This story was updated Jan. 8 to correct an error in the 11th paragraph. WASHINGTON (ABP) — Fewer death sentences were imposed in 2009 than in any year since the Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment in 1976, according to year-end…
Baptists in Texas city inspired to launch church for Burmese refugees
Volunteers from Crestview Baptist Church in Georgetown, Texas, (left to right) Glenna Iwami, Carolyn Winters, George Winters and Carolyn Watkins greet a Karen refugee family of seven at the airport — Tha Boe, father; Eh Wah, mother; son Judson, age…
Avery Willis, giant of Southern Baptist missions, diagnosed with leukemia
BELLA VISTA, Ark. (ABP) — Avery Willis, a former Southern Baptist missionary and administrator best known as developer of the MasterLife discipleship materials used around the world, has been diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia. Willis, who retired in…
Tennessee school district agrees to stop handing out Bibles
LEBANON, Tenn. (ABP) — A school district in Tennessee has agreed to stop handing out Gideon Bibles to students during the school day under threat of a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union. The Tennessee chapter of the ACLU…
Report tallies more than 1,200 crimes involving U.S. churches in 2009
CINCINNATI (ABP) — More than 1,200 crimes were committed against Christian churches and ministries in 2009, according to an unofficial tally by a firm that specializes in church security. The Christian Security Network report found 1,237 total incidents targeting churches…
In 2010 predictions, Pat Robertson says America under God’s wrath
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (ABP) — Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said God's wrath is looming over a nation headed for economic ruin in his annual predictions for the coming year, aired Jan. 4 on "The 700 Club." Robertson, 79, has a…
Television program profiles friendships between Muslims, Baptists
{youtube}9M_KIOG7s04{/youtube} NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — One thing Muslims and Baptists have in common is that they are often identified by their extremists, according to a documentary airing on ABC television stations in January and February. "Different Books, Common Word" offers…
Blessed are the Persecuted: Where persecution is real, it’s intense
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Some Christians in the United States are quick to cry “persecution” if courts, schools or businesses fail to favor their religion above others. But in places around the world where Christians face beatings, economic reprisal, imprisonment or…
Blessed are the Persecuted: SBC resolutions noting persecution
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — While staunch defenders of human rights and religious liberty for all, Southern Baptists rarely mentioned religious persecution in convention resolutions until the 1990s. That coincides with increased calls by social conservatives, including the newly conservative leadership…