By Jeff Brumley Mark Osler will leave First Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, Thursday evening spiritually drained. Seeking the death penalty for Jesus Christ, he said, always does that to him. “It is very dark,” said Osler, a former federal…
Institute to study black-on-black crime
By Bob Allen Arkansas Baptist College honored the memory of a student murdered last year by dedicating a new research center March 1 bearing his name to address the problem of black-on-black violence in America’s cities. The new Derek Olivier…
Sex offender loses pharmacy license
By Bob Allen The Mississippi Board of Pharmacy recently revoked the license of a convicted child molester who had worked at a drug store in Clinton, Miss., since resigning as music minister at a prominent Southern Baptist Church in 2011….
Slain pastor lawsuit headed for trial
By Bob Allen A former Georgia police officer must stand trial to defend himself against misconduct alleged in a lawsuit stemming from the fatal shooting of a Southern Baptist minister in a botched drug-sting investigation in 2009, the 11th U.S….
Super Bowl big day for traffickers
By Daniel Wallace While Baltimore and San Francisco fought it out on the gridiron Sunday in New Orleans, law enforcement and ministries across the city were waging a battle against the modern version of the slave trade: human trafficking. Authorities…
Church security after Sandy Hook
By Jeff Brumley The Sandy Hook school massacre terrified parents nationwide and sparked a debate on gun control and school security. But it’s also led to some soul searching on church staffs worried about how to best protect worshipers and…
American Baptists take on gun violence
By Bob Allen Directors of American Baptist Home Mission Societies unanimously adopted a statement Jan. 23 recommending 10 measures aimed at combating gun violence in the United States. The measures, approved during a two-day retreat in Atlanta, include a ban…
No prison for molester termed unfair
By Bob Allen A former Southern Baptist music minister who will serve no time in prison after admitting to molesting children nearly 30 years ago demonstrates that America’s justice system isn’t always fair, a newspaper in Jackson, Miss., editorialized Jan….
Former minister pleads guilty to abuse
By Bob Allen John Langworthy, 50, former associate pastor of music and ministries at Morrison Heights Baptist Church in Clinton, Miss., pleaded guilty in Hinds County Circuit Court to five of eight felony counts of gratification of lust against young…