Christianity

Brittney M. Walker  |   OW Staff Writer
May 19 2011

They see Him as one of many redeemers

The great mysteries of Jesus have boggled minds for centuries and even to this day scholars look for answers about the one they call the risen savior. Christianity in its diversity has another group of believers. Some would argue gnosticism isn’t quite Christianity due to its variety of beliefs that view Christ in an unorthodox way.

Stefan Benson  |   OW Contributor
Apr 28 2011

God created in men’s images

Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. —Proverbs 26: 4-5
 

Brittney M. Walker  |   OW Staff Writer
Mar 24 2011

Key characteristics noted

On Nov. 18, 1978, in Jonestown, Guyana, the world woke up to a spine-chilling occurrence that demonstrates the tremendous power religious cult leaders have on individuals.

James “Jim” Warren Jones, now known for the appallingly charismatic guidance of his followers to a supposed spiritual liberation through suicidal sacrifice, convinced more than 900 members of The People’s Temple cult to drink a lethal elixir of Kool-Aid and cyanide.

But that is just one example of an extremely destructive cult.

Brittney M. Walker  |   OW Staff Writer
Mar 10 2011

Some scholars say racism has fashioned what most Blacks believe

Ralph Basui Watkins, Ph.D., associate professor and dean of African American Church Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary, is a minister at the First A.M.E. Church in Los Angeles. An unconventional preacher, he has taken excursions to Africa to seek out the truth about the religion he has followed so closely all of his life. When he began to investigate African spirituality and the roots of biblical texts, his discovery changed his perspective.

Stanley O. Williford  |   OW Editor
Feb 3 2011

The enemy of mankind

There are those who don’t believe that Satan exists, and in many cases they are the same persons who don’t believe that God exists.

But the scriptural evidence supports the existence of both. The whole of the Old Testament assumes the existence of Satan as much as it assumes the existence of God. The book of Genesis is built upon the reality of Satan working through the serpent to cause the downfall of man through sin. Satan is mentioned many times in the Hebrew text and in the Quran.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.