BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Christian scholars and church leaders have for years now acknowledged the major shift in Christianity from the North to the global South. While many have said the center of Christianity has moved to Latin America, Asia and Africa, LifeWay International recently recognized the growth of the populations from the South, mainly Hispanics, in the United States and has taken the opportunity to meet the growing need for resources among the ethnic churches.

Behind Mexico City, the largest Hispanic populations are found in Los Angeles, New York, Miami and Chicago. They are the fastest growing minority group in the U.S., according to new Census Bureau statistics, and church is a large part of their lives, with a majority coming from Christian cultures.

One pastor who leads a congregation in Brooklyn, N.Y., attested to the population growth that has in turn swelled church attendance numbers. more >>

LifeWay will reopen one of its stores in Mississippi on Thursday – a move that its customers and employees view as a sign of normalcy after two back-to-back hurricanes devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast in September.

“Normalcy never looked so good,” said Alicia Lowery, manager of the Gulfport LifeWay Christian Store in Mississippi.

“Customers have been calling and coming by hoping that we are open,” Lowery explained. Many are wondering where to buy their Christmas gifts this year as many of the stores, including Christian ones, have closed down. Others need to replace Bibles that were destroyed by water, and churches need communion sets. more >>

One of the world’s largest providers of Christian products and services is surveying Christians about the top issues facing today’s families. At the project’s conclusion, a free report will detail each problem and outline resources so that those interested can know possible solutions.

"It seems our current culture frequently focuses only on problems," said Gary McClure, marketing manager in LifeWay Christian Resources’ e-business department. "We want to take a step further and also offer potential answers to those problems. Even better, we want to ensure the solutions have eternal consequences."

From now until Dec. 20, LifeWay invites adults with opinions about family issues to take part in the Top 10 Issues Facing Today’s Family survey online, according to a public announcement released by the company. more >>

LifeWay announced its partnership with Pure Online to help millions suffering from sexual addiction and pornography in an age where pornographic web pages are increasing at an unprecedented rate.

"LifeWay wants to recognize what a blight sexual addiction and pornography have become in this culture," said Bruce Mills, manager of online learning in LifeWay’s e-business department, in a released statement. "We hope to help people get the support for the recovery they need."

In the past five years, the number of commercial pornography web pages on the Internet has increased by nearly 1,800 percent, according to Internet filtering company N2H2. And according to Pure Online, 70 million different individuals each week view at least one adult website on a global basis. more >>

C.S. Lewis fans, Hollywood and the churches are raving in anticipation about the upcoming Narnia film, which hits theaters Dec. 9, and the Christian community has not been out of the picture in promoting the motion picture with an evangelism twist.

While the famous children's story had never been outdated, the popularity of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe picked up speed via world-class technology, such as the giant movie screen and numerous websites. Adding on to the large mix, LifeWay recently announced the launch of its new website largely created for the purpose of outreach.

"We believe providing conversation starters and other suggestions for discussing the film will help generate opportunities for one to share their faith with a friend or colleague," said Gary McClure, LifeWay's e-business marketing manager, in a released statement. "Simply put, LifeWay's site is the Christian's complement to Narnia.com." more >>

LifeWay Christian Resources, one of the world’s largest providers of Christian products and services, held its semi-annual meeting on Tuesday, during which the company’s trustees, by unanimous vote, authorized $6 million in reserve funds to assist Southern Baptist Disaster Relief efforts.

The funding will begin immediately and continue throughout the 2006 fiscal year, which runs from Oct. 1, 2005, through Sept. 30, 2006, according to statement released by LifeWay.

LifeWay President James T. Draper, who recommended the action to the trustees’ executive committee, said that the funds will be dispersed, “based on specific identified needs,” with expected recipients including, “[Southern Baptist] conventions in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, to states assisting in handling evacuees, and possibly to the North American Mission Board and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.” more >>