WASHINGTON—Baptists in South Africa have come to the aid of refugees displaced by ethnic violence. More than 60 immigrants have been killed and about 700 injured in violence that erupted in Johannesburg, Cape Town and other cities in recent weeks….
Fellowship Baptists participate in a time of prayer and discernment
IMB supporters release statement opposing missionary guidelines
RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) — A group of current and former missionaries, former mission-board trustees and pastors is calling for the Southern Baptist Convention International Mission Board to reverse controversial guidelines for missionaries enacted in 2005. The guidelines prohibit the appointment…
Arkansas Baptist school falls short of World Series crown
SAUGET, Ill. (ABP) — An Arkansas Baptist college's baseball team fell just barely short of claiming the NCAA Division II crown May 31. The Ouachita Baptist University Tigers couldn't overcome a five-run lead built up by the top-ranked Mount Olive…
Polygamist sect’s children sing, write poems to thank Baptists
GONZALES, Texas (ABP) — Children seized from a polygamist sect's compound and temporarily entrusted to a Texas Baptist child-care agency bid farewell to their former caretakers May 31 with poetry, song and strong emotion. In anticipation of a court ruling…
CBF General Assembly devotes prayer time to discerning way
ATLANTA (ABP) – How does God want us to use our resources? Finding an answer to that and related questions will be a priority at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly this year. Leaders will seek input from attendees at…
Obama departure from Trinity garners concern, criticism
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Religious and political leaders are expressing both concern and criticism in the wake of Barack Obama's recent break with the church that brought him to faith 20 years ago — but has brought him headaches on the…
Sect’s children begin leaving Baptist caregiver’s custody
DALLAS (ABP) — After court rulings declaring that the state of Texas had insufficient cause to keep them from their parents, more than 400 children taken from a compound owned by the Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints began returning to their…
Popular culture challenges Christians to ‘think outside the box,’ scholars insist
It can be difficult to hear God's word in today's media-saturated culture of iPods, YouTube, satellite radio, and DirecTV with over 500 channels and on-demand movies, two culture observers at Houston Baptist University conclude. “We are shaped by popular culture…
Southern gospel music legend Dottie Rambo dies in crash
MOUNT VERNON, Mo. (ABP) — Southern gospel music singer and songwriter Dottie Rambo, 74, was killed when her tour bus ran off a highway near Mount Vernon, Mo., May 11. She was en route to an engagement in Texas after…
Narnia creators seek to turn beloved books into accessible movies
NEW YORK (RNS) — C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia book series is so revered by Christian readers, adapting the books into film becomes a delicate tightrope. Changes risk alienating fans, but what works in the books doesn't always translate well…
Longtime Baptist musician, seminary professor dies in Florida at 86
ORANGE PARK, Fla. (ABP) — Longtime Baptist hymn writer and music professor Hugh McElrath passed away May 8 at his winter home in Penney Farms, Fla. He also resided in Louisville, Ky. He was 86. McElrath was a professor of…