WASHINGTON (RNS) — Amid a political climate dominated by economic concerns, social conservatives are as concerned as ever about issues like abortion and gay marriage, a leading conservative activist said Sept. 27. Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council…

The United States Supreme Court will hear one of the most important church-state First Amendment cases in many years at 10 a.m., Oct. 5. The case involves an LCMS congregation and school and an LCMS commissioned minister who taught at…

By Kim Plummer Krull More than 220 LCMS families lost their homes due to historic flooding in Minot, N.D. — a disaster that has largely disappeared from national headlines but that the Rev. Glenn F. Merritt calls an example of…

ST. LOUIS — At its Sept. 9-10 meeting here, the LCMS Board for International Mission (BIM) continued developing policies to guide the work of the Synod’s Office of International Mission (OIM). This was the board’s fifth meeting since it was…

A four-disc DVD collection — including the new, two-hour movie “Walther,” based on the life of the Synod’s first president, the Rev. Dr. C.F.W. Walther — was mailed in late September to LCMS congregations, schools, colleges, universities and seminaries. The…

The online versions of the Synod’s official periodicals — Reporter and The Lutheran Witness — have new Web addresses. Those new addresses are reporter.lcms.org for Reporter Online and witness.lcms.org for the online version of The Lutheran Witness. The two Web…

By Linda C. Hoops While the Missouri Synod’s 2010 statistics report shows a 1.45 percent loss in baptized membership — continuing a 30-plus-year trend in declining church membership experienced by most Protestant denominations — it also reveals a slight increase…

TASHIA DIECKHOFF, Wichita, Kan.; LANE AARON DYNNESON, Jackson, Mo.; SUSAN L. KLOESS, Elk Grove Village, Ill.; KAREN L. ZIELKE, Elmhurst, Ill.; and JENNY HEMMINGS, Orange, Calif., have applied for reinstatement to the Ministers of Religion–Commissioned roster of The Lutheran Church–Missouri…

The Board of Trustees of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod Foundation herewith calls for nominations for the position of president of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod Foundation. The president reports to the Board of Trustees of the Foundation and relates to the…

The following institutions of the Concordia University System are seeking candidates for positions: Concordia University Texas, Austin, Texas, seeks to fill the position of admissions counselor. Concordia University, Irvine, Calif., seeks to fill a faculty position in nursing. Concordia University…

(RNS) A leading Catholic anti-abortion group whose leader is under scrutiny for failing to disclose financial details reported a $1.4 million deficit in 2010 despite collecting tens of millions of dollars in donations during recent years. The budget shortfall at…

BERKELEY, Calif. (RNS) — For an atheist, Maxim Schrogin talks aboutGod a lot. Over lunch at a Jewish deli, he ponders the impulse to believe — does it come from within or without? Why does God permit suffering?Finally, he pulls…

(RNS) — For pastors with ambitions to reach huge audiences, there’s often no better platform than the megachurch, which has given rise to powerhouse media empires from T.D. Jakes to Max Lucado to Joel Osteen and many others. But some…

Note: Reporter cannot accept notices about items offered for sale or that people wish to purchase. Items described as “Wanted” or “Available” are sought or may be obtained for shipping costs only. Notices may be sent to Karen Higgins at…

BERLIN (RNS) — All faiths have to work together to stanch the tide of secularism sweeping the world, warned Pope Benedict XVI on Sept. 23 during the second day of a tour through his native Germany. Benedict focused on ecumenical…