Negative headlines and criticism on social media for turning down a donation from an atheist group turned into a windfall for a Baptist ministry serving Native American children in Oklahoma. Officials said the recent fifth annual Murrow Indian Children’s Home…
Former SBC president standing by Donald Trump
A former president of the Southern Baptist Convention named to Donald Trump’s evangelical executive advisory board reiterated his support for the Republican nominee after the release of damaging video showing the candidate making lewd remarks about women. Jack Graham, pastor…
Christian women say Trump’s ‘locker room’ talk harms women
More than 60 Baptist women in ministry joined hundreds of Christian women Oct. 13 in an open letter denouncing remarks by presidential candidate Donald Trump they believe disparage women and condone sexual assault. The letter, spearheaded by Jennifer Butler, CEO of…
CBF unveils program to aid with ministerial debt
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship announced Oct. 12 it is accepting applications for grants up to $10,000 to aid pastoral leaders burdened with personal debt. The Ministerial Excellence Initiative, funded with a $1 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.’s National Initiative…
Oklahoma Baptist official supports ‘no-aid’ repeal
Oklahoma’s top Southern Baptist official is disputing a recent newspaper headline implying that many Baptist clergy oppose a proposal to repeal a prohibition in the state constitution against using taxpayer funds for religious purposes. Anthony Jordan, executive director of the…
‘Alabama Baptist’ announces editor succession plan
Veteran Baptist journalist Jennifer Davis Rash has been named editor-elect of the Alabama Baptist. Rash, who has worked nearly 21 years at the Alabama Baptist Convention news journal and the last six years as executive editor, was designated to follow…
Oklahoma governor urges prayer for oil industry
Oklahoma’s governor is asking citizens to pray Oct. 13 for the state’s oil industry, a major contributor to the economy recently in a downturn as crude oil prices dropped to the lowest levels in 15 years. Gov. Mary Fallin proclaimed…
Study ranks incomes of religious groups
Compared to Episcopalians and Presbyterians, Baptists store more of their treasure in heaven than on earth, according to a new comparison of household incomes of U.S. religious groups by the Pew Research Center. The analysis of Pew’s 2014 Religious Landscape…
Network to promote creation care, eco-justice among American Baptists
A new national network reflecting what organizers term a growing sense of call to creation care and eco-justice among the American Baptist Churches USA held an inaugural meeting Sept. 22-23 in Sherborn, Mass. The ABC Creation Justice Network, envisioned in…
Baptist groups appeal for Haiti aid
The Baptist World Alliance asked the worldwide Baptist family Oct. 10 to donate money for relief efforts in Haiti, the hardest hit area when Hurricane Matthew swept across the Caribbean and along the southeast U.S. coast between Sept. 28 and…
Clinton campaign answers query from ‘disability vote’
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged as president to work to ensure that Americans living with disabilities have the same educational and employment opportunities as everyone else in society in response to a request by faith-based organizations for political…
Alliance directors say Medicaid expansion a moral issue
Directors of the Alliance of Baptists described the expansion of Medicaid — a federal program that provides matching funds to states to provide health insurance for Americans who cannot afford to pay for it themselves — as a moral issue in a…