OSLO, Norway (ABP) — A judge in Uzbekistan refused Oct. 14 to overturn fines against five Baptists convicted of illegal worship, an international news service that specializes in religious freedom coverage reported Oct. 26. Fines totaling roughly 10 times Uzbekistan's…
Baptist missionaries fight cholera outbreak in Haiti
HAUT-LIMBE, Haiti (ABP) — A medical missionary couple in Haiti jointly appointed by American Baptists and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship say they have not yet treated any cholera cases but are focusing on community education and prevention to halt spread…
Seminary celebrates 100 years on campus
FORT WORTH, Texas (ABP) — Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary celebrated a milestone of 100 years at its current location with a chapel service Oct. 19 focusing on its founder, B.H. Carroll, and his successor L. R. Scarborough, who led the…
ABP honors founders
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — A founder of Associated Baptist Press recounted the organization’s history Oct. 21 as an effort to maintain a free press in Baptist life. Events in North Carolina earlier in the same day served as a reminder that freedom in…
Baptist newspaper editor resigns
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (ABP) – The editor of North Carolina Baptists' newspaper has agreed to resign his post to prevent a threatened motion to defund the publication from being made at the upcoming Baptist State Convention of North Carolina annual meeting. Norman Jameson…
Who’s in Charge? Wide diversity in church governance among Baptists
(ABP) — Baptist churches across the board agree — Jesus Christ is the head of the church. But when it comes to ways Christians discern Christ’s will for their particular congregation, handle its day-to-day administrative chores and make decisions about…
Can a church be congregational in polity and have elders?
(ABP) — Baptists long have been known as strong advocates of the priesthood of the believer — the idea that every individual can approach God and have a personal relationship with the Creator. Each person has the right to interpret…
Governing multi-site churches like franchising a business
(ABP) — As some congregations reach out to minister beyond their church campus, many have chosen to begin second or third or more sites under the church umbrella. Adding more sites usually means adjusting the congregation’s governing structure. Glenn Akins,…
Sheriff’s office settles lawsuit with former church member outed for blog
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (ABP) — The sheriff's office in Jacksonville, Fla., has agreed to study its conflict-of-interest code for detectives and develop a training program on First Amendment considerations as part of a settlement with an anonymous blogger who was unmasked…
Baptists helps Haitian amputee soccer team
Members of a Haitian amputee soccer team proudly display a shirt bearing both the Texas Baptist Men Disaster Relief insignia and their team logo. TBM will train the team members in water purification techniques and basic disaster relief before they…
Baptist leaders discuss reprise of New Baptist Covenant
ATLANTA (ABP) — A repeat of the 2008 Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant meeting in Atlanta could be in the offing as early as next year, according participants in a recent meeting of North American Baptist leaders called together…
Texas Baptist columnists disagree about yoga
DALLAS (ABP) — Two Baptist panelists on a newspaper discussion blog had differing takes on recent comments by a Southern Baptist leader urging Christians to avoid yoga. Al Mohler Texas Faith, a regular feature of the Dallas Morning News website,…