Editor's note: This story was updated April 10 to correct an error in the 12th paragraph. FRANKLIN, Ind. (ABP) — A former Southern Baptist pastor in central Indiana has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for molesting a 15-year-old…
U.S. teens’ pocket change gives South African village access to clean water
RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) — About 300 families in a South African village soon will have access to clean water, thanks to pocket change collected last year by hundreds of Virginia Baptist youths. A mission team from Bonsack Baptist Church in…
ANALYSIS: Churches can help poor people avoid predatory lending trap
Payday loan outlets have grown like kudzu in recent years. Texas, for instance, has more payday lender outlets — about 3,000 — than it has McDonald’s and Whataburger restaurants combined. And some churches and pastors are asking how they can…
Suffolk youth launched Easter ministries
Youth fill Easter eggs for their church's annual egg hunt. SUFFOLK, Va. — The weekend of March 12-14 was a busy one for the youth at Holland Baptist Church in Suffolk, Va., as they prepared for a variety of ministry…
Black Baptist pastor asks Southern Baptist Convention to repent of racism
ARLINGTON, Texas (ABP) — A prominent African-American Baptist pastor says the Southern Baptist Convention has not kept a promise made in 1995 to "eradicate racism in all its forms from Southern Baptist life and ministry." Dwight McKissic, pastor of Cornerstone…
South Africans get access to clean water, thanks to teens’ pocket change
RICHMOND, Va. — About 300 families in a northeastern South African village soon will have access to clean water, thanks to pocket change collected last year by hundreds of Virginia Baptist youths. On April 7, work crews in Ngwenani, about…
Youth at Suffolk church spend weekend preparing for Easter ministries
Youth fill Easter eggs for their church's annual egg hunt. SUFFOLK, Va. — The weekend of March 12-14 was a busy one for the youth at Holland Baptist Church in Suffolk, Va., as they prepared for a variety of ministry…
China’s religious head says 4 million house churches must register
HONG KONG (RNS/ENI) — The Chinese government’s new head of religious affairs has downplayed the role of house churches during his first official visit to Hong Kong, saying they must be registered with the government for their own protection. Wang…
Abuse scandal imperils pope’s drive to reclaim Europe’s Christian heritage
PARIS (RNS) — Days after being elected pope in 2005, Pope Benedict XVI referred to one of Europe’s patron saints, Benedict of Norcia, as he explained his choice of papal name to thousands of pilgrims massed in St. Peter’s Square….
RIGHT or WRONG? Women deacons
Our church is thinking about electing women deacons. But some members claim this is another example of contemporary liberalism taking over our theology. Is this so? Changing a church’s polity always is a challenge. My best advice is to encourage…
Some black church leaders feel jilted by President Obama
WASHINGTON (RNS) — When President Obama was elected, some black pastors — fresh from a campaign that featured extensive outreach to their churches — expected meetings with the president, or at least to be enlisted as informal advisers. For better…
Michigan Hutaree militia a cult, experts say
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (RNS) — When militia expert Jack Kay first ran across a MySpace page for the Michigan-based Hutaree militia six months ago, he thought it was just another group wrapping itself in God and country. But following raids…