Ryan Blackwell, 42, has been named 11th president of Lifeway Christian Resources, the publishing house of the Southern Baptist Convention. He currently serves as executive pastor and teaching pastor at Cross Church in Springdale, Ark., an SBC megachurch previously led…
Holman quietly removes Patterson and Sills in new study Bible
Essays authored by former Southwestern Seminary President Paige Patterson and former Southern Seminary missions professor David Sills have been quietly removed from an updated version of Holman Bible Publisher’s CSB Study Bible and the forthcoming NASB Study Bible. The change,…
Court records reveal tangled trail in Sills sexual abuse case
A sprawling collection of discovery material now made public has unearthed explosive new details and previously unknown facts regarding the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and the sexual abuse allegations involving former professor David Sills and his former…
Do Lifeway’s trustees even have a pulse?
Just imagine you are an elected trustee of a $300 million denominational entity whose outgoing president lobs verbal grenades toward the trustees and corporate culture on his way out the door. And then you show up a week later for…
With two leadership roles open, will SBC embrace a younger generation?
Wanted: Creative leaders who have a spine but are flexible enough to accommodate diverse opinions and changing political tides. Must be Southern Baptist. Only males need apply. With not-unexpected news of the resignation of Brent Leatherwood as president of the…
Mandrell’s early departure from Lifeway is not the norm
Ben Mandrell is not the first president of Lifeway Christian Resources to leave the post for a pastorate, but the 48-year-old’s call to Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis is a rarity in the publisher’s 134-year-history. Earlier today, Mandrell accepted the…
Mandrell to leave Lifeway for Memphis pastorate
Six years after taking leadership of Lifeway Christian Resources, Ben Mandrell is leaving for a prominent Tennessee pastorate. The pastor search committee at Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis has unanimously recommended Mandrell as the church’s next senior pastor, succeeding Steve…
Breaking news: SBC will vote on three explosive motions Wednesday morning
Three new and potentially explosive issues will come up for a vote by messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting Wednesday, June 12. That will happen before the convention considers another highly controversial matter carried over from last year…
Kentucky Supreme Court denies abuse victim’s plea, siding with four SBC entities who were not parties to the case
The Kentucky Supreme Court has sided with four Southern Baptist Convention entities that — among others — sought to deny a sexual abuse victim an extension of the statute of limitations to file a claim against those she believes knew…
How to find the trustees of the SBC entities behind the amicus brief
Who’s actually responsible for the positions and actions taken by entities of the Southern Baptist Convention? This is a pressing question now, as controversy flares over the SBC and three of its entities signing an amicus brief in a Kentucky…
Why is Lifeway silent on sexual abuse amicus brief?
Here’s a sure way to know Southern Baptist institutions and some Baptist universities don’t think they’re accountable to anyone outside their inner circle: The perpetual refusal to comment on, or even acknowledge, questions from media. A year ago this fall,…
2021 was a very good year for growth in assets for SBC’s largest agencies
The Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board nearly tripled its investment income in 2021 compared to 2020, according to the latest financial reports published in the SBC Annual 2022. NAMB booked $44.93 million in investment income for 2021, compared…