With the focus on evangelism and the goal of winning and baptizing 1 million people in a year, the Southern Baptist Convention will gather at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C., June 13-14, for its annual meeting. It will be…
Trustee nominations, committees named for SBC entities
Nominees to serve on the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, the International Mission Board, the North American Mission Board, LifeWay Christian Resources GuideStone Financial Resources, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the six seminaries and the committee on order of…
Vatican official calls for boycott of Da Vinci Code film
The Vatican renewed its attack on The Da Vinci Code on April 28, with a high-ranking official calling Catholics to boycott a forthcoming film version of the runaway best-seller. Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Congregation of the Doctrine of…
Land: Emphasize ‘American’ part of Hispanic-American
A prominent Southern Baptist leader on April 27 advocated Christian support of immigrants but stressed that lawbreakers should be punished and newcomers should work hard to assimilate. “Put the emphasis on the American part of Hispanic-American and you are welcome,”…
Broadman & Holman plans name change
Broadman & Holman Publishers, the trade publishing division of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, announced April 27 plans to change its name to B&H Publishing Group, effective June 1. B&H Publishing Group will serve as an umbrella…
Mercer confirms Baptist identity
Following a formal separation initiated by the Georgia Baptist Convention last November and several pronouncements by university leaders calling for a clear Baptist identity, Mercer University trustees voted April 21 to amend the school's charter to state that “no less…
Alliance pledges anti-racist thrust
Meeting in a city known for both racism and reconciliation, the Alliance of Baptists pledged to remake itself into “an anti-racist organization.” The action came at the Alliance's annual convocation April 21-23 in Birmingham, Ala. While the three-day meeting focused…
Elder rule increasing in Baptist life, and so is controversy over role
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (ABP) — Sam Shaw, senior pastor at Germantown Baptist Church, has a problem on his hands. As in a growing number of Baptist churches, Germantown leaders — including Shaw — want to elect elders. And while many people…
Reinstated Africa missionaries accept IMB guidelines for church-planting
RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) — Under a new agreement, officials at the Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board have reinstated a missionary couple they threatened to fire for establishing a church that was not explicitly Baptist in the West African nation…
Even among elder-led churches, the buck stops in different places
(ABP) — What do some contemporary, Calvinist and cowboy churches have in common? They all have elders. But the similarity pretty much stops there. As with many other churches, the identity, role and authority of elders varies widely. In contemporary-style…
Federal panel again names U.S. allies as violators of religious freedom
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Several of the United States' allies remain among the world's most egregious violators of human rights, according to a non-partisan federal panel's report. In addition, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said, two nations whose oppressive…
SBC narrowness calls for repentance, reform, disgruntled conservatives say
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (ABP) — About 30 Southern Baptist conservatives from diverse backgrounds are repenting of the triumphalism, arrogance and isolationism they say threatens the integrity of the 16 million-member denomination. Saying they represent “disparate constituencies” in the Southern Baptist Convention,…