By Bob Allen European Baptist leaders urged caution amid rising support for military intervention in Syria over what the United States, France and Great Britain say is clear evidence that President Bashar al-Assad’s forces have used banned chemical weapons on…
NC Baptist church ends Boy Scout ties
By Bob Allen A large Southern Baptist church in North Carolina is ending its nearly 60-year-old relationship with the Boy Scouts of America and shifting allegiance to an alternative outdoor character-development organization to be launched next month in Nashville, Tenn….
Baptist pastor open to same-sex unions
Correction: This story was edited after posting to correct an error in the 13th paragraph. By Bob Allen An Alabama Baptist pastor says she is reconsidering her previous policy of not performing marriage-like commitment services for same-sex couples. Sarah Shelton,…
Conference marks 200 years of missions
By Bob Allen A three-day conference in November will celebrate 200 years of Baptist missions and explore the lasting impact of Ann and Adoniram Judson, the first U.S. Baptist missionaries to serve on foreign soil. “The Judsons: Celebrating 200 Years…
Furniture giveaway is Godsend for international students arriving on Virginia Tech’s campus
BLACKSBURG, Va. — Moving to a college campus is a rite of passage for new students. But for international students, setting up a new household in an apartment or house, usually with other roommates, can be especially difficult as they…
LEADERSHIP LINK: Ministry to those with life-threatening illnesses
Sooner or later a deacon who ministers to families or who is part of a hospital visitation team will care for a person with a life-threatening illness. Ironically, just when we need to move closer to church members who are…
OPINION: Church remixed
On Sunday, Aug. 11, the Church at Clarendon in Arlington, Va., held a service entitled “Church Remixed.” The service was during the regular 11 a.m. worship hour, a typically “blended” style service, with five to eight musicians. On this morning,…
OPINION: Comic-Con, world’s largest pop culture gathering, offers church lesson in engaging culture
Comic-Con International is the largest gathering of pop culture in the world. It is held in San Diego and has a more than 40-year history of providing information and insight into the world of comics, movies, television, video gaming and…
Egyptian Baptist pastor warns against entanglement of religion and politics
(ABP) — In a letter describing the Islamist persecution of Christians in Egypt, a Baptist minister in Cairo provides a disturbing warning against the entanglement of religion and politics. And portions of the letter, two U.S. church scholars say, are…
N.C. governor allows anti-Shariah bill to become law as Okla. judge strikes down similar measure
(RNS) — North Carolina became the seventh state to prohibit its judges from considering Islamic law after Gov. Pat McCrory allowed the bill to become law without formally signing it. McCory, a Republican, called the law “unnecessary,” but declined to…
Photo project brings Lakota plight to light
By Vicki Brown A lifelong interest in Native Americans and an online article from 2006 about conditions on a South Dakota reservation prompted a Southwest Baptist University staff member about four years ago to travel to the Pine Ridge Oglala…
Alliance signs letter opposing Safe Act
By Bob Allen The Alliance of Baptists joined other faith organizations and leaders in an Aug. 21 letter opposing a law pending in Congress to crack down on crimes committed by aliens living in the United States illegally. Introduced in…