AKOPE STATION, Uganda (BP)—Saidat Makop is sick. To look at her, a casual observer would never know. She looks as healthy as the next person. Her cheeks are rosy. She works in the garden for hours. Her eyes might look…
Lectionary helps some Baptist preachers feed their flocks a ‘balanced diet’
RICHMOND—It's Saturday night. Do you know where your pastor is? A pretty safe guess might be “in a study, frantically developing the next day's sermon.” But how does a preacher decide on the Scripture text? Some free-church Baptist pastors find…
British Baptists apologize for slavery, acknowledge ‘appalling consequences’
SWANWICK, England (BWA) — Baptists in Britain have apologized for the slave trade. The Council of the Baptist Union of Great Britain — widely known as BUGB— which met in Swanwick, England, on Nov. 12-14, passed a resolution saying, “We…
Integrity demands preachers avoid pulpit plagiarism
If preachers pass off other people's work as their own, they automatically limit themselves to preaching about only eight commandments. “Thou shalt not steal” and “thou shalt not bear false witness” become off-limits. But preachers can avoid plagiarism by beginning…
Baptist-Catholic dialogue continues with second round
WASHINGTON (BWA) — The second round in the second series of conversations between the Baptist World Alliance and the Vatican was to take place Dec. 2-8 in Rome. The first round in this series was held at Beeson Divinity School…
Virginia Baptist Mission Board elects officers, allocates funds for ministry
RICHMOND — The Virginia Baptist Mission Board elected new officers and allocated funds to a variety of statewide and international ministries during its organizational meeting Nov. 27-28 at the Virginia Baptist Resource Center. Joe Lewis, pastor of Second Baptist Church…
News about Virginia Baptists and their ministries for December 6, 2007
STAFF CHANGES • Steven R. Gupton, to First Church, Virginia Beach, as pastor. He had served as pastor of Ivor Church, Ivor. • Joel Jenkins, resigning as pastor of First Church, Charlottesville, to continue active duty service in military chaplaincy….
Blair, afraid of being labeled a ‘nutter,’ kept faith private
LONDON (RNS) — Former British prime minister Tony Blair says his religious faith, although rarely expressed in public, was “hugely important” to him but he feared he might be viewed as a “nutter” if he spoke out about it. Blair,…
Virginia Baptists assisting victims of devastating cyclone in Bangladesh
RICHMOND — Virginia Baptists are providing assistance to victims of the cyclone that devastated parts of Bangladesh in November. More than 3,500 people were killed in the Ganges River delta along the Bay of Bengal. Terry Raines, coordinator for mobile…
News about Virginia Baptists and their ministries for December 6, 2007
STAFF CHANGES • Steven R. Gupton, to First Church, Virginia Beach, as pastor. He had served as pastor of Ivor Church, Ivor. • Joel Jenkins, resigning as pastor of First Church, Charlottesville, to continue active duty service in military chaplaincy….
OFFERINGS: Bandela partners with Indian church starters in ministry
ATLANTA — For five years, Sam Bandela, one of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship's global missions field personnel, has been working patiently among hill tribes in the mountainous central region of India. Even as tsunami relief and personal challenges intervened, Bandela…
In Afton, an unexpected sight: First-century Bethlehem recreated
AFTON — The Village of Bethlehem in Afton, Va., is a small replica of the actual City of David, and it comes to life each December when members of a little country church transform into first-century characters. Visitors from all…