Leonardo Blair

Latest

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  Jul 29, 2021

  Nearly half of South Africans say prayer more effective against COVID-19 than vaccines: study

  Despite thousands of new COVID-19 infections being discovered daily along with hundreds of deaths from the disease, nearly half of South African trust prayer as a more effective remedy against it than approved vaccines a new survey shows.

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  Jul 29, 2021

  Signs of ‘baby boomlet’ emerge despite pandemic

  Despite data released earlier this year pointing to significant drops in birth rates in several states across the country, new data cited by the Institute for Family Studies suggest a “baby boomlet” could be on the horizon thanks to pandemic-related benefits and shifts to remote work.

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  Jul 28, 2021

  Déjà vu: Mark Driscoll accused of leadership abuse at new church

  Six years after publicly apologizing for leadership failures that led to the dissolution of his Seattle-based Mars Hill Church in 2015, prominent megachurch leader Mark Driscoll is now facing similar allegations from former followers at The Trinity Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, which he founded in 2016.

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  Jul 27, 2021

  After battle with COVID-19, pastor says ‘I was wrong’ to not get vaccinated

  A Texas pastor who says he had to fight for his life at Baylor Medical Center in Dallas after getting infected with COVID-19 earlier this month is now saying he was wrong for treating the virus cavalierly and not getting vaccinated.

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  Jul 27, 2021

  Puredi Hillary who co-founded Puredi Hillary Ministries arrested for child sex abuse

  Puredi Hillary, the “well balanced man of God that everyone finds enjoyable to be around,” who co-founded Puredi Hillary Ministries, INC., also known as Shiloh Tabernacle Church in Rancho Cucamonga, California, has been arrested for child sex abuse, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department announced.

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  Jul 26, 2021

  Tony Evans suggests ‘biblical response’ to critical race theory as tensions mount

  As tensions continue to mount nationally over critical race theory, prominent Dallas Pastor Tony Evans of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship has suggested a “biblical response” to the controversial “social construct” called “Kingdom race theology.”

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  Jul 26, 2021

  Hartford Seminary gets $5M to study impact of pandemic on churches

  Thanks to a $5.3 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., Hartford Seminary in Connecticut is set to conduct new research into how congregations are adapting amid the COVID-19 pandemic the school announced Monday.

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  Jul 23, 2021

  COVID-19, drug overdoses huge factors in declining American life expectancy in 2020: CDC

  Americans' life expectancy at birth fell 1.5 years to 77.3 years from 2019 to 2020, the lowest level since 2003. The shift is primarily driven by COVID-19 and unintentional deaths primarily from drug overdoses, new data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates.

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  Jul 23, 2021

  New York bans child marriage, turns planned protest into celebration

  A planned protest in New York City against child marriage will now be a celebration next month after Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation Thursday raising the age of consent to be married in New York State to 18.

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  Jul 23, 2021

  More than 40% of black churchgoers want to keep hybrid church model in wake of pandemic: study

  Black churchgoers have adapted so well to online church amid the pandemic some 41% of them now favor a hybrid model of in-person and online services, even after COVID-19 is no longer deemed a threat, and 7% say they would rather their church services remain digital going forward, a new study has revealed.