DES MOINES, Iowa (ABP) — Iowa’s first legal same-sex marriage will remain its only one for the time being, thanks to a ruling filed just hours after the state’s first gay couple legally wed. Polk County Judge Robert Hanson agreed…
Aging minister recalls price paid for civil-rights work in Georgia
CHILLICOTHE, Mo. (ABP) — When Norman Shands made a vow to God 65 years ago, he couldn't have imagined that it would thrust him into the center of the civil-rights movement in Atlanta. The vow — that he would treat…
Opportunities, challenges confront increasingly multiethnic congregation
DALLAS (ABP) — Soon after Bruce Troy arrived at Gaston Oaks Baptist Church in Dallas, he challenged a group in the congregation to answer one question: “What would you do if God put 100 people on your doorstep?” Three years…
Eula Mae Baugh, prominent Baptist philanthropist, dead at 89
HOUSTON (ABP) — Prominent Baptist philanthropist Eula Mae Baugh died Aug. 29 after suffering a stroke several days earlier. She was 89. Baugh and her husband, John, who died in March, are known for their support of Baptist efforts, including…
Iowa judge’s ruling makes state latest gay-marriage battleground
DES MOINES, Iowa (ABP) — Iowa’s first legal same-sex marriage took place Aug. 31, the day after a Des Moines judge said a state law banning gay marriage violates same-sex couples’ equal rights. But the legality of the union between…
Correction
In the Aug. 27 story titled “42 Baptist schools make magazine's ‘best colleges' rankings for 2008,” please note that Samford University was re-classified this year from its former classification in Master's-South, not Baccalaureate-South, as was initially reported.
Mission workers equip churches to minister to Muslim immigrants
ATLANTA (ABP) — Butch and Nell Green, overseas missionaries since 1986, have entered a new stage of their ministry life: working in the United States. After spending the majority of their lives working with Muslims in Senegal and Belgium, the…
Turkish Parliament approves moderate Islamist president
ANKARA, Turkey (ABP) — In a blow to an elite secularist caste that has ruled the nation for more than 80 years, the Turkish Parliament elected a devout Muslim as president Aug. 28. Former foreign minister Abdullah Gul received 339…
Court says Seattle-area school can deny charter to Bible club
PORTLAND, Ore. (ABP) — A federal appeals court said Aug. 24 that a Washington state high school is not required to charter a Bible club, since the club allows only Christians to be full members. In Truth v. Kent Public…
Southern Baptist leaders retract endorsements of collaborative blog
NEW YORK (ABP) — Several well-known Southern Baptist leaders have rescinded their previous endorsements of a controversial blog that provides news and opinion related to the Southern Baptist Convention. Jerry Rankin, David Dockery, Thom Rainer and Frank Page all initially…
12 more Korean hostages freed in Afghanistan
GHAZNI, Afghanistan (ABP) — The Taliban released 12 more South Korean Christians Aug. 29, after holding them hostage for six weeks. Red Cross officials picked up the 10 women and two men near Ghazni, about 80 miles from Kabul. The…
4 pastors collaborate on new blog set to join Southern Baptist ranks
NEW YORK (ABP) — Four conservative pastors are joining the increasingly wild and wooly frontier of blogs discussing the state of the Southern Baptist Convention. Robin Foster, Wes Kenney, Tim Rogers, and Joe Stewart have announced the launch of a…