CHARLOTTE, N.C. (ABP) – With the 10th anniversary of 9/11 approaching – and falling on a Sunday – many churches are planning special observances. The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America is offering free resources for worship and devotion titled…
Australian Baptists oppose gay marriage
MELBOURNE, Australia (ABP) – Baptist leaders in Australia issued statements Aug. 24 opposing a proposal to change the current legal definition of marriage to include gay couples. John Beasy, national president of Australian Baptist Ministries -– formerly the Baptist Union…
Baylor faces potential reduction in BGCT funding plan
DALLAS (ABP) — A recommendation approved by the Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board’s education and finance subcommittees would adjust funding guidelines to “level the playing field” for universities receiving Texas Baptist Cooperative Program funds, said Steve Vernon, associate…
Job Corps injects hope into discouraged hearts
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (ABP) — Those unemployed long-term suffer from more than loss of a paycheck. Being jobless shatters certainty and puts at risk every level of security a person has worked to accumulate. Joblessness assaults self worth, psychological stability and…
Churches near quake’s epicenter left with cracked walls, broken glass
MINERAL, Va. (ABP) — The rare East Coast earthquake Aug. 23 left two Baptist churches near the epicenter with cracked walls and broken glass, but no major damage, said spokespersons at each congregation. Mineral Baptist Church and Louisa Baptist Church…
LifeWorks joins pieces for women in mountains
CLYDE, N.C. (ABP) — Economic life is never easy in western North Carolina’s mountains and 70 percent of the poor are locked into “generational poverty” that holds them back like the concrete anchors on their mobile homes. At least the…
Former Congressman, civil-rights activist, among freed Libyan captives
Walter Fauntroy WASHINGTON (ABP) – Former Congressman and Baptist preacher Walter Fauntroy was among three dozen foreign journalists freed Aug. 24 from a Tripoli hotel after five harrowing days of being held captive by loyalists to the formerly powerful Libyan…
Voice injury forces pastor to take medical leave
GREENSBORO, N.C. (ABP) – A prominent North Carolina Baptist pastor surprised his congregation recently by announcing he is stepping down for medical reasons due to voice injury. Ken Massey Ken Massey, pastor of First Baptist Church of Greensboro, N.C., said…
Baptist leaders urge Naga reconciliation
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) – Five Baptist leaders have signed letters to officials of various political factions urging renewed commitment to reconciliation in the northeast Indian state of Nagaland. Letters dated Aug. 4 cited a July BWA resolution BWA endorsing…