Children from Cradock Baptist with some of the stuffed animals collected for the children in Atlanta. PORTSMOUTH, Va. (ABP) — Rob Edwards, pastor of Cradock Baptist Church in Portsmouth, Va. admits a recent mission project that resulted in the collection…
Federal court says Christian-themed license plates unconstitutional
COLUMBIA, S.C. (ABP) — A federal judge ruled Nov. 10 that a South Carolina license plate featuring a cross, stained-glass window and the words "I Believe" violates the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state. U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan…
Eight missing after Hurricane Ida destroys Baptist church in El Salvador
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) — Seven children and one adult were reported missing after a Baptist church in El Salvador collapsed amid heavy rains and flooding caused by Hurricane Ida Nov. 8. First Baptist Church in San Vicente was in…
Fort Hood-area churches offer refuge
KILLEEN, Texas (BP) — A couple of Southern Baptist congregations near Fort Hood served as rallying places for the community and offered messages of hope Nov. 8 following a shooting on a military post that left 12 soldiers, one civilian…
RETROSPECTIVE: The wall became a door and the world changed
RICHMOND (BP) — I clearly remember watching the evening news, spellbound as jubilant Berliners danced upon the Berlin Wall the night of Nov. 9, 1989. East Berliners were flowing through Brandenburg Gate, and a news correspondent asked the expectant crowd…
Great Awakening: Is a new one taking place outside the West?
Members of a Messianic Jewish congregation in Almaty, Kazakhstan, worship at a Saturday-evening service. DALLAS (ABP) — Some observers of religion assert a socially transforming spiritual movement is sweeping the globe, resulting in 82,000 conversions to Christianity a day. But…
Great Awakening: Bible guides revival of evangelical activism, Wallis says
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Evangelical progressive activist Jim Wallis believes the United States is ripe for another socially transforming spiritual awakening. But as Christians become energized to change the world, they need to avoid the temptation to politicize the gospel, he…
Great Awakening: Texans celebrate Spirit’s movement among Iranians
PLANO, Texas (ABP) — In the meeting hall of a suburban Dallas church recently, Persian praise songs resonated as about 150 worshipers raised their hands and opened their hearts. They rejoiced in the way God’s Spirit is moving among Iranians,…
Federal judge: N.C. county council’s sectarian prayers unconstitutional
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (ABP) — A federal judge is recommending that a North Carolina county be ordered to stop allowing sectarian prayers at meetings of its board of commissioners. Stephen Corts Trevor Sharpe, a magistrate judge for the U.S. Court for…
Texas Baptists provide solace in wake of Fort Hood massacre
FORT HOOD, Texas (ABP) — In the wake of the Fort Hood tragedy, Texas Baptists are helping people find comfort in Christ. Four chaplains endorsed by Texas Baptists are ministering directly to victims of the Nov. 5 shooting at the…
Don’t blame Islam for Fort Hood killings, Baptist leader says
NORMAN, Okla. (ABP) — At least one Baptist leader cautioned against attempts to blame the Nov. 5 Fort Hood massacre on the accused assailant's Islamic faith. Bruce Prescott Bruce Prescott, executive director of Mainstream Oklahoma Baptists, said Nov. 8 that…
Grandparents claim bragging rights for adopted children from overseas
HARRISONVILLE, Mo. — Wade and Nellie Paris of Harrisonville, Mo., know the blessings of adopting children of a different culture. Now they are grandparents to international adoptees. In 1971, they adopted 7-month-old Susan from Korea. Then in 1975, they adopted…