Two Canadian Baptist pastors have announced publicly they won’t be taking part in a citywide crusade next March in Vancouver, British Columbia, featuring U.S. evangelist Franklin Graham. Tim Kuepfer, pastor of First Baptist Church of Vancouver, and Tim Dickau, pastor…
El Salvador appoints Baptist pastor, peacemaker, as ambassador to Canada
A Baptist peacemaker in El Salvador’s 1980-1992 civil war, who for the past 18 years has ministered to fellow expatriates in the United States, is entering a new chapter as ambassador of El Salvador in Canada. Edgar Palacios, associate pastor…
Scholars, study promote ‘pastoral imagination’ in theological education
That first year at seminary — or any year at seminary, for that matter — can be extremely stressful. Many students face financial challenges. They worry about upending their families, finding new schools for the kids. re-arranging family schedules and adjusting to…
Baptist pastor helping Trump woo Hispanics
A Texas Baptist pastor aiding the Donald Trump campaign in its outreach to Hispanic voters endorsed the Republican presidential candidate during an interview aired in three parts on The Jim Bakker Show in late July. “Let me go ahead and…
Transitions for the week of 09.02.16
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated weekly. STAFF CHANGES Steve Ackerman, to Grace Baptist Church, Asheville, N.C., as interim pastor. Stephen Allen, to Tabernacle Baptist Church, Carrollton,…
Survey finds teens reading Bibles — but are they retaining it?
New research reporting American teens have more respect and use for the Bible than some might think comes as no real surprise to Gavin Rogers. The “2016 Teen State of the Bible” project, commissioned by the American Bible Society and…
Three-in-10 schools on ‘Shame List’ identify as Southern Baptist
Campus Pride, an advocacy organization for LGBT students at colleges and universities, identified 102 campuses said to openly discriminate in the group’s 2016 “Shame List” released Aug. 29. Last year’s inaugural Shame List identified 57 campuses that had applied for…
Christian woman ordered to remove scarf for driver’s license photo files lawsuit
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit Aug. 30 on behalf of a Christian woman forced to remove her headscarf for a driver’s license photo in violation of her religious convictions. The lawsuit says Yvonne Allen of Tuskegee,…
Asset mapping is key to congregational vision, growth and relevance, church leader says
Mapping congregational or community assets to identify and implement new programs and ministries doesn’t necessarily require professional expertise, according to a CBF minister experienced in the practice common in community development work. “It’s really for anybody,” said Jenny Hodge, a…
Historically black Baptist college launches institute to study black-on-black crime
Arkansas Baptist College held a grand opening Aug. 25 for an institute researching black-on-black crime, named in honor of a student slain while helping someone change a tire just off the edge of campus in 2012. The Derek Olivier Research…
Rick Bennett to lead Tennessee CBF
A former member of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s national staff has been tapped to lead the Tennessee CBF, one of 18 autonomous state and regional organizations that relate to the 1,800-church Fellowship. Rick Bennett, pastor of First Baptist Church in…
Key to church reinvention is tapping membership’s creativity, Brooklyn pastor says
Talk about missional. St. Paul Community Baptist Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., and its pastor, David Brawley, have made headlines for their efforts to reach out to, and transform, the communities around them. The congregation lent its muscle to efforts to…