When it comes to estimating a sermon’s length, pastors and churchgoers aren’t on the same page, according to two new polls.

A total of 31 percent of Protestant pastors say their sermons are less than 20 minutes, according to a new LifeWay Research survey, yet only 14 percent of American Protestant churchgoers in a separate poll say their pastor’s sermons are that short.

Meanwhile, 32 percent of churchgoers say their pastor’s sermons are more than 40 minutes, even though only 14 percent of pastors say they preach that long.

The two surveys, though, did find some agreement – 54 percent of pastors and 53 percent of churchgoers estimate the sermon length between 20 and 40 minutes.

The two polls were conducted prior to the pandemic and subsequent church closures.

“Some sermons feel like they are longer than the pastor estimates,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research. “Churchgoers report sermons over 40 minutes in both small and large churches, but that could be related to different definitions of what elements of the church service are included in the sermon. For example, pastors may give announcements, do a Scripture reading and conduct an altar call surrounding the sermon, which may lead to congregants feeling as if the message itself is longer.”

Nearly half (45 percent) of churchgoers say their preferred sermon length is 30 minutes or…

From his first ‘hello,’ Jeff Sessions begins to explain why he wants to get his old job as Senator for Alabama back. Sessions had been Alabama’s Senator for more than 20 years, before leaving to become the U.S. Attorney General for the Trump Administration.

In an interview with Christian Headlines, Sessions shares that he was thankful to have held the post of Attorney General and believes he did a good job in the position.

“People may not know how many things went well,” Sessions shared.

One of those people who feels that things didn’t go well is his boss, the President of the United States, who made it clear in a recent interview with Meet the Press that if he had a “do-over” he would not hire Jeff Sessions.

Yet Sessions’ support for the president seemed unshaken. “The President and I share ideas on how to make America great,” Sessions shared before noting that now, he is simply looking to be reelected as a Senator for Alabama.

“My head and heart are in the right place,” Sessions shared. “I came out of the soil of the ground in this state. My family background is from Alabama. So, this is a state that I’m not only from but one that I deeply love.”

Sessions realizes being passionate for the state does not guarantee him the trust of the people he once held.

Still, he is hoping the work he has done to strengthen religious liberty and his deep conservative background will remind the people of…

A man has been arrested after he reportedly disrupted an outdoor church service armed with a knife on Sunday.

The NY Post reports that police officers responded to a complaint after the suspect, Christopher Eugene Ross, was shouting obscenities while wielding a knife outside of Oak Grove Baptist Church in Waxhaw, North Carolina.

According to Deputy Tony Underwood, a spokesman for the Union County Sheriff’s Office, Ross lives directly across the street from the church.

While the reason for Ross’ aggravation is unconfirmed, it is believed that he disrupted the service because of the noise from the outdoor service.

“We don’t know exactly what the gentleman was upset about,” Underwood said. “We think it’s the noise, but we’re not exactly sure.”

During the incident, deputies became involved in a struggle with Ross.

A statement from the sheriff’s office noted that “the armed male continued fighting and a deputy eventually fired rounds from his service weapon striking the male.”

Reportedly, the deputy first tried to tazze Ross but was unsuccessful.

Following the struggle, the suspect was taken to a hospital in Charlotte, NC with non-life-threatening injuries.

The two deputies involved have received medical treatment, but, Underwood noted, neither officer suffered from serious injuries.

The statement added that Ross will be taken to Union County Jail following his…

The coronavirus that devastated China’s population hasn’t stopped the communist government from shutting down and even razing churches across the country.

The persecution has impacted state-run churches and underground house churches alike, according to the watchdog Bitter Winter, which monitors religious freedom in China. 

“The Communist Party’s persecution of house churches is increasingly severe,” a member of a house church in the province of Jiangxi told Bitter Winter. “This is mainly because more and more people believe in Christianity.”

On April 27, more than 30 officials razed the Jiangxi house church, telling members it had to be destroyed because it was privately owned and unapproved by the government, Bitter Winter reported. Still, the 20 or so church members continue to worship in secret.

“We will be fined 50,000 RMB ($7,000 USD) if the government discovers us worshiping together again,” the member told Bitter Winter.

On April 17, more than two dozen officials stormed a house church in another village in Jiangxi province and broke up the service.

“They told us to raise a national flag and display portraits of Mao Zedong and Xi Jinping,” a house church member told Bitter Winter. “All gatherings were banned, and the officials said that if we meet again, we will have to hand over the church building to the government, and it would be…

The Church of the Nativity, which stands on the site where many believe Jesus was born, reopened this week after a nearly three-month-long closure due to COVID-19. 

According to CBN News, officials closed the site on March 5th when the West Bank had its first confirmed cases of the coronavirus.

Now, as new cases of the coronavirus begin to wane in the area, the historical site is choosing to reopen.”

“All people can now enter the church and pray, as they want and just like before, not only the believers in Bethlehem but from all over the world,” Greek Orthodox Bishop Theophylactos said, according to the Associated Press.

“The church is open,” he added.

There will, however, be some restrictions at the holy site. 

According to CBN News, visitors must adhere to when they visit the site. Only 50 people will be allowed into the church at a time, visitors will be required to wear masks and they must maintain appropriate social distance.

Those who wish to enter the site must also be free from symptoms of COVID-19 and they will not be allowed to touch anything while they are inside.

The church typically attracts tens of thousands of worshippers during Easter.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, just a few miles from Jerusalem, had also planned to open back up on Sunday. According to the Times of Israel, despite an official statement announcing that the church would be…

(RNS) — The Texas Supreme Court awarded a Fort Worth breakaway group affiliated with the Anglican Church in North America the right to $100 million in church property.

The ownership of the property has been in dispute since the ACNA-affiliate group broke away from the Episcopal Church in 2008.

The ruling on Friday (May 22) is the latest over properties held by breakaway congregations and dioceses that the Episcopal Church has been fighting in court for decades.

The Texas ruling may be the first time that a breakaway diocese has prevailed.

Ever since the Episcopal Church ordained Gene Robinson as an openly gay bishop in 2003, scores of congregations and five dioceses withdrew from the church over doctrinal differences. Many joined ACNA, formed in 2008.

That was the case in Fort Worth, too, where a majority of clergy and lay leaders in the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth voted to leave. Both groups continue to call themselves the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth.

Across the country, four other dioceses also broke with the national church, including the dioceses of Pittsburgh; Quincy, Illinois; San Joaquin, California; and in 2012, Charleston, South Carolina. In most cases, courts ruled that property titled to the diocese must stay in the Episcopal Church’s hands.

A breakaway group in South Carolina, for example, won the right to its property in a lower court, but that…