A Baptist scholar who famously changed his mind on homosexuality says a new Cooperative Baptist Fellowship policy allowing the possible hiring of LGBTQ Christians for some, but not all, staff positions “may be the worst of all possible options,” distancing the very voices on both ends of the spectrum that CBF leaders were hoping to appease.
Brian McLaren says Baptists ‘doing harm’ to nation and world
Baptists are doing a lot of harm in today’s society, emergent church leader Brian McLaren said in a podcast posted recently on a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship blog.
Tragedies like 9-11, Sandy Hook define online devotional effort
Law enforcement agencies, secular and faith-based relief groups, and media are known to instantly pivot and mobilize when tragedy strikes. And while those responses are usually the most visible, there are others who refocus and retool their efforts to comfort thousands during difficult times: the editors and writers of daily and seasonal devotions.
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CBF honors Virginia pastors with leadership awards at ChurchWorks
Two Virginia pastors were honored Feb. 26 for their outstanding leadership during the opening day of ChurchWorks, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s annual conference for Christian educators meeting at Trinity Baptist Church in San Antonio, Texas. ChurchWorks is three-day event for all practitioners of education and spiritual formation in the congregational setting.
Virginia Baptist group will no longer forward money to CBF, citing partial lifting of ban on LGBTQ employees
The Baptist General Association of Virginia will no longer forward contributions from its affiliated congregations to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship because of a new CBF practice allowing the hiring of LGBTQ Christians to some, but not all, ministry positions.
Does communion mean anything? A lament over the BGAV and CBF
For the BGAV and CBF, perhaps “communion” now means we just share a little instead of share abundantly. Maybe “communion” now means we have only periodic public fellowship with each other instead of intimate friendship as brothers and sisters in Christ. Perhaps “communion” now means rapport and affinity move towards separation and estrangement.
Arrests, deportations chill demand for immigrant legal aid ministries
When two Baptist ministers launched a legal aid ministry for immigrants in Virginia in the fall of 2016, it was aimed largely at helping Latinos attain and maintain legal residency. But Donald Trump’s election a couple months later, and his high-profile immigration crackdown since taking office, has slowed demand for Greg and Sue Smith’s LUCHA Immigration Legal Services in Fredericksburg, Va.
Citing partial lifting of LGBTQ hiring ban, Texas Baptist group to stop forwarding money to CBF
The Baptist General Convention of Texas will end pass-through funding for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship because of a new CBF practice allowing the hiring of LGBTQ Christians to some, but not all, ministry positions.
Seeking fresh light: Cooperative Baptists practicing theology
An ideal practice of theology by the church is one that depends on the illumination provided by various sources of light through which the Spirit helps us see and diverse voices through which the Spirit helps us hear what the mind of Christ is regarding our faith and practice for time and place.