“In those days,” God declares, “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. … I will pour out my Spirit on both men and women, and they shall prophesy.” — Acts…
Affirmed yet not ordained?
As Meredith Stone of Baptist Women in Ministry announced the results of the State of Women in Ministry 2025 report, she said this: “BWIM has counted 2,856 Baptist women ordained to the gospel ministry.” My immediate reaction was, there has…
Florida church ordains four women for ministry on same day
While some Baptist churches are actively running away from any hint of supporting women in leadership, a Florida Baptist church recently ordained four women as ministers on the same day. In a Sept. 21 service filled with pageantry, liturgical readings…
With fewer ordinations, seminaries find ways to serve young professionals in other fields
On a Tuesday evening in early April, an audience sat enraptured in Princeton Theological Seminary’s dining hall as, one by one, adults in their 20s walked up to a platform, took the microphone and shared a story.
Two LGBTQ British Baptist ministers ordained in Canada
A Canadian Baptist church and association ordained two ministers from the United Kingdom Oct. 27 because they could not be ordained in the Baptist Union of Great Britain. First Baptist Church of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and the Canadian Association for…
My ordination is precious to me
When the Southern Baptist Convention voted last week to reaffirm its expulsion of churches with women pastors on staff and to begin the process of amending its constitution to make sure any member congregation “does not affirm, appoint or employ…
Want to understand why the SBC expelled its largest church? Listen to W.A. Criswell
W.A. Criswell would be so proud of the Southern Baptist Convention this week. The man who once was the spokesman for why women should not — cannot — be pastors has reached peak influence 114 years after his birth. About…
PC(USA) committee lambasted for choosing a ‘text of terror’ for ordination exam
The committee overseeing ordination exams for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has been called out for its selection of a so-called “text of terror” for this year’s written examination all candidates must complete. The passage from Judges 19 involves gang rape,…
An important conversation about ordaining and unordaining
Our motto here at BNG is to inspire you, dear readers, with change-making conversations. We’ve hit a nerve with one of those conversations this week, which tells me it is extremely important that we talk about this. The “this” is…
Once ordained, always ordained?
Long ago, Carlyle Marney, an irascible Baptist preacher of blessed memory, praised Ralph Waldo Emerson for leaving the ministry because his conscience prevented him from serving the Lord’s Supper. Marney noted if he ever left the ministry, it would be…
Australian Baptist association requires agreement on its statement on marriage for all affiliated churches and ministers
A Baptist association in Australia has voted to require not only its member churches but all clergy accredited by the association to affirm a belief in marriage as “a covenant relationship ordained by God as a lifelong faithful union of…
As church staff roles evolve, the SBC is forced to define the word ‘pastor’
Sixty years ago, Baptists would have had little reason to debate the meaning of the word “pastor.” In those simpler days, “the pastor” was the primary staff leader of a congregation — the person who preached most Sundays and provided…