Baptists long have been known as strong advocates of the priesthood of the believer — the idea that every individual can approach God and have a personal relationship with the Creator. Each person has the right to interpret Scripture for…
Author finds faith and fanaticism in devotion to college football
AUBURN, Ala. (RNS) — Chad Gibbs has been on a pigskin pilgrimage throughout the South, searching for spiritual truth in Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge, Gainesville and Fayetteville. He grew up a fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide and switched allegiance to…
Who’s in charge? As churches grow, decision-making becomes complex
Baptist churches across the board agree — Jesus Christ is the head of the church. But when it comes to ways Christians discern Christ’s will for their particular congregation, handle its day-to-day administrative chores and make decisions about budget and…
Pigskin pilgrimage
AUBURN, Ala. (RNS) — Chad Gibbs has been on a pigskin pilgrimage throughout the South, searching for spiritual truth in Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge, Gainesville and Fayetteville. He grew up a fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide and switched allegiance to…
Governing multi-site churches like franchising a business
As some congregations reach out to minister beyond their church campus, many have chosen to begin second or third or more sites under the church umbrella. Adding more sites usually means adjusting the congregation’s governing structure. Glenn Akins, assistant executive…
Carter, Baptist leaders discuss reprise of New Baptist Covenant gathering
ATLANTA (ABP) — A repeat of the 2008 Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant meeting in Atlanta could be in the offing as early as next year, according participants in a recent meeting of North American Baptist leaders called together…
Moderate Baptist group in Georgia closing doors after decade’s work
ATHENS, Ga. (ABP) — A group formed 10 years ago to oppose fundamentalism in the Georgia Baptist Convention has decided to close up shop. The Baptist Heritage Council of Georgia's board of directors voted in September to close the organization…
On being an eightysomething Baptist
By David Gushee I am 48 years old, and I acutely feel the generational reality of being caught in the middle, betwixt the 80-year-old generation represented by my parents and the 20-year-olds represented by my children and students. It…
Moderate Baptists uneasy about evangelical political baggage
Are Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and Mainstream Baptists evangelicals? The answer is yes and no. Formed in reaction to the Southern Baptist Convention’s shift to the far right in the late 1980s and early 1990s, both the CBF and Mainstream focus…
Who are evangelicals? Some wonder if the term has lost its meaning
When evangelist Billy Graham, social activist Jim Wallis, pastor Rick Warren, theologian Al Mohler and author Brian McLaren all can fit under the umbrella term “evangelical,” some theological and cultural observers wonder if the term has lost its meaning. And…
Definitions of “evangelical” vary
The National Association of Evangelicals has a seven-point statement of faith. Members affirm they believe: • The Bible is the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative word of God. • There is one God, eternally existent in three persons—Father, Son and…
Reduction in force planned at NAMB
ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) — Telling staff of the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board “considerable change” is coming, President Kevin Ezell shared a retirement incentive with employees that will be the beginning of an overall reduction in force in…