LOUISVILLE, Ky. (ABP) — “Parents are the missing element of children's ministry,” an author and children's-ministry consultant told a conference in Louisville, Ky., April 23. Too many churches are working off the 1970s model of recruiting a paid or volunteer…
Dobson, Colson, Frist headline rally against judicial filibusters
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (ABP) — Conservative Christian and political leaders declared war on judicial filibusters in the U.S. Senate during an April 24 rally at a Southern Baptist church in Kentucky. Dubbed “Justice Sunday” by organizers, the 90-minute rally was subtitled…
Illinois Baptist exec Lang resigns unexpectedly for church post
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (ABP) — After serving on the job a little more than two years, Wendell Lang has resigned as executive director of the Illinois Baptist State Association to accept a position as pastor of a Tennessee church. Lang was…
Educators differ on how ‘Baptist’ a Baptist university should be
WACO, Texas (ABP) — Should Baptist universities create an identity that is distinctively Baptist or one rooted in orthodox Christian beliefs shared by many traditions? Speaking to a national conference, two prominent educators agreed the future of Baptist higher education…
Hip-hop churches carry message of redemption to urban youth
HOUSTON (ABP) — The in-your-face attitude, emblazoned on black T-shirts, is unmistakable: “Jesus is Lord. Satan is a punk. Pick a side.” Street Life, a Christian outreach to young people in Houston's urban hip-hop culture, offers a distinctive blend of…
Averett trustees acknowledge VBMB action, but are quiet on status of statement
Trustees of Averett University have acknowledged Virginia Baptists' approval of a jointly-developed statement which would dissolve century-and-a-half-old ties between the school and the Baptist General Association of Virginia. But Averett's trustees, who met April 15, have not revealed what action…
Sloan says Christian education stymied by name-calling, ‘fear-mongering’
WACO, Texas (ABP) — The future of Baptist colleges and universities depends on educators' willingness to “move on” beyond the political categories that have dominated denominational life for more than 20 years, Baylor University President Robert Sloan told a national…
Right to dissent may be key mark of Baptist colleges, Leonard suggests
WACO, Texas (ABP) — The right to dissent — even about what makes a school religious — should be a key distinctive of Baptist higher education, suggested church historian and seminary dean Bill Leonard. Addressing a national conference on the…
Christian colleges must adapt to population shifts, Reyes says
WACO, Texas (ABP) — Christian higher education remains a justifiable mission for Baptists if it is transformational in character, distinctively Baptist in the way it operates, and genuinely accessible to the largely non-Anglo next generation of students, said Albert Reyes,…
Louisville pastor criticizes church for hosting anti-filibuster rally
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (ABP) — A Louisville pastor is going to great lengths to distinguish his church from a nearby congregation with a similar name, which is hosting a national telecast aimed at thwarting a Senate filibuster on judicial nominees. Joe…
Brazilian pastor chosen to lead BWA evangelism division
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) — Brazilian pastor Fausto Aguiar de Vasconcelos has been nominated to lead the evangelism effort of the Baptist World Alliance, succeeding Australian Tony Cupit, who is retiring. If elected to the BWA's executive staff by its…
Conn. governor OKs civil unions; Washington senators defeat bill
WASHINGTON (ABP) — By signing a bill April 20, Connecticut's governor made that state the first in the Union to legalize same-sex unions without being forced by a court. But, just a day later, Washington state legislators delivered a one-vote…