FORT WORTH, Texas (ABP) — If military and prison chaplains serve in “pastoral roles,” then so do chaplains in hospitals, hospices and nursing homes. So say a number of medical chaplains and the professional organizations that oversee their work. There…
Texas Baptist leader dies in car crash
LUBBOCK, Texas (ABP) — Billy Ray Parmer, former two-time Baptist General Convention of Texas second vice president, died Feb. 28 in a car crash outside Abernathy, Texas. Parmer, 78, pulled his sports utility vehicle around two stopped cars at an…
Mainstream speakers urge Baptists to regain religious-liberty commitment
NASHVILLE (ABP) — The strong commitment to religious liberty by the early Baptists who shaped American democracy is now at risk of disappearing, said several speakers during the third annual convocation of the Mainstream Baptist Network Feb. 27-28. Participants in…
Iraq interim constitution draft establishes Islam, Islamic laws
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Nearly a year after American forces liberated Iraq from the oppressive government of Saddam Hussein, some religious-liberty advocates are worried the country's new constitution won't protect religious minorities. Members of the Iraqi Governing Council reportedly reached agreement…
Texas Baptists ‘revisioning’ teams to seek ‘compelling vision’ for state convention
DALLAS (ABP) — The Baptist General Convention of Texas has launched a process of “revisioning” that is expected to lead to reorganization of the convention's work. Charles Wade, executive director, announced formation of four “Revisioning Teams” of 10-13 people each…
Moderate churches use ‘Passion’ to begin discussions about Jesus
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Moderate Baptists are known for being more sensitive about interfaith relations than some of their conservative brethren. But with a film controversial for its depiction of Jews becoming a cultural phenomenon, some moderate churches have decided to…
Legal analysts debate effects of latest church-state ruling
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Just like interpretation of the Bible, interpretation of Supreme Court decisions are often in the eye of the beholder. That observation was borne out Feb. 27 by a group of legal scholars interpreting the court's latest major…
House passes bill protecting ‘unborn victims’ of violence
WASHINGTON (ABP) — The U.S. House of Representatives voted Feb. 26 to treat an attack on a pregnant woman as two separate crimes against her and the fetus she is carrying. Critics say the bill would undermine abortion rights by…
Catholic panel finds 10,000 abuse claims, blames bishops
WASHINGTON (ABP) — About 4 percent of the Catholic priests who served in the United States during the past half century were accused of sexual abuse, according to a first-ever report issued by a Catholic study commission Feb. 27. The…