Michael H. Flake, 32, director of resort ministries in the north Georgia mountains for the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board, was found dead Jan. 27 in Helen, Ga., Baptist Press reported Jan. 27. BP did not report the…
Focus on the Family supports Colo. bill to offer some rights to gay couples
WASHINGTON (ABP) — As the political battle over same-sex marriage heats up again in Washington, an unusual debate over gay rights is raising some eyebrows in Colorado. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) announced Feb. 10 he would schedule a…
Phil Strickland, head of Texas Baptist moral-concerns agency, dies at 64
DALLAS (ABP) — Phil Strickland, who served nearly a quarter century as director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas' Christian Life Commission, died Feb. 11 at age 64. According to his colleagues, Strickland believed his mission was to provide…
Jewish-Baptist dinner in Atlanta feeds understanding between faiths
ATLANTA (ABP) — Devita Parnell had quite a time trying to plan a Baptist-Jewish dinner so it wouldn't land on any holy day of either faith. Between Hanukkah, Christmas, Lent, Purim, Passover and Easter, she had her hands full. But…
Groups of evangelical leaders face off over global warming
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A Feb. 8 news conference in Washington signaled the start of what could become a showdown over global warming between two groups of evangelical Christian leaders. At stake are the hearts and minds of evangelical Americans and…
Charismatic-leaning Southern Baptists being betrayed, excluded, says pastor
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (ABP) — When Paul Pressler and Paige Patterson launched a revolution within the Southern Baptist Convention, they found an eager soldier in Ron Phillips. Phillips, 58, has been pastor of Central Baptist Church of Hixson, near Chattanooga, Tenn.,…
Revised Air Force religion guidelines continue ban on sectarian prayers
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Pentagon officials have revised a set of guidelines on religious freedom in the Air Force after complaints from members of Congress and some religious groups. But the revisions met with mixed reviews from groups with interests in…
Diverse Baptist groups unite to help Katrina victims find housing
BATON ROUGE, La. (ABP) — After months of sharing two houses with dozens of family members, the Nero family — formerly of New Orleans — is thanking a broad new Baptist partnership for helping them get their own apartment. Since…
Unique partnership assists pastors, churches affected by Katrina
NEW ORLEANS (ABP) — By now the 10-year-old True Believers Baptist Church should have been in its comfortable, new facility with room to grow. But the sanctuary, classrooms and fellowship hall the young congregation was building are dark, empty and…
Mac Brunson of Dallas likely to follow Vines as pastor of Jacksonville church
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (ABP) — Less than a week after bidding farewell to retiring pastor Jerry Vines, First Baptist Church of Jacksonville — one of the country's largest congregations — is expected to nominate Dallas pastor Mac Brunson as his successor….
Christians who pledge abstinence outlast non-pledgers, study says
WACO, Texas (ABP) — A new survey of Baptist newlyweds suggests that, though true love does not always wait, it waits more often if it starts with a formal pledge of purity. While a majority of church-going young couples in…
BJC leader warns civil religion can become ‘idolatry of nation’
Jim Newton/CBF Miss. BJC Director Brent Walker speaks at Northside Baptist Church, Clinton, Miss. CLINTON, Miss. (ABP) — A Baptist religious-freedom expert is warning that the spike in American public religiosity that has resulted from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks…