DALLAS (ABP) – It’s not just your imagination. Men are disappearing from the church. According to the Barna Research Group, there are 11 million to 13 million more American women who are born again than there are born-again men. While…
ABC-USA proposes changes to focus on mission, churches
VALLEY FORGE, Pa. (ABP) — Leaders of the American Baptist Churches USA are proposing changes to the denomination’s governing structure that aim to encourage greater missional empowerment and broader involvement of affiliated churches. The ABC General Board considered the proposal…
Declaration responds to torture-policy shift
(ABP) — For years in foreign-policy circles, the United States was regarded as the world’s premier protector of individual liberty, promoter of democracy and champion of human rights. But terrorist attacks on U.S. soil on Sept. 11, 2001, created a…
Daniel Vestal counters BP column that said CBF not ‘truly Christian’
ATLANTA (ABP) — Why would some Baptist writers go out of their way to create the impression that the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is not even Christian? CBF Executive Coordinator Daniel Vestal said he is trying to answer that question after…
John Templeton, religious philanthropist, dead at 95
NASSAU, Bahamas (ABP) — Sir John Marks Templeton, religious philanthropist and founder of an annual award that honors innovation in religion, died of pneumonia July 8 in Nassau, Bahamas. He was 95. Perhaps most widely known for the Templeton Prize…
Carson-Newman names Baylor Provost Randall O’Brien president
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. (ABP) — Veteran Baylor University professor and administrator Randall O’Brien has been named president of Carson-Newman College. Trustees of the Jefferson City, Tenn., school elected him July 8. O’Brien will assume full-time duties Jan. 1, 2009, after…
Economy may affect churches in ways other than giving
(ABP) — The bottoming markets, soaring gas and food prices and a steady stream of home foreclosures may be affecting other sectors of the economy, but that doesn’t mean church budgets will necessarily feel the pinch. But local congregations may…
FAITH SHAPERS: Teaching tricky topics: Where does God live?
Have you ever thought about how confusing it must be for children when we talk about where God is? Although we rarely sit them down to talk about God's location, they pick up ideas from things we say. We tell…
Third World faith: The new center of Christianity
Laughter, tambourines and native instruments fill the air of a tiny apartment as a small group of Christians gather for fervent worship. Despite the oppression they have experienced under Islam and the Soviet system, these Central Asian Christians dance and…
Survey finds U.S. faith is more nuanced than most might think
WASHINGTON (RNS)—Think you know what Americans believe about religion? Think again. Seven in 10 Americans who follow one particular faith believe many “religions” can lead to eternal life. Despite the intense attention paid to evangelical and Catholic voters in a…
Vatican reports growth in Africa
VATICAN CITY (RNS)—Africa is the Catholic Church's region of biggest growth, with rising numbers of faithful, clergy and religious orders, according to Vatican statistics. IMB Photo Christian Fulanis in Nigeria meet at a local home for a Sunday morning Bible…
Highlights from U.S. Religious Landscape Survey
WASHINGTON (RNS)—Here are some of the findings from the U.S. Religious Landscape Survey of the beliefs and practices of adults in the United States: • 92 percent believe in God • 79 percent believe in miracles • 68 percent believe…