Ms. Penny Cost delivers a message during the Hope United Methodist Church virtual service in Bloomington, Illinois, on April 11, 2021. Video screengrab

First drag queen certified as a candidate for United Methodist ministry ‘speaking in a new way to new people’
By Emily McFarlan Miller

(RNS) — Isaac Simmons is the first openly gay man to be certified within the Illinois Great Rivers Conference and, as far as anyone can tell, the first drag queen certified in the United Methodist Church.

In this July 29, 2009, file photo, financial guru Dave Ramsey sits in his broadcasting studio in Brentwood, Tenn. Ramsey Solutions later moved to a new corporate headquarters in Franklin. (AP Photo/Josh Anderson, File)

Former employee sues Dave Ramsey’s company for alleged religious discrimination, ‘cult-like’ atmosphere
By Bob Smietana
Photo: AlexanderJonesi

RNS Weekly News Quiz: April 15, 2021
By Emily Churchill
“Otherwise/Revival,” an exhibit through Bridge Projects, is a group exhibition exploring the Black church’s influence on contemporary artists. The exhibition includes everything from paintings to sculptures to performances that celebrate elements like community and praise. Image courtesy of Robert Wedemeyer

In Los Angeles, a pair of art exhibitions centers the Black worship experience
By Alejandra Molina