Baptist News Global

Baptist therapist has a prescription for our anxious pursuit of the good life

The American way of life may be good for business, but it wreaks havoc on the mental and emotional well-being of individuals and society, psychotherapist and former Baptist youth pastor Eric Minton believes. The diagnosis stems from his observation of…

Transitions for the week of 4-22-22

Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Marjorie Avent, concluding her tenure as minister of youth and young adults at Providence Baptist Church, Charleston, S.C….

With annual meeting attendance on the rise again, SBC must switch locations for 2023

The Southern Baptist Convention has outgrown its meeting space for 2023. In a move reminiscent of days of controversy in the 1980s and 1990s, attendance at SBC annual meetings has been on the rise since 2018 — after settling down…

What if more churches were like Waffle House?

As a religion reporter, my hope in the local church sometimes feels hopeless. We seem to have drifted so far away from the description of the early church found in Acts 2:42-47. There, we are told “they devoted themselves to…

Despite how politicians vote, bipartisan majorities of Americans favor several key environmental initiatives

While climate change initiatives often carry the sound bites of partisan politics, a bipartisan majority of Americans favor key proposals to curb greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. However, as with other hot social and scientific issues —…

Earth Day 2022: A time for the watchman on the wall

Here we are again — another Earth Day. Another opportunity to celebrate all that draws us closer to God through this beautiful and awe-inspiring world. In much of the United States, a taste of spring is bursting forth as we…

Mental health remains greatest challenge for 13- to 25-year-olds

Mental health is the biggest challenge presently facing young people in the United States, but some say faith has helped them cope with their continuing emotional struggles, according to a survey designed to help churches minister to Generation Z in…

How I came to oppose the death penalty

Do you have a book you can say changed your life? I do. I was a freshman in college when I read Dead Man Walking by Sister Helen Prejean. It had a profound impact on what I thought and believed…

Americans must ‘change the narrative’ on public schools, panelists urge

Concerned Americans — including people of faith — must “change the narrative of how things are going” in the debate over public education, according to a veteran educator who recently resigned as superintendent of a top-rated Texas school district. “Let’s…

An internet celebrity visits Bubba-Doo’s

I don’t know about you. But out-of-town company arriving for a visit is a real thrill at our house. We love having visitors, and my wife and I expend some effort getting ready for our guests. Obviously, there is some…

In Flint, Mich., a Baptist pastor and a Nation of Islam leader join in a call for justice

A Baptist pastor affiliated with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has teamed with a Nation of Islam leader to demand justice for an African American man allegedly beaten by police in Flint, Mich., earlier this month. Devontae Powell, lead pastor at…

I’d rather swim than worship

It was a haunting statement by a pastor. She was asked how her church had rebounded from the impact of COVID upon live worship attendance. Like most, she reported that only about 65% of the pre-COVID attenders had returned to…

Except for white evangelicals, Americans have soured on Trump’s leadership

CBF approves $16 million budget, leaders challenge more mission

The Black Church was not meant to save America

Caner sues Truett-McConnell for wrongful firing