Please make the following correction in the July 28 ABP story, “Joel Gregory, former SBC leader to teach at moderate seminary.” Remove the words “Baylor graduate” in the fifth graph to read: However, Gregory soon resigned from his pulpit, succumbing…
Baptists celebrate 100th anniversary of BWA with diversity, togetherness
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — About 13,000 Baptist Christians from around the world celebrated a century of togetherness July 27-31 in Birmingham, England. With vibrant music, vivid pageantry and stirring stories of faith, the Baptist World Centenary Congress Baptists gathered believers…
BWA World Congress closes in same multi-cultural flair as beginning
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — In what some participants characterized as “a foretaste of heaven,” about 12,000 Baptists from more than 200 nations joined their voices in worship at the closing session of the Baptist World Congress. From praise choruses led…
Bush endorses ‘intelligent design’ being taught in public schools
WASHINGTON (ABP) — President Bush endorsed the teaching of “intelligent design” on an equal level with natural selection in a roundtable interview with reporters from Texas newspapers Aug. 1. Bush said students should be exposed to the theory, which posits…
Jimmy Carter urges global Baptists to focus on gospel, not division
BIRMINGHAM, England — “Divisions in the river of faith that divide us into swirling eddies and tributaries” constitute the most serious plight currently facing the church, Jimmy Carter told delegates attending the Baptist World Alliance Centenary Congress. Carter, who led…
Rick Warren challenges Baptists to launch ‘new reformation’
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — Urging Christians to pursue “a new reformation” in the 21st century, Rick Warren told delegates to the Baptist World Centenary Congress, “The first Reformation was about belief. This one needs to be about behavior.” “We need…
Friendship is ‘weapon’ in fight against terror, Baptist leaders say
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — The fight against terrorism is fought most effectively over a slice of pizza, not at airports and transit stations, according to global Baptist leaders. The Baptist World Centenary Congress July 27-31, one of the largest Baptist…
For British Baptists, flood of delegates to congress signals solidarity vs. terror
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — For the past week, the halls of this city's International Convention Center were filled with bustle and conversation of Baptists from around the world. But for British Baptists, the clamor sends one clear message: You are…
Bonds across boundaries, cultures, link BWA congress participants
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — Margun Waren of Norway grew up in a country that has a very strong state-sponsored Lutheran church. “As Baptists, we are a minority,” she said, reporting that only about 5,000 Baptists live in Norway. “It was…
Couple’s BWA experience began 50 years ago — as did marriage
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — Paul and Eveline Miller had good reason to feel a sense of déjà vu during the Baptist World Alliance's centennial congress. They attended the 1955 BWA congress in London during their honeymoon. And they celebrated their…
Concern for poor at heart of who God is, panel says
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — The poor will always be with us, Jesus said. Does that mean we should ignore them? “Certainly not,” said Graham Sparkes of the Baptist Union of Great Britain. So what are Baptist Christians going to do…
Adams: Baptists poised to impact Africa, ‘new center’ of Christianity
BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — The center of Christianity has moved to Africa, and Baptists can be catalysts for changing the continent, Frank Adams told delegates to the Baptist World Centenary Congress July 29. Baptists are called to be a voice…