WOODSTOCK, Ga. (ABP) — Part of the reason Southern Baptist Convention president Johnny Hunt was ready to “shock the system” with a strongly worded call to a “Great Commission Resurgence” is that he and other leading Southern Baptist pastors feel…
Military destroys Afghan Bibles
WASHINGTON (ABP) — The U.S. military says it has destroyed Afghan-language Bibles confiscated from soldiers in Afghanistan to ensure troops did not break regulations against proselytizing. According to Reuters, officials denied that evangelical Christian soldiers seen in a video by…
SBC may deploy disaster relief for swine flu, leader says
ALPHARETTA, Ga. (ABP) — The Southern Baptist Convention could deploy its nationwide disaster-relief network if the international outbreak of swine flu becomes a pandemic in the United States, said a spokesman for the North American Mission Board. "Now is the…
Study: Ranks of religiously unaffiliated grow, but remain often open to faith
WASHINGTON (ABP) — While the fastest-growing religious segment of the United States population is those who are not affiliated with a particular religion, that group is not necessarily comprised of secularists and largely remains open to faith, a new study…
Young evangelicals call for end to nuclear weapons
AUSTIN, Texas (ABP) — A group of under-40 evangelicals attending a leadership meeting in Texas announced April 28 a new initiative to mobilize American Christians to eliminate nuclear weapons. "We have all heard about this broadening of the evangelical agenda,"…
Carter says Baptist strife hurting evangelism
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (ABP) — Former President Jimmy Carter said baptisms are declining in the Southern Baptist Convention because doctrinal bickering gives Christianity a bad name. Carter, a Baptist Sunday school teacher for 66 years who publicly parted ways with the…
Maya Angelou challenges Baptists to fight racism
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (ABP) — With an African-American population estimated as high as 50 million, the "blight of racism" is "still an epidemic assailing" the United States, writer Maya Angelou said April 24 at the Southeast regional gathering of the New…
Groups urge Obama to proclaim ‘inclusive’ day of prayer
WASHINGTON (ABP) — Two religious-liberty organizations are calling on President Obama to proclaim an "inclusive" national day of prayer May 7 instead of endorsing a National Day of Prayer Task Force headed by the wife of a prominent Religious Right…
Southern Seminary closing School of Church Music
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (ABP) — Southern Baptist Theological Seminary is closing its 65-year-old School of Church Music and Worship, combining it with the School of Leadership and Church Ministry into a new School of Church Ministries. The seminary's board of trustees…
Alliance of Baptists urges end to Cuba travel ban
Ana Karim, a Cuban-American Alliance member, urges the group to contact lawmakers. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (ABP) — The Alliance of Baptists applauded President Obama for loosening restrictions on American's travel to Cuba and called for more reform during the progressive group's…
Former SBC president ‘concerned’ about Rick Warren’s comments on gay marriage
TAYLORS, S.C. (ABP) — A former president of the Southern Baptist Convention said he is "deeply concerned" about comments by Purpose Driven Life author Rick Warren that a recent court decision allowing gay marriage is not part of his agenda….
Protestant pastors divided on global warming
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — Protestant pastors are sending mixed messages about the environment and climate change, according to a new survey by LifeWay Research. In a survey of 1,002 clergy last October, 47 percent agreed and 47 percent disagreed with…