Its continuing domestic crackdowns on minority religious groups and its invasion of Ukraine have solidified Russia’s status as one of the world’s leading violators of religious freedom, U.S. officials announced this month. “Following its designation as a Country of Particular…
Pranoto, Shaw, Smith and Younger join BNG board of directors
Four new members have been elected to the board of directors for Baptist News Global, an independent national nonprofit news service. Joining the board are Kevin Pranoto of Little Rock, Ark.; Susan Shaw of Corvallis, Ore.; Sid Smith III of…
Uyghur American elected chairman of U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom
The first Uyghur American appointed to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has been elected the group’s chairman. Nury Turkel was elected unanimously to the post by his fellow commissioners. Also, Abraham Cooper, a recognized authority on antisemitism, was…
When a Mexican cartel kidnapped a Baptist pastor, they got more than they bargained for
A Mexican cartel got more than it bargained for earlier this month by kidnapping Lorenzo Ortiz, an American pastor who operates shelters for asylum seekers and other migrants south of the U.S.-Mexico border. His abduction at 6 p.m. June 2…
The Black community needs allies who listen and act, scholar says
The quest for racial justice in the United States needs more white people who hear the concerns of their Black neighbors and respond with concrete actions, a Black church scholar wrote in a New York newspaper. In an op-ed published…
Georgia Baptists hit snag on sale of 16-year-old headquarters property in suburban Atlanta
A state Baptist convention’s planned sale of its multi-million-dollar office building has hit a snag with county zoning officials. The Georgia Baptist Mission Board needs to sell its 40-acre property located in Gwinnett County, Ga., and it has a buyer…
At Faith and Freedom conference, evangelical Christian voters once again abandon their concern for marital fidelity
Providing further evidence that evangelical Christian voters no longer care about some moral failures as disqualifying, those attending the Faith and Freedom Coalition gathering in Nashville June 18 applauded Herschel Walker, despite recent revelations that he fathered three children not…
Annual report on Baptist women in ministry finds some gains but serious losses due to COVID
Women in ministry continue to feel blocked in their callings and ignored in their ministry settings because they are female, according to an annual report released June 21 by Baptist Women in Ministry. “The State of Women in Baptist Life,”…
Church-state separationists join Justice Sotomayor in blasting the Supreme Court’s ruling in a Maine school voucher case
Church-state separationists lambasted a June 21 decision of the United States Supreme Court that granted parents in Maine access to taxpayer-funded vouchers to send their children to private religious schools. Meanwhile, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a scathing dissent from the…
Conservative clergywoman claims United Methodist system unjust
Among Protestant denominations, The United Methodist Church admittedly has one of the most complicated, lengthy processes for ordaining its clergy. Now a clergywoman has written a “whistleblower” book claiming the UMC’s ordination process is rife with nepotism, cronyism, bullying and…
In Africa, inflation and a food crisis threaten not just the economy but people’s lives
While inflation troubles the United States and economies around the world, the rising cost of food and essential commodities is having a deadly effect across Africa. The challenge on the African continent is not just about the rising cost of…
American support for abortion rights at highest level since 1995, Gallup says
The leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade has galvanized greater pro-choice identification among American voters and intensified explicit support for legal abortion, according to polling conducted by Gallup. The survey of 1,007 U.S. adults…