Elon stands with twin white towers and columned portico shaded by giant trees. The interior looks like a jewel box with its beautiful stained-glass windows and gold carpeting. Last October the church celebrated its 150th anniversary and on the big…
VITAL SIGNS: Facing the raging blizzard
Why a regular column about healthy churches and healthy ministers? Some would argue that such a thing doesn’t exist. For far too many clergy and laity alike, healthy is not the word they use to describe their life in a…
Congregational turnarounds depend on staff leadership, says Baucom
Jim Baucom, pastor of Columbia Baptist in Falls Church, has seen three congregations under his leadership experience renewal. “I think it should be said that growing a church to relevance and vitality from near-death is an extremely rare incidence that…
Baptist expert says Establishment Clause applies to foreign policy
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A Baptist church-state specialist voiced concern about a think-tank report urging a new direction for U.S. foreign policy focused on the role religion plays in world affairs. Writing for the On Faith blog WashingtonPost.com, Brent Walker, executive…
‘Turnaround churches’: Have Baptists something to learn from Anglicans?
If turning around a declining church were easy, more declining churches would be reversing course. And if Christians in the United States think turning around a church is difficult, think of trying it in the Church of England, where tradition…
At Carter’s church, former president still a draw
PLAINS, Ga. (RNS) — With its aging storefronts and small train depot, its graceful pecan trees and clipped fields of peanuts, cottons and hay, peace still seems possible in this tiny town. And nowhere is that peace protected more fiercely…
A Time to Die: Church plants and re-plants key to continued witness
RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) — According to Chris Backert, emerging church strategist with the Virginia Baptist Mission Board, no greater need exists in the Body of Christ today than effective church planting. Chris Backert (VBMB photo) “Over the last decade a…
A Time to Die: Church renewal depends on leadership, Baucom says
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) — Jim Baucom, pastor of Columbia Baptist Church in Falls Church, Va., has helped lead three established congregations to renewal and growth. He says doing the same thing in other churches, while not easy, is possible…
Baptists pledge support for earthquake victims in Chile
ATLANTA (ABP) — As Baptists began to dig in for a long-term response to the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, focus shifted Feb. 27 to another quake that killed hundreds and caused billions of dollars in property damage in Chile. …
Baptists pledge support for earthquake victims in Chile as death toll nears 700
ATLANTA (ABP) — As Baptists began to dig in for a long-term response to the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, focus shifted Feb. 27 to another quake that killed hundreds and caused billions of dollars in property damage in Chile. …
Relief launched for quake in Chile described as ‘without parallel’
CONCEPCION, Chile – Southern Baptists have released $50,000 for immediate relief needs in Chile, where the death toll has climbed past 700 in an earthquake disaster described by the country’s president as “without parallel in Chile's history.” A Southern Baptist…
Youth minister, young-adult pastor honored by CBF for their ministries
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — A young associate pastor and a longtime youth minister have been honored by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship for their dedication to ministry. Fran Patterson, left, and Amy Grizzle, right, with CBF's Bo Prosser were honored at…