Adrienne S. Gaines

The Senate voted Thursday night to attach a controversial hate crimes bill to a must-pass defense-spending bill that is expected to be completed next week. If the Defense Authorization Act passes, the accompanying Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act would add sexual orientation to the list of federally protected classes, and give states and local…

Officials Announce Ban on Christianity in Lao Village Following the confiscation of livestock from Christian families earlier this month, officials in a village in Laos on Saturday called a special meeting for all residents and announced that they had "banned the Christian faith in our village." The chief of Katin village, along with village security,…

As the 15th anniversary of Rwandan genocide comes to a close this week, a documentary showing how some Rwandans are forgiving the unforgivable is reaching audiences in the U.S. Narrated by actress Mia Farrow, As We Forgive debuted on PBS World this week and follows two women who are asked for forgiveness by the men…

Teen issue authors Michael and Hayley DiMarco head out from Denver on an ambitious, long-distance project to give the Bible a fresh, "authentic" voice, and raise awareness of a growing social problem. The husband-and-wife team whose Hungry Planet publishing enterprise has seen more than 30 books released in the last six years, will be traveling…

A leading ministry to people battling same-sex attraction is expanding its church outreach by uniting with ministries within two prominent mainline denominations. During a press conference Wednesday in Wheaton, Ill., Exodus International announced a merger with Transforming Congregations, an ex-gay ministry affiliated with the United Methodist Church, and OneByOne, a similar outreach affiliated with the…

The Senate is expected to vote this week on a federal hate crimes bill that some Christian leaders fear will criminalize preaching against homosexuality. Pro-family leaders said S. 909 may be introduced as an amendment to the defense authorization bill and voted on as early as Thursday. The bill adds sexual orientation to the list…

Evangelist Paula White is returning to Tampa, Fla., to lead the charismatic megachurch she and her now ex-husband, Randy White, founded 18 years ago. On Sunday, Paula White officially began her role as senior pastor of Without Walls International Church. The service paid special tribute to Randy White, who resigned last month citing ongoing health…

A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that pharmacists cannot refuse to dispense the Plan B pill, even if they are personally opposed to the "morning after" contraceptive on religious grounds, the Los Angeles Times reported. Family-owned Ralph's Thriftway in Olympia, Wash., and two pharmacists employed elsewhere sued Washington state officials to block 2007 regulations that…

Traditional marriage supporters say a Massachusetts lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is a political move to force the nation to recognize same-sex marriage. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said DOMA interferes with Massachusetts' right to define and regulate marriage as it sees fit,…

As ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya meets with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton this week in Washington, D.C., Christians in the Central American nation are responding to the political unrest with fasting and prayer. The Apostolic Prophetic Network of Honduras launched a 21-day fast on June 30-two days after the Honduran military arrested Zelaya and…

Two Church Buildings Burned Down in Zanzibar, Tanzania Two church buildings were razed June 28 on the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar after Sunday worship services. Suspected radical Muslims set the church buildings on fire on the outskirts of Unguja Township, on the island off the coast of East Africa, in what church leaders called the…

The surviving pages of the world's oldest Christian Bible have been digitally reunited and are available online, according to the Associated Press (AP). The British Library said the 1,600-year-old manuscript known as the Codex Sinaiticus had been housed in four separate locations in Britain, Germany, Russia and Egypt for more than 150 years. Handwritten in…

Christian leaders in the District of Columbia said they will continue to fight for traditional marriage even though a D.C. Superior Court judge on Tuesday dismissed a motion that could have allowed voters to decide whether gay marriages performed elsewhere would be recognized in the nation's capital. The Stand 4 Marriage D.C. coalition, led by…

A cross-section of conservative Christian groups have united to form a federation that will promote biblical values in political, social and cultural arenas. Announced Tuesday during a press conference in Washington, D.C., the Freedom Federation comprises more than two dozen groups, including the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, Teen Mania, Liberty University, TheCall, MorningStar Ministries;…

As funeral services were held in Tennessee for Christian aid worker Christopher Leggett Tuesday, tensions remained high for Christians in the capital of Mauritania, where he was slain last week.   A Christian worker in the capital city of Nouakchott told Compass that following the street assassination of Leggett by an al-Qaeda linked group the…