Some 75% of Christian churches and organizations that applied for and received forgivable loans under the federal government’s coronavirus relief program for small businesses, known as the Paycheck Protection Program, say the loans helped keep their operations fully staffed and many of them have already been forgiven.

A recent survey by Vanderbloeman citing data collected over several months from 900 churches and Christian organizations reveals how crucial the relief program has been for the survival of Christian operations.

The survey found that 76.09% of the churches in the survey had service attendance below 1,000 while 58.85% attracted less than 500. A majority of the churches (74%) also had annual budgets of less than $2 million.

More than half of the Christian churches and organizations (61%) received less than $150,000 and 85% of them received less than $349,000.

“The government hoped that the economic impact of COVID-19 would be temporary and wanted to improve job stability by enabling organizations to continue paying their employees, rather than having the government pay for…

New research from the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University shows that there is a widening gap in the worldviews of American adults as it shapes one’s political beliefs and behaviors.

According to the American Worldview Inventory 2020, 98 percent of American adults who choose socialism over capitalism are opposed to a biblical worldview.

Conversely, 83 percent of people who do hold to a biblical worldview prefer capitalism instead of socialism, while 78 percent are “consistently conservative.”

Additionally, 80 percent of people who uphold a biblical worldview are fiscally conservative and 91 percent support conservative social policies.

Furthermore, 89 percent oppose abortion based on “clear biblical teaching” and 83 percent endorse a “limited view of the size and scope of government.”

On the other hand, only 5 percent of Americans with a biblical worldview “are likely to adopt liberal views on physical, social, and government issues.”

The CRC analysis also found that those without a biblical worldview are more likely to support liberal fiscal and social policies (26 percent and 40 percent, respectively).

Regarding the Bible’s stance on abortion, 38 percent of Americans who reject a biblical worldview do not believe the Bible is unambiguous on the subject. Additionally, 26 percent prefer “a more liberal, expansive view of…

A congregation in Alabama that garnered headlines after 40 of its members tested positive for COVID-19 following a revival has reported that nearly all of those infected have recovered.

Warrior Creek Baptist Church of Arab, a small Southern Baptist congregation, was the sight of an outbreak in July in which 40 people, including its pastor, became infected.

However, according to a report last week from The Alabama Baptist posted by Baptist Press, there remained only one family that still tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Warrior Creek Pastor Darryl Ross, who was among those who tested positive for COVID-19 in July, explained to TAB that the one family still battling the coronavirus was doing well.  

A small church located in Cullman County, 40 members tested positive for the virus during a weeklong revival event, prompting the church to end the gathering early.

In an interview with al.com at the time, Ross explained that he learned about someone attending the event who had COVID-19.

“On the way back over Thursday is when we found out. I got a call that one of our guys in the church has tested positive. So we shut down revival and, by Friday night, I’ve got church members…

A Christian man in Pakistan was arrested over the weekend and could face life in prison after residents in his community said he placed pages of the Quran in a drain.

The charges against the man, David Masih, were made under Pakistan’s so-called blasphemy laws, which often target religious minorities and prohibit desecration of Islam.

All total, 25 Christians are currently imprisoned on blasphemy charges, according to International Christian Concern (ICC), which reported Masih’s arrest.

Masih lives in Pakistan’s Khybar Pakhtunkhwa province. Residents in the city of Nowshera say he was guilty of blasphemy by mishandling the Quran. A video of the pages in the drain was posted to social media and reportedly went viral, according to ICC.

Masih could face life in prison if found guilty.

“In Pakistan, false accusations of blasphemy are widespread and often motivated by personal vendettas or religious hatred,” ICC reported. “Accusations are highly inflammatory and have the potential to spark mob lynchings, vigilante murders, and mass protests.”

Pakistan’s blasphemy laws were strengthened in 1987. From ‘87 through 2017, 1,535 individuals were accused of breaking the blasphemy laws. Of those accusations, 54 percent involved religious minorities, ICC reported. Christians comprise 15.5 of the blasphemy accusations, despite making up only 1.6 percent of Pakistan’s…

Los Angeles County is terminating a 45-year-old parking lot lease with Grace Community Church and has given the congregation 30 days to vacate the space in an action the church’s supporters say is retaliation for recent defiance of COVID-19 health restrictions.

Grace Community, where John MacArthur pastors, pays the county approximately $8,301 per month for the parking lot and has leased it continually since 1975.

The county’s Department of Public Works sent a letter dated Aug. 28 to the church saying the Los Angeles County Flood Control District “is exercising its right to terminate the Agreement by giving a minimum of 30-day written notice of intention to terminate.”

“Please be advised that by this notice, the District will hereby terminate the Agreement effective October 1, 2020,” the letter said. “… If Grace fails to vacate the premise as required, the District may enter the premises and remove Grace’s personal property in accordance with the Agreement and applicable law, and Grace will be responsible for any resultant expenses incurred by the District.”

The county and the congregation are involved in a legal battle that has seen the church win three times at the trial court level and the county win once at an appellate court. The church is defying state and county restrictions prohibiting indoor worship services. The next hearing in the case is…

Three Maryland men who conned over 1000 churchgoers and investors out of $28 million have been indicted for running a Ponzi scheme.

According to the Department of Justice, the men would go to churches and pretend to be financial investors who were concerned about the church members’ financial freedom and convince churchgoers to “invest” money with them. 

The men amassed enough money to own private jets and luxury cars. The con artists said that the victims would receive high returns through investments in Foreign Exchange and Cryptocurrency markets. In reality, however, the money mostly went to them and previous investors, the DOJ reports.

The conmen also pretended to be pastors as they scoped out Christian financial events, coming across as three guys who simply cared about the financial freedom of the churchgoers, offering investments that would make them money. They said their investment company helped further God’s mission because it gave people financial freedom and personal wealth. They also held promotional events at upscale hotels and event spaces.

The amount of people affected sits somewhere around 1,200, and all three of them worked in a company one of them founded called “1st Million Dollars,” which had satellite offices around the country. This was simply a new name for the real company called Smart Partners LLC, which may have been used to launder…

A former strip club in Clyman, Wis., that was the site of a human trafficking case soon will be a Christian ministry center.

Adoration Abode, a non-profit Christian ministry in Watertown, Wis., that assists those in need, purchased this summer the building of a former strip club known as the Hardware Store and is turning it into a “revival center,” according to the Daily Citizen newspaper. The strip club closed Jan. 1, 2019. The ministry bought the building for $77,000.

“It’s divine intervention,” Gene Schmidt of Adoration Abode told the Daily Citizen. “People in Clyman should know one thing: God’s at work.”

Adoration Adobe is turning the former strip club into a Christian coffeehouse, with a stage for Christian music and space for worship. The building also has apartments that will be used for housing.

It will be ready to open in a few months, according to the Daily Citizen.

“I’m quite shocked I have the building,” Schmidt said. “I never dreamed of actually buying the place.”

This summer, the former owner and two managers of the Hardware Store pled guilty to charges related to a federal sex trafficking indictment. The indictment said the owner and managers ran a prostitution ring out of the strip club.

“The primary purpose of the conspiracy was to generate revenue for the Hardware Store by making the club’s lap dance and champagne…

For Christian rocker John Cooper, the events of the past few days in Kenosha, Wis., have been personal, even scary. 

That’s because Cooper – the frontman for the Grammy-nominated band Skillet – lives in downtown Kenosha with his family, just five or so blocks from the violent protests that have caused an estimated $30 million in damage. The protests started after the police shooting of a black man, Jacob Blake.

Cooper says he’s praying for racial justice, although he’s ready to defend his home.

“I should be out playing concerts, rocking the free world and instead I’m hunkered down, praying for the very people that I might have to hurt that night and that’s something that Americans shouldn’t have to deal with,” Cooper told Fox and Friends Saturday. He said the arrival of the National Guard has led to calmer nights. “I don’t want to hurt anybody. I’m praying for safety. I’m praying for them – praying for their souls. I’m praying for racial justice. I want all those things but you can’t come and threaten people’s family in America.”

Cooper also is pointing his community to Christ. He took part in a diverse prayer meeting of local Christians, asking God for healing, justice and peace.

“We had an amazing prayer meeting – 14 pastors, black, white, red brown, everyone came together because we believe there is one hope, and it’s not a president,” Cooper…