By Bob Allen Alan Culpepper, founding dean of Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology, is stepping down after nearly two decades at the end of the current academic year. After a sabbatical, he plans to teach full time on the…
St. Louis pastor says racial violence not justified, but anger is
By Bob Allen A white Baptist pastor in St. Louis says he cannot condone rioting in nearby Ferguson, Mo., but he understands the anger about a black teenager killed by police Aug. 9. On Wednesday police used teargas to disperse…
Campbellsville, KBC leaders discuss partnership
By Bob Allen A month after airing public criticism of each other, representatives of Campbellsville University and the Kentucky Baptist Convention are talking again about continuing to work together following the school’s move to a self-perpetuating board of trustees. Leaders…
Evangelical child molester sentenced to 40 years
By Bob Allen A former youth worker convicted of sexually abusing boys in the 1980s at a Sovereign Grace Ministries church in Maryland was sentenced Aug. 14 to 40 years in prison. Nathaniel Morales, 56, was found guilty in May…
Do you solemnly swear — on this Kindle?
By Jeff Brumley It’s hardly news anymore to see someone in church using a smartphone or tablet, instead of a printed Bible, to follow along in Scripture. Many pastors have embraced the paper-for-digital swap themselves, often using iPads or tablets…
Contemporary Christian musician under fire for doubting Genesis
By Bob Allen Contrary to reports, LifeWay Christian Stores have not stopped selling music by a contemporary Christian artist under fire for stating he does not believe narratives in the early chapters of Genesis are to be taken literally. Marty…
Tennessee judge bucks string of rulings on same-sex marriage
By Bob Allen For the first time in over a year, a judge in Tennessee ruled recently that a state does not have to accept as valid a same-sex marriage performed legally in another state. The Aug. 5 ruling in…
‘Don’t eat alone’ is metaphor for healthy Christian life, says minister-chef
By Norman Jameson Forty-two years ago Milton Brasher-Cunningham first heard the words that rescued him, like a strong arm lifting a drowning person to safety. He was 16 and the new missionary kid from Africa in a big Houston school,…
SBC leader joins call for military action in Iraq
By Bob Allen The Southern Baptist Convention’s top public-policy expert joined Princeton University professor Robert George and numerous other intellectuals in urging the use of military force against a militant group seeking to set up an Islamic state across Sunni…
Groups say state’s gay-marriage ban establishes religion
By Bob Allen Two dozen religious and public policy groups filed a legal brief Aug. 11 arguing that Wisconsin’s ban on same-sex marriage violates the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state. Groups including Americans United for Separation of Church…
Pastor repents for interaction with suicidal teen
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist pastor, blogger and radio host accused of cyberbullying in the weeks since the death by suicide of a Texas teenager said in a lengthy confession read to his church on Sunday the controversy has left…
As immigrant children find sponsors, Baptists are discovering them in their midst
By Jeff Brumley There was quiet talk among ministers in Dalton, Ga. last spring that as many as 30 Guatemalan children were in town and in need of tutoring and other services. Not much more was known about the children,…