Cheerful-looking envelopes from the Georgia Baptist Mission Board that dropped in the mailboxes of nearly 200 retirees in mid-September appeared to contain good news. They depicted a senior-adult couple sitting on a park bench. The envelopes presented an assumed message:…
Georgia’s Southern Baptist leaders elated by passage of heartbeat bill
Southern Baptist leaders in Georgia were jubilant after Gov. Brian Kemp on Tuesday signed one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws.
Religion Notes: Georgia Baptist Mission Board layoffs follow declines in giving
Decreases in giving have contributed to the recent layoff of 20 staffer members from the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, according to a report in the Christian Index. “This decision was made only after months of intense prayer, study, and discussion…
Both sides claim win in court ruling regarding fired Atlanta fire chief
Both sides claimed victory in a Dec. 20 court ruling that while Atlanta had grounds to fire then-Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran in 2015, a city policy forbidding high-ranking officials from speaking or writing for money unconstitutionally burdened his freedom of…
Georgia Baptists urge crackdown on illegal immigration
Southern Baptists in Georgia urged government leaders to crack down on illegal immigration in a resolution during the recent annual gathering of the Georgia Baptist Convention. Messengers to the Nov. 14-15 convention gathered in Savannah, Ga., approved a statement recommended…
Maligned editor says free speech slipping away
A Georgia Baptist newspaper editor widely criticized for questioning whether Islam qualifies as a religion protected under the First Amendment wondered in the days leading up to July 4 if America’s independence is about to slip away. Gerald Harris, editor…
The Baptist-on-Baptist fight within Georgia’s ‘religious liberty’ debate
Very seldom do you hear governors wax theological. But Nathan Deal’s veto message last week was a solid blow struck in the fight over what it means to be a Baptist in the South.
Mohler cites CBF in veto of anti-LGBT ‘religious liberty’ bill
A Southern Baptist seminary president says theology played a role in Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal’s decision to veto a measure that would have discriminated against the state’s LGBT community. Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.,…
Georgia governor vetoes anti-LGBT ‘religious liberty’ bill
Georgia’s Baptist governor announced March 28 he would veto a controversial “religious freedom” bill that opponents said would foster LGBT discrimination. Gov. Nathan Deal, a member of Cooperative Baptist Fellowship-aligned First Baptist Church in Gainesville, Ga., said he had no…
‘Religious liberty’ bill passes Georgia House, Senate
The Georgia General Assembly passed an amended “Free Exercise Protection Act” March 16 that now heads to an uncertain fate with the state’s Republican governor. Capping two years of lobbying efforts by groups including the 1.3-million-member Georgia Baptist Convention, the…
Georgia Baptist leaders back ‘religious freedom’ bill
The Georgia Baptist Convention is again lobbying for legislation they say is needed to protect Christians from religious discrimination. The head of the Georgia Baptist Convention led a morning devotional Feb. 2 in the State Senate as pastors rallied in…
Baptist group in Georgia opposes marijuana cultivation proposal
By Bob Allen Southern Baptists in Georgia are lobbying against a proposal to allow cultivation of marijuana in the state to produce cannabis oil legalized earlier this year for treatment of certain illnesses like late-stage cancer and epilepsy. The law…