Culture

There can be no denying the fact that America is in crisis, says a group of Christians. And to find the cause of the bad health of the nation, the group says, "Look to church."

"The current condition of America is a direct result of the Church rejecting the Word of God as the source of all truth and being subverted by the philosophies of the world," says the National Center for Family-Integrated Churches.

Concerned about the health of the nation, the family and the church, the Wake Forest, N.C.-based center is holding a "Sufficiency of Scripture" conference beginning Thursday. more >>

The company behind the “Left Behind” video games announced Monday a new contract to develop Bible-based games for Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Xbox 360.

Left Behind Games Inc., whose business name is Inspired Media Entertainment, will make video game versions of its PC game, Charlie Church Mouse Bible Adventures. The Bible Adventures game is targeted at kids between the ages of three and eight, and will feature enhanced graphics, sound and unique game controller experiences, according to the company.

“Our strategy is to follow Nintendo’s example by including up to 18 story animations and mini-games, providing significant value for our customers,” said Left Behind Games CEO Troy Lyndon, in a statement. “We expect our financial projections to grow exponentially as we transition from a PC game developer to a Wii & Xbox developer.” more >>

The American Family Association announced on Monday that it is officially ending its boycott against Gap Inc. after the company aired an “unambiguous” Christmas ad over Thanksgiving weekend.

“We’re in this fight because we are disturbed by the increasing secularization of our culture in general and Christmas in particular,” said AFA president Tim Wildmon in a statement. “We're gratified that Gap has responded to the thousands of phone calls, emails and petitions from Americans who share our concerns.”

Wildmon said he hopes the conservative, pro-family organization can engage with Gap in dialogue over the next year to move the company from its “Naughty” to “Nice” category in its list of Christmas-friendly companies. more >>

The Bible that was handwritten by Americans across the United States was sold on eBay for more than $15,000 last weekend.

Zondervan collected $15, 407.53 from the sales of one of the two Bible copies from the cross-country road trip earlier this year called Bible Across America. The special project was in honor of the 30th anniversary of the New International Version – the most popular modern-English Bible translation.

More than 31,000 different people representing all 50 states and several countries contributed a handwritten verse for each of the Bible Across America copy. The, 22,579-mile journey stopped in 90 cities and took nine months to complete. more >>

To put Christmas back into the holiday season, tens of thousands of Christians will be wearing buttons that read, "It's OK, Wish Me A Merry Christmas."

More than 200,000 of the buttons have been distributed nationally as part of a campaign to influence retailers not to be silent with saying "Christmas."

"Our nation needs to return to our Christian roots and values," said the Rev. John Mains of Fountain of Life in Johnstown, Penn., in a statement. "Trying to remove the name of Jesus Christ from Christmas and from our society must be stopped." more >>