TRENTON, N.J. (ABP) – In what could become the biggest legislative victory for opponents of capital punishment, the New Jersey Senate voted Dec. 10 to repeal that state's death penalty and replace it with life imprisonment. The chamber voted 21-16…
Huckabee’s surge in polls brings new media attention, scrutiny
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Mike Huckabee has gone from long-shot candidate to serious GOP presidential contender in only a few weeks — and his media coverage has gone from curious bemusement to serious analysis of his past record. The result is…
Church leaders seek clarity about split between CBF, ABC benefits plans
ATLANTA (ABP) — A seven-year partnership between American Baptists and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, which has allowed CBF-related churches to buy retirement and medical benefits, will end Dec. 31. The end of the partnership is leaving some church leaders confused…
Romney claims no candidate should be faith’s spokesman
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (ABP) — People of faith who value religious liberty “have a friend and an ally in me,” but promoters of the “religion of secularism” who want to strip religious references from the public square do not, said…
Samford names business school after banker, supporter Brock
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (ABP) – One of the nation's largest Baptist universities has named its business school after a local banker who is a longtime supporter. Samford University has named its business school after Harry Brock, the retired chairman and chief…
Stand and deliver: ‘Knowing the people’ is key to successful preaching
(ABP) — God chose “the foolishness of preaching” as the preferred instrument for communicating the message of salvation, the Apostle Paul wrote. But when the time arrives to stand and deliver that message, how does a preacher measure whether it's…
Lectionary helps some preachers ‘divide word of truth,’ avoid repeats
(ABP) — It's Saturday night. Do you know where your pastor is? A safe guess might be “in a study, frantically developing the next day's sermon.” The pastor's task is to “carefully divide the word of truth,” but many pulpiteers…
Stand and deliver: Preachers urged to avoid pulpit plagiarism
(ABP) — If preachers pass off other people's work as their own, they automatically limit themselves to preaching about only eight commandments. “Thou shalt not steal” and “thou shalt not bear false witness” become off-limits. But preachers can avoid plagiarism…
Hillary Clinton garners applause at Warren’s AIDS conference
LAKE FOREST, Calif. (ABP) — Despite controversy over her appearance there, Hillary Clinton has reportedly gotten rave reviews for a speech on combating AIDS she gave Nov. 29 at one of the country's largest evangelical churches. The Democratic New York…
Appeals court upholds ruling against funding for Christian prison programs
ST. LOUIS (ABP) — A federal appeals court has affirmed a lower court's decision saying state funding for a Christian prison program in Iowa was unconstitutional. But the three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in its…
New Baptist Covenant program, breakouts focus on unity theme
ATLANTA (ABP) — While known for their historic independence and stubbornness, Baptists from more than 40 American and Canadian denominations and groups will converge under a banner of unity next month in Atlanta. Organizers of the Celebration of a New…
Christian website offers YouTube alternative for wary Baptists
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (ABP) — Move over, YouTube. Baptists have video cameras. And they're using them, now that they have a “safe” place to share their videos online, says Bill Nix, CEO and president of Axletree Media. Axletree's E-zekiel, a Website…