(RNS) — Southern Methodist University is being sued over a recent move to sever control of the school from the United Methodist Church.

The move is part of the latest fallout over the global denomination’s decision earlier this year to strengthen language in its rulebook barring LGBTQ members from marriage and ordination.

Afterward, SMU President R. Gerald Turner issued a statement saying the school appreciated its Methodist roots and clarifying its day-to-day operations were not under church control.

And more recently, trustees of the Texas university changed its articles of incorporation last month to “make it clear that SMU is solely maintained and controlled by its board of trustees as the ultimate authority for the university,” according to a written statement the university provided to Religion News Service.

That meant deleting a phrase saying the school was “forever owned, maintained and controlled by the South Central Jurisdictional Conference of The United Methodist Church,” according to a report by the United Methodist News Service.

The jurisdiction responded earlier this week with a Dallas County civil lawsuit.

The suit describes the jurisdiction as “the founder, owner, controller and manager of SMU,” saying it founded SMU in 1911 with a gift of 133 acres of land that now make up its main campus in Dallas. It calls the change to the articles of incorporation “unauthorized”…

Tyler Gordon, the winner of Dr. Pepper’s Tuition Giveaway, thanked God on live national television after he won the $100,000 scholarship money.

“I want to thank God from the bottom of my heart,” Gordon declared to the millions watching. “If you do not believe in him, I pray that you would soon become a believer.”

Gordon, who is attending West Virginia University’s College of Law, won the grand prize after throwing the most footballs into a target during halftime of the Big 10 Championship game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Wisconsin Badgers, Faithwire reports.

Gordon said the money will help him achieve his dream of becoming a lawyer.

“It’ll mean the world to me,” Gordon added. “Words can’t express how much it means. I’ve tried and honestly, all I can say is that I’m so excited and so thankful for the opportunity. It’s going to allow me to be able to pursue my goals without being hindered by my debt.”

Sports Spectrum podcast host Jason Romano tweeted his admiration for Gordon.

“If you were on national TV and a believer and had 45 seconds, would you give praise to God and encourage others to do the same knowing you might face backlash? Good on the Dr. Pepper kid here for being bold.”

If you were on national TV and a believer and had 45 seconds, would you give praise to God and encourage others to do the same knowing you might…

Louie Giglio, Passion City Church pastor and author, recently released a new children’s devotional targeted to the next generation that addresses faith and science.

How Great Is Our God: 100 Indescribable Devotions About God and Science released in early November and includes scientific facts, illustrations, activities and photography that cover topics such as the human body, animals and space and time.

Giglio said in a tweet that the book takes “you and your kids on an indescribable journey through the universe, finding truths about the Creator in everything He has made.”

“I think that’s one of the best-hidden beauties of this little devotional is it really does tear down the divide, if you will, in some ways that people try to build up between God and science,” Giglio told The Christian Post in a recent interview.

He said he believes science is always evolving, but eventually, it will point to God.

“I don’t worry about all that stuff because science is an ever-moving target and very often we hear the scientists say, ‘We have now discovered something new’ or ‘We have revised what we once thought was a sure bet,’ or ‘A recent discovery has helped us see that what we thought was the case really isn’t the case,’” Giglio said.

He added, “Every time that happens, no one ever writes an article on, ‘Man you can’t trust science.’ They just celebrate…

The two leading political parties in Israel have agreed on a prospective date for a third election which will go ahead unless parliament can form a unity government by midnight Wednesday.

“Likud” party leader Benjamin Netanyahu and “Blue and White” frontman Benny Gantz announced the date on Monday. The two parties have been fighting head-to-head in a bid to try and form a majority in the 120-member Knesset (Israeli parliament). They have had no success thus far.

With Netanyahu currently facing bribery and fraud indictments, Gantz has requested that he not seek immunity from prosecution ahead of the election.

“You have already dragged us into elections twice because of immunity, and barricaded yourself in the bloc in order to achieve it,” Gantz said at Blue and White’s faction meeting, according to the Jerusalem Post. “Now you believe that additional elections will afford you the majority with which to achieve immunity. I call upon you to guarantee that you will not ask for immunity. The citizens of Israel deserve to know, before you drag them into another election, what your true intentions are.”

Netanyahu quickly refused the request, calling it “hollow spin” and “a transparent maneuver.” He has, however, attempted to extend a hand to Blue and White in order to achieve a functioning government.

“They refused every offer to form a wide unity government,” the…

A Christian doctor in the United Kingdom has been cleared of any wrongdoing following a three-month investigation into an allegation that his praying made a patient uncomfortable. 

The General Medical Council, which oversees and licenses doctors, cleared Richard Scott and said there was no evidence that Scott, 59, had done anything wrong. 

The National Secular Society (NSS) had lodged the complaint on behalf of a “highly vulnerable” patient who allegedly “felt discomfort at the use of prayer.”

Scott, who sometimes prays with patients, could have lost his license and job. The General Medical Council said in a letter there was “no first-hand account of complaint from any patient about Dr Scott’s practice.”

“The NSS sent an anonymous hearsay account about how Dr Scott expressed his religious beliefs to a ‘highly vulnerable’ patient,” the General Medical Council said. “There is no convincing evidence that Dr. Scott imposes his personal religious beliefs upon potentially vulnerable patients.”

Further, the General Medical Council said there “is no evidence that [Dr Scott] discusses faith in situations where the patient has stated that they do not wish to discuss these matters” or that “he has continued to discuss faith after a patient has indicated that they do not welcome such a discussion.”

Scott, who was supported by the Christian Legal Centre, said the NSS…

The Strength to Stand Student Bible Conference recently announced that Kanye West will be next month’s conference’s new headliner.

Christian Comedian John Crist was initially set to headline the January conference, but in November he was “removed due to moral failure,” Fox News reports.

As Christian Headlines previously reported, in November, Crist canceled the remainder of his “Immature Thoughts Tour” after news broke that a number of women were accusing him of sexual misconduct and manipulation.

The news was first brought to light after . Magazine began an investigation into the allegations.

Crist responded to the allegations through a statement also published by . Magazine. He said, “Over the past number of years, various women have accused me of behavior that has been hurtful to them. While I am not guilty of everything I’ve been accused of, I confess to being guilty of this—I have treated relationships with women far too casually, in some cases even recklessly. My behavior has been destructive and sinful. I’ve sinned against God, against women and the people who I love the most.”

He continued, “I have violated my own Christian beliefs, convictions and values, and have hurt many people in the process. I am sorry for the hurt and pain I have caused these women and will continue to seek their forgiveness. I have also hurt the name of Jesus and have…