Bobby Ross Jr.
Bobby Ross Jr. is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Bobby Ross Jr.
Battle over religion in public schools waged in one of America’s fastest-growing cities
By Bobby Ross Jr. — February 26, 2018
McKINNEY, Texas (RNS) — The controversy has been simmering since last summer when a school superintendent prayed at a pulpit adorned with a Christian cross — during a mandatory school employee meeting at a church.
Billy Graham never lived in Texas but belonged to a Dallas church for 54 years
By Bobby Ross Jr. — February 21, 2018
DALLAS (RNS) — Why did Graham place membership at a church nearly 1,000 miles from his home in Montreat, N.C.?
Glitz and a surprise guest at the prom for those who often don’t get to go
By Bobby Ross Jr. — February 12, 2018
OKLAHOMA CITY (RNS) — With the music blaring and the disco ball glittering, the honored guests — ranging in age from 14 to 74 — were shocked to see Tim Tebow himself show up for the prom at Putnam City Baptist Church.
God and guns: Texas pastors undergo security training a month after Sutherland Springs
By Bobby Ross Jr. — December 5, 2017
PLANO, Texas (RNS) — The Rev. Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church and a former president of the national Southern Baptist Convention, said God put the idea for the free seminar on his heart.
The guy in the red apron: How a Salvation Army bell ringer brings heart to the job
By Bobby Ross Jr. — November 30, 2017
NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, Texas (RNS) — Some bell ringers wish passers-by 'Merry Christmas' and hope the kettle fills. But many others have honed strategies for making the most of the uncompensated work — for the Salvation Army and all who come within earshot.
Closing doors: Small religious colleges struggle for survival
By Bobby Ross Jr. — November 20, 2017
(RNS) — St. Gregory’s Roman Catholic university in Oklahoma is just the latest small religious college to close in an increasingly difficult higher education marketplace.
Satanic Temple billboard protesting corporal punishment rankles Texas town
By Bobby Ross Jr. — November 2, 2017
(RNS) — Free speech or not, many in the tiny town of Three Rivers expressed outrage at the sign.
First beatification Mass for US-born priest and martyr draws thousands
By Bobby Ross Jr. — September 23, 2017
OKLAHOMA CITY (RNS) — An estimated 20,000 Catholics attended the special Mass celebrating the Rev. Stanley Francis Rother, who was shot to death during Guatemala’s civil war.
Catholic faith moves Houston’s ‘Mattress Mack’ to shelter Hurricane Harvey victims
By Bobby Ross Jr. — September 5, 2017
(RNS) — Little did McIngvale know that Houston quickly would become a disaster zone — and that he, driven by his faith, would emerge as one of the battered city’s most beloved heroes.
Robert Jeffress on God, Trump and North Korea: A pastor explains his politics
By Bobby Ross Jr. — August 14, 2017
DALLAS (RNS) — Jeffress said his statement didn't claim that 'God ordained President Trump to nuke North Korea.' But many of the pastor's critics thought it came too close. In a sit-down interview with RNS, he elaborates on his controversial words.
‘Father Stan’s Our Man’: Okla. farm town honors hometown hero on path to sainthood
By Bobby Ross Jr. — July 31, 2017
OKARCHE, Okla. (RNS) — The Rev. Stanley Francis Rother's upcoming beatification both thrills and amazes people in this farm town of 1,200, about 40 miles northwest of the state capital.
The pope praised him for providing for his parents; now Texas may want to deport them
By Bobby Ross Jr. — July 13, 2017
FORT WORTH, Texas (RNS) — A 21-year-old Houston resident — like thousands of Texas Catholics — worries about how the Lone Star State’s immigration enforcement crackdown makes him a target.
Amid partisan din, Sen. James Lankford walks a fine line: Pastor and politician
By Bobby Ross Jr. — July 11, 2017
OKLAHOMA CITY (RNS) — Lankford's emphasis on kindness and civility has kept him from fully embracing President Trump or the anger-fueled movement that propelled him into the White House.
Baylor’s first woman president brings fresh start to Baptist university
By Bobby Ross Jr. — June 27, 2017
WACO, Texas (RNS) Many are investing hopes that scandal-plagued Baylor University can turn around its fortunes under Linda Livingstone.
As major cities crack down on panhandling, people of faith wrestle with their consciences
By Bobby Ross Jr. — May 26, 2017
OKLAHOMA CITY (RNS) Ordinances making it a crime to approach vehicles at intersections are touted as safety measures. Civil liberties advocates say the homeless are being treated as 'human blight.'