By Bob Allen The Alliance of Baptists is among national organizations asking Congress to make budget choices with an eye toward needs of the poor. The 125-church Alliance joined Bread for the World, Children’s Defense Fund, Faith in Public Life,…
Every refugee is a chance to live the gospel, ministers and missionaries say
By Leah Allen and Jeff Brumley Just under 70,000 refugees from around the world were legally resettled in the United States in 2014, bringing the total to 3 million in every state since 1975. And that, some ministers and domestic…
LifeWay’s Nashville campus under contract of sale
By Bob Allen LifeWay Christian Resources has found a buyer for its campus in downtown Nashville, Tenn., the Southern Baptist Convention publishing house announced March 24. Terms of the contract, including price, were not disclosed, pending closing of the sale…
‘90 Minutes in Heaven’ coming to big screen
By Bob Allen The best-selling story of a Southern Baptist minister declared dead in a car wreck who woke up 90 minutes later claiming he had been to heaven is coming to the big screen this fall. 90 Minutes in…
Baptists embrace author’s effort to root out ‘poser’ Christians
By Jeff Brumley Baptist Alan Rudnick says it’s about time the 30-year-old seeker movement comes to an end. “I think it’s reached its zenith with coffee and hipster pastors and bands — there was more style over substance,” said Rudnick, the…
CBF of N.C. focuses on transformation during annual meeting
By Robert Dilday and Norman Jameson Transformation — especially congregational transformation — topped the agenda of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina March 19-20 as affiliated churches and their members gathered for the group’s General Assembly in Charlotte, N.C….
Historic CBF church calls woman as pastor
By Bob Allen Emily Hull McGee, a third-generation Baptist minister, was elected March 22 as 12th pastor of First Baptist Church in Winston-Salem. McGee, 33, is the first female to be called as leader of the historic congregation affiliated with…
Preaching brothers sentenced for child pornography
By Bob Allen The younger of two brothers convicted of sexually exploiting girls in the youth group of a Texas Baptist church has been sentenced to 15 years in prison. Jordan “Jordy” Earls, 26, received a sentence of 180 months…
Baptists oppose Texas bill as violation of biblical command to welcome strangers
By Ken Camp Some Texas lawmakers want to eliminate the possibility that local rules may prohibit police from questioning detained individuals about their immigration status. But Baptist and other religious leaders warn that could lead to racial profiling and a…
State CBF group forging ties with historically black college
By Bob Allen The Kentucky Baptist Fellowship is forging a partnership with both a historically black college and a large African-American congregation whose pastor does double duty as its president. Bob Fox, moderator of the statewide affiliate of the Cooperative…
Plea deadline extended for Union University murder suspect
By Bob Allen A March 16 deadline for a former Union University student charged with murdering his fiancée on campus in February 2014 to accept a plea bargain has been extended until April 27 because of a backlog in evidence…
Evangelicals support immigration reform, Baptists say; now it’s Congress’ turn
By Jeff Brumley A recent LifeWay poll showing strong support for immigration reform among evangelicals came as no surprise to Baptists involved in the reform movement, but they said it seems to remain a mystery to U.S. legislators. A wide…