NRB v. FCC
Plus, embryo donations, abortion pill access, and new SBC attendance numbers
EDITOR’S NOTE: “Signs and Wonders” is a column that shares thoughts on news items that either do not rise to the level of a news story for MinistryWatch or are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” My goal is to be punchy, opinionated, and not to worry much about being slightly off brand. If that is not for you, no hard feelings. But if it is…read on.
Free Speech for Me, Not for Thee. The National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) has formally asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to investigate comments aired by Jimmy Kimmel during the April 23, 2026, broadcast of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Kimmel’s comments were, as a lot of his comments are, thoroughly tasteless. But if they are not protected speech, clearly covered by the First Amendment, then we are all in trouble. That this complaint comes from the NRB is particularly ironic, since the organization claims to be a “nonpartisan, international association of Christian communicators” whose mission is to “protect the free speech rights of our members to speak Biblical truth by advocating those rights in governmental, corporate, and media sectors.”
Snowflake Adoption. A little-known arena of pro-life work is that of embryo adoption, sometimes called “snowflake adoption.” The National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC) just announced the addition of two new affiliate clinics, bringing its embryo adoption and donation services closer to families across the country. Dr. Craig Sweet of Embryo Donation International, P.L., will serve as the NEDC’s affiliate physician in Fort Myers, Florida, and Dr. Valerie Shavell and her physician partners of The Fertility Center will serve in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with each performing frozen embryo transfers for NEDC patients in their respective regions. Embryos have been donated from all 50 states. Recipients have traveled from across the United States, U.S. territories, and about a dozen foreign countries, including as far away as China, to participate in the program. The NEDC’s website is www.embryodonation.org.
Abortion Pills on Demand. In the years since Roe was overturned, the number of abortions has grown to record levels, with two-thirds of them being chemical abortions. The recent Supreme Court decision restoring abortion pill access via telehealth is another huge blow to the pro-life movement, erasing any gains made by the overturning of Roe. This seems a good moment to state what should be obvious, and that is that we will not eliminate abortion by passing laws. We will eliminate abortions when we change the hearts and minds of Americans about abortion. That means persuading people who disagree with us, not beating them into submission to achieve political goals that do not make a difference. Beating people up makes them less likely, not more likely, to listen to you. Thus endeth the lesson.
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Southern Baptists Release New Membership Data. Southern Baptist churches saw sustained growth in attendance and baptisms, but the two-decade membership decline continued in 2025, according to a statement from the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). Total SBC membership fell by more than 3% from 2024 to 2025, dipping to 12,331,954, according to the Annual Church Profile (ACP) compiled by Lifeway Research in cooperation with Baptist state conventions. While fewer members belong to Southern Baptist congregations, more people are attending worship services and small groups and are being baptized. These seemingly contradictory data probably reflect generational attitudes relative to church membership and attendance. Older generations are more likely to be members but not attend. Younger generations are more likely to attend for longer periods before becoming members.
On average, nearly 4.5 million people attend a Southern Baptist church each week, while more than 2.6 million participate in a small group Bible study or Sunday School class—both up more than 3% compared to 2024 and up for the fourth consecutive year.
Meanwhile, the number of baptisms increased by nearly 5% to well over a quarter of a million, marking five consecutive years of growth and surpassing pre-COVID levels.
Readers in Knoxville, Nashville, Dallas, Denver. It was great to visit with readers and donors in Los Angeles and Jacksonville recently. I will be speaking at the annual convention of the Evangelical Press Association in Nashville next week, and I will be holding a reader lunch in Franklin. For precise location, send me an email. I will also be in Dallas and Knoxville later in May. I will be speaking at Summit Ministries in Manitou Springs in June, so I will be doing reader lunches in Denver and Colorado Springs during that trip. Let me know if you would like to join us. My email is [email protected].
