NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — About one-fourth of the largest and one-third of the fastest-growing churches in America are Baptist, according to an annual listing compiled by LifeWay Research for Outreach Magazine. Nearly half of the nation's largest and fastest-growing churches…
Eddie Hammett will join North Carolina CBF staff
RALEIGH, N.C. (ABP) — Eddie Hammett, who was laid off in August from the staff of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina in a cost-cutting move, will begin a part-time role with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina…
Baptist college campuses form groups attacking domestic hunger directly
(L to R) Sheena Smith, Flor Avellaneda, Christine Hersh and Marianne Magjuka celebrated the grand opening of Baylor University Campus Kitchen earlier this year. The students were four of the more than 40 BUCK volunteers, who made 1,000 box lunches…
Baylor asks alumni association to give up independence, move in-house
WACO, Texas (ABP) — The tense relationship between Baylor University and the Baylor Alumni Association may have reached a potential turning point — or boiling point — Sept. 19 when the university presented the alumni association a proposal asking the…
Texas Baptists Committed to seek new leader
SAN ANGELO, Texas (ABP) — Texas Baptists Committed, formed as a political organization two decades ago to resist a “fundamentalist takeover” of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, soon will be seeking a new executive director and relocating its office….
George Barna, Hispanic evangelicals weigh in on health-care reform
VENTURA, Calif. (ABP) — Prominent evangelical pollster George Barna weighed in on the health-care debate with a Sept. 20 editorial saying that Jesus would support universal coverage — although not necessarily through the government. The founder of the Barna Research…
Southern Baptists, other conservative Christians urge Iran action
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Prominent conservative Christian leaders — including the current and former presidents of the Southern Baptist Convention — wrote Congress and other world leaders Sept. 21 calling for urgent action to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. As…
Seeking allies for Israel, Jews reach out to Latino evangelicals
LOS ANGELES (RNS) — Early on a weekday morning, dozens of Latino evangelical leaders stream into a large church on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Greeting one another in Spanish, they sip coffee and share pastries until they are informed…
Love your enemies, civility advocates say as they initiate project
WASHINGTON (RNS) — Mark DeMoss, to borrow a line from the U2 song, still hasn’t found what he’s looking for. The veteran Christian public relations executive couldn’t find it last year when he advised Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. It was…
Faith-based mutual insurers worry about health care reform
WASHINGTON (RNS) — As Congress debates whether to mandate health insurance for all Americans, several Christian ministries whose members share each other’s medical costs are hoping the final version of health care reform doesn’t put them out of business. Officials…
Faith-based providers propose models for health reform, fill gaps in system
Faith-based health care providers can lead the way in developing new models that emphasize wellness and prevention — and create accountable-care organizations focused on the needs of patients and their families, the president of Baylor Health Care System believes. Eighty…
Ethicists view health care as basic right, not a luxury commodity
Human beings are fragile creatures needing health care to flourish and — in many cases — survive, said David Gushee, distinguished university professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University. And that universal need for health care makes it a human…