The world of Star Trek will break new ground next month when the CBS All-Access series Star Trek: Discovery introduces the franchise’s first non-binary and transgender characters.

Actor Blu del Barrio will play Adira, a non-binary character, while Ian Alexander will play Gray, a transgender character. Both are firsts for the Star Trek universe.

Season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery launches on CBS’ All-Access, a streaming platform, in October. Star Trek: Discovery is a prequel set about a decade prior to the 1960s series.

The series’ official Facebook page made the announcement and linked to an interview with del Barrio on the website of GLAAD, an organization that monitors LGBT representation in the media.

“Star Trek has always made a mission of giving visibility to underrepresented communities because it believes in showing people that a future without division on the basis of race, gender, gender identity or sexual orientation is entirely within our reach,” Michelle Paradise, the series’ executive producer, said in a statement. “We take pride in working closely with Blu del Barrio, Ian Alexander and Nick Adams at GLAAD to create the extraordinary characters of Adira and Gray, and bring their stories to life with empathy, understanding, empowerment and joy.”

Alexander is transgender in real life, and del Barrio is non-binary. Del Barrio uses the pronouns…

Reformed theologian and best-selling author Tim Keller recently shared some good news regarding his ongoing fight against pancreatic cancer.

In June, as Christian Headlines previously reported, the popular pastor shared that he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and would undergo immediate treatment.

In a thread of tweets last Friday, Keller thanked believers for their prayers and support as he finished his sixth round of chemotherapy.

“Dear Praying Friends, Kathy & I want to thank you for your many expressions of support, and for your faithfulness in praying for us. We have been acutely aware of those prayers, and God has heard them – As of yesterday, I have finished six rounds of chemo for pancreatic cancer,” Keller wrote.

…and, while there are indeed some side effects, my doctor says I’m tolerating the treatment very well. I have not been seriously debilitated and I can still do some work and ministry. 2/5

— Timothy Keller (@timkellernyc) August 28, 2020

He explained that the treatment has been effective in combating the disease, despite having “some side effects.” Keller added, however, that he has not been “seriously debilitated” and he is still able to “do some work and ministry.”

Keller had recently met with his oncologist to look over scans that were taken last Monday “to assess the effectiveness of the chemotherapy.”

“The report is very…

One may question, “What does a former world series baseball player have in common with a pastor?”

For former Major League Baseball pitcher Otis Nixon and Atlanta-based Pastor Barry Howard of Wieuca Road Baptist Church, it is a question that they have a succinct answer to. While  Otis, who is Black, and Barry, who is white, are culturally very different, the two men, want it to be known that they have come together in the name of Jesus to bring people together no matter their background.

After the death of George Floyd and the subsequent riots across the U.S., including in Atlanta, Howard knew that he had to be a part of bringing about racial healing. As such, Howard began hosting a group filled with diverse ministry leaders.

“The group started when another pastor asked if I wanted to be a part of it and host it,” Howard shared. At first, the group was made up of a small group of pastors who felt the same calling that Howard felt regarding the issues of race and diversity. Another pastor would soon as Nixon if he too wanted to be a part of the group. Not only is Nixon an ambassador for Major League Baseball, but he’s also an ordained pastor. “It was the perfect timing,” Nixon asserted.

The group meets every other Monday night. When asked how the group landed on Monday as their meeting day, Howard is quick to point out that it was the…

Apathetic views on spirituality are a greater threat to religious belief than atheism, according to notable Christian apologist and author J. Warner Wallace.

“Apathy-ism probably is the biggest challenge to theism, not atheism,” said Wallace, who talked about annually taking students on a trip to University of California, Berkeley.

“What we’re going to encounter most of the time is just apathy. Students on campus, maybe groups on campus are strongly atheistic in some groups. But generally speaking, students were like, ‘Eh, don’t really care.’”

Wallace, along with fellow apologist Sean McDowell of Biola University, were interviewed on an episode of the Dallas Theological Seminary podcast “The Table” posted online last week.

Wallace and McDowell had recently released an apologetics book aimed at reaching out to Generation Z Americans, the generation that is currently entering adolescence and adulthood. Titled So the Next Generation Will Know, the authors hope that adults and parents could use their book to help keep Gen Z from leaving their churches.

According to a survey by the Barna Group released…

As President Trump seeks to run for a possible second term, his campaign recently added the protection of unborn lives and the defense of religious freedom to its agenda entitled “Fighting For You.”

In late August, the campaign put out a press release that highlighted Trump’s priorities if he is awarded a second presidential term, Breitbart reports.

According to Catholic News Agency, the issues of protecting unborn lives and religious freedom were absent in the initial release, which raised concerns from some Catholics.

“Out of @TeamTrump’s 50 “core priorities and goals” why isn’t a single one the protection of preborn children or stopping the abortion industry from killing 2300 innocent children every day?” Lila Rose wrote on Twitter.

Out of @TeamTrump’s 50 “core priorities and goals” why isn’t a single one the protection of preborn children or stopping the abortion industry from killing 2300 innocent children every day? https://t.co/QHxSMjfaec

— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) August 24, 2020

Rose, who founded the pro-life organization, Live Action, added in a later tweet that President Trump “can defund Planned Parenthood by executive order.”

President Trump can defund Planned Parenthood by executive order. It’s past time to stop pouring millions of taxpayer dollars into a corporation that slaughters 900 children each day. Defund these…

The pastor of a large California church that was fined over $50,000 for holding indoor worship services despite adhering to social distancing guidelines said that even as the county continues to increase penalties, the church will remain open. 

Jack Trieber, pastor of North Valley Baptist Church in Santa Clara, California, said Tuesday that Santa Clara County posted an additional order on the church’s doors this week and is fining the congregation $5,000 for each service. 

The charges include $5,000 per in-person service — Sunday morning and evening, as well as Wednesday night — and additional violations for not social distancing, although it is practiced in the auditorium that seats 3,000 people, and singing. 

“They’ve ratcheted this thing up,” Trieber said, adding that in total, the congregation has been fined $52,750.

The order states: “If you do not immediately correct the violations, the County may take additional legal action against you, including civil or criminal prosecution, with additional resulting penalties, fees, and costs.”

“America, this is a…