Former Southern Baptist statesman Paige Patterson claimed a religious liberty defense, while denying the bulk of allegations in a lawsuit over his handling of sex abuse claims, in an answer filed Aug. 26 in federal court.
Judge calls for hate-crime probe in monument defacement
An Arkansas judge and Baptist minister is asking that the chopping down of a tree planted in honor of victims of a 1919 race massacre be investigated as a hate crime.
Baptist church calls transgender pastor
Members of an Ohio congregation are inviting members of their community to a Sept. 8 worship service officially welcoming one of the few openly transgender Baptist ministers as their new pastor.
Robert Jeffress says Trump doesn’t have ‘messiah complex’
A spiritual adviser to Donald Trump deflected criticism of the president’s self-designation as “the chosen one” in a radio interview Aug. 21, assuring listeners that the 45th president of the United States does not think he is like a god.
Angela Project ceremony aims to repair, not repeat, America’s history of racism
Repairing America’s racial divide will require more than feeling remorse for sins in the past, the president of a historically black college in Louisville, Kentucky, told an audience of mixed races from various faith traditions gathered to reflect on the 400th anniversary of slavery in the United States.
Franklin Graham says required teaching of LGBT history is ‘an affront to God’
Saying public schools have no right to teach something “that is an affront to God,” evangelist Franklin Graham urged parents in states that require LGQTQ-inclusive teaching to either homeschool their children or enroll them in private schools during a radio interview Aug. 15.
U.S. Baptist leaders urge protection for pastors who testified about religious freedom in Burma
Fear that two pastors who testified at last month’s State Department Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom might face arrest on their return to Myanmar prompted letters of concern from Baptist leaders in the United States.
CBF Kentucky shows solidarity with protesting coal miners in Harlan County
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Kentucky volunteers from various churches traveled Aug. 4 to Harlan County to join laborers blockading railroad tracks leading to a coal mine that closed abruptly while owing them weeks of back pay.
Faith leaders say Kentucky governor doesn’t speak for all Baptists when it comes to abortion
After Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin denounced his Democratic challenger’s stance on abortion as an insult to Kentucky Baptists, ministers at two Louisville Baptist churches joined other faith leaders in a press conference defending both their faith and a woman’s right to choose.
Southern Baptist deputy says he was fired for following the Billy Graham Rule
A Southern Baptist deacon has filed a federal lawsuit claiming religious discrimination after losing his job as a sheriff’s deputy allegedly for following the “Billy Graham Rule” against spending time alone with a woman other than his wife.
After investigation, religion dean leaves Southwest Baptist University to return to pastorate
Rodney Reeves, dean of the Redford School of Religion at Southwest Baptist University, announced Sunday on Facebook his call as senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Jonesboro, Arkansas. The church announced the vote to extend the call as 374-1.
Baptist leader terms pro-gun policies ‘a public safety failure’
America needs more than thoughts and prayers as a collective national response to “routine mass murder,” a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship leader said after weekend shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, claimed both lives and national headlines.