đ° Surprise! Spiritual revival is big news, from NYTimes to Christianity Today đ
Thousands seek God at Asbury University: something old and something new
By Bobby Ross Jr.
Good morning, Weekend Plug-in readers!
Itâs the one-year anniversary of Russiaâs invasion of Ukraine.
This weekâs roundup features former President Jimmy Carterâs faith and Saddleback Churchâs removal from the Southern Baptist Convention.
But we start with a story Plug-in already covered last week.
I explain why in 3, 2, 1 âŚ
What to know: The big story
Asbury revival, again: When the New York Times, Christianity Today and Terry Mattingly (IYKYK) all jump on the same story, it must be a big deal.
Such is the case with the spiritual phenomenon that drew thousands to a small Christian college in Kentucky.
The spontaneous, 16-day gathering that ended Thursday was like ââWoodstockâ for Christians.â So declares Times religion writer Ruth Grahamâs front-page story today.
Behind the scenes: âChocolate chip cookies. âAll the Chick-fil-A.â Meetings in a storage closet. Flow charts.â
Christianity Todayâs Daniel Silliman goes in depth to explore how Asbury University officials tried to âhonor what is happening.â
âLike deja vu all over againâ: In his âOn Religionâ column for the Universal Syndicate, Mattingly delves into the history of past Asbury revivals.
They go all the way back to 1908, as alumnus and professor Stephen A. Seamands notes in Mattinglyâs column:
âThe wildness of these events is that theyâre actually un-wild. The atmosphere is serene, deep and at times rather quiet,â he said. âItâs like a veil is pulled back and students see Jesus for the first time â Jesus manifested in a new and powerful way.â
Here at ReligionUnplugged.com, contributor Deborah Laker interviews two Asbury students â including her sister â about what the revival means for Gen Zâs faith.
Power up: The weekâs best reads
1. Jimmy Carterâs pastor: Faith is such a major part of the story when talking about the 98-year-old former president, who has begun end-of-life care at home.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitutionâs Greg Bluestein visits with Carterâs pastor, Tony Lowden, about why he wonât say âgoodbyeâ to the most famous member of Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia:
Instead, Lowden tells the former president three things: I love you, Iâll see you again â and thereâs nothing you can do about it.
See more reflections from Carterâs church, via the Wall Street Journalâs Cameron McWhirter, The Associated Pressâ Jeff Martin and Maysoon Khan and CNNâs Holly Yan.
2. Saddleback disfellowshipped: The Southern Baptist Convention has ousted the megachurch made famous by founding pastor Rick Warren (now retired) for naming a woman pastor.
This weekâs decision, which the Southern California church is expected to appeal, drew coverage by a whoâs who list of top religion writers.
Among them: The Tennesseanâs Liam Adams, The Associated Pressâ Peter Smith, the New York Timesâ Ruth Graham, Christianity Todayâs Kate Shellnutt, Religion News Serviceâs Adelle M. Banks and the Washington Timesâ Mark A. Kellner.
3. Beloved Catholic nun: Just in time for March Madness, The Associated Pressâ Luis Andres Henao and Religion News Serviceâs Emily McFarlan Miller profile Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt.
The 103-year-old nun has a new book, âWake Up With Purpose!: What Iâve Learned in My First Hundred Years.â
Sister Jean âcaptured the sports worldâs imagination and became something of a folk hero as the chaplain for the Loyola Chicago menâs basketball team that reached the NCAA Final Four in 2018,â the AP story notes.
More top reads
Here are five prayers for Ukraine, via The Christian Chronicleâs Erik Tryggestad. ⌠Big Christian nationalism has come courting in North Idaho, as Religion News Serviceâs Jack Jenkins details in an in-depth piece. ⌠âJesus Revolution,â whose stars include Kelsey Grammar, tells the true story of Christian hippies and a Southern California church, the Orange County Registerâs Peter Larsen writes. ⌠Israelis fear their democracy is crumbling â and the U.S. isnât coming to help, Mya Guarnieri Jaradat reports for Politico from Tel Aviv. ⌠Unrelated shootings of a Roman Catholic bishop and two Jewish men near synagogues stunned Los Angeles, as RNSâ Alejandra Molina explains. ⌠This is not a Q&A, itâs a Q&AI, as Lifeway Researchâs Aaron Earls reviews how artificial intelligence says it can help pastors. ⌠The Rev. Doug Donley uses his churchâs sign to telegraph his mission and humor, the Minneapolis Star Tribuneâs Erica Pearson writes. ⌠Beth Moore tries to untangle her âall knotted-up lifeâ in a new memoir, according to RNSâ Bob Smietana. ⌠And at The Associated Press, religion writer Deepa Bharath covers Seattle becoming the first U.S. city to ban caste discrimination (Bharathâs advance story was insightful, too).
Inside the Godbeat
âCovering LDS has a Kremlin-like aspectâ â thatâs how one veteran religion writer described Peggy Fletcher Stackâs challenge reporting on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for the Salt Lake Tribune.
That Godbeat pro celebrated the news that Fletcher Stack, who has covered religion for the Tribune for three decades, will receive the Religion News Associationâs William A. Reed Lifetime Achievement Award. The honor will be presented at RNAâs annual conference next month in the Washington, D.C., area.
Congratulations, Peggy!
Charging station: ICYMI
Here is where you can catch up on top ReligionUnplugged.com content.
Rev up your engines for a mix of NASCAR and religion.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has never been shy about discussing his faith, Murray Evans writes in a profile of the Daytona 500 winner.
The final plug
I enjoyed seeing my former Oklahoman colleagues Joe Hight and Carla Hinton at the University of Central Oklahoma this week.
I appreciate Hight inviting Hinton, the Oklahoma City newspaperâs longtime faith editor, and me to speak in his media ethics classes. The students were kind and asked really interesting questions about religion reporting.
Happy Friday, everyone! Enjoy the weekend.
Bobby Ross Jr. is a columnist for ReligionUnplugged.com and editor-in-chief of The Christian Chronicle. A former religion writer for The Associated Press and The Oklahoman, Ross has reported from all 50 states and 15 nations. He has covered religion since 1999.