LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Southern Baptist Convention discontinued its relationship with Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas, because of the church’s perceived toleration of homosexual members. Messengers to the SBC annual meeting dismissed the church in less than 30…
Task force approved, but multiple motions focus on controversial Seattle pastor
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A proposal that could reshape the Southern Baptist Convention received overwhelming approval during the 2009 SBC annual meeting. But relationships with a controversial pastor who is influential among many young SBC pastors drew the attention of multiple…
Highest freedom is freely giving self to God, Baptist historian says
HOUSTON — Baptists must aspire to the kind of freedom that leads them to relinquish their autonomy to God, historian Walter Shurden told participants at the William H. Whitsitt Baptist Heritage Society’s annual meeting. Shurden received the society’s 2009 Courage…
Callam: BWA is communion table for world Baptist family
HOUSTON (ABP) — The communion table provides a metaphor for how the Baptist World Alliance can unite Baptists in a “true spirit of hospitality,” Neville Callam insisted. Callam, general secretary of the worldwide umbrella group for Baptists, addressed the challenge…
Train up a child: It takes parents and churches working together
Parents must take the lead in guiding children to love and learn the Bible, but the church should help, according to specialists in children’s ministry. The process begins at birth, directing children toward God long before they even know about…
Baptism still Baptists’ symbol but ‘problems’ must be answered
WACO, Texas (ABP) — After four centuries, believers baptism remains the symbol of Baptist identity, historian Bill Leonard stressed during a lecture series at Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary. But in the 21st century, Baptists must respond to…
Legal expert suggests how to manage mix of religion, politics
ABILENE, Texas — Religion and politics inevitably will mix — especially in the U.S. presidential campaign — but that does not mean Americans should sanction a free-for-all, church-state expert Melissa Rogers insisted. Rogers, director of the Center for Religion &…
Ground-rules recommended for dealing with religion in schools
ABILENE, Texas — Whatever the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately decides, communities should strive to have better conversations about the role of religion in public schools, Melissa Rogers told participants at the T.B. Maston Christian Ethics Lectures at Hardin-Simmons University's Logsdon…
Fundamentalists of all stripes want to turn back the clock
Despite all their theological and cultural differences, fundamentalists of every faith share at least one common characteristic — resistance to modernity. That's the assessment of scholars and firsthand observers who have evaluated the varieties of religious expression. “Fundamentalism worldwide is…