The BCNN1 Torch Leader News Brief
Welcome to The BCNN1 Torch Leader News Brief — your Monday-morning roundup of the weekend’s top Christian headlines. Here are seven stories you need to know, in brief:
Former Fort Worth Megachurch Associate Pastor Arrested on Child Indecency Charges
Brandon Dillard, 48, a former volunteer associate pastor well-known for baptizing and encouraging the faithful at The Covenant Church in Fort Worth, Texas, has been arrested and charged with indecency with a child and assault of a family member. Official records cited by CBS News say Dillard was arrested on Oct. 7 on one count of indecency with a child by sexual contact, one count of assault causing bodily injury to a family member, and one count of assault on a family or household member impeding breathing or circulation. He remains in custody on a $230,000 bond. While Dillard’s social media profiles still list him as an associate pastor, church officials told the outlet that he resigned from his volunteer role several weeks before his arrest: “Our prayers are with the family.” Grapevine police have released no further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
Read the full story at the Christian Post: https://Www.christianpost.com/news/ex-the covenant-church-volunteer-arrested-for-family-violence.html
Tags: Fort Worth, Texas, The Covenant Church, Church Scandal, Brandon Dillard
Three Baptist Pastors Killed in Ambush Returning From Church Convention in India
Three Baptist pastors — Kaithang Singsit, Thangtinlen Sitlhou, and Lungoumang Lhouvum — were killed in an ambush in Manipur, in northeastern India, as they returned from a church convention. The Evangelical Fellowship of India expressed “deep grief and anguish,” calling the killing of unarmed church leaders returning from Christian fellowship and ministry “deeply disturbing and tragic.” The group urged authorities to ensure urgent medical care for the injured, protection for affected communities, and a thorough, impartial investigation — and called on churches across India to remember Manipur in their worship services, prayer meetings, and gatherings, closing with Psalm 34:18: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Read the full story at Evangelical Focus: http://evangelicalfocus.com/world/34715/three-baptist-pastors-killed-in-ambush-as-they-returned-from-church-convention
Tags: Manipur, India, Baptist Pastors, Persecuted Church, Evangelical Fellowship of India
Open Doors 2026 World Watch List: Christian Persecution Hits Record — Nigeria Deadliest in the World
Open Doors US released its 2026 World Watch List on Wednesday, ranking the 50 countries where Christians face the most severe persecution — and the picture is the worst on record. A staggering 388 million Christians, more than one in seven worldwide, now face high levels of persecution or discrimination for their faith, an increase of more than 8 million from last year. Of the 4,849 Christians killed worldwide for their faith during the reporting period, 3,490 were in Nigeria — up from 3,100 the year before — keeping Nigeria the world’s deadliest country for Christians. Somalia ranked as the second-most dangerous country for the fourth straight year, while Syria recorded its highest-ever persecution score, the largest single-year increase since Open Doors began using its current ranking method in 2014. Open Doors US CEO Ryan Brown said multiple overlapping factors are driving the increase, with a particular rise in extreme violence concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, where 14 countries appear on the list.
Read the full story at Christianity Daily: https://www.christianitydaily.com/news/open-doors-report-warns-christian-persecution-reaches-record.html
Tags: Open Doors, World Watch List, Persecuted Church, Nigeria, Somalia, Syria
Episcopal Church Membership Has Dropped by Nearly 350,000 Since 2015
New figures show the Episcopal Church has lost nearly 350,000 members since 2015, continuing a long decline for the mainline denomination. The drop reflects a broader pattern across America’s mainline Protestant churches, even as many evangelical and independent congregations hold steadier ground. The numbers were reported Saturday by Crossmap News.
Read the full story at Crossmap: https://news.crossmap.com/2026/10/18/episcopal-church-membership-has-dropped-by-nearly-350k-since-2015/
Tags: Episcopal Church, Church Membership, Mainline Decline
Fewer Than Half of Americans Believe in the Virgin Birth, New Bible Survey Finds
America may be growing more secular, but it has hardly stopped believing in the supernatural — just not necessarily the Bible. According to new research from the American Bible Society’s 2026 State of the Bible report, fewer than half of Americans now believe that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin through the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit — only 49% say it is at least probably true. Just 53% believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and only 44% believe God miraculously parted the Red Sea for the Israelites. Yet at the same time, about 62% of American adults — an estimated 171 million people — believe in the supernatural, including God, heaven, hell, angels, demons, spiritual attacks, and divine intervention. A nation spiritually curious, but increasingly disconnected from biblical truth.
Reported by Prophecy News Watch staff via The Heritage Church’s Watchmen’s Report: https://theheritagechurch.org/the-watchmens-report-october-18-2026/
Tags: State of the Bible, American Bible Society, Virgin Birth, Resurrection, Biblical Authority
Black Clergy Threaten TV Boycott Over Campaign Ad Using Slain 8-Year-Old Secoriea Turner
Faith and civil rights leaders — including the Concerned Black Clergy, the NAACP, the Save Our City Coalition, and attorneys for the Turner family — gathered Friday in Buckhead, Georgia, demanding that broadcasters pull a Rick Jackson campaign commercial centered on the 2020 death of 8-year-old Secoriea Turner, who was shot and killed by armed vigilantes. Rev. Shanan W. Jones, president of the Concerned Black Clergy, warned of a pulpit-led boycott of stations that keep airing the spot: “They are fundraising, they are building commerce on the blood of this child and it is wrong… We have no other choice than to preach from our pulpits to silence you. To cut you off.” One honest note: the Federal Communications Commission does not allow broadcast stations to censor or reject political ads, so the stations may be legally bound to keep airing it.
Read the full story at Fox 5 Atlanta: https://fox5atlanta.com/news/pastors-threaten-tv-stations-boycott-over-jacksons-secoriea-turner-ad
Tags: Black Clergy, Secoriea Turner, Rick Jackson, Atlanta, Boycott
Franklin Graham Meets With Top Vietnamese Government Official on Religious Freedom
Evangelist Franklin Graham met this week with a top Vietnamese government official at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’s headquarters in North Carolina, where the official presented a gift and said, “I hope that your ministry and our friendship will lead to a great harvest.” The delegation’s U.S. trip continues with meetings with U.S. government officials and religious freedom stakeholders in Washington, D.C., and Texas to discuss steps the Vietnamese government says it is taking to give greater freedom to religious minorities. Concerns about persecution persist: this year Vietnam sentenced a pastor to seven and a half years in prison for “unregistered” religious activities and announced action against 119 Christians it accused of separatism. The 2026 Global Christian Relief Red List ranked Vietnam fourth in the number of Christians arrested for their faith — behind only China, Russia, and Iran.
Read the full story at the Christian Post: https://Www.christianpost.com/news/franklin-graham-meets-with-top-vietnamese-govt-official.html
Tags: Franklin Graham, Vietnam, Religious Freedom, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
About Daniel Whyte III
Daniel Whyte III has been preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ for over 46 years. He is the founder and president of Gospel Light Evangelistic Society International for over 42 years, pastor of Gospel Light House of Prayer International for over 37 years, and the founder, president and editor-in-chief of Black Christian News Network One (BCNN1) for over 22 years. He holds a doctorate/Ph.D. from Liberty University, two Master of Theology (Th.M.) degrees, a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) and a Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.). His mottos are “Crying in the Wilderness,” “Exiled on the Isle of Patmos,” and “Preaching the Gospel by any means necessary.” He has been married to Meriqua Whyte of Christiana, Jamaica since December 19, 1987. They have ten children, including their daughter Daniqua who is in heaven.
The Gospel in a Nutshell
The Bible says all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23). God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16). Jesus Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved (Romans 10:9).
Have You Been Born Again?
Jesus said, “Ye must be born again” (John 3:7). To be born again, repent of your sins, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and receive Him as your Saviour. “As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12).
What Must I Do To Be Saved?
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved (Acts 16:31). Pray and ask God to forgive your sins, and trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour today. “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).
One Final Word
If you have just trusted Christ as your Saviour, pray: “Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner. I believe You died for my sins and rose again. I repent of my sins and receive You as my Saviour. Save me, Lord. Amen.” Welcome to the family of God!
Scripture: Ephesians 5:22–6:20 (KJV) — Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord… Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it… Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right… And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord… Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Featured image: Open Bible photo by Frank Schulenburg / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0