in a recent Leadership Link on deacon training, I asked readers to share some of their thoughts about basic training for deacons. Cliff Hudgins of the Pittsylvania Baptist Association believes only about 15 percent of newly-elected deacons receive training. As…
Plunging into poverty: Q&A
By Jeff Brumley San Antonio youth pastor Gavin Rogers is part of a trend of younger adults expressing a need to experience homelessness in order to better serve the homeless, says Neil Donovan, executive director of the National Coalition for…
Camp director convicted of sex crime once worked at Glorieta
By Bob Allen A former Baptist camp director who recently pleaded guilty to a federal sex crime formerly worked at Glorieta Conference Center, Associated Baptist Press has learned. Michael Latham A LifeWay Christian Resources spokesman confirmed April 12 that Mike…
Georgia Baptists rescind grant to women’s health clinic
By Bob Allen The Georgia Baptist Health Care Ministry Foundation withdrew a $42,000 grant from a women’s health clinic after learning that it dispenses morning-after birth control pills. According to the Rome News-Tribune, the grant was for cervical cancer screening…
False conversions ‘suicide’ for churches, pastor warns
By Bob Allen Thousands, if not millions, of church members sitting in America’s pews aren’t really born-again Christians, a Washington, D.C., pastor said April 10 to a pastors’ conference in Louisville, Ky. Mark Dever Mark Dever, senior pastor of Capitol…
Five years later, mother of Va. Tech victim finds peace
CENTREVILLE, Va. (RNS)—It’s been five years since Celeste Peterson’s only daughter was killed in a shooting rampage at Virginia Tech and she’s finally made peace with God. Which is not to say it’s been easy. The five-year anniversary of the…
BTSR to offer M.Div. concentration in justice, peace
By Robert Dilday A concentration in justice and peacebuilding will be available to master of divinity degree students at Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmondbeginning this fall, in a collaborative effort a seminary spokesman said would help the school “live out”…
Book says young Christians want more than politics
By Bob Allen Today’s young Christians aren’t interested in enlisting for the culture wars that created a brand of Christianity focused more on the ballot box than serving others, author and cultural commentator Jonathan Merritt says in a new book…
Former Baptist camp director pleads guilty to sex crime
By Bob Allen A former Louisiana Baptist camp director has pleaded guilty to sending pornographic photos of himself over the Internet to an undercover police officer posing as a 14-year-old girl, according to media reports. Michael P. Latham, 45, faces…
LEADERSHIP LINK: Book says young Christians want more than politics
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP)—Today’s young Christians aren’t interested in enlisting for the culture wars that created a brand of Christianity focused more on the ballot box than serving others, author and cultural commentator Jonathan Merritt says in a new book due…
Questions remain after Christian painter Kinkade dies
NEW YORK (RNS)—The unexpected death of Thomas Kinkade on April 6 prompted an outpouring of grief for the hugely successful painter of pastoral landscapes, but also raised questions about the troubled final years of an artist whose use of Christian…
Anglos, Latinos unite in making, distributing blankets
FREDERICKSBURG, Va.—A collaboration between five Anglo women from suburban Washington and about a dozen Latin American immigrants in Fredericksburg, Va., has resulted in the distribution of nearly 100 blankets to the homeless and other needy groups. Members of a Women…