By Jeff Brumley Bryan Hatcher was a Baptist pastor once, so he gets it when ministers buckle under the strain of long work weeks, budget pressures and that feeling of constantly being in a fish bowl. And because he has…
Ethicist Glen Stassen wins BWA award
By Bob Allen Ethicist Glen Stassen has been named the 2013 recipient of the Baptist World Alliance Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award. The award, approved March 5 during a meeting of the BWA executive committee in Falls Church,…
Texas House honors Suzii Paytner
By Bob Allen The Texas legislature honored incoming Cooperative Baptist Fellowship leader Suzii Paynter Feb. 28 with a House resolution recognizing her advocacy work on numerous social issues during more than a decade of service with Texas Baptists. The resolution…
Female Baptist minister resigns
By Bob Allen A woman whose call as a pastor in 2011 sparked controversy in an association of Baptist churches in North Carolina has resigned, citing a lack of consensus among members about the congregation’s vision and direction for the…
Professor facilitates tough debates
By Katherine Manson As Mercer University’s Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics, David Gushee takes on tough topics ranging from abortion, health care, immigration and the environment. As director of Mercer’s Center for Theology and Public Life, he encourages others…
GW, Rick Perry to eulogize Cliburn
By Jeff Brumley Former President George W. Bush and Texas Gov. Rick Perry are among those scheduled to speak at the funeral of Van Cliburn Sunday in Fort Worth, Texas. A Russian cellist will also speak at the 3 p.m….
Friends say faith came first for Cliburn
By Jeff Brumley News reports of Van Cliburn’s Feb. 27 death in Fort Worth, Texas, extolled the internationally acclaimed pianist as one of history’s greatest classical musicians. Friends at Broadway Baptist Church in Fort, Worth, Texas, however, remember him as…
Jeffress addresses Tebow controversy
By Bob Allen First Baptist Church of Dallas pastor Robert Jeffress responded in his Sunday sermon Feb. 24 to controversy over NFL player Tim Tebow’s canceling an appearance at the Southern Baptist mega-church by implying the publicity-conscious celebrity was “wimping…
Woman minister baptizes father
By Barbara Francis A baptism is always cause for celebration in a Baptist church, but Broadway Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., witnessed a rare spectacle recently when a daughter of the congregation returned to the baptistery where she was immersed…
Photojournalist Don Rutledge dies
By Robert Dilday Donald Rutledge, a renowned photographer whose images of mission activities are familiar to Baptists around the world, died Feb. 19 at 82. Rutledge’s work was published in magazines and books around the globe, winning more than 400…
Longtime SBC journalist dies
By Bob Allen Leonard Hill, a career writer and editor of various publications of the Southern Baptist Convention, died Feb. 18 in Nashville, Tenn. Hill, 83, had lived for several years in a nursing facility. A member of First Baptist…
Tebow audibles on FBC Dallas plan
By Bob Allen New York Jets backup quarterback Tim Tebow has changed his mind about speaking at a Dallas mega church whose pastor has in the past made news with controversial comments about homosexuality, other faiths and political leaders. Tebow…