WASHINGTON (ABP) — A group of high-ranking Pentagon officials improperly endorsed and aided an evangelical Christian ministry, according to a Defense Department investigation recently made public. The Department of Defense inspector general's report was dated July 20 and released to…
Lutherans ask bishops to refrain from disciplining gay pastors
CHICAGO (ABP) — In what pro-gay activists hailed as a historic opening, members of the nation's largest Lutheran denomination voted Aug. 11 to loosen a policy that bans gay ministers from having sexual relationships. By a 538-431 margin, delegates to…
Taliban reportedly releases two of Korean hostages
GHAZNI, Afghanistan (ABP) — Two of the 23 South Korean hostages kidnapped by the Taliban last month were released Aug. 12. Associated Press reported Kim Kyung-ja, 37, and Kim Ji-na, 32, were driven to waiting Red Cross vehicles in rural…
Historic First Baptist Dallas names Robert Jeffress as senior pastor
DALLAS (ABP) — First Baptist Church in Dallas has called one of its own products, Robert Jeffress, to become its new senior pastor. According to a statement on the church's website, more than 3,000 congregants affirmed the 51-year-old at an…
Proud of pastor
It was with great delight that I read Lauren Heilman's article in the July 26 issue of the Religious Herald: “African-American pastor blazes trail at Northern Virginia church.” Being one who was raised to believe that pride is a sin,…
News about Virginia Baptists and their ministries for August 9, 2007
STAFF CHANGES • Patrick Johnson, to Moores Memorial Church, Gate City, as pastor. • Brad Russell, to Old Powhatan Church, Powhatan, as pastor. • Bruce Hunter has concluded his service as pastor of Beaver Dam Church, Troy. • Chris Fowler…
Italian ministry
Let me tell you that what is happening in Italy with the help of Virginia Baptists and your teams is wonderful. We had Virginia choirs in many churches in these last weeks singing in our towns, many helping us in…
Waging peace
Beginning with the ancient Christians martyred by the Roman Empire and running through Thomas Becket and to Dietrich Bonhoeffer and beyond, church leaders often have spoken truth courageously to the secular powers-that-be — regardless of the consequences. But, in the…
Corruption, financial pitfalls continue to plague TV leaders
DALLAS (ABP)—For some, Tammy Faye Messner's death July 20 stirred fond memories of a joyful Christian TV personality, and for others, painful memories of the sex-and-money scandal that destroyed her former husband's popular Christian television network. Her death also reminds…
Battling Baptists: Kissing cousins to peace churches
Baptists are known for being theologically diverse. And that diversity extends to Baptists' relationships with their theological cousins, the Quakers, Mennonites and Brethren—the historical peace churches. “Although a few Baptists have opted for pacifism on occasion, most fit better into…
Religion still ‘marginalized’ in foreign policy
WASHINGTON (RNS)—U.S. foreign policy officials have shown an increased understanding of religion's importance to American diplomacy, but the government's activities in that area display a “lack of strategic thinking” that hampers efforts abroad, according to a new report. U.S. officials…
Churches keep peace within by focusing on troops—not on the war
Many Christians with deeply held opinions on an increasingly unpopular war find themselves worshipping with fellow believers on the opposite side of the political divide. Feelings particularly run high in communities near military installations. And some leaders of churches in…