Last week the House voted to affirm the war in Iraq and to reject the establishment of any withdrawal date at this time. This week the Senate continues to debate the issue. In light of these developments, and after finishing…
Study counts 1,600 ordained, Baptist women in the South
ATLANTA (ABP) — Roughly 1,600 Baptist women in the southern United States have been ordained to the ministry, according to a new report released by Baptist Women in Ministry. The study reviewed women in churches affiliated with the Alliance of…
Former mission board worker gets anonymous gift for ailing wife
WACO, Texas (ABP) — Nathan and Fran Porter, former employees of the Southern Baptist Convention's Home Mission Board, have received an anonymous $5,000 donation to help pay for Fran's mounting medical expenses, Porter told Associated Baptist Press June 29. The…
Arkansas Supreme Court overturns state’s ban on gay foster parents
LITTLE ROCK (ABP) — The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled unanimously June 29 that the state's child-welfare agency cannot ban gays from being foster parents. The ban had been the only one of its kind in the nation. The justices agreed…
Quiet CBF assembly leaves time for exhortations, declarations
Editor's note: This is compiled from previous ABP stories. ATLANTA (ABP) — News from speakers, workshops and auxiliary meetings during the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship general assembly included: — CBF Coordinating Council members unanimously elected Rob Nash as global missions coordinator…
Two Gardner-Webb University administrators die in one week
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. (ABP) — Gardner-Webb University, a Baptist school in North Carolina, is mourning the loss of two members of its development staff who died within a week. David Boan, the school's vice president for development, died after a…
Hispanic university joins 3 groups in church-starting partnership
ARLINGTON, Texas (ABP) — The Baptist University of the Americas has joined a 3-year-old partnership with other Baptist groups to start Spanish-language churches across the United States. The San Antonio, Texas, school signed on to the partnership with the Hispanic…
Anti-poverty reformers seek consensus among political, religious groups
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Christian anti-poverty advocates are promoting a “Covenant for a New America” that calls for policy changes to build consensus across the political aisle and across denominations. The document outlines three “fundamental commitments”: — “Work must work and…
Don’t be afraid of evangelicals, Obama tells other progressives
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Speaking to a group of Christians rallying in Washington, a possible contender for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination said it's time for progressives and liberals to talk about faith, but only if they can speak authentically. “Nothing's…
Leland Center receives accreditation; faculty lauded for ‘notable scholarship’
ARLINGTON, Va. (ABP) — The John Leland Center for Theological Studies received full accreditation status from the Association of Theological Schools June 15. It now offers diploma, master of divinity, and master of theological studies classes to roughly 150 students…
Alito tips balance upholding Kansas’ death-penalty law
WASHINGTON (ABP) — New Justice Samuel Alito cast the deciding fifth vote in a June 26 Supreme Court decision upholding the constitutionality of Kansas' death-penalty law. The high court divided closely — and acrimoniously — in the case. On a…
Former Illinois Baptist exec Maurice Swinford dies
HERRIN, Ill. (ABP) – Maurice Swinford, who led the Illinois Baptist State Association for five years until his retirement in 1993, died Saturday. He was 78. An Illinois native born in Charleston, Swinford began working for the statewide association as…