There is a grainy old photograph which pictures the very first assembly at Eagle Eyrie, the Virginia Baptist assembly and conference center near Lynchburg. The photograph shows a stark contrast between architecture and people. It was taken inside English Hall,…
The devil’s revival
William E. Hatcher, the popular preacher of the 19th century whose persona this columnist frequently assumes, told the following story in his autobiography. It is a fascinating revelation of a time that is no more. The only part of the…
On God’s Hill
About a century ago a strong-willed and highly-articulate visionary named Nannie Helen Burroughs, a native Virginian, persuaded her fellow African-American Baptists to establish a school for girls and young women. She dreamed of a self-help educational institution which would provide…
The unsinkable Efee
Last month a large group of friends assembled to honor Edna Frances Dawkins at the dedication of a faculty office which bears her name at Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. In a sense, it was a family meeting. There were…
Window on the world
Mary Louise Green Wright turns 90 years old Feb. 3. She stays close to home these days and usually wheels herself up and down the long corridors of the assisted living facility which has become her home. She is unable…
A new year’s message
In January 1867, the editorial team of Jeter and Dickinson began their second full year of owning, editing and publishing the Religious Herald, which they had revived following “the War.” While they admitted that “our remuneration has been small,” all…
300 candles brightly shining
On July 27, 1707, representatives of five churches formed the Philadelphia Baptist Association. It was the first Baptist association in the United States. Earlier, there were “yearly meetings” and occasional gatherings among the scattered churches; but in 1707 the urge…
The music man
For three decades, Allen R. Brown led the music ministry of Virginia Baptists. He easily was the most recognized voice and face at a Virginia Baptist state meeting and clearly among the most respected and beloved members of the Mission…
The mystery of the call
The Baptist world is divided between two camps—the clergy and the laity. Baptist thought usually admits that both camps are expected to be Christian servants. But one of the mysteries to the laity is the matter of “the call” to…