ross Jr. | For Religion News Service OKLAHOMA CITY (RNS) Driving to his downtown clothing business, Hans Herman Thun finds it impossible to ignore the beggars. They catch his … Continue reading As major cities crack down on panhandling, many wrestle with their consciences
For preachers, a textual feast inside Austin city limits
Sermon Seminar affords spiritual — and physical — food. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle AUSTIN, Texas — Welcome to the Lone Star state capital, home of the South by Southwest Festival and the Keep Austin Weird Fest & 5K. A lesser-known annual festival: the Gourmet Preachers Tour, conducted during the Austin Sermon Seminar. The informal tour involves a dozen or so minister … Continue reading For preachers, a textual feast inside Austin city limits
Hate group or hateful reporting? This is why ABC News is under fire
By Bobby Ross Jr. | GetReligion
ABC News is under fire for a story in which it characterizes the Alliance Defending Freedom as “an alleged hate group.”
In some ways, it’s the same ole, same ole.
Click the above links, and you can read my GetReligion colleague Mark Kellner’s excellent recent commentary on the Southern Poverty Law Center labeling certain conservative organizations as “hate groups.”
Kellner rightly asked: “Here’s a proactive journalistic question: Does expressing one’s faith and beliefs always and without exception equal hate?”
Apparently, ABC didn’t get the memo.
So we end up with this headline today:
Jeff Sessions addresses ‘anti-LGBT hate group,’ but DOJ won’t release his remarks
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All of my GetReligion columns (July 2017):
Continue reading “Hate group or hateful reporting? This is why ABC News is under fire”
One year later, Orlando victim’s mom urges: Show your children ‘all the love you have’
Bernadette Cruz’s 22-year-old son, Peter “Ommy” Gonzalez-Cruz, died in the June 12, 2016, mass shooting that targeted a gay nightclub. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle ORLANDO, Fla. — She thinks of him every day — her beloved son Peter “Ommy” Gonzalez-Cruz. Yet even as she grieves, Bernadette Cruz pushes forward, relying on her friends, her family and her faith. Cruz’s cheerful, affectionate … Continue reading One year later, Orlando victim’s mom urges: Show your children ‘all the love you have’
A special mission for the military: Ministries that focus on service personnel convene
By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Lewis Holston serves as a loadmaster on planes that drop paratroopers and cargo into combat zones. On a recent six-month deployment to a remote hotspot, Holston — a deacon of the WindSong Church of Christ in North Little Rock, Ark. — searched for fellow Christians with whom to worship. Dennis Saucier, director … Continue reading A special mission for the military: Ministries that focus on service personnel convene
In Canada, seeking redemption for a long, dark chapter
Ministry strives to overcome — and atone for — nation’s 120-year history of snatching indigenous children from their parents. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle DAUPHIN, Manitoba — The boy felt nauseous. A knot gripped him in the pit of his stomach. He couldn’t explain the feeling, but it overcame him each time he walked into the long, rectangular building. Nearly four decades … Continue reading In Canada, seeking redemption for a long, dark chapter
Memorial Day reading: Five stories of American military heroes
As a journalist, I’ve reported on numerous soldiers who died fighting for their country.
On this Memorial Day, here are five stories (out of many) of American military heroes who served and sacrificed.
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1.
• 2004 — Patriotism, sense of duty bind WWII veteran, Army son killed in Iraq
By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Associated Press
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Esequiel Perez never bragged about his service in World War II. If anything, the soft-spoken veteran downplayed his role.
“I didn’t go into too much combat or anything,” the 77-year-old says.
Yet his children – Yolanda, Rosa Anna, Sandra, Joel, Debra, Hector and Zeke – grew up knowing that their father had done his part to defend the world, and why.
In the Perez family, soldiers’ sacrifice was honored and the nation’s freedom celebrated. Memorial Day and the Fourth of July were times for reverence. When the children erected a flag pole in the front yard, Esequiel welcomed it – but warned that the stars and stripes must not ever touch the ground and should be lighted if flown at night.
“That’s how proud my dad is of this country,” said Rosa Anna Garza, 48.
He also wanted an easier life for his children than he had – he still has nightmares involving foxholes, and blames grenades for his hearing problems – so he never pushed them to join the military.
For No. 6 child Hector, though, the Army beckoned.
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Continue reading “Memorial Day reading: Five stories of American military heroes”
In America, cremations now outnumber burials — what’s religion got to do with it?
By Bobby Ross Jr. | GetReligion
My hippie wannabe wife insists that she wants to be cremated when she dies.
“I think it’s environmentally friendly,” my bride tells me. “Countless acres are filled up with remains inside caskets.
“Plus, it will allow me to spare you guys a lot of expense and possibly trauma and heartache,” she adds.
Rather than be buried in a cemetery, Tamie says she wants to be “mixed in with the roots of a tree and planted in the mountains in the breathtakingly beautiful area where six generations of my family have made memories together. I think it would be nice to contribute to nature rather than be a burden on it.”
Well, alrighty.
As for me, I want to be dressed in my Sunday best and await the resurrection with what’s left of my skin and bones fully intact. I don’t like flames. So it sounds like my wife of 27 years and I will — at some point hopefully many years in the future — spend the first part of eternity apart.
In all seriousness, we are both people of strong Christian faith — but we come down on different sides of the cremation vs. burial question.
I bring up the topic because of a fascinating Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story this week that noted cremation is becoming the new norm in America.
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All of my GetReligion columns (June 2017):
Continue reading “In America, cremations now outnumber burials — what’s religion got to do with it?”
Faith. Family. Fastballs. 