The biblical word translated into English as persecution means to chase after; to harass, trouble, molest or mistreat. It seems to me that Christians and Christianity suffer persecution—face-slapping if you will—from numerous places. I realize that I may be accused…
Are some people born to be religious?
NEW ORLEANS (RNS)—A recent debate at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary was titled “The Future of Atheism,” but the heart of the dialogue explored a related question: Can mankind's age-old belief in God be explained purely as a stubbornly recurring…
SECOND OPINION: Good manners and speaking the truth
The early onset of the presidential campaign has brought with it a renewed call for a “return to civility.” There seems, however, little prospect for any immediate restoration of such civility, assuming that it ever existed. I think there are…
Faith & family help minorities bridge academic achievement gap
WACO, Texas—The academic achievement gap between Anglo students and their African-American or Hispanic peers disappears when the students live in intact, religious families, a new study shows. William Jeynes, a nonresident researcher with the Baylor Univer-sity Institute for Studies of…
Evangelical leaders join broad-based coalition urging immigration reform
WASHINGTON (ABP)—A bi-partisan array of Congress members and evangelical leaders exhorted their colleagues on the moral necessity of immigration reform. Leaders from across the ideological spectrum—from Sens. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., to Southern Baptist public policy agency…
In days following shootings, Hokies search for bright spots amid tragedy
BLACKSBURG, Va. (ABP) — Two days after Cho Seung-Hui shot and killed at least 32 students and professors on the campus of Virginia Tech, students are searching for something good to come of the massacre. “There are people out there…
BREAKING NEWS: Supreme Court upholds ‘partial-birth’ abortion ban
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A sharply divided Supreme Court did April 18 exactly what many pro-lifers hoped and what many abortion-rights advocates feared it would: It upheld, for the first time, a nationwide ban on a specific abortion procedure. In a…
In sweeping decision, divided court upholds ‘partial-birth’ abortion ban
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A sharply divided Supreme Court did April 18 exactly what many pro-lifers hoped — and what many abortion-rights advocates feared. For the first time, the majority upheld a nationwide ban on a specific abortion procedure. In a…
In court’s abortion decision, both sides see risk for Roe
WASHINGTON (ABP) — In upholding a federal ban April 18 on a rare kind of late-term abortion procedure, the Supreme Court may have begun undermining its key abortion precedent. Activists on both sides of the abortion issue greeted the court's…
Churches in parenthesis: Intentional interims serve specific purposes
PLAINVIEW, Texas (ABP) — According to Michael Summers, a director of church services at Wayland Baptist University in Texas, every church needs to step back periodically and reevaluate its purpose. It's a time for members to determine who they are,…
Churches in parenthesis: Churches benefit from intentional interims
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (ABP) — Churches that go through an intentional interim pastor process show lasting benefits, according to recent research. The North Carolina-based Center for Congregational Health examined churches 24 to 36 months after they completed an intentional interim, paying…
Devastated Va. Tech students gather for prayer at Baptist campus center
BLACKSBURG, Va. (ABP) — As the sun began to set and the wind continued to howl over a wounded campus and city April 16, Virginia Tech students gathered for prayer, comfort and counseling at the school's Baptist student center. Blacksburg,…