ARLINGTON, Texas (ABP) — An American Baptist minister who advocates criminal-justice reform hailed as a “miracle” the latest stay of execution for a black man convicted of murdering a white Georgia police officer nearly 20 years ago. Alan Bean of…
Charismatic Southern Baptist churches see themselves as open to spiritual gifts
HIXSON, Tenn. (ABP) — Suffering from burnout after a decade as pastor of Central Baptist Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in suburban Chattanooga, Tenn., Ron Phillips wrote his resignation letter on a portable computer on the way to a meeting…
Trinity debate trickles down to gender roles
DEERFIELD, Ill. (ABP) — There's a tempest brewing among evangelical theologians about the triune nature of God, with potential to spill beyond academic halls into relationships between males and females in the church and home. Trinity Evangelical Divinity School sponsored…
Father, Son & Who?: Baptists struggle with concept of the Trinity
Ghost!” a 5-year-old screeched as he stood in the pew and clutched his mother's neck. “Mama, the preacher said there's a ghost in here!” Although most Baptists in the sanctuary laughed at the outburst, likely at least a few also…
U.S. blessed by God but ‘off track’ in foreign policy, Americans believe
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A new study described as the first of its kind suggests Americans believe the United States is both especially blessed by God and especially responsible to use its power wisely. Echoing the results of another recent poll,…
Dual citizenship
WASHINGTON (ABP) — The forbidden idea of churches and other tax-exempt organizations endorsing political parties or candidates has started to sound like a good one, in recent decades, to many conservative evangelicals in the United States. In fact, a group…
Where they stand: ‘Values’ distinguish both candidates and voters
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (ABP) — “Values voters” — a term popularized by conservative evangelicals after the 2004 elections — may bring a wide array of values to the polls. Here's a rundown of the two presidential candidates' views on a number…
Hot-button culture war issues not so hot for young evangelicals, study shows
WASHINGTON (ABP) — A large study of religious Americans suggests white evangelicals' views on gay rights may be shifting to the left. The survey, which includes one of the largest samples of younger voters' political and religious views ever taken,…
SBC seminary professor calls birth control ‘sin’
FORT WORTH, Texas (ABP) — A Southern Baptist seminary professor has sparked controversy with a recent sermon labeling use of birth-control pills a sin. Thomas White, vice president for student services and communications and associate professor of systematic theology at…
Fewer than three-dozen churches risk tax-exempt status through endorsements
WASHINGTON (ABP) — While only 33 churches signed up to participate in a conservative Christian group's Pulpit Freedom Sunday Sept. 28, planners viewed it as a success. That is, organizers said, because its stated purpose was not to inject politics…
Baptist history archives gathered under one roof
ATLANTA (ABP) — Scholars and history buffs who want to learn more about Baptist history now can do so in one place. The American Baptist Historical Society dedicated the Samuel Colgate Historical Library and Archives on Mercer University's Atlanta campus…
Poll: On torture, evangelicals not looking to Bible
ATLANTA (ABP) — A new survey suggests the very Americans who claim to follow the Bible most assiduously don't consult it when forming their views about torture and government policy. The poll of 600 Southern white evangelicals was released in…