Official news blog of the international newspaper for Churches of Christ
Are Churches of Christ on the decline in the U.S.? The numbers seem to say yes. If that’s the case, why is non-denominational Christianity on the rise? As The Christian Chronicle prepares coverage of the latest data from 21st Century Christian, the Nashville, Tenn.-based publisher of the directory Churches of Christ in the United States, we’re looking for feedback and insight into the numbers — and the legacy of Churches of Christ in America’s religious landscape.
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John deSteiguer,president-elect of Oklahoma Christian University, displays his shooting skills.
On the Monday that marked the 50th anniversary of the end of Abilene Christian College’s 56 years of segregation, African-American faculty member Jerry Taylor was cheered by audience members after a chapel speech that touched on reconciliation between races.
Is it something in the water in Malibu, Calif.? Once again, a Pepperdine University administrator has been hired as a university president, this time at Lubbock Christian in Texas. Tim Perrin, vice dean and professor of law at Pepperdine University School of Law, was introduced last week as president-elect of his Texas alma matter.
Maxine Timmerman, a pioneering missionary to the French-speaking world, died Feb. 6 at a nursing home in Searcy, Ark. A memorial service is planned for Feb. 11. Timmerman and her husband, Samuel “S.F.” Timmerman, moved to Belgium in 1948 to serve as the first missionaries there for Churches of Christ. The couple spent 16 years in the European nation.
In the midst of responding to one natural disaster, church members in the Philippines face a new one. I received an e-mail from Salvador Cariaga, a longtime Filipino missionary, about a 6.9-magnitude earthquake that struck his home country Feb. 6. Cariaga oversees a ministry that provides goats, farming techniques and micro-loans to Filipinos in need. The quake’s epicenter was in the central Negros Oriental province, where there is a large concentration of Churches of Christ
The Tennessean in Nashville reports:
Lipscomb University is helping families defray the cost of adoption while filling seats at men’s basketball games.
The university recently launched Adoption Rally, a program that gives 100 percent of single-game ticket revenues to families in the process of adopting, either locally or internationally. Nine families have been helped by the program, and $17,000 has been distributed.
The theory is simple. Families get their relatives, friends, church members and neighbors to attend the game. As attendance rises, so does the size of the check the adopting couple receives.
There …
I’ve enjoyed the responses — some humorous, others heartwarming — to my Inside Story column on my fear of flying.
John deSteiguer, senior vice president for advancement at Oklahoma Christian University, will move into the president’s office this summer. Trustees for the 2,200-student Christian university chose deSteiguer today to succeed retiring President Mike O’Neal, who announced plans in 2010 to step down at the end of this academic year.
L. Timothy Perrin, a 1984 graduate of Lubbock Christian University in Texas, has been tapped to serve as his alma mater’s sixth president. Perrin, vice dean and professor of law at Pepperdine University School of Law in Malibu, Calif., will succeed Ken Jones, who served as Lubbock Christian president for 18 years before transitioning to the role of chancellor last year.
Lubbock Christian University and Oklahoma Christian University plan to name new presidents over the next few days. Meanwhile, Harding University has launched a website to accept applications and recommendations for its presidency.
