In this our 100th year of the Baptist World Alliance, we give thanks to God for his awesome grace and providence that has guided us from 1905 to 2005. Ebenezer said, “Thus far the Lord has helped us” (I Samuel…
Letters for Jan. 6, 2005
SBC excluding itself I just read my Religious Herald and saw that the Southern Baptist Convention leadership has chosen not to connect with the ecumenical group Christian Churches Together. I am confused. It is so painful to see the convention…
Bilingual prayers: Filipino church in Fredericksburg reaches out to community
By Krista Carnet Singing, Scripture reading and preaching are all common parts of a Sunday service at Baptist churches in Virginia. What sets the Fil-Am Christian Church in Fredericksburg apart is that all three are done in English and Tagalog….
Don’t look away
Another View for Jan. 6, 2005 By Erich Bridges For days, maybe even weeks, many Christians will focus on the staggering human suffering in southern Asia. You're probably one of them. You've been moved by the heartrending stories of death…
Bluefield College partners with VBMB to guide students called to ministry
By Chris Shoemaker Bluefield College and the Virginia Baptist Mission Board are determined to develop today's young Christians into tomorrow's ministry leaders. That's why the college and the emerging leaders team of the VBMB recently joined forces to host a…
Church & People News for January 6, 2005
S T A F F • C H A N G E S David Christian, to Ridgecrest Church, Lovingston, as pastor. Ben Thomas, to West End Church, Petersburg, as pastor. (The last name of this new pastor was incorrect in…
Children’s Home helps families learn about true meaning of Christmas
By Mark Early The Christmas holiday season traditionally is a time of gathering with family and friends to celebrate the joy and hope found in Christ's birth and to strengthen relationships with one another. But what about children separated from…
Baptist volunteers organizing relief for Sri Lanka, other stricken countries
(ABP) — Baptist volunteers from Texas and North Carolina are joining the international disaster-relief effort being called the largest in history, after earthquake-spawned tsunamis struck 12 countries in Southeast Asia and East Africa the day after Christmas. Texas Baptist Men…
Relief ministry planned for Florida
Virginia Baptists' disaster relief ministries is sponsoring a trip to Florida Feb. 7-11. Participants will organize into work teams and help rebuild houses damaged in hurricanes last fall. The Virginia Baptist Mission Board is encouraging Virginia Baptist Men organizations to…
Arkansas judge rules against policy banning gay foster parents
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A judge has overturned an Arkansas state policy banning the placement of foster children in any household with a gay adult, saying the state agency that created it had unconstitutionally overstepped its bounds. Pulaski County Circuit Judge…
Virginia Baptist leader named state’s first agriculture secretary
Robert S. Bloxom, a longtime Virginia Baptist lay leader, has been named the state's first secretary of agriculture and forestry by Gov. Mark Warner. If confirmed by the General Assembly, Bloxom will be the first to hold the cabinet-level post…
Prominent church-state issues likely to resurface in 109th Congress
WASHINGTON (ABP) — As the 109th Congress goes to work in an atmosphere already charged with partisanship, legislative battles over religious and moral issues are virtually certain to remain as prominent as they were in the last session, according to…