WACO, Texas — Nobody can predict with certainty what the next 400 years hold for Baptists — or for any religious denomination, church historian Martin Marty told a gathering at Baylor University. But Marty, professor emeritus at the University of…
FAITH DIGEST
Sydney bishop dresses down casual clergy. An Anglican bishop in Australia’s largest city has dressed down his clergy over their lack of sartorial style. “Why are our clergy the worst dressed people in church?” wrote Bishop Robert Forsyth of South…
ASK THE ARCHITECT: Forming a building committee
Let’s continue the thought of last month’s article in which we established the commitment to follow God’s lead first and then identified building program generators. Simply stated, such a program begins when we recognize needs. Any one or more indicators…
Faced with scandal, Haggard’s wife tells why she stayed
Under similar circumstances, many women would have kicked their husbands to the couch. Or the curb. But for Gayle Haggard, the gay sex-and-drug scandal that toppled her husband’s ministry was simply “the mountain we had to go over.” And now,…
EDITORIAL: Opening yourself to the counsel of others
Every pastor goes through rough patches from time to time. It’s part of the challenge of leadership. Even Moses’ congregation occasionally complained about the direction they were taking and voiced their displeasure with the person responsible. There is a certain…
Baptist church damaged in Iraq explosion
FALLS CHURCH, Va. — First Baptist Church of Baghdad, Iraq, was damaged by an explosion Jan. 26 less than a half mile from the church building, according to the Baptist World Alliance. The incident occurred when a suicide bomber drove…
Puglisi unexpectedly steps down as VI president; board of trustees announces personnel reductions
BRISTOL, Va. — In a move that appeared sudden to outsiders, on Jan. 25 trustees of Virginia Intermont College called for president Michael J. Puglisi to step down. And in what college administrators and trustees said was unrelated to the…
“Developing an Enduring Ministry” for pastors and church financial leaders
RICHMOND, Va. — The Office of Stewardship Development at the Virginia Baptist Mission Board is sponsoring “Developing an Enduring Ministry,” March 20 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Virginia Baptist Resource Center. The conference is designed around the…
From the Eastern Shore to Cumberland Gap
STAFF CHANGES • Paul Robert “Trey” Gilliam III, to Mulberry Grove Church, Buckingham, as pastor. • Bob Thurman, to Kearfott Memorial Church, Martinsville, as pastor. • Hoyle Bowman, to Fairystone Church, Stuart, as interim pastor. • Patrick Collins, to Story…
Southern Baptist leaders as Obama to intervene on behalf of jailed missionaries
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention urged President Obama Feb. 5 to do everything within his power to secure release of 10 volunteer missionaries jailed in Haiti. Morris Chapman, president and CEO of the SBC Executive…
Southern Baptist leaders ask Obama to intervene on behalf of missionaries
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention urged President Obama Feb. 5 to do everything within his power to secure release of 10 volunteer missionaries jailed in Haiti. Morris Chapman, president and CEO of the SBC Executive…
Church seeks forgiveness for mission team detained in Haiti
MERIDIAN, Idaho (ABP) — The sponsoring church of a 10-member Southern Baptist mission team charged with child kidnapping in Haiti has acknowledged that the group made "mistakes" and asked the Haitian government to forgive them. "We are absolutely convinced that…