Justice Antonin Scalia will be remembered as a towering figure on the U.S. Supreme Court for his intellect and his wit but not as a friend to religious liberty and the separation of church and state, a Baptist church-state expert…
Trading membership for discipleship helping churches, Christians
With some 2,500 on the rolls and 850 in worship every weekend, Shandon United Methodist Church was getting about 130 new members a year. Most of them were under 40. Most of them had young children. Sounds great, right? Not…
BJC’s Walker says Scalia was no friend of religious liberty
By Bob Allen Justice Antonin Scalia will be remembered as a towering figure on the U.S. Supreme Court for his intellect and his wit but not as a friend to religious liberty and the separation of church and state,…
EWTN loses contraception coverage appeal in federal court
A religious broadcaster took one on the chin Thursday when federal judges ruled that government-mandated contraception and other health requirements pose little burden on religious beliefs. “We are extremely disappointed that the Court has refused to protect our religious freedom,”…
Crawford to retire as BTSR’s president
Ron Crawford, president of Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond since 2007, will retire next year, the school announced today. Crawford, who is the second president of the 25-year-old BTSR, will step down on July 1, 2017. He will be 65…
Clergy urge politicians to engage refugees with compassion, not fear
Americans supporting the compassionate treatment of refugees are expressing their conviction in a variety of ways and places. It can include fundraising and ministering directly to “the least of these” to sharing their beliefs across social media. And for churches, clergy…
Transitions for the week of 02.19.16
STAFF CHANGES Jim Baliff, resigning after 10 years as interim minister of music/associate pastor at First Baptist Church, Ringgold, Ga., effective this summer. Jack Causey, concluding his tenure as ministerial transitions coordinator for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina,…
First black SBC president talks race, Obama
Fred Luter, immediate past president of the predominantly white Southern Baptist Convention, says he mistakenly believed the nation had turned a corner when it elected a black president. The first African-American president of the Southern Baptist Convention says he believes…
Southern Baptists testify at Texas hearing on religious liberty
Southern Baptists in Texas were well represented at a Texas Senate hearing on how to protect religious liberty that critics say was in reality more about finding ways to discriminate against gays and lesbians. Southern Baptists in Texas need stronger…
Reading sacred texts on screens, not paper: Does it matter?
If computer devices are aspects of our material world that people pray over and for and through, what does that say about the boundaries between the sacred and the profane? A soft glow has long filled reading rooms during devotional…
BJC supports contraceptive mandate accommodation in Supreme Court brief
Far-reaching arguments made by some religious nonprofits against an accommodation procedure can endanger religious liberty, according to a brief filed at the U.S. Supreme Court by the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and professor Douglas Laycock of the University…
Transitions 02.12.16
Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated weekly. STAFF CHANGES Blake Benge, to First Baptist Church, Pensacola, Fla., as coordinating pastor of missions and ministries. He previously served…