WASHINGTON (ABP) — Baptist groups in North America and Europe are donating money to assist flood victims in Pakistan. Baptist World Aid, the relief-and-development arm of the Baptist World Alliance, granted an initial $10,000 to meet medical, food and shelter…
Poll: Confusion about Obama’s faith, opposition to church politicking
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A new poll released by the Pew Research Center Aug. 19 shows a sharp uptick in the percentage of Americans who are confused about President Obama’s faith. It also shows that a slight majority of Americans don’t…
Controversial theologian, seminary professor Clark Pinnock dies
HAMILTON, Ontario (ABP) — Clark Pinnock, an influential theologian whose spiritual pilgrimage led from a fiery fundamentalism as a young professor to an openness that caused some to brand him a heretic, died Aug. 15 of a heart attack. Pinnock,…
ANALYSIS: Legal status of mosque project clear; pluralism’s status not
WASHINGTON (ABP) — One thing is settled in the controversy over building an Islamic cultural center near the former World Trade Center site in New York: There is no legal impediment to the facility rising there. A sign at a…
Judge throws out Missouri funeral protest law aimed at extremist church
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (ABP) — A federal judge ruled Aug. 16 that a Missouri law banning protests at or near funerals is unconstitutional. In 2006 Missouri passed a law prohibiting picketers within 300 feet of a memorial service. It was…
Hispanic evangelicals urge GOP not to alienate Latinos over immigration
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Leaders of the nation’s largest Hispanic evangelical organization warned leaders of the Republican Party Aug. 17 that their increasingly strident rhetoric on immigration puts the party at risk of losing an entire generation of Latino voters. “We…
The climate changes and we do nothing
By David Gushee The New York Times ran a front-page article by Justin Gillis this past Sunday called “In Weather Chaos, a Case for Global Warming.” It makes for an interesting study, both because the Times finally ran an article…
Exiled pastor of Baptist church in Gaza returns to Jordan after visit
AMMAN, Jordan (ABP) — The exiled pastor of Gaza Baptist Church began teaching Aug. 16 at Jordan Evangelical Theological Seminary following a three-week visit to his homeland to preach, teach and distribute food and medicine to the poor. "While food…
Baptist leader says Obama wrong about Ground Zero mosque
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — The head of the Southern Baptist Convention's moral concerns agency said Aug. 14 that he disagreed with President Obama's assessment that Muslims have a constitutional right to build the so-called Ground Zero mosque in New York…