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…
Campaign raises funds for Baptist gathering
A nonprofit organization has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help the National Baptist Convention make up a $65,000 tourism grant lost after an atheist group filed a lawsuit questioning the use of taxpayer dollars to support the group’s annual session…
American Baptist minister remembered as agent of reconciliation
An American Baptist pastor and denominational leader who early in his ministry advocated for justice and reconciliation in his native South Africa in the waning years of apartheid died Aug. 20. Desmond Hoffmeister, 56, senior pastor at Granada Hills Baptist…
Like Gissendaner, Wood case may change hearts on death penalty
Many Americans support capital punishment until they hear a story or meet someone who makes it personal to them, anti-death penalty activist Melissa Browning says. “Everything changes when you see it through the eyes of someone who is personally affected,” said…
Student social media sparks race controversy for Christian school
The headmaster of a private Christian school started by First Baptist Church in Orlando, Fla., said Aug. 25 that he is taking “deliberate steps” to deal with students who created a social media controversy by posting racially insensitive messages on…
American Baptist group affirms children’s home decision to decline donation
American Baptist leaders have issued a statement of solidarity with an Oklahoma charity in the news for refusing to accept a donation given in honor of an atheist group. American Baptist Home Mission Societies released a statement Aug. 25 affirming…
Passion, not money, needed for vibrant young adult ministries, study shows
Younger Americans are abandoning organized religion in ever greater numbers and it’s no shock that churches can’t control the underlying social forces driving that decline. But they aren’t totally powerless, either, says Kristina Lizardy-Hajbi, director of the United Church of Christ’s…