LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (ABP) — Baptists who celebrate the 400th birthday of their denomination in 2009 miss the mark by about 1600 years, some Baptists insist. Since Jesus founded his church during his earthly ministry and promised “the gates of…
Historians trace beginning of Baptist movement back 400 years
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (ABP) — Some Christians before 1609 held what many refer to as distinctively Baptist beliefs. Baptists in 1609 practiced believer’s baptism, but they didn’t immerse. Even so, most church historians agree Baptists emerged as a distinct movement 400…
Texas Baptists defer name change proposal
FORT WORTH, Texas (ABP) — The Baptist General Convention of Texas elevated to its highest office the son of a former president, deferred action on a proposed name change and approved a reduced budget for 2009 at its most sparsely…
Baptist hymnody largely settles for two out of three in Trinity
Hymns sung in most Baptist churches historically have been “More About Jesus” than about either God the Father or the Holy Spirit, several church music experts agree. “From a Baptist perspective, I don't think the hymnody has ever been Trinitarian,”…
Religious ‘test’ for public office? Yes and No
American Christians may pledge loyalty to the U.S. Constitution. But behind the closed curtain of the polling booth, many violate the spirit of the constitutional prohibition on any religious test for public office. And several church-state experts insist that's not…
Human rights rooted in Bible, not political philosophy
ATLANTA — Concern about hu-man rights means biblically grounded compassion for oppressed people — not a selfish desire to protect one's own property or prestige, Baptist ethicist Glen Stassen told the National Summit on Torture. “It has been the defenders…
Red-letter Christians can transcend partisan politics, Campolo insists
WACO, Texas — Red-letter Christians committed to taking Christ's teachings seriously have the potential to transform society in a way that moves beyond partisan politics, author and educator Tony Campolo told an ethics conference at Baylor University's Truett Theological Seminary….
Human rights and wrongs
ATLANTA — Most evangelical American Christians remained silent about torture at Abu Ghraib and Guan-tanamo for some of the same reasons European Christians 70 years ago largely failed to resist the Holocaust, ethicist David Gushee told a na-tional summit on…
Not all coercive force is torture, Baptist ethicist insists
Debate over the morality of coercive force would be served better if everyone involved quit using the word “torture” altogether, said Daniel Heimbach, professor of Christian ethics at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. “The problem here is that in hotly debating…