"It takes a united nation, and it does take godly counsel, and it takes prayer and answers to prayer — and a collective humble heart of a nation seeking God's hand of protection and his blessings of prosperity."

The archbishop and primate for the new branch will be Robert Duncan of Pittsburgh. For the first time, a province would be defined not by geography, but by theological orientation. Bishop Duncan said, “We’re going through Reformation times, and in Reformation times things aren’t neat and clean... In Reformation times, new structures are emerging.”

The North American church will have 100,000 members, compared with 2.3 million in the Episcopal Church.

He explains that it is futile to redeem the culture, or usher in the kingdom of Heaven now. He said,

"First of all, the Bible didn't tell me to do that. I can't Christianize this culture. The god of this world is Satan - this is his culture. He is the god of this age. I'm to preach the gospel."

"We are not leaving the ELCA. The ELCA has left us," said Ryan Schwarz, a steering committee member from the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in McLean, Va.

This fledging organization is in response to moves made by the worldwide Anglican Communion to ordain homosexuals into the priesthood, bless same-sex unions, and implement other teachings seen by many as moving away from orthodox biblical and Anglican doctrines.

"This is a singing competition, not a church thing," Allen told Tarts earlier this week while Lambert added that the "vote is based on talent and performing, not religion.

- The number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled since 1990, rising from 8 to 15 percent.

- The percentage of self-identified Christians has fallen 10 percentage points since 1990, from 86 to 76 percent.

- The number of people willing to describe themselves as atheist or agnostic has increased about fourfold from 1990 to 2009, from 1 million to about 3.6 million.

- Fewer people now think of the United States as a "Christian nation" than did so when George W. Bush was president (62 percent in 2009 versus 69 percent in 2008).

- However, rumors of the death of Christianity are greatly exaggerated.

- Formal, liturgical Christianity is in decline but charismatic Christianity is growing.

- Early American Freedom of Religion produced competition among denominations, resulting in a succession of waves of evangelization.

- The American religious model is spreading around the world.

- A third of Americans say they are born again.

- There is a movement towards a more conservative and 'evangelical' outlook among Christians.

- Growing churches are using all the tools of modernity, from megachurches to radio and television to spread the word.

- World-wide Christianity is growing rapidly.

- In Communist China, the underground church has grown from 3 million when the missionaries were expelled, to more than 100 million today!

- A 2006 poll in once-atheist Russia discovered that 84% of Russians believed in God while only 16% considered themselves atheists.

- Five of the world’s ten biggest megachurches are in South Korea.

- There is even an upsurge of Evangelical Christianity in Europe.

In spite of Newsweek's gloomy prediction about "The End of Christian America," a new Knights of Columbus-Marist poll shows that 63 percent of Americans plan to attend church on Easter Sunday.

The poll also revealed 70 percent of Americans identified the day as the most important, or one of the most important religious holidays, on the calendar.

While Europe was drifting from faith into secularism, and giant countries like Russia and China became “atheistic” under Communism, it was assumed that the U.S. would loose its faith as well. It is true that religious establishments are being weakened, but new ministries are using modern methods to spread the Good News. And faith is growing around the world!

China is full of house churches, much like the ones in the early Christian era, that attract the rising middle classes. A 2006 poll in once-atheist Russia discovered that 84% of Russians believed in God while only 16% considered themselves atheists.

Tyndale's New Living Translation team released its first NLT Study Bible, a project nearly a decade in the making. Zondervan published a 30th-anniversary edition of its classic NIV Study Bible, with a 130-page topical index and updates to its 20,000-some study notes.

In spite of reports that fewer people are calling themselves "Christians," there are reasons to believe that Christian faith is resillient.

If American history is any guide to the American present, we are on the edge of a great revival of traditional Christianity. Americans will reject the consumerism, whether secular or religious, that has marked so much of the last few decades.

The article mentions John Piper of Minneapolis, Seattle's Mark Driscoll and Albert Mohler, head of the Southern Seminary of the huge Southern Baptist Convention as examples of the energy and passion of the evangelical world.

Belief in a sovereign God is encouraging to believers in a time of turmoil.

..it offers a rock-steady deity who orchestrates absolutely everything, including illness (or home foreclosure!), by a logic we may not understand but don't have to second-guess. Our satisfaction — and our purpose — is fulfilled simply by "glorifying" him.

When China's Communist Party members met recently at the National Congress in Beijing, President Hu Jintao did something that had never been done before. He added the word "religion" to the Communist Party constitution.