{youtube}Sy140myN_g4{/youtube} ATLANTA (ABP) — The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has established a Latin American earthquake fund and sent an initial $5,000 for relief and rebuilding efforts in Chile. Raquel Contreras, president of the Union of Evangelical Baptist Churches of Chile, said…
Supreme Court declines Okla. county’s attempt to display 10 Commandments
WASHINGTON (ABP) — The Supreme Court has declined to hear a case that could have allowed it to clarify its rules on displaying the 10 Commandments and other religious artifacts on government property. And, as a result, an Oklahoma county…
Baptist expert says Establishment Clause applies to foreign policy
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A Baptist church-state specialist is voicing concern about a think-tank report urging a new direction for United States foreign policy focused on the role religion plays in world affairs. Writing for the On Faith blog at WashingtonPost.com,…
Former Baptist editor Fletcher Allen dies at 78
FRANKLIN, Tenn. (ABP) — A retired denominational journalist who worked three decades for Baptist newspapers in three states died Feb. 27 after a long battle with cancer. Fletcher Allen Fletcher Allen, 78, of Franklin, Tenn., worked 17 years as associate…
A Time to Die: Church plants and re-plants key to continued witness
RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) — According to Chris Backert, emerging church strategist with the Virginia Baptist Mission Board, no greater need exists in the Body of Christ today than effective church planting. Chris Backert (VBMB photo) “Over the last decade a…
A Time to Die: Church renewal depends on leadership, Baucom says
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) — Jim Baucom, pastor of Columbia Baptist Church in Falls Church, Va., has helped lead three established congregations to renewal and growth. He says doing the same thing in other churches, while not easy, is possible…
Baptists pledge support for earthquake victims in Chile
ATLANTA (ABP) — As Baptists began to dig in for a long-term response to the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, focus shifted Feb. 27 to another quake that killed hundreds and caused billions of dollars in property damage in Chile. …
Youth minister, young-adult pastor honored by CBF for their ministries
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — A young associate pastor and a longtime youth minister have been honored by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship for their dedication to ministry. Fran Patterson, left, and Amy Grizzle, right, with CBF's Bo Prosser were honored at…
A Time to Die: Can Baptists learn from Anglican revitalization?
(ABP) — If turning around a declining church were easy, more declining churches would be reversing course. And if Christians in the United States think turning around a church is difficult, think of trying it in the Church of England,…
A Time to Die: When churches die, can they live again?
RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) — One sees them occasionally. Abandoned church buildings in rural areas stand in mute witness to changing times. In urban areas, big brick structures once crowded with eager worshipers now house restaurants, community centers or even nightclubs….
A Time to Die: How do — and should — churches die?
(ABP) — Churches close their doors every day. But is a church’s death inevitable? Who can give congregations permission to die? Should church members feel guilty for closing their facility’s doors? Peter Bush, author of In Dying We are Born:…
Seminary president apologizes for calling IMB head a liar
LYNCHBURG, Va. (ABP) — The president of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary has apologized for calling the head of the Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board a liar, saying he got carried away in an interview while criticizing a mission strategy…