1+ week, 2+ day ago (303+ words) Metropolitan Community Church of Baton Rouge, 7747 Tom Drive, will host a free community discussion on protecting marriage rights for same-sex couples at 2 p.m. Saturday. The featured speaker will be Baton Rouge estate planning attorney Paula Ouder, who will provide insights on how same-sex couples, whether married, partnered or dating, can protect their legal rights amid ongoing national debate. The event is also open to single LGBTQ individuals and allies concerned about the future of same-sex marriage in the U.S. The Unitarian Church of Baton Rouge, 8470 Goodwood Blvd., will host its second annual Jewelry Estate Sale from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday." The sale is open to the public and features hundreds of pieces in all styles, sizes and price points. Selections include vintage, costume, handcrafted pieces and more. St. Luke's Episcopal Church will once again conduct its annual holiday meal outreach, a long-standing ministry rooted…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago (937+ words) The Rev. Ren" Brown, pastor of Mount Zion First Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, preaches at the Fourth District Baptist Association's 150 annual session at Mount Zion. The Rev. Ren" Brown, president-moderator of the Fourth District and pastor of Mount Zion First Baptist Church. Lawrence Aker III, pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in Brooklyn, New York. Powerful preaching, inspiring music and " more importantly " a great cause make the Fourth District Missionary Baptist Association's Scholarship Gala one of the highlights of my year. The fourth annual gala last week drew a capacity crowd of faith leaders, church members, elected officials and community supporters to the ballroom of the Renaissance Hotel in Baton Rouge. They were united by a shared goal: investing in the lives of young people. "This gala is not just about scholarships. It's about sowing seeds," said Jaci Skidmore, a…...

6+ day, 20+ hour ago (138+ words) Teri Dupuy-Gore, director of'The Hub Lafayette Urban Ministries, spoke with Jan Swift of the Discover Lafayette podcast.' Director Teri Dupuy-Gore, speaking with Jan Swift of the Discover Lafayette podcast, said the agency and its Lovewell Center at 1515 W. University Ave. creates a place to be present for people where they are and offers dignity, relationship and restored hope. You can listen to their conversation here. The organization is funded by donations from individuals, churches, grants, and in-kind gifts, she Dupuy-Gore said. It also accepts in-kind donations, especially, Canned soups and top-protein items Easy-open foods like beanie-weenies, tuna, pocket snacks Toilet paper and full-size toothpaste New men's and women's underwear Meals for Tuesday night community dinners and Wednesday morning breakfasts are donated and served by volunteers....

3+ week, 2+ day ago (206+ words) The Rev. Ronald Sutton Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, 2800 Wyandotte St., will host a Thanksgiving meal kit giveaway from 9 a.m. to noon Thursday, Nov. 20. The event is presented in partnership with Capitol Wellness Solutions, ILERA Holistic Healthcare and the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank. Each meal kit is ready to take home, cook and celebrate with family. Free medical cards will also be available. The Star of Bethlehem Baptist Church, 1204 St. Joseph St., Baton Rouge, will celebrate its 116th church anniversary at 10 a.m. Sunday. Special guest speaker will be the Rev. Ronald Sutton, of Ebenezer Baptist Church of South Baton Rouge. Ignite World Ministries will host its "Oil & Fire Encounter" from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, Nov. 14, at the Hampton Inn & Suites Baton Rouge, 11271 Rieger Road. Hosted by Ron and Rhonda Augustus of Ignite World Ministries (McKinney, Texas), this powerful night of worship and word will be…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago (452+ words) From the left after a ceremony are Caleb Carter, featured speaker, with award winners Farrah Falgoust and Brynleigh Cornette next Willie Metz, Worshipful Master of St, Alban's Lodge 28 of Free and Accepted Mason in Jackson. Farrah Falgoust, center holding her plaque, is surrounded family. Brynleigh Cornette, center holding her plaque, is surrounded by family and friends during a recent meeting of the St. Alban's Masonic Lodge 28 of Free and Accepted Masons in Jackson. Two East Feliciana youths received Honesty and Integrity awards at the recent meeting of the St. Alban's Masonic Lodge 28 of Free and Accepted Masons in Jackson. The awards were presented by Worshipful Master Willie Metz. Metz spoke briefly about the Masons and noted that several of the club's founding fathers were members. Recipients of the Honesty and Integrity awards, from left, Farrah Falgoust and Brynleigh Cornette, with…...

2+ week, 6+ day ago (1197+ words) Andrew Coleman stands in his shop beside a white oak chair he's making for Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University in Baton Rouge. In hindsight, Andrew Coleman sees that he was never in control of his life's path. A devout Catholic, he planned to enter the priesthood, following Jesus by spreading the word through ministry. But it wasn't meant to be " Coleman left seminary after only a year. "It wasn't for me," he said. God had other plans. If seminary had worked out, Coleman, 32, wouldn't be standing in the two-car garage behind his Cedar Creek Lane home in Baton Rouge " now the workshop for his business, Coleman's Handcrafted. Calling it a woodworking shop would be an understatement. It's where he creates custom pieces for Catholic Churches and sacred spaces across the South. In his workshop, he follows another path of…...

3+ week, 2+ day ago (805+ words) Pastors Bryan and Lesley Keelin, of Lafayette Vineyard Church. Hell has a smell. Bryan Keelin, 57, who pastors the Lafayette Vineyard Church alongside his wife, Lesley, vividly remembers the unbearable stench of hell that stopped him in his tracks. On the Fourth of July in 1992, it wasn't fireworks but the fire of hell that turned his life around while living in Charleston, South Carolina. "I had an encounter of God and a vision of hell opening up and swallowing me up," he said. "The floor of my house disappeared, and I could see the flames of hell coming up. I could smell the sulfur, and it's still real to this day." A Missouri native and Navy veteran, Bryan Keelin said he first confessed Christ at the age of 12, but his true salvation didn't come until that fateful day at 23. Everything changed…...

4+ day, 5+ hour ago (295+ words) Recently, Sen. John Kennedy used crude sexual analogies about "nuns" when discussing serious policy issues about the economy and the government shutdown. It is unclear what motivated Kennedy to say what he said, especially as he represents a state wherein 22% of the residents are Catholic. We hope that Kennedy was not wishing to diminish or obscure our prophetic witness. Making sisters an object of ridicule and a laughingstock will not deter us. Recently, Sen. John Kennedy used crude sexual analogies about "nuns" when discussing serious policy issues about the economy and the government shutdown. It is unclear what motivated Kennedy to say what he said, especially as he represents a state wherein 22% of the residents are Catholic. We hope that Kennedy was not wishing to diminish or obscure our prophetic witness. Making sisters an object of ridicule and a laughingstock…...

4+ week, 1+ day ago (477+ words) As the St. Luke's Episcopal Church building on Goodwood Boulevard in Baton Rouge burns in the early hours of Feb. 17, 2024, a prayer circle forms across the street. Sixth from left is Bishop of the Louisiana Episcopal Diocese Shannon Duckworth and to her immediate left is the Rev. Bryan Owen, church rector. Statues salvaged from the early morning fire rest outside of St. Luke's Episcopal Church on Goodwood Boulevard as demolition crews remove debris. Crews from the Baton Rouge Fire Department fight the blaze at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in 2024. A new chapter for St. Luke's Episcopal Church will start on Sunday. Parishioners and the Baton Rouge community will gather to witness the groundbreaking for St. Luke's new church building and Pope Hall. The original structure was destroyed by fire in the early morning hours of Feb. 17, 2024. The following day, a…...

2+ week, 4+ day ago (289+ words) Singer Taylor Nauta performs some swampy, bluesy, soul-infused country music at Music on the Mount, Nov. 1, 2025. Music plays on the church's campus as people visit during Music on the Mount in St. Francisville, Nov. 1, 2025. People line up for a food truck at Music on the Mount, Nov. 1, 2025. A girl eager to join her friends in the bouncy house at Music on the Mount in St. Francisville on Nov. 1, 2025. Father Brad, the Rev. Brad Doyle, thanks the many sponsors for the Music on the Mount event. The crowd gathers after 4 p.m. Mass at Music on the mount in St. Francisville on Nov. 1, 2025. Hundreds of people gathered Nov. 1 to listen to a blues band jam in front of a sunset at Mount Carmel Church in St. Francisville for the annual Music on the Mount event. Kids chased each other around the sea of…...