With research, planning and commitment, a single congregation can provide a faithful ecological witness and take steps to combat climate change, members of Woodland Baptist Church in San Antonio told participants at the 2022 Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly. Jeni…
CBF pauses giving to Ukraine relief fund to await long-term rebuilding opportunities
More than $1.12 million has been given to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Ukrainian relief fund, prompting CBF leaders to pause accepting additional contributions until investing in long-term recovery becomes viable. CBF field personnel and others working in direct ministry to…
God calls all kinds of people to behold the Lamb of God, West tells CBF
God uses different people in different ways, just as seen throughout creation, Houston pastor Ralph West told the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship June 30. “Have you noticed in a careful reading of Scripture that God doesn’t do any two things in…
Together for Hope inspires communities to see what they’ve got more than what they’re lacking
The mayor of Sidon, Miss., said courage surged through her town when it encountered Together for Hope, a national coalition that uses holistic approaches to fight poverty in the most economically ravaged American communities. Like most cities and towns in…
CBF is ‘crossing over’ to a new era, Baxley tells General Assembly
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is “crossing over” into a new era of growth and promise, Executive Coordinator Paul Baxley told participants in CBF’s General Assembly June 30. In a report punctuated repeatedly by loud applause from the audience, Baxley said…
With refugee numbers rising worldwide, racism remains a factor in where they’re accepted and how quickly
In its message marking this year’s World Refugee Day June 20, the United Nations came up with a three-word catch phrase it believes should define how refugees are treated globally: “Whoever. Wherever. Whenever.” The subtheme is: “Everyone has the right…
Summer state and regional meetings give a preview of how the split is going in the United Methodist Church
Summer is known as “annual conference season” for United Methodists in the United States and Europe. It’s a time when the regional units that form the basic structure of the global denomination come together to make decisions for their future….
Churches must learn to adapt to ‘permanent transition,’ Leonard stresses
Churches must tap into the core of their identity, as well as their calling to ministry, commitment to education and religious experience if they are to survive “permanent transition,” church historian Bill Leonard told participants at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s…
While the SBC shuns women as preachers, CBF celebrates a new generation of women as preachers
Testimony is the cure for the despair that afflicts people and churches after two years of pandemic and politics have tried American religion by fire, Courtney Stamey told participants in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship June 29. While the Southern Baptist…
Transitions for the week of 7-1-22
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Neal Abbott, to Dellview Baptist Church, San Antonio, Texas, as interim bi-vocational pastor. Jonathan Balmer and Kendall Ellis,…
For now, David Platt has won the battle against internal critics at McLean Bible Church
A lawsuit has been dismissed against McLean Bible Church in suburban Washington, D.C., after apparent resolution of a battle between church leaders and internal critics who believed the conservative evangelical church was becoming too “woke.” The dispute came to a…
Jesus calls women to ministry by name and asks them to rise up, Stewart says in fiery BWIM sermon
Like the crippled woman in Luke 13, female clergy know what it means to be paralyzed by sexism, patriarchy and other forms of emotional and psychological abuse, Gina Stewart preached during Baptist Women in Ministry’s June 28 worship celebration in…