On Thursday, the Archdiocese of Baltimore released a statement that said, the pope has instructed Baltimore Archbishop William Lori to “conduct an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment of adults against Bishop Bransfield.”

According to the statement, Lori said his, “primary concern is for the care and support of the priests and people of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston at this difficult time.” 

Lori went on to say, “I further pledge to conduct a thorough investigation in search of the truth into the troubling allegations against Bishop Bransfield and to work closely with the clergy, religious and lay leaders of the diocese until the appointment of a new bishop.”

Pope Francis accepted Wheeling-Charleston, W.Va. Bishop Bransfield’s resignation on Thursday and subsequently appointed Archbishop Lori as apostolic administrator of Wheeling-Charleston. 

According to the statement, Lori will continue to serve as archbishop of Baltimore while also administering the West Virginia diocese.

Bransfield began his career as a priest in the Philadelphia archdiocese. The Bishop then went on to become a parish priest, a teacher and then a chaplain and vice-principal of an archdiocesan high school. Bransfield was then appointed as director of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C. and left Philadelphia to become the…

To engage the pain of unanswered prayer and a weakening faith, John Piper recommends Christians re-engage 19th century British evangelist George Müller, who saw God do extraordinary things on his behalf.

In a Tuesday episode of his podcast, a discouraged man asked the Reformed theologian and former pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, about how to pray. He was discouraged because though he is not living in sin and reads Scripture faithfully, his prayer requests are never answered, including prayers for friends to come to faith in Christ.

Beyond the Scripture, no one has taught him more about prayer than Müller, Piper said. The British evangelist was known for founding and operating orphanages in England, doing so by asking God to meet every need, and saw God answer his prayers in remarkable ways. Miraculous provision would show up at just the right time, many times over. Many thought he was in a league of his own with regard to faith, something Müller denied.

Müller received nearly £1,500,000 (nearly $2 million) in answer to prayer without ever asking for funds over the course of his life and…

The American Center for Law and Justice is asking the United Nations and the international community to help call for the release of American Pastor Andrew Brunson.

According to CBN News, Brunson has been jailed in Turkey for nearly two years “for his Christian faith.” 

CBN News says he is facing false charges and could spend his life in prison.

“By detaining and imprisoning Pastor Brunson because of his religious expression, peaceful association, and assembly of religious believers, Turkey is violating not only its obligations under the U.N. Charter but its own Constitution, as well as Pastor Brunson’s fundamental rights,” the ACLJ said. 

“Therefore, these violations concern not only Turkey but every Member State and every agency of the U.N. Turkey has violated all of these protections by arresting and detaining an innocent pastor in prison nearly two years based on the hearsay testimony of secret witnesses.”

Brunson, his wife, Norine, and his three children led a small church in Turkey and had lived in the country for more than 20 years. He was arrested and charged in October 2016 with “Christianization.

Then in August, a court in Turkey denied an appeal to free the pastor.

In response, President Donald Trump said he would impose more sanctions on the country.

“The United States will impose large sanctions on Turkey for their longtime…

The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index hit 108.8 last month, sparking record-breaking optimism among small-business owners, according to a survey by the National Federation of Independent Business. The National Review reports that the index is at the highest it has ever been in its 45-year history, the previous record being 108 under Republican president Ronald Reagan. 

The high index is a result of Republican-passed tax cuts and deregulation and reflects a steady trend of hiring and capital investment among small businesses flush with cash, according to NFIB analysts.

“Today’s groundbreaking numbers are demonstrative of what I’m hearing every day from small business owners – that business is booming,” said NFIB President and CEO Juanita D. Duggan, in a press release Tuesday. “As the tax and regulatory landscape changed, so did small business expectations and plans.”

The index high follows GDP growth, which reached 4.2 percent in the second quarter. The National Review reports that this is fastest ever GDP growth rate seen in four years.

On Friday during a speech at the University of Illinois, President Barack Obama claimed credit for the strong economic indicators saying, “When you hear how great the economy is doing right now, let’s just remember when this recovery started.” Among applause and laughter, he continued, “When the monthly job numbers come out…

A Baptist pastor has said that Americans divided by politics and theology need to admit that they simply hate one another.

Mike Leake, Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church of Marionville, MO, noted on his blog earlier this week that there is an ever-increasing list of things that seem to deeply divide Americans.

“Are you a Democrat? A Republican? Something in between? Are you a Calvinist? An Arminian? Or some hybrid of both of them? Are you a social justice warrior? Are you one who believes social justice issues are going a bit too far? Or are you confused and not really sure where you belong?” he asked.

“Do you wear Nike or burn them?” he added, referring to the latest controversy surrounding NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick kneeling instead of standing for the U.S. anthem to protest police shootings of unarmed black men.

Leake noted that Americans are divided both on things that matter, as well as on “trifling nonsense.”

“In our day and age it doesn’t matter much — pick a side, be outraged by…

(RNS) — With a decision looming on how many refugees to admit into the country, and rumors swirling that the number could drop dramatically from this year’s historic low, people of faith are coming together to ask the Trump administration to instead allow tens of thousands more to enter the United States.

Representatives of some of the largest Protestant denominations in the country — including the General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church, the United Church of Christ, the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Episcopal Church — were planning to gather outside the White House on Wednesday (Sept. 12) to press President Trump to raise the number of refugees admitted in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 to 75,000 people.

And the Evangelical Immigration Table — a coalition that includes the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, the country’s single largest Protestant denomination — hosted a call demanding the same.

“I just believe the church has abundant resources, America has abundant resources, to welcome refugees to enjoy security and liberty and friendship — the friendship that Christians in America and Americans have to offer those who are most vulnerable in the world,” said Patrick Vaughn, assistant pastor of Christ Church East Bay in Oakland, Calif., who was one of the participants in the call.

For…