AMERICUS, Ga. (ABP) — Millard Fuller, a millionaire entrepreneur who gave away his fortune to create Habitat for Humanity International in 1976, died Feb. 3 after a brief illness. Fuller, 74, led the worldwide house-building ministry with his wife, Linda,…
Appeals court sides with Missouri Baptist conference center
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (ABP) — Windermere Baptist Conference Center acted within its legal rights when it changed its articles of incorporation, a Missouri appellate court ruled Feb. 3. A three-judge panel of the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, unanimously…
First regional New Baptist Covenant event focuses on reconciliation
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (ABP) — Former President Jimmy Carter went to a shrine of the Civil Rights Movement Jan. 31 to drive home a point about racial reconciliation among Baptists, stepping up into the pulpit of the Birmingham, Ala., church where…
Obama picks religious adviser DuBois for faith-based post; questions remain
WASHINGTON (ABP) — President Obama has selected a 26-year-old Pentecostal minister who served as his top religion adviser during the presidential campaign to head a revamped White House office on faith-based social services. Critics of President Bush’s attempt to expand…
Opinion: God as athletic director
(ABP) We have all seen it. A football player makes a big play, scores the winning touchdown, drops to one knee and points a finger towards the heavens. What does it mean when in a moment of success a player…
Recession forces cutbacks at Southern Baptist agencies
DALLAS (ABP) — Several Southern Baptist Convention entities are tightening the belt in response to budget shortfalls in a flagging economy. GuideStone Financial Resources said Jan. 27 it just implemented a hiring freeze and is giving no raises to employees, with…
Childs makes ‘tiny stitches’ in lives of children, youth in Croatia
ATLANTA (ABP) — Elaine Childs, one of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s field personnel in Cakovec, Croatia, likes to think of her work in Roma villages as analogous to lace making, a well-known Croatian trade since the 15th century. “Most of…
Church with woman pastor expects further rebuke from Georgia Baptists
DECATUR, Ga. (ABP) — A church denied voting rights in the Georgia Baptist Convention because it is led by a woman pastor could face further sanctions, Pastor Julie Pennington-Russell reports in the church newsletter. In a recent meeting with representatives…
Former youth minister pleads guilty to sending explicit emails to teen
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (ABP) — A former American Baptist youth minister has pleaded guilty to sending sexually explicit emails and photos to a 15-year-old girl he was counseling. At his arraignment Nov. 5, David Esarey, 30, denied sending photos to the…
Website seeks to rally support for women’s ordination
CONROE, Texas (ABP) — A former Baptist General Convention of Texas employee and her husband of 47 years have started a website urging Baptist women to speak up for their rights to be ordained as deacons and senior pastors. A…
Baptist foundation loses money in Madoff scandal
OKLAHOMA CITY (ABP) — At least one Baptist group lost money as part of Bernard Madoff's alleged $50 billion Ponzi scheme. The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma said it lost $1.4 million, less than 1 percent of its assets, when third-party…
Prominent Dallas pastor accepts BGCT post
DALLAS (ABP) — Jim Denison has resigned as senior teaching pastor at Park Cities Baptist Church in Dallas to become founding president of the Center for Informed Faith and theologian-in-residence with the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The new Center…