ARKADELPHIA, Ark. (ABP) — Ouachita Baptist University trustees, meeting in executive session March 9, urged the OBU administration to explore the feasibility of launching a graduate program in theology. The action came in the form of a resolution by a…
Tennessee couple encourages others while battling cancer
JACKSON, Tenn. (ABP) — When Eric and Sharon Langshur's son, Matthew, was born five years ago with a congenital heart defect, they created a simple web site to provide updates, a message board, and a photo gallery for friends and…
Alabama fires suspects stay in jail, face arson and burglary charges
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (ABP) — The three men charged in the string of 10 church fires in rural Alabama will not seek release on bond from their federal charges, their lawyers said. Matthew Lee Cloyd, 20; Benjamin Moseley, 19; and Russell…
Diverse groups urge administration to intervene in Afghan man’s case
WASHINGTON (ABP) — The plight of an Afghan man who could face the death penalty for converting from Islam to Christianity has united a broad array of religious, human-rights and advocacy groups that often find themselves ideologically opposed to each…
North Carolina CBF approves budget, elects new leaders
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (ABP) — In its 13th General Assembly, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina reelected Don Horton, a layman from Zebulon Baptist Church, as moderator. Gail Coulter, pastor of Providence Baptist Church in Hendersonville, became moderator-elect. “It was…
IMB won’t remove blogging trustee but prohibits dissent in future actions
TAMPA, Fla. (ABP) — Trustees of the International Mission Board decided not to seek the removal of one of their own for criticizing trustee actions, but they adopted new guidelines to prohibit and punish such criticism in the future. After…
Back at sea: Partnership between Indian and Virginia Baptists is restoring livel
By Robert Dilday Associate Editor Some 75 Indian fishing families have had their livelihoods restored, thanks to the joint efforts of Baptists in Virginia and India. Over the past few months, fiberglass boats-replacing those destroyed by last year's tsunami-have been…
Gaddy warns Mainstream Baptists to be vigilant on religious liberty
5{arus Associated Baptist Press Speaking Feb. 24 in the birthplace of the First Amendment’s religion clauses, a Baptist minister who is a professional opponent of the Religious Right warned Baptists to be equally vigilant. Welton Gaddy, president of the Washington-based…
Foreign policy think tank begins initiative on religion
With help from a former secretary of state, an influential think tank focusing on foreign relations has launched a new initiative that will study and explain the role religion plays in foreign policy. The Council on Foreign Relations, with offices…
NAMB panel to study charges, but agency won’t release audit
By Greg Warner Associated Baptist Press Trustees of the North American Mission Board are asking a task force to see if there is any truth to allegations-first reported in the Christian Index-that the NAMB's evangelism and church-planting efforts are lagging…
FIRST PERSON: A rewarding and unusual disaster relief experience
By Paul and Gerri McDaniel The McDaniels, members of Lynn Haven Baptist Church, Vinton, recently spent two weeks in Gulfport, Mississippi, working with one of Virginia Baptists’ partner churches, Crosspoint. Crosspoint Church, a church only a year and a half…
Loaves, fishes and aluminum boxes
By Paige Peak Virginia Baptist Mission Board Feeding the multitudes was modeled by Christ. What seemed like such a limited offering resulted in thousands being fed. Virginia Baptist disaster relief volunteers fed hundreds of thousands of people last year alone…