Living in the U.S. since 2021 without a pathway to permanent residency has kept Afghan war refugees constantly fearful of possible repatriation to a nation run by the brutal Taliban regime, experts said during a National Immigration Forum webinar. The…
Rick Warren is leading a one-man campaign against the very SBC leaders who once admired him
These days, Rick Warren has become a thorn in the side of Southern Baptist leaders who once admired and celebrated him. From his perspective, he’s simply leading a one-man crusade to return to basic Baptist principles. From the perspective of…
Brogdon urges forthright approach to ‘problematic’ biblical texts
While Lewis Brogdon doesn’t describe the Bible as fragile, he wants to help people interpret its content with care. That is one of the reasons Brogdon, associate professor preaching and Black church studies at Baptist Seminary of Kentucky, wrote a…
U.S. urged to respond to plight of Black Mauritanians
Activists are stepping up pressure on the U.S. to grant asylum and other protections to Black Mauritanians facing imprisonment, torture, execution and slavery in the northwest African nation. Mauritanian diaspora leaders and other advocates participated in a June 6 webinar…
Welton Gaddy, Baptist champion of interfaith religious freedom
C. Welton Gaddy, once a rising star among Southern Baptists who left to champion progressive causes and dedicated much of his life to religious liberty for all people, died at his home in Monroe, La., June 7. He was 81….
Texas Baptists expel two more churches for welcoming LGBTQ Christians
Two more churches have been expelled from the Baptist General Convention of Texas “due to their public affirmation of same-sex sexuality,” the convention announced June 8. This announcement of the results of a closed meeting of the BGCT Executive Board…
New assistance programs cause poverty rate among immigrants to fall in U.S.
Poverty fell steeply among immigrants in the U.S. after the Great Recession and even further during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report by the Migration Policy Institute. The study analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data to measure the way…
Transitions for the week of 6-9-23
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Lisa Adams, to Bonsack Baptist Church, Roanoke, Va., as director of Christian education, effective in August. Charlie Barganier,…
Mike Stone has an unlikely nominator for his SBC presidential run
A Florida pastor who had to drop out of the race for Southern Baptist Convention president last year because of accusations brought against him from the most conservative faction of the denomination now will nominate this year’s conservative standard bearer…
Southwestern trustees release 20 years of financials that show devastating decline began under Patterson
Trustees of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary have released 20 years of audited financial records — more than any Southern Baptist Convention entity has done — documenting a devastating pattern of overspending while enrollment plummeted. The spending spree began with former…
On migrant crisis, the U.S. and UK governments share a controversial tactic in common
The United States practice of paying Mexico millions of dollars to keep asylum-seeking immigrants from crossing the southern border is not unique. The United Kingdom does something similar in partnership with Rwanda. In the U.S., the Biden administration has been…
27% of Americans are still watching religious services online
While church attendance in America has declined slightly over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, how people attend religious services appears to have stabilized, according to Pew Research Center. “As the coronavirus pandemic winds down, about a quarter of Americans…