The latest in the Nancy Copin murder case

By now, many of you have heard about the April 2 murder of Nancy Copin, pastor of Snow Creek Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Rocky Mount, Va.  The story began as a local news item in the Roanoke area but has since caught the attention of the national media. DisciplesWorld has been working on its own story. We hope to have it posted today (4/13). For now, we have posted the latest AP report.

 Meanwhile, keep the congregation in your prayers. Copin was murdered the day after Palm Sunday. Parishioners found her dead in the parsonage on Thursday, April 5. The congregation learned of all this over Good Friday and Easter weekend.  Regional Minister Lee Parker has stepped in to take on Copin’s duties and help the church work through the shock and grief, as well as the unanswered questions surrounding Copin’s murder.

Earlier this week, police arrested a suspect, Charles Vincent Cobler, in Mentor, Ohio on an unrelated charge and somehow linked him to Copin’s murder.. News reports say that Cobler came to Snow Creek church for a choral service with a relative some time in the days before the murder. Cobler has now confessed to the crime and has been arraigned on murder charges. Trial date is June 14.

Bill Maher - is he pro-HPV vaccine or anti-Christian?

In an opinion piece on Salon.com, Bill Maher attacks Christians who oppose the HPV vaccine for adolescent girls.  It’s an interesting rant. At times, I think Maher is right-on. But then, I have to admit, I think he veers into Creepyland at a few points.

There’s a certain ick factor about Maher. I guess he would call that his trademark ’political incorrectness’ which some appreciate but I think it’s his weakness. He’d be much better if he dialed it back a notch instead of trying to be just as offensive as those who offend him.

Does anyone else out there miss civility?

New Disciples blogs

Several new and noteworthy blogs by Disciples have come to our attention in the last month or so. Check them out —

CAPtions - “Curious, considerate conversation about faith and life,” conducted by Tim Diebel, pastor of First Christian Church in Des Moines, Iowa. Tim’s entry today on baptism is a wonderful reflection on what it all means, and especially appropriate as many churches will celebrate Jesus’ own baptism tomorrow.

The Rethinking Youth Ministry blog by Brian, a Disciples pastor in the St. Louis area. Brian has some great video clips including one where he asks college students, “What do you think of the church?” He gets some interesting and honest answers.

Phillips Theolgical Seminary grad Dan Mayes’ blog on My Space is where he goes about “Dismantling bad theology one CCM artist at a time…” and he has a cool video about hunger on his My Space site.

Here’s your sign!

We at DisciplesWorld seem to have taken a little sabbatical from our blog…or perhaps that’s just a spiritualized way of saying we’ve neglected it for awhile. In any case, we’re back.

And with humor, thanks to John Helme, who emailed us the link to this offbeat story today. We don’t have the permissions to post it on our Web site like we do with Associated Press stories, but we can certainly link to it here.

If you’ve ever wondered about some of the warning signs and labels on products, well, you’re not alone. According to this BBC report, a Michigan group tracks them and issues awards for the wackiest.

As comedian Bill Engvall puts it, “Here’s your sign!”

“O Holy Night” from “Studio 60 on Sunset Strip”

Here’s another cool Christmas link, sent to us by Dan Paul, pastor of Pacific Grove Christian Church in California. Thanks Dan!

This version of “O Holy Night” is performed by musicians from New Orleans and organized by the Tipitina’s Foundation to rebuild the New Orleans music community.

A cool video link for Christmas

Thanks to Jon Woods for sending this link to a really cool video.

Shawn Gallaway - I Choose Love

Watkins on the road

Disciples General Minister and President Sharon Watkins has been on the road quite a bit lately, traveling to regional assemblies and encouraging the church to envision a bright future. While she was in Mesa, Ariz., for the AZ regional assembly, the local paper took the time to interview her and cover her speech.

“I’m spiritual, but not religious….”

Christian Piatt, contributor to DisciplesWorld and music minister at Milagro Christian Church in Pueblo, Colorado, asks a great question in a recent column in the Pueblo (Colo.) Chieftain:

“If we could meet weekly with a group of people at the coffee shop, but who would never attend our church, would we invest the time?”

Piatt relates the story of Brian, a part-time new church pastor in Texas who works evenings in a coffee shop. Brian often has the opportunity to meet folks who describe themselves as “spiritual, but not religious.”

While covering familiar ground in noting the gradual move of religion from the public sphere to the private, Piatt doesn’t leave matters in the hands of non-church-goers. Instead, he asks the above question. And why not?

“We need to ask ourselves whether making connections with people is more important than our church membership,” Piatt writes.

Read his column here.

Movies! the sequel…

Now, if you’re a stay-in-on-Friday-night kind of person (like I am), rent “Click” (if you haven’t already seen it). I’m an Adam Sandler fan but did not see this when it made the rounds in the theaters. If you’ve ever wished you could just “fast forward” through the tedious parts of your life…or if you’ve ever gone through life on ‘autopilot’…or just wanted to his ‘pause’ when your boss (played here by David Hasselhof) is getting on your nerves, you’ll like this one. If you’re a preacher who uses film clips, you ought to be able to find lots to work with here. Plus, Henry Winkler (aka “The Fonz,” who played the Coach in “the Waterboy”) returns as Sandler’s dad.

Movies! Part1

Anybody out there seen this Jesus Camp movie? I’ve heard about it and watched the trailer but haven’t been able to see it yet. I’d love to hear from someone who has seen it!

The movie has apparently created consternation among conservative evanglical Christians, who accuse the documentary-makers of being a part of some ‘liberal’ agenda to make them look bad. Whatever. The woman who runs the Jesus Camp is apparently fine with the movie though - felt it was accurate, fair, not ‘ambush journalism,’ etc.

If you don’t know about the movie, the official Web site is a good starting point.