In light of “an accelerated rate of erosion” at “brick-and-mortar” stores, LifeWay Christian Resources President Thom Rainer has announced that some LifeWay stores will be closing. The number of stores to close and the timing of those closures has not been announced.

Pro-life advocates in Congress have not given up on extracting the federal government from the abortion business. Members of the Senate and House of Representatives already have introduced legislation in the new congressional session, which began Jan. 3, to end funding for abortions and abortion providers.

The number of Christians suffering high to extremely high persecution is 14 percent more in 2019, Open Doors reported, counting 245 million individuals globally. Persecution driven by Islamic extremism and Communist authoritarianism in the world’s two most populous countries, India and China, marked the increase, Open Doors said Jan. 16 …

Mark DeMoss, founder of DeMoss, a public relations firm known for its high-profile, faith-based clientele, plans to shutter the Atlanta-based organization March 29. In a letter to friends dated Jan. 15, DeMoss said he was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, but tests now show he is cancer-free.

Church pews may be full of teenagers, but a study released Jan. 15 suggests college students might be a much rarer sight on Sunday mornings. Two-thirds (66 percent) of American young adults who attended a Protestant church regularly for at least a year as a teenager say they also dropped out for at least a year …

Today’s high school graduate is faced with an abundance of choices. Go to college or enter the workforce? Dorm life, apartment life or mom and dad’s basement? But no decision may be as important as whether to continue attending church. A study from LifeWay Research and LifeWay Students, released Jan. l5, reveals that two out of three …

Federal conscience protections for American employers who object to the abortion/contraception mandate are on hold. Federal judges in California and Pennsylvania blocked Jan. 13 and Jan. 14, respectively, implementation of final rules from the Trump administration that provided exemptions for employers with religious or moral objections to the 2011 requirement instituted under President Obama.

A European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruling to uphold Germany’s homeschool prohibition has been called a matter of concern for “anyone who cares about freedom.” The ECHR, based in Strasbourg, France, ruled Jan. 10 that Dirk and Petra Wunderlich’s human rights were not violated when German officials forcibly removed their four children …