WASHINGTON (RNS) — The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) is urging pastors to seek a common moral ground by uniting under a consistent code of ethics. NAE leaders said the new code will provide uniform guidance to church leaders across the…

(RNS) — For the fifth year in a row, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has seen a drop in its total membership. The denomination’s membership in 2011 was 15,978,112, a drop of nearly 1 percent from the 2010 figure of 16.1…

BEIJING (RNS) — A pregnant woman who was dragged to a hospital by authorities and forced to have an abortion has enraged Chinese and sparked an online flurry of debate over whether it is time to end China’s draconian one-child…

The Rev. Dr. Dean W. Nadasdy is the new president of the LCMS Minnesota South District.  Delegates to the district’s 76th convention, meeting June 14-16 at Concordia University in St. Paul, Minn., elected him president on the second ballot.  As…

The Rev. Dr. Chris C. Wicher of Cheektowaga, N.Y., was elected to his second term as president of the LCMS Eastern District at the district’s 97th Regular Convention, June 15-16 in Amherst, N.Y.  Wicher, 55, was re-elected on the first…

Delegates to the LCMS Ohio District’s 20th convention, meeting June 14-16, re-elected the Rev. Terry Cripe as district president and, among major resolutions, made a substantial financial commitment in support of Concordia University in Ann Arbor, Mich. With “Enriched in Every…

The Rev. Timothy Yeadon, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in New Hartford, Conn., since 1985, is the new president of the LCMS New England District. Yeadon, who formerly served as first vice-president of the district, was elected on the first…

The historic Saxon Lutheran Memorial in Frohna, Mo., will host its Second Annual Bluegrass Music Fest on Saturday, June 30. The event starts at 10 a.m. and ends after dark with a fireworks show. Frohna is located in Perry County, Mo.,…

Delegates to the 2012 LCMS Southern District’s 73rd convention re-elected the Rev. Kurtis D. Schultz of Slidell, La., on the first ballot to his fourth three-year term as district president.   The convention, June 14-16 in Metairie, La., had as its…

Mark Kreklau, husband of Lutheran Women’s Missionary League President Kay Kreklau, died June 13 at Altru Hospital in Grand Forks, N.D., with his family by his side. Kreklau, 70, died of recently diagnosed lung cancer. A celebration of his life was held…

The Rev. Dwayne Lueck of Wausau, Wis., is the new president of the LCMS North Wisconsin District.  Delegates to the district’s 50th convention, meeting June 10-11 in Rothschild, Wis., on the third presidential ballot elected Lueck — who served the…

The Rev. Dr. John C. Wille of West Bend, Wis., was elected to his third term as president of the Synod’s South Wisconsin District at the district’s 53rd convention, June 10-12 in Mequon, Wis. Also re-elected were: the Rev. David B.…

WASHINGTON (RNS) — An appeal over Christmas sweets turned bitter June 11 when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the so-called “Christian candy cane” case. The case out of Texas has become a rallying point for conservative Christians concerned about…

(RNS) — A coalition of nearly 150 religious leaders, led by conservative Protestants, have petitioned the Obama administration to broaden the exemption that allows churches and some religious organizations to avoid a controversial new mandate that all health care insurers…

The Rev. Dr. Russell Sommerfeld of Seward, Neb., was elected to his fourth term as president of the LCMS Nebraska District by delegates to the district’s 17th convention, meeting June 8-9 at Concordia University in Seward.  Delegates also elected four…