DALLAS (ABP) — What distinguishes religiously affiliated hospitals from their secular counterparts? Chaplains and charity care top the list, administrators of faith-based, nonprofit healthcare institutions agree. “Every morning at 5 a.m., a chaplain goes into our surgical unit, where he…
Garland named interim president at Baylor
David Garland WACO, Texas (ABP) — The Baylor University board of regents has named David Garland as interim president. Garland has been dean of the Texas Baptist school's George W. Truett Theological Seminary since June 2007. He will continue as…
Saddleback forum points out candidates’ differences, similarities
LAKE FOREST, Calif. (ABP) — Individual stand on moral issues — from personal character to the international arena — was the foundation of the Aug. 16 Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency. The two-hour forum, sponsored by Southern Baptist mega-congregation…
Former Texas church planter files libel suit against BGCT, others
EDINBURG, Texas (ABP) — A former Hispanic church planter implicated in a 2006 Baptist General Convention of Texas scandal has filed a defamation lawsuit against the BGCT and several other Texas Baptist entities and individuals. Otto Arango, founder of the…
C.W. Brister, longtime Southwestern pastoral-care professor, dies at 82
FORT WORTH, Texas (ABP) — C.W. Brister, Jr., who taught pastoral counseling and theology to generations of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary students, died Aug. 9, reportedly of complications from Lou Gehrig’s disease. He was 82. Brister was a professor of…
Americans act as Georgian Baptists call for aid, end to conflict
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) — Baptists in the United States and elsewhere in the world are responding with aid and prayers for their counterparts in the embattled former Soviet republic of Georgia. It was unclear by midday Aug. 14 whether…
Truett-McConnell College calls Caner as president
Emir Caner CLEVELAND, Ga. (ABP) — A Sunni Muslim-turned-conservative Baptist has been tapped as the eighth president of Truett-McConnell College in Cleveland, Ga. College trustees voted Aug. 8 to name Emir Caner to the position. Caner is founding dean of…
Man shoots Ark. Democratic chairman, menaces Baptist Building
The Arkansas Baptist State Convention building is just blocks from the Arkansas Democratic Party offices on Capitol Avenue in downtown Little Rock LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (ABP) — A man fitting the description of a suspect who shot and killed the…
Faith leaders ask DNC, RNC to showcase anti-poverty plans
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Prominent faith leaders are calling on the United States’ two major political parties to use their upcoming presidential-nominating conventions as platforms for showcasing how they would deal with poverty. In a recent letter to presumptive Republican nominee…
American Baptist leaders organize first-ever Burmese Baptist meeting
VALLEY FORGE, Pa. (ABP) — In October, the American Baptist Churches USA will convene the first-ever national conference for Burmese Baptist leaders serving in the United States. More than 30 pastors and lay leaders are expected to attend the Oct….
Amid Criswell College turmoil, accrediting probation lifted
DALLAS (ABP) — A bright spot has appeared amidst leadership turmoil at Dallas-based Criswell College: the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has removed the school from its probation list. The accrediting agency lifted the year-long probation at its June…
Playground brings hope to rural Miss. county
ATLANTA (ABP) -– It was a beautiful moment for the people of Goodman, Miss., and the teenagers from First Baptist Church in Greenwood, S.C. After days of building, the teens completed a new playground in Goodman — where children once…