Our family cannot decide whether cremation is biblically acceptable. Can you provide some biblical reference points or standards? Cremation is an increasingly popular alternative to burial. Since it isn’t a traditional Christian form, believers can struggle with its biblical acceptability….
British Baptist minister jailed in Virginia on child molestation charges
FAIRFAX, Va. (ABP) — A British Baptist minister is being held in a Virginia jail on charges of child molestation. Robert Dando, senior minister of Worcester Park Baptist Church in Surrey, United Kingdom, was arrested July 24 in Oakton, Va. He is…
Evangelicals condemn church’s plan to burn Quran on 9/11 anniversary
WASHINGTON (RNS) — The National Association of Evangelicals has condemned plans by a Florida church to burn copies of the Quran on the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Fla., announced its plans…
Is the Tea Party unbiblical?
WASHINGTON (RNS) — When conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck warned church-goers to “run as fast as you can” if their pastors preach about “social justice,” was he also encouraging them to run from the Bible? That’s what some progressive Christian leaders…
Former Virginia Baptist youth minister accused of sex with teen in his church
WOODBRIDGE, Va. (ABP) — A former Virginia Baptist youth minister has been arrested on charges that he engaged in a sexual relationship with a teenage girl in his church. Police in Northern Virginia’s Prince William County arrested Jason Bolton, 32,…
Former Virginia Baptist church secretary charged with embezzlment
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (ABP) — The former financial secretary of a Virginia Baptist church has been arrested on charges that she embezzled nearly $300,000 in church funds over the course of years. Police say Michele M. Roberts, 61, stole $287,678…
Washington in a war of words over how to label terrorists
WASHINGTON (RNS) — In addition to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Obama administration is fighting on another front — a domestic war of words over how to describe the threat posed by militant Islamic terrorism. Earlier this spring,…
Is the Tea Party unbiblical? It all depends on your perspective
WASHINGTON (RNS) — When conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck warned church-goers to “run as fast as you can” if their pastors preach about “social justice,” was he also encouraging them to run from the Bible? That’s what some progressive Christian leaders…
FAITH DIGEST
Study reveals Amish growth. A new study says the population of North American Amish has increased nearly 10 percent in the past two years, causing many communities to turn westward in search of new land. Conducted by the Young Center…
Baptist teenagers among protesters arrested at school board’s meeting
RALEIGH, N.C. (ABP) — Three youth and one adult from Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh, N.C., were among six people arrested Aug. 10 for disrupting a meeting of the Wake County School Board in protest of the school district's…
Man pleads guilty to beating two elderly women at Ill. church
ANNA, Ill. (ABP) — A man charged with beating and robbing two elderly women at a small-town Baptist church last fall pleaded guilty Aug. 10 to two counts of attempted murder. Willis Bates Willis Bates, 46, of Anna, Ill., was…
BGCT eliminates 13 staff positions, reduces some to part-time
DALLAS (ABP) — Six Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board employees are losing their jobs, seven unfilled posts are being eliminated and a dozen positions are being reduced from full-time to part-time due to the state convention’s current financial…