By Jeff Brumley If Facebook is any measure, Americans are emerging from the 2012 election season convinced the nation’s political and religious divisions are wider and more hostile than ever – and getting worse. But not Duke McCall, 98, the…
Maryland voters narrowly approve gay marriage, casino expansion, support for undocumented immigrants
By narrow margins, Maryland voters yesterday legalized same-sex marriage and an expansion of casino gambling in their state and, by larger numbers, made it possible for some undocumented immigrants to attend college at in-state tuition rates. Gay marriage was approved…
CORRECTION: Impact of BGAV amendment was misstated
The impact of a proposed constitutional amendment to be considered at the Baptist General Association of Virginia’s annual meeting next week was misstated in an analysis piece we developed and distributed Nov. 2. At present, a contribution of at least $500,…
Pastor in North Carolina’s foothills breaks rural ministry stereotypes
MOUNT AIRY, N.C. — If you met 29-year-old Mark Reece, you’d be struck by his good looks, stylish clothes and urbane, educated manner. If you learned that he’s a Baptist minister, you’d assume he’s an up-and-coming member of the staff…
OPINION: Vote today — November 7
It has been a long election cycle. I can hardly remember a time when political ads did not take up the majority of a commercial break. The votes have been cast. Late last night the election was decided in favor…
HERITAGE: Arms reaching around the world
Virginia Baptists have been passionate about missions ever since they received visits in the early 1800s from Luther Rice, the pioneer missionary. Staying in homes and speaking in churches, Rice planted a missionary seed and watched it take flower. He…
Evangelicals and abortion: chicken or egg?
News analysis by Bob Allen Heading into a presidential race in which taxpayer funding of abortion tops the Family Research Council’s “values voter” guide, author Jonathan Dudley suggested in a recent CNN religion blog that as late as the 1960s…
OPINION: What do God and Hurricane Sandy have in common?
At Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, classes were cancelled on Monday, Oct. 29, because of the devastation of Hurricane Sandy on the northeastern coast of the United States.The loss of lives is above 100, and the economic impacts of the…
OPINION: God alone determines proper life of the Church
Over the past several weeks the focus of many conversations has been on the decision of the executive committee of the Virginia Baptist Mission Board to exclude Ginter Park Baptist Church from fellowship because they ordained a man who happens…
OPINION: Ginter Park Baptist, the BGAV and the tie that binds
Ginter Park Baptist Church ordained a gay man as a minister in September. This is creating a stir among Baptist organizations in Virginia. The Richmond Baptist Association, on Sunday, Oct. 21, created a committee to study the association’s relationship with…
Election Day checklist: Photo I.D., reading material to endure long lines and for some — communion
As voters in the Mid-Atlantic head to the polls today, some Baptists in the region will make an additional stop — to participate in communion as a reminder that their commitment to Jesus Christ trumps political identity. In scattered locations…
Baptists in Maryland grapple with ballot items on casinos, gay marriage, undocumented workers
Voters in Maryland are not only electing a president today, but also are considering whether to expand casino gambling, legalize gay marriage and extend in-state college tuition to undocumented immigrants — a clutch of moral issues that has prompted soul…