The historic fusing of Christianity and white supremacy is a moral and spiritual cancer eating at the body and soul of the American church, Robert P. Jones says in his latest book, The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy and the…
Thomas Graves, founding president of BTSR
Thomas Henry Graves, founding president of Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, died Aug. 17 at age 75. Trained as a Southern Baptist pastor, he became a leader in the so-called “moderate” movement that broke away to create the Alliance of…
Lahaina’s diverse religious community won’t be stopped by wildfire
As the Hawaii Conference of the United Church of Christ gathered for worship via Zoom Aug. 20, worshipers heard a bell toll 114 times. That was one bell for every confirmed life lost in the wildfires that have ravaged parts…
Awareness should lead to action, author urges churches
Delving into the nitty gritty of faith-based community development and restorative justice work is neither a political expression nor a ministry distraction for the church, author and activist Michelle Ferrigno Warren said. They are instead forms of biblically informed Christian…
It would be ‘pro-life’ to commute Louisiana’s 56 Death Row sentences to life without parole, advocates urge
Granting clemency to Death Row inmates would show the nation Louisiana is the staunchly pro-life state many claim it to be, death penalty abolitionists said during an Aug. 15 news conference. The group of faith leaders, activists and relatives of…
SBC Executive Committee has another interim president
The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee now has its third leader in 18 months. Jonathan Howe, vice president for communications, has been named interim president following the sudden resignation of Willie McLaurin last Friday. McLaurin was named interim president in…
Yemi Mobolade is ‘mayor for all people,’ not only Christians in Colorado Springs
Yemi Mobolade, a Nigerian immigrant, entrepreneur and Christian community leader, made history in May, becoming the first Black man and first non-Republican to be elected mayor of Colorado Springs, Colorado’s second largest city, in more than four decades. A political…
Churches invited to apply for new anti-racism historical review group
A new anti-racism program will pair some of the nation’s leading experts and curriculum on white supremacy with white congregations seeking to uncover and confront their own histories related to discrimination and race. “In Deed and Truth: Interrogating Legacies of…
Interim president of SBC Executive Committee resigns, admits to falsifying resume
The interim president of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee — recently considered a likely candidate for the permanent post — resigned abruptly Aug. 17. A statement from the chairman of Executive Committee trustees said McLaurin had falsified information on…
Bipartisan coalition once again urges Republicans to stop blocking Afghan Adjustment Act
Refugee advocates are pulling out the stops to pressure Congress and the White House to pass legislation granting permanent legal status to more than 70,000 war-ravaged Afghans evacuated to the U.S. in 2021. Proponents of the Afghan Adjustment Act used…
Transitions for the week of 8-18-23
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Bob Baker, to Fifth Avenue Baptist Church, Huntington, W.Va., as interim pastor. Julia Butler, to First Baptist Church,…
McRaney warns dismissal of his case against NAMB raises urgent threat to Baptist autonomy
Unless challenged, one judge’s ruling could have profound implications for Baptist autonomy, according to Will McRaney, whose defamation suit against the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board was dismissed Aug. 15. “The judge’s ruling is built around the erroneous…