BLUEFIELD — Bluefield College has received a $25,000 grant to support its new instrumental music program. The Ratcliffe Foundation of Tazewell presented the grant July 27 to school officials. Bluefield launched its new program last spring and school administrators say…
After receiving, Baltimore churches give to Dover
Though it may have looked like a typical Vacation Bible School to an outsider, what was going on at Dover Baptist Church in Manakin Sabot last week was one-of-a-kind. Pastor Mike Garner will make sure you know that. Three other…
Jerusalem mayor navigates sacred city’s religious politics
JERUSALEM — When Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat decided to open a municipal parking lot that had been closed on Saturdays, the Jewish Sabbath, his office said he simply was being practical. Extra parking is needed to help ease lines of…
RIGHT OR WRONG? Being transparent in church
Few Baptists seem to practice our old adage, “Tell the truth and trust the people.” For example, too much church business goes on behind closed doors. How can our church balance operating on a need-to-know basis and making the truth…
Bluefield College alumnus leads renovation effort
BLUEFIELD — Bluefield College prides itself on preparing innovative learners and transformational leaders to impact the world. The best measure of that vision and mission is the outcome of the school’s alumni. Alumnus Leroy Williams certainly fits the bill. This…
Baptists on mission in the 49th state
MECHANICSVILLE — Bodenburg Butte Baptist Church is located in Palmer, Alaska, a town approximately 45 miles from Anchorage and 4,700 miles from Virginia. Last month a 14-member mission team led by Don Carter, a member of Hillcrest Baptist Church in…
Bluefield College cottages renovated
BLUEFIELD — More than 100 members of Baptist churches from across Virginia and Tennessee spent part of their summer on the campus of Bluefield College. The Baptist missionaries with skills from carpentry to cooking worked five weeks in May and…
From the Eastern Shore to Cumberland Gap
STAFF CHANGES • Glenn Giles, to Enon Church, Roanoke, as pastor. • Joy Heaton, to Westhampton Church, Richmond, as senior pastor, effective Sept. 1. • Todd Cullop, resigning as co-pastor at Convergence at Fair Park, Alexandria. • John Carey, resigning…
The secret’s in the songs: Musical choice reveals congregation’s theological position
WACO, Texas — Terry York is willing to bet that if he goes into a Baptist church, sits down and listens, he can tell — long before the preacher speaks — whether the congregation is theologically conservative or moderate. The…
Faith that sings: Songs of faith pack theology into a case Christians can carry with them
“If you know what hymns a congregation is most addicted to, you will be able to infer what, in Christianity, means most to that church.” When the late hymnist Erik Routley wrote that in 1982, worship wars in the United…
‘Big Bucket Brigade’ ministers to Africans
RICHMOND — When you think of a “bucket brigade,” you likely picture buckets filled with water and a line of people. On July 12 there was a “Big Bucket Brigade” at Hatcher Memorial Baptist Church in Richmond, but the 23…
NEW BAPTIST COVENANT: Carter planning return trip to Gaza
NORMAN, Okla. (ABP) — Former President Jimmy Carter said Aug. 7 he is planning a return trip to Gaza in an effort to focus international attention on what he describes as a humanitarian crisis. Carter, who sparked controversy in June…