ATLANTA (ABP) — Colleen Burroughs, vice president of the Passport youth camping ministry she started with her husband in 1993, will be nominated as moderator-elect of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, the Atlanta-based CBF announced May 24. If elected, she would…
HERITAGE: Seek & Find
It’s the tiniest gift shop in Virginia; but it also is likely the only store in Virginia which has no overhead, no payroll and clears 100 percent of its sales as pure profit. And it certainly is the only store…
VITAL SIGNS: Seven things church members wish their ministers knew, but are afraid to tell them
After I shared with a group of laity what clergy are thinking, in the interest of fairness I asked them what they wish their ministers knew, but that they are afraid to share with them out of respect or fear…
OUT LOUD
“Saying this year’s increase in baptisms is good news is like bragging your state moved from the 47th to 46th state in educational achievement. It’s better, but it’s not time for a parade.” Ed Stetzer The Southern Baptist researcher was…
PENTECOST REFLECTION: A commitment to universal mission
The story of the first Pentecost reminds us of the universality of the church’s mission. Churches everywhere are called to participate in God’s mission to the whole of creation. This includes the obligation to proclaim, in word and deed, the…
VIRGINIA BAPTIST FORUM: A painful lesson learned again
I think what Elmer Towns of Liberty University is trying to say [“Situational ethics at Liberty seminary?”, Herald, May 13] when he downplays Ergun Caner’s exaggerations, misrepresentations, conflicting stories and downright lies is “the end justifies the means” — an…
VIRGINIA BAPTIST FORUM: Welcome being branded offensive
Donald Luzzatto’s editorial [“Governor’s decision risks state intrusion into religion,” Herald, May 13] asserts we are no longer a Christian nation. Most Americans have always believed we live in a Judaic-Christian nation. In a 2008 poll, about 85 percent of…
Southern Baptist Convention contines to lose members, agency reports
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) — The Southern Baptist Convention reported a 2.2 percent increase in baptisms in 2009, stemming a four-year decline, but membership in the denomination fell and the sagging economy led to a drop in missions giving, according to…
From the Eastern Shore to Cumberland Gap
STAFF CHANGES • David B. Cromer, to Emmaus Church, Poquoson, as pastor. • David Simpson, to Fine Creek Church, Powhatan, as pastor. • Randy Allensworth, resigning as pastor of Salem Church, Fredericksburg, after 17 years of service. MISSION MOMENT: Fourteen…
Board distances BGCT from gay-affirming Dallas church
DALLAS — The Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board voted May 25 to refuse any financial contributions from a North Dallas church that has ordained as deacons practicing homosexuals, and the board asked the church to stop identifying itself…
Book draws on music of U2 to call for Christian unity
No caption submitted BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (ABP) — A new book written by a Baptist professor applies theological themes found in the music of the Irish rock band U2 to the quest for Christian unity. In Ecumenism Means You Too —…
FIRST PERSON: Anybody can be a friend
NASHVILLE (ABP) — My 24-year-old son is a certified nursing assistant who provides care for three children — two with intellectual disabilities — four nights a week while their single mother is at work. Bob Allen One “benefit” of such…