WASHINGTON (ABP) — The Supreme Court just isn't down with “Bong Hits 4 Jesus,” man. But an unusual coalition of conservative religious and civil-liberty groups aren't down with the court's majority in a June 25 decision on the free-speech rights…
Baptist college association elects Thomas Corts as executive director
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (ABP) — Board members of the International Association of Baptist Colleges and Universities have elected Thomas Corts, president emeritus of Samford University, as executive director of the association. The new post is effective immediately. Corts, 65, succeeds Bob…
Embattled trustee McKissic resigns from Southwestern Seminary board
ARLINGTON, Texas (ABP) — Dwight McKissic, the Southern Baptist pastor frequently at odds with fellow trustees at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, has resigned from the board of the Fort Worth, Texas, school. Pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in nearby Arlington,…
Evan Almighty refreshes moviegoers with faith-affirming themes
(ABP) — A flood is coming, warns character Evan Baxter, a modern-day Noah in the new movie Evan Almighty. But in Baxter's case, the threatening waters offer a swell of inspiration for audiences watching through the eyes of faith. Like…
Nation’s largest African-American religious group tackles AIDS
ST. LOUIS (ABP) — For the first time, the nation's largest African-American religious body has corporately addressed the HIV/AIDS crisis. AIDS awareness and prevention figured prominently on the agenda for the annual meeting of the National Baptist Convention USA, Inc….
Bush, as promised, vetoes stem-cell bill but commends other research
WASHINGTON (ABP) — For the second time in as many years, President Bush vetoed a bill June 20 that would have expanded federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research. However, in order to soften the political impact of nixing the popular…
Anti-Muslim bias skyrocketed in U.S. in 2006, report claims
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Complaints of anti-Muslim bias in the United States shot up by 25 percent in 2006 as compared to the previous year, according to an annual report by an Islamic group. The annual report of the Council on…
CBF’s Hester to retire after seven years of new church starts
ATLANTA (ABP) — Phil Hester, a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship specialist for new churches, has announced he will retire at the end of this year. During his seven-year tenure at the fellowship, Hester helped start churches in 21 different states, including…
Mass. legislators kill marriage ban; N.Y. panel moves gay marriage bill
ALBANY, N.Y. (ABP) — Legislators in Massachusetts crushed an attempt to reverse that state's stance on same-sex marriage June 14, while their counterparts in New York were poised June 19 to move forward with becoming the second state to legalize…
Baptist bloggers calling it quits, turning to other methods, ministry
(ABP) — The most prominent Baptist bloggers who led a two-year revolt against the Southern Baptist Convention establishment have abandoned their Internet-fueled campaign, but they insist they will continue the crusade for more openness in the SBC with other methods….
Police again seize Baptist church in Gaza during latest unrest
GAZA CITY, Palestine (ABP) — Palestinian police have seized a Baptist church in the Gaza Strip for the second time in recent months, the church's pastor said June 15. Hanna Massad, pastor of the Gaza Baptist Church, said Gaza's Baptists…
In historic move, First Baptist Decatur calls woman as senior pastor
DECATUR, Ga. (ABP) — First Baptist Church of Decatur, Ga., has become the largest church associated with the Southern Baptist Convention or the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship to hire a woman as senior pastor. In a closed business session after Sunday…