Grady Cothen, one of the last surviving Southern Baptist Convention agency heads prior to schism in the 1980s, has died. Cothen, 96, died peacefully May 19 at the Orchard Home in Ridgeland, Miss., after a series of illnesses. Cothen served…
On one of the churches’ most contentious issues, advocate tries to navigate way forward
Matthew Vines’ calling, it seems, is to a ministry of the improbable, if not the impossible: convincing the world’s Christians to embrace gay people. Maybe so. But he is undaunted — and confident. “The global church will be fully LGBTQ…
LGBT-friendly student group sets up possible showdown between Samford and Alabama Baptists
Trustees of Baptist-affiliated Samford University are poised to vote on an officially sanctioned gay-straight alliance recommended by students and faculty, setting up potential conflict with the Alabama Baptist Convention. The convention’s State Board of Missions met behind closed doors May…
Transitions for the week of 05.19.17
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated weekly. STAFF CHANGES Sean Allen, concluding his tenure as pastor of Greystone Baptist Church, Raleigh, N.C. John Jay Alvaro, to First…
Georgia pastor tapped to lead Baptist History and Heritage Society
The longtime pastor of a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship church has been named next executive director of Baptist History and Heritage Society. John Finley, pastor of First Baptist Church in Savannah, Ga., for 23 years, announced May 3 he is stepping…
Biblical skeptics outpoll literalists for first time, survey shows
Americans who see the Bible as fable now outnumber those who believe it to be the literal word of God. Gallup announced the shift in a survey it released Tuesday titled “Record Few Americans Believe Bible is Literal Word of God.”…
Churches urged to drop Millennials in favor of newly identified ‘generation’
Churches, businesses and media outlets fixated on Millennials may want to widen their focus on a newly identified group: Perennials. The term was coined last year by a California blogger Gina Pell, who was tired of being stereotyped by her…
Transitions for the week of 05.12.17
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated weekly. STAFF CHANGES Judy Bryant, to Brookwood Baptist, Birmingham, Ala., as minister to children and their families. Lawrence Childs Jr., to…
Research finds Christians hold dizzying array of historically non-Christian beliefs
If there ever was a time when Christians shared a single, unified worldview rooted in scriptures and church, it’s over now. The Barna Group announced this week that it found only 17 percent of practicing Christians have an actual biblical…
The expansion of Google Maps is changing the way missionaries operate
Services such as providing church planters with the religious makeup of specific communities were once the monopoly of denominations and other large groups. Now they are also available from third-party providers.
Army secretary nominee retreats, blaming attacks on his religion
A Southern Baptist lawmaker picked by President Trump as Secretary of the Army withdrew his nomination May 5, saying criticism of his past voting record and public comments had become a distraction. “Tragically, my life of public service and my…
Pastor/judge threatened with impeachment says his critics ignore the Constitution
An Arkansas judge under fire for participating in a death penalty protest after issuing an order blocking an execution says critics seeking his impeachment want to infringe on his rights as a Baptist pastor to express his religious beliefs. The…