By Bob Allen While other U.S. denominations face schism over homosexuality, Southern Baptists are rehashing a 17th-century debate about why a loving God would create billions of souls predestined to an eternity in hell. “I think it’s a fantastic thing,”…
Report says Louisiana College president asked to resign
By Bob Allen Louisiana College President Joe Aguillard has lost trustee support and been asked to resign, according to a story quoting multiple sources published March 26 in The Town Talk newspaper in Alexandria, La. Aguillard, 57, president of the…
Sunrise, sunset: The Church in America today
By David Gushee Follow David on Twitter: @dpgushee Across the United States, many churches are fading, some churches are closing, and a handful of churches are surging with explosive growth. Sunrise, sunset; sunrise, sunset. One of the topics I want to address in…
Calvinist preacher OK with women deacons
By Bob Allen A leader in the so-called New Calvinism resurgence in Southern Baptist life says he believes the Bible permits women to serve as deacons. David Platt, pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Ala., addressed the…
Calvinists plan student mission confab
By Bob Allen Students of the New Calvinism movement identified by titles including “young, restless and reformed” will head to Louisville, Ky., during Christmas break for a missions conference organized “for the global purpose of magnifying the kingly majesty of…
The Baptist war on contraception
By Jacob Lupfer This week, the Christian right observes a leadership change in one of its most important institutions. Last year, Richard Land announced his retirement as president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. Land’s successor…
Infants-in-hell question concerns editor
By Bob Allen A Baptist state newspaper editor has questioned whether the report of a Calvinism study committee implies that some high-profile Southern Baptist leaders believe that infants who die before reaching the so-called “age of accountability” are destined for…
Healthy disbelief
By Molly T. Marshall A rather heated exchange about the atonement theory of a hymn has ensued. Baptists and Presbyterians have weighed in on what the cross of Christ “satisfied,” the nature of divine wrath, and whether singing an objectionable…
Editorial ignites atonement debate
By Bob Allen A Presbyterian controversy spilled into Baptist life when Southern Baptist leaders criticized a Baptist state newspaper editor for agreeing with a hymnal committee that omitted a popular hymn because of the phrase “the wrath of God was…