The nation's umbrella group for evangelicals has endorsed a statement that takes aim at the Bush administration's alleged use of torture in the war on terrorism. Directors of the National Association of Evangelicals announced late on March 11 that they…
NAE board declines to repriment Cizik for global warming campaign
Board members of the National Association of Evangelicals declined March 9 to chasten the group's public-policy officer for his public statements on global warming—but an intramural fight among evangelical elites on the issue may just be starting. NAE directors, meeting…
Southwestern Seminary leaders agree to meet with McKissic, halt removal
Board leaders at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and an embattled trustee have agreed to meet and discuss their differences—with a threat to remove Texas pastor Dwight McKissic from the board taken off the table. McKissic, pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church…
Former Southern Baptist pastor acquitted of seeking gay sex
A prominent former Southern Baptist pastor was cleared of criminal charges in a sex-solicitation case March 7. An Oklahoma judge acquitted Lonnie Latham of asking an undercover male police officer to have sex. Latham had publicly supported Southern Baptist efforts…
ANOTHER VIEW: Retrieving a consistent pro-life ethic
Christians are so tangled up with politics these days that our political loyalties threaten to engulf our Christian commitments. We want the politicians to listen to us and the politicians want us to listen to them. It is nice to…
SBCV leader nominated as president of NAMB
After a 10-month search to replace former head Bob Reccord, the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board has recommended Virginian Geoffrey Hammond as its next president. Hammond, 49, is currently senior associate director of the Southern Baptist Conservatives of…
‘Mainstream’ leaders credit freedom for staying Baptist
A refrain of freedom echoed through a Mainstream Baptist Network convocation in suburban Dallas Feb. 23-24. About 80 participants from across the South gathered for the sixth-annual event. During the session, seven speakers addressed the theme “Why I am still…
Local missions gain prominence as Baptist churches join blitz
Operation Inasmuch, the one-day missions blitz organization that started at a Baptist church in Fayetteville, N.C., became a national ministry Jan. 30. David Crocker, who was pastor of Fayetteville's Snyder Memorial Baptist Church when Operation Inasmuch was born, is the…
Embrace postmodern change, says Sweet
Deal with it, get over it or get help. That's Leonard Sweet's mantra when it comes to understanding Christianity's fluid role in the postmodern world. The Christian church is in the midst of a “perfect storm,” Sweet told a crowd…