In October this columnist visited Sanford Memorial Baptist Church at Brodnax, a small town east of South Hill, Va. The occasion was the church’s centennial. It was a grand and glorious celebration. Some church folks had even roasted a pig…
Baptist dies during Gaza war
By Bob Allen Casualties during eight days of fighting between Israel and the militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip included at least one Baptist. Salem Boulos Sweilem, who attended the Gaza Baptist Church in Gaza City, died Nov. 19…
Baptist university reports theft
By Bob Allen A Missouri Baptist University employee has been charged with embezzling about $107,000 since being promoted to the university controller’s position in 2009. St. Louis County prosecutors charged 48-year-old Melinda Okai of O’Fallon, Mo., with theft of more…
Missions boost holiday gratitude
By Jeff Brumley A handful of Cooperative Baptist churches are proving that short-term mission trips aren’t just for spring break, anymore. First Baptist in Gainesville, Ga. and Calvary Baptist in Lexington, Ky., sent mixed youth and adult groups to Haiti…
Alternative gifts counter Black Friday
By Jeff Brumley When it began nearly a decade ago, the Alternative Christmas Gift Fair at Boulevard Baptist attracted barely 100 church members and generated a few thousand dollars for participating nonprofits and mission groups. But it has since generated…
WMUNC ends effort to purchase new headquarters building, will remain at Raleigh location
RALEIGH – Woman’s Missionary Union of North Carolina has ended an effort to purchase a new headquarters building in Lillington, N.C., citing the difficulty of fundraising for the project in a weak economy. WMUNC’s executive board voted Nov. 15 to…
Baptists respond to Congo crisis
By Bob Allen Baptists in the city of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo appealed to the global Baptist community for help in responding to a humanitarian catastrophe caused by fighting between government and rebel forces in the…
Former youth pastor arrested
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist pastor in Oklahoma second-guessed himself after the arrest of his former youth pastor on eight counts of sexual abuse of a minor. Jeff Self, pastor of First Baptist Church in Coalgate, Okla., told CBS…
Virginia seminary names dean
By Robert Dilday A veteran professor and administrator at a community college in Texas has been elected dean of Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. Timothy Gilbert, a professor of philosophy at Tarrant County College in Fort Worth, Texas, for nearly…
Virginia seminary names dean
By Robert Dilday A veteran professor and administrator at a community college in Texas has been elected dean of Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. Timothy Gilbert, a professor of philosophy at Tarrant County College in Fort Worth, Texas, for nearly…
Hobby Lobby must cover contraceptives
By Bob Allen A federal judge ruled Nov. 19 that the Christian owners of Hobby Lobby cannot be exempted from providing emergency contraceptives in their group health plan on religious grounds. U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton in Oklahoma City denied…
Obama stresses religious liberty in Burma
By Bob Allen President Obama stressed religious freedom in a historic speech Nov. 19 in Burma, a country long beset by military conflict and regarded as one of the world’s worst oppressors of minority faiths. Obama, the first sitting U.S….