Gunfire interrupted the 11 a.m. Sunday worship service at a large Southern Baptist church in suburban Philadelphia April 24, leaving one church member dead and investigators trying to decide whether to bring charges against another. Authorities say Robert Braxton, 27,…
ERLC says taxpayer funding of recycled tires on church playground not an establishment of religion
Churches should be allowed to participate in government programs on equal footing with other civic organizations, the Southern Baptist Convention’s public policy agency argued April 21. The SBC Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission filed a brief in a case before the…
Baptist newspaper supports ‘bathroom bill’
A Southern Baptist state newspaper editor says Tennessee lawmakers should put children’s safety ahead of money when considering a controversial bill that would require public school students grades K-12 and higher to use the restroom that corresponds to their sex…
Child abuse a Calvinist problem, podcast says
Child abuse isn’t just a Catholic problem, it’s also a Calvinist problem, according to an April 20 podcast sympathetic to the so-called “young, restless and reformed” movement popular among evangelicals belonging to denominations including the Southern Baptist Convention. Mortification of…
Pastor wants SBC to repudiate Confederate flag
An African-American pastor is asking the Southern Baptist Convention to adopt a resolution calling for elimination of public display of the Confederate flag. Dwight McKissic, pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas, recently submitted a resolution for possible consideration…
Civil rights panel blasts new state religious liberty laws
The U.S. Civil Rights Commission has denounced new state “religious liberty” laws backed by Southern Baptist state conventions as a trend to use religion as an excuse to deny people their human rights. The independent, bipartisan agency charged with advising…
C.J. Mahaney says churches should defend their pastors
Fresh off an invitation to speak at a major pastor’s conference that stirred up memories of an alleged child sex-abuse cover-up at his former church, Pastor C.J. Mahaney reminded members of Sovereign Grace Church in Louisville, Ky., of their biblical…
Pastor seeks higher standard for reporting sexual abuse
A Southern Baptist pastor/blogger has submitted a resolution for consideration at the upcoming meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention calling on leaders to get tough on churches that tolerate or conceal sexual abuse. Bart Barber, senior pastor of First Baptist…
Faith coalition cites survey condemning payday lending practices
Religious opponents of payday lending got a boost Wednesday from the release of a new research confirming widespread Christian condemnation of the practice. Faith for Just Lending, a diverse coalition of faith groups, released a report titled The Collateral Consequences…