WASHINGTON (ABP) – Directors of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, meeting in Washington Oct. 4-5, discussed the tenuous state of religious freedom in America and heard of the organization’s continuing search for property on Capitol Hill. At their…
Church administrators to focus on risk management
DALLAS (ABP) – A jury in Florida recently ordered a prominent Southern Baptist church to pay $4.75 million to a man injured seven years ago on a youth ski trip — and such verdicts are inspiring church administrators to take…
SBC ethics czar Land comes out in favor of Tennessee mosque
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — After opposing the building of a mosque near Ground Zero in New York City, the Southern Baptist Convention's chief spokesman on public policy has come out in support of Muslims seeking to build a new Islamic…
SBC ethics chief supports Murfreesboro mosque
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — After opposing the building of a mosque near Ground Zero in New York City, the Southern Baptist Convention's chief spokesman on public policy has come out in support of Muslims seeking to build a new Islamic…
Clergy sex abuse ‘pervasive,’ study co-author says
WACO, Texas (ABP) — While newspapers carried headlines about high-profile sexual-coercion lawsuits filed against Atlanta mega-church pastor Eddie Long, a Baptist researcher said the problem of clergy sexual abuse is much larger than a few charismatic leaders who abuse their…
‘Heaven’s Rain’ tells story of forgiveness
OKLAHOMA CITY (ABP) — A son of Southern Baptist missionaries who survived the home-invasion murder of his parents in 1979 and later went on to advocate for victims' rights as Oklahoma's youngest-ever state senator brings his story to the big…
European Baptists, other Protestants sign cooperation pact
ROME (ABP) — Baptists in Europe pledged to work more closely with other Protestants on the continent in an agreement signed Sept. 24. Leaders of the European Baptist Federation and the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe signed an accord…
When does human life begin? In Missouri, it’s legally at conception
ST. LOUIS (RNS) — The question has perplexed philosophers, theologians and scientists for thousands of years: At what point does human life begin? Missouri lawmakers have declared their answer. By withholding both his signature and his veto, Democratic Gov. Jay…
Why so many people like Stuff Christians Like: An interview with Jon Acuff
Jon Acuff is the author of the satirical blog Stuff Christians Like and a book by the same title published by Zondervan. In about two years, Acuff has taken a start-up blog from obscurity to more than 1.5 million readers,…
FAITH DIGEST
United States ties for fifth place in global giving. The United States tied with Switzerland for fifth place in a worldwide giving index by the British-based Charities Aid Foundation that measures charitable behavior across the globe. The ranking was based…
Mormons catch a glimpse of life in the big leagues
SALT LAKE CITY (RNS) — Mormons have been making headlines across the nation — from HBO’s Big Love to California’s Proposition 8, from American Idol wannabe David Archuleta to Twilight author Stephenie Meyer, from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to…
RIGHT or WRONG? Limited resources
The economic crisis in Europe, launched by the calamity in Greece, caused me to realize we are a global economy. What happens anywhere on the planet can affect the whole world, and resources are limited. So, we all need to…