MinistryWatch Podcast

On today’s program, Robert Morris is released from jail after serving 6 months behind bars. The former megachurch pastor released a statement apologizing to Cindy Clemishire, who he abused when she was just 12 years old. We’ll take a look. And, a Christian school teacher has been charged for using AI to create child sexual abuse materials using the faces of his students. We look at steps parents can take to protect their children. Plus, red kettle rebound. The Salvation Army released numbers from the 2025 holiday season, and they showed an uptick in both in-person and online donations. But first, the Presbyterian Church in America is speaking out in defense of Stephen Nichols after St. Andrew’s Chapel publicly excommunicated him. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get database and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, and Casey Sudduth. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Kim Roberts, Bob Smeitana, Tony Mator, and Jessica Eturralde. A special thanks to The Nonprofit Times for contributing material for this week’s podcast. Until next time, may God bless you.

Christina Hello, everyone, I’m Christina Darnell, the managing editor of MinistryWatch. Welcome to the MinistryWatch podcast.  In today’s extra episode, I talk with Warren Smith about some news items that are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.”  So, Warren, what’s up first? Warren Military chaplains will no longer indicate their rank on their uniforms, according to a new order from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegspeth. People I’ve talked with tell me they generally think that’s a good thing. Enlisted personnel might be intimidated to talk with chaplains about deeply personal issues if they know that chaplain is a senior officer. Progressive groups opposing the move include Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Christina Up next, a new study by Pew found that nearly 98 percent of U.S. adults live within range of at least one religious radio station. Warren And that about 25 percent of all AM/FM stations are dedicated to religious programming.  The U.S. has about 4,000 religious stations and about half of American adults spend at least some time each week listening to religious audio content, including radio, podcasts, and streaming, and – this is one of the most interesting findings – about 39 percent of listeners are non-Christians. Christina I guess it’s a good thing that non-Christians are listening to Christian programming. Warren It is good, but there is also another side to that coin. A lot of Christian radio stations have started programing for that non-Christian audience. You’ll hear branding like “Safe for the Entire Family” rather than distinctly Christian branding and programming. Some people think this trend has watered down Christian radio. Christian writer David Murrow says “Safe for the Entire Family” has made Christian radio boring and risk-free. He advocates for edgier music on music stations, and more teaching and talk.  Christina While we’re on the subject of media, a new movie out now is getting a lot of buzz from Christian commentators – and it’s not a Christian movie. Warren I haven’t seen the new Ryan Gosling movie Project Hail Mary, but people I respect are giving it great reviews.  Aaron Renn says, “In an era of male loneliness and confusing messages about manhood, Project Hail Mary models problem-solving, purpose, and fatherly strength without apology.” Brett McCracken, writing for The Gospel Coalition, says it offers the “good, clean fun moviegoers have missed.” McCracken concludes, “Project Hail Mary doesn’t preach the gospel. But it makes virtue look good. It makes selflessness, sacrifice, and duty attractive. If the movie is a huge hit—and I expect it will be—perhaps Hollywood will take the hint. We’re not in postmodernism anymore. Goodness, truth, and beauty are attributes we want in art again. Really, they’re what we’ve always wanted.” Christina Is the movie a hit? Warren It is. The movie opened at number 1 in the U.S. and held that position through its second week. So far, worldwide box office is around $300 million. That’s a huge hit by any reasonable standard. Christina Warren, you read an article this week that caught your attention. Warren I commend to you an article by my friends John Stonestreet and Tim Padgett of The Colson Center. I’ll link to it in the show notes. They share the hard truth that neither political party has a right to the pro-life label these days. Of the Democrats they say, abortion is not merely a plank in the progressive party’s platform. It is the chief commitment of the worldview that dominates America. It is, for many, a sacrament to recognize, enshrine, and honor autonomy. Abortion is not merely a legal right of a decadent society. It is a rite of worship, specifically a way to worship the idols of self, state, and sex.”  Christina But they don’t let the Republicans off the hook, either.  Warren They write, “The GOP was once a prolife party, but now openly endorses chemical abortion and unregulated IVF, the two most common ways to kill preborn children in America.” They conclude, “There is no such thing as a Christian not called, to some degree, to oppose abortion and defend preborn lives. We need not attend every march or express every outrage. We must, however, protect every vulnerable life, support every vulnerable mother and father, and advance the Christian understanding of human dignity every chance we are given.” Christina Our final story today is about the ministry rating systems. An organization called Charity Watch wrote an article that found fault with Charity Navigator’s rating system. Warren Charity Watch found fault with the 4-Star rating that Charity Navigator gave to OUR Rescue, formerly Operation Underground Railroad. I won’t get into the weeds of their analysis here except to say that Charity Watch is right. OUR Rescue should not have a 4-Star rating.  Christina That’s why MinistryWatch gives OUR Rescue a 1-Star rating, our lowest score for financial efficiency.  Warren That’s right. I’ve written about the pros and cons of rating systems, and explained why – despite the cons – we think rating ministries is important. But how you do it matters. I’ll have a link to an article explaining our rating system in today’s show notes. Christina Any final notes before we go? Warren I have some travel coming up in the next couple of months, and I would love to see you. I will be in Los Angeles in April. I’ll be speaking at the annual convention of the Evangelical Press Association in Nashville in June. I’ll also be in Dallas and Knoxville in May. I will be speaking at Summit Ministries in Manitou Springs in June, so I’ll be doing reader lunches in Denver and Colorado Springs during that trip. Let me know if you would like to join us. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. Christina The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. I’m Christina Darnell, along with Warren Smith. You’ve been listening to the MinistryWatch podcast.  Until next time, may God bless you.

We consider our ratings of ministries to be one of the most important things we do. It is also unique. No other organization rates Christian ministries, taking into account financial efficiency, board governance, transparency, and other issues. In today’s EXTRA episode, I explain our rating system. Here are a few resources I mention in today’s program: For a more complete explanation of our Financial Efficiency Rating, click here. For a fuller explanation of our Transparency Grade, click here. For a fuller explanation of our Donor Confidence Score, click here. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. Until next time, may God bless you.

On today’s program, more turmoil at St. Andrew’s Chapel in Florida—the church started by R.C. Sproul. Allegations surface as the church grapples with the fallout of recent excommunications. We’ll have details. And, World Water Day was last week, and that prompted us to look at ministries that are in the clean water business. Which ones should you support? We’ll take a look. Plus, former Southern Baptist Convention President Steve Gaines died last week at 68 after a bout with cancer. He led one of the SBC’s largest churches for nearly two decades. But first, a former PCA pastor was sentenced this month to 30 years in prison for abusing a minor. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get database and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, and Casey Sudduth. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Kim Roberts, Isaac Wood, Tony Mator, Bob Smietana, Makella Knowles, and Jessica Eturralde. Until next time, may God bless you.

As you can read elsewhere on MinistryWatch, the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives is now 25 years old. Despite the good intentions of those who founded it, the office – like many government entities – has outlived its usefulness and needs to end. Resources mentioned in today’s program: David Kuo’s 2006 book Tempting Faith. 2001 Cato commentary “The Federalist Case Against Faith-Based Initiatives” by Robert Levy. 2001 Cato briefing paper “Corrupting Charity: Why Government Should Not Fund Faith-Based Charities” by Michael Tanner. Richard Land, longtime president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission and now Executive Editor of The Christian Post expressed strong reservations, famously warning that government “shekels” would bring “government’s shackles.” Marvin Olasky, a key intellectual figure behind “compassionate conservatism” and an advisor to George W. Bush during his Texas governorship, played a role in conceptualizing the original Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, as early as 2002 began to have concerns about the office. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. Until next time, may God bless you.

On today’s program, Angelus Temple in Los Angeles—widely considered the first U.S. megachurch—has replaced its longtime pastors Matthew and Caroline Barnett. The announcement came after a sabbatical turned into a permanent separation. We’ll have details. And, current news often leads to urgent fundraising pleas—but is your money going where you think it’s going? A recent example sought money to get Bibles to Iran, and prompted MinistryWatch to take a deeper look. Also, the latest list from the MinistryWatch 1000 database—a look at ministries that do not file a Form 990. That list is getting longer, and why it matters. But first, former New Life Church pastor Brady Boyd is starting his own church services less than 5 miles from his old church. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get database and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, and Casey Sudduth. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Kim Roberts, Tony Mator, Bob Smietana, Adelle Banks, and Jessica Eturralde. Until next time, may God bless you.

Hello, everyone, I’m Christina Darnell, the managing editor of MinistryWatch. Welcome to the MinistryWatch podcast. In today’s extra episode, I talk with Warren Smith about some news items that are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” So, Warren, what’s up first?  Warren James Talarico, a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate in Texas, is using religious language to appeal to moderate voters. Conservative and Christian commentators have rightly called out Talarico for trying to make the Bible say what it clearly doesn’t say. I especially commend to you this article by my friends and former colleagues John Stonestreet and Tim Padgett. Christina We’ll have a link to that article in today’s show notes. Warren That’s great. I hope a lot of our listeners will read that piece. The bad news, though, is that it is likely that Talarico will likely fool a lot of people whose faith has been poorly formed, or non-Christians who nonetheless want to appear faith friendly. It doesn’t help that the GOP has chosen prosperity gospel spokespeople such as Paula White to carry their banner. I think critiques of Talarico’s heresies would have more credibility if those critics had also been on record calling out prosperity gospel heresies. (Just for the record, Stonestreet has. Christina Again, we’ll link to an article he wrote, a critique of White and the prosperity gospel, in today’s show notes, here.) Warren Again, I’m glad, because I think both articles taken together are a good reminder that heresies pull us away from the gospel from all directions, not just from one or two. Christina Warren, the next item was of particular interest to us, since we work for one of the publishers the article talks about. Warren Axios published an article this saying “Smaller web publishers, with 1,000–10,000 daily page views, are experiencing the most precipitous traffic declines in the AI era, according to new Chartbeat data.” Artificial intelligence has meant that more people are getting answers to questions directly from AI and not by clicking on the results of Google searches. Christina My own experience confirms that. I’m using AI more and more. Warren Me, too. When I “google” something, I often don’t click on the links anymore, but just read the two or three sentence AI generated answer. Christina But that’s hurt the traffic of small publishers. Warren It has. Axios continues: Over the past two years, referral traffic from traditional search engines has declined by 60% for small publishers, compared with 47% for medium-sized publishers and 22% for large publishers, per Chartbeat. Medium-sized publishers are outlets with 10,000–100,000 daily page views, on average. Large publishers are those with more than 100,000 daily page views on average.” Christina For the record, MinistryWatch fits into the “medium” category, and we have seen our page views go up steadily over the past two years. Warren Last year, we had about 4-million-page views on our site. This year, we are on track for about 4.5 million. Christina We write a lot about the state of evangelicalism here at MinistryWatch, and there’s now a new book out that critiques evangelicalism as a movement consumed by conspiracy theories. Warren   You’re right. We do write a lot about the overall state of evangelicalism. I have my own issues with evangelicalism. I even wrote a book about it! (A Lover’s Quarrel With The Evangelical Church.) One of the reasons I wrote that book was my concern that most critiques of evangelicalism were from those who had no real interest in the church’s health and restoration. They were merely ham-fisted attempts to take down the church. Jared Stacy’s new book Reality In Ruins,unfortunately, fits into that category. That’s why I was delighted to read Bonnie Kristian’s lengthy and thoughtful review of the book at Christianity Today. She does a fantastic job dismantling the exaggerated arguments of the book while, at the same time, acknowledging that what Jared Stacy describes is indeed true of some of the darker corners of the evangelical movement. While We’re At It. Check out Bonnie Kristian’s Substack. It’s one of the few “blogs” (Is Substack a blog? Are blogs still a thing?) that I read from beginning to end. Christina We also note a passing this week. Warren You may have heard that Paul Ehrlich died last week. He was 93.  Ehrlich made news in the 1960s called The Population Bomb, which predicted widespread starvation and war as a result of overpopulation. Liberals used the book to promote abortion, contraception, and homosexuality as an “evolutionary adaptation” to procreative unions. Christina Ehrlich turned out to be spectacularly wrong about this and many other matters. Warren The real reason for population growth in the 20th century was the worldwide increase in living standards and lifespan. As population expert Steven Moshertold me, “The reason the population grew was not because we were breeding like rabbits, but because we were no longer dying like flies.” But we’ve likely reached the end of longevity increases, so if birthrates stay the same, look for population declines in most countries in the world in the decades ahead. That’s already happening in much of Europe. Christina You also note this week that shopping malls are making a comeback. Warren Shopping malls have been distressed for the past decade or more, with many of them closing down or being repurposed. But my friends at Axis, a Christian ministry that helps parents keep an eye on youth culture and how it’s affecting kids, noted this week that “Gen Z is driving a resurgence in mall shopping, with many malls redesigning public spaces to be more “photogenic” and social-media friendly, as well as popular online stores like Edikted opening brick-and-mortar locations.” Christina Is this an anomaly or a new direction? Warren It may be too early to tell. But it could be the 2.0 version of the social media era, an era that provides an antidote to social media isolation with a dose of 80s and 90s mall culture. Christina Any final notes before we go? Warren   I have some travel coming up in the next couple of months, and I would love to see you. I will be in Los Angeles in April and Nashville in May, where I’ll be speaking to the annual meeting of the Evangelical Press Association. And I’ll be speaking at Summit Ministries in Manitou Springs, Colorado, in June. I will be doing reader lunches in all three cities. Let me know if you would like to join us. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. Christina The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. I’m Christina Darnell, along with Warren Smith. Until next time, may God bless you.

In this week’s EXTRA episode, we talk about unsung heroes. We want to tell more of their stories here at MinistryWatch. I do not want you to think we are getting soft. We will continue to engage in the fact-based analysis and deeply reported accountability journalism we have always done. But we would like to include more stories featuring below-the-radar Christian leaders serving faithfully in communities all over the country. So, drop me a line. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. I cannot wait to hear your stories. For a link to a transcript of today’s episode, click here. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. I’m Warren Smith. Until next time, may God bless you.

On today’s program, 22 plaintiffs who say they were abused at a Christian children’s homes in Romania are suing Harvest Christian Fellowship—who sponsored the children’s homes—and its famous pastor, Greg Laurie, claiming the church knew about the abuse and could have stopped it. Plus, are Donor Advised Funds right for you—things you should consider before choosing. And, a businessman is looking to donate a historic college campus to a ministry focused on “spiritual revival of our Christian faith.” Also, Beth Moore will be ending her popular Living Proof events in 2027. But first, a Virginia judge has ruled that a discrimination lawsuit against Liberty University can move forward. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get database and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, and Casey Sudduth. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Kim Roberts, Tony Mator, Fredrick Nzwili, Bob Smietana, and Jessica Eturralde. Until next time, may God bless you.

  Christina Hello, everyone, I’m Christina Darnell, the managing editor of MinistryWatch. Welcome to the MinistryWatch podcast. In today’s extra episode, I talk with Warren Smith about some news items that are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” So, Warren, what’s up first? Warren This week, I’ve been thinking a bit about Lonnie Frisbee, one of the more interesting and tragic figures of American Evangelicalism was Lonnie Frisbee. Christina He was a key figure in the so-called “Jesus Revolution” of the 1970s, and he helped found two church movements still around today: Calvary Chapel and Vineyard Churches. Warren That’s right. He influenced John Wimber, Greg Laurie, and many others. He died this week (March 12) in 1993 of AIDS. But before he died, he had an outsized impact on the Jesus Revolution, both for good and for ill. I won’t go into his biography here, but if you check out my “Signs and Wonders” column this week, I have a link to a longer story I did about him a few years ago. It will be in the show notes for today’s program. To read more about Frisbee and the mark he left on American Evangelicalism, click here. Christina You’ve also been thinking about Kazakhstan this week. Warren Yes, it might sound strange, but I am paying attention to Kazakhstan this week. Christina That seems kind of random. Is there a reason? Warren They vote on Friday on a new constitution, the third constitution since 1993. Kazakhstan is one of the largest countries in the world by land mass. And within Kazakhstan is the largest lake in the world, the Caspian Sea, which is not a sea at all, but a massive lake the size of the state of Montana. Christina But for all its size, it has only about 20 million people. Warren A long-time Soviet satellite, it is an independent nation with a sizable Christian population – about 20 percent. However, it is a country that has a history of human rights, free speech, and civil liberties violations. Critics say the new constitution will further consolidate power with the country’s chief executive. Christian ministries operating in Kazakhstan include the Kazakhstan Baptist Union, Youth for Christ, Salvation Army, Operation Mobilization, and International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. Christina Another event happening this week is a bit outside of MinistryWatch’s normal coverage, but is a huge cultural event. That’s the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. Warren South by Southwest, commonly called “South by,” is one of the largest tech, movie, music, and culture events in the country. It regularly draws 120,000 to Austin, Texas. I covered SXSW for WORLD and was always able to find some explicitly Christian events going on. Last year, there was a significant faith component to the proceedings. Silicon Valley Christian hosted SVC at SXSW. It was the largest explicitly Christian gathering at South by this year. Last year’s event included a “keynote conversation” with actor Zachary Levi, cultural conversations about Christianity in tech spaces, and music, including musicians Matt Maher and For King and Country. The details on this year’s event are vague, though its Sunday worship service appears still to be on. Christian artists appearing at South by this week include Mission and Sam Llanes. Christina South by Southwest has a significant technology component. In fact, it was at South by that Twitter was first rolled out, in the early 2000s. From those beginnings, social media has gone on to take over the world in many ways. Warren That’s right, but now new laws are attempting to limit social media, especially in the lives of young people. One of those new laws was recently passed in Virginia. Christina But WORLD Magazine reports that a federal judge on Feb. 27 temporarily paused enforcement of the Virginia law. Warren The law would limit minors under 16 to one hour of screen time per social media platform per day.”  The law was supported by Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, the state’s attorney general, and an overwhelming bipartisan majority of the Virginia legislature. Christina Nonetheless, U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles sided with NetChoice, an industry trade group representing YouTube, Google, X, Netflix, and other platforms. Warren The judge said the law violated First Amendment free speech protections. Giles said the 2025 law “burdens more speech than necessary as it requires all persons to verify their age before accessing speech that is protected for everyone.” The state has appealed the ruling. Christina And there’s more trouble in the Anglican Church in North America. Warren ACNA appointed Bishop Julian Dobbs to be its acting archbishop back in November, when Archbishop Steve Wood was credibly charged with sexual harassment of one of his employees. Now, old accusations that Dobbs misappropriated $47,862 have been raised by one of his rivals, Bishop Derek Jones. Christina Jones left ACNA a few months ago following a controversy over his leadership of the military chaplains. He has formed a new denomination called the Anglican Reformed Catholic Church. Warren Dobbs is now suing Jones for defamation. Dobbs says the disputed sum is $3,750, and the money was not misappropriated, but temporarily put into the wrong back account. The mistake was caught and quickly corrected. Former Archbishop Foley Beach backs up Dobbs’ version of the story. Dobbs asked a federal court in Alabama to order Bishop Derek Jones to pay compensatory and punitive damages. Christina That brings us to the end of this week’s conversation. Any final notes before we go? Warren A few. Did you know I also write fiction? I published a novel back in 2017, and I’m working on a new novel now. The Blacklist, an influential community of screenwriters and novelists, is featuring my novel-in-progress Up The American on its site this week. If you want to read the excerpt they are publishing, I’ll link to it in today’s show notes. I have some travel coming up in the next couple of months, and I would love to see you. I will be in Los Angeles in April and Dallas in May. I will be doing reader lunches in both cities. Let me know if you would like to join us. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. Christina The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. I’m Christina Darnell, with my co-host Warren Smith. Until next time, may God bless you.