Sunday, October 25, 2026
Gunmen attacked a Greek Orthodox funeral in Jordan, killing at least seven, and a school shooting in Bend, Oregon, reached into a young Southern Baptist church plant. A new law reopens Social Security to ministers who opted out, Lifeway finds most pastors feeling the economy in their pews, and a former Lifeway director has been indicted for misusing funds. Federal regulators documented how banks shut out customers over their convictions, and Missouri Baptists are pressing hard on Amendment 3 before Election Day. Andy Stanley has named his successor. On Reformation Sunday, a week to grieve with those who mourn and to keep the books, and the pulpit, clean.
Annual meeting, entities, ERLC, resolutions, denominational politics.
The Clergy Act becomes law. President Trump signed the Clergy Act on Oct. 20. It gives ministers who long ago opted out of Social Security a one-time chance to opt back in, through a two-year election window that opens in 2029. Ministers hold “dual tax status” and many signed the opt-out at the start of ministry without understanding the cost; Sen. Katie Britt, a sponsor, said many did so “without fully understanding what it would mean down the road.” GuideStone worked with a church coalition for several years to pass it and is posting guidance on its website. Those who opt back in generally need about 10 years of covered work to qualify. “Our role is not to tell ministers what decision to make,” said GuideStone President Hance Dilbeck. Elders should make sure their pastor knows the window is coming and has sound advice before it opens. The Pathway (Baptist Press)
More churches feel the economic squeeze. A Lifeway Research survey of 1,004 Protestant pastors found 54% say the economy is hurting their congregation, up from 49% last year. Giving rose 1.24% on average, but the median change was zero, against 3.7% inflation; a quarter of pastors say giving is below budget. Smaller churches and African American congregations report the steepest declines. “Pastors hear the needs and problems of people in their congregations every week,” said Scott McConnell. Budget season is here; a flat offering in an inflationary year is a real cut, and benevolence needs are likely rising at the same time. The Pathway (Lifeway Research) The Baptist Paper
Former Lifeway director indicted. A Williamson County, Tenn., grand jury indicted Giancarlo Montemayor, Lifeway’s former director of Global Ministry, on Oct. 7 on felony theft, forgery, and computer offense counts. Investigators allege he collected referral fees on fraudulent contacts, gave away complimentary Bibles while asking recipients to pay his personal account, and used a company card for personal expenses. Lifeway found “serious violations” of its financial and ethical policies in an internal investigation begun in May 2025 and referred the matter to law enforcement. He was booked Oct. 20; the charges are unproven. Lifeway did the right thing by referring it. Every church treasurer should ask whether a single person can move money without a second set of eyes. The Baptist Paper (Baptist Press)
Midwestern: record enrollment and a new missions center. Midwestern Seminary trustees reported 5,990 students for 2025–26, the school’s 14th straight enrollment record, and announced the Elliff Center for Global Missions, funded by an anonymous multimillion-dollar gift and named for Tom and Jeannie Elliff, to expand missionary training with the IMB. Trustees also elected Samuel Parkison to the theology faculty. “The why is lostness,” said President Jason Allen. The Pathway (Midwestern Seminary)
A church plant in Bend carries a community’s grief. On Oct. 15 a 16-year-old shot his way into Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Ore., killing three children, ages 5, 8, and 11, and a teacher before a father of two students stopped him. Salt and Light Church, a NAMB plant launched in 2025 with fewer than 50 members, is close to the loss: a member led two of the boys killed in their Trail Life troop. Planter Jody Faison is counseling Trail Life families, and the church is working alongside larger congregations rather than competing with them. “This is very hard soil that just got a little softer for the Good News of Jesus Christ,” Faison said. Pray for Bend. The Pathway (Baptist Press) The Baptist Paper
Reformed Baptist, Presbyterian (PCA/OPC), confessional churches and networks.
Founders: “Why we cannot end abortion without prosecuting women.” In an Oct. 20 article, Ben Zeisloft argues that with most abortions now done by pill, a strategy that penalizes only providers is outdated, and that the law must treat abortion as murder, including holding the mother accountable rather than calling her a “second victim.” This is the abolitionist position, and it puts Founders at odds with most mainstream pro-life groups, including those backing Missouri’s Amendment 3 (below). Commentary, not news, but elders will meet this argument in their congregations; it deserves a careful, biblical answer, not a slogan from either side. Founders
Justification on Reformation Sunday. Heidelcast continued its “Rome, Constantinople, or Geneva” series today with a second episode on justification: God declares sinners righteous by grace alone, through faith alone, on the ground of Christ alone. Heidelblog also carried D. G. Hart on the obstacles facing efforts to build new evangelical elites. Teaching material, timely for today. Heidelblog Heidelblog
Grimké Seminary was checked directly; its homepage showed nothing new or dated beyond the Carey Center and its 2026 men’s conference. byFaith’s homepage showed no dated news this week. Founders’ newest podcast is a 1689 Confession episode on saving faith, undated.
Major debates, books, controversies, council and committee statements.
Sermons are getting longer, and some congregations want them to. The Baptist Paper talked with pastors in Tennessee and Alabama about sermon length. Lifeway’s 2025 data found the share of preachers going past an hour tripled since 2019, from 2% to 6%. Several pastors said younger listeners, raised on long podcasts, want depth more than brevity; Alabama Baptist president Jarman Leatherwood preaches 30 to 40 minutes. Others warned that length should fit the preacher and the people, not a trend. The question for elders is not the clock but whether the text is opened and applied. The Baptist Paper
Religious liberty, ethics, politics affecting the church, cultural engagement.
Gunmen attack a church funeral in Jordan. On Friday, Oct. 23, three gunmen fired on mourners at a Greek Orthodox church in the largely Christian village of Hammoud in Karak province, killing at least seven and wounding dozens; most victims were reportedly between 50 and 70. The attackers fled and a manhunt is under way. Jordan’s interior minister blamed a group of extremists, and King Abdullah II called it a terrorist act and vowed the harshest response. Attacks on Christians are rare in Jordan, which makes this one more ominous. In the same week, Christian Solidarity International reported that Christians in Syria face heightened risk of killing or abduction under the transitional government. Remember them in prayer this morning (Heb. 13:3). WORLD CBS News The Baptist Paper
Regulators document “debanking.” The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released a report Oct. 14 after reviewing nearly 100,000 complaints and 420,000 pages of records from nine large banks. It found that vague “reputation risk” policies led banks to cut off customers, and that religious views appeared to be a factor, though no specific church is named. One example: PNC declined a credit line to a media company partly because an owner’s foundation funded Christian groups the SPLC had labeled hate groups. “Fair access to financial services is not a mantra — it is a mandate,” said Comptroller Jonathan Gould. Churches and ministries should know their banking relationships and have a backup. The Pathway (Baptist Press)
Missouri Baptists press for Amendment 3. With the Nov. 3 vote approaching, Missouri Baptist Convention President Wesley Vance released a statement and a video for churches urging a yes vote on Amendment 3, which would restore abortion protections and bar gender transition procedures for minors. He called abortion under the current state constitution “gestational genocide.” The Pathway’s editor also urged a no on Amendment 6, which would make constitutional measures harder for the legislature to fix. The Pathway The Baptist Paper
Gambling opponents go after prediction markets. Texans Against Gambling and two other groups filed a Supreme Court brief asking the justices to reconsider part of the 2018 Murphy v. NCAA decision that opened the door to commercial sports betting. The case, Flaherty v. Kalshi, asks whether “prediction markets” can sell sports contracts outside state gambling laws. Rob Kohler of the Texas Baptists’ Christian Life Commission called them “an underhanded attempt to legalize sports betting.” Many young men in our churches have these apps on their phones; worth a word from the pulpit. The Baptist Paper
Notable controversy and media shake-ups — reported with discernment, not appetite.
Andy Stanley names a successor. Stanley, 68, announced Oct. 18 that he will step down as senior pastor of North Point Ministries on Jan. 1 and hand off the lead pastor role at North Point Community Church in 2027, citing the ministry’s long-term health and time with his grandchildren. The elders unanimously nominated executive director Joel Thomas; congregational results are expected Nov. 1. Reports differ on whether the second transition comes in May or June. Stanley will keep preaching. A well-planned succession at a megachurch is worth watching regardless of one’s view of his teaching. The Baptist Paper Fox 5 Atlanta
IMB workers safe amid unrest in France. Protests that began with school walkouts in September grew to more than half a million people on Oct. 17, with looting, thousands of arrests, and curfews. The IMB says its personnel in France and elsewhere in Europe are unharmed and asks for prayer. The Pathway (Baptist Press)
A pastoral takeaway for your leadership team this week.
This week brought grief from Jordan and Oregon, and two quieter stories about money. A trusted ministry employee allegedly took from Lifeway for years before anyone noticed, and Lifeway finds that most churches are feeling the economy, with giving flat in real terms. On Reformation Sunday we remember that the church lives by grace, not by its own goodness, which is exactly why it needs honest safeguards. A church that believes in human sin should be the last place where one person controls the money unchecked. So ask your board this week: can any single person in our church move money, sign checks, or use a church card without a second person reviewing it? And then: has our pastor had sound advice on retirement and Social Security, including the new Clergy Act window?