A group of African American pastors, including three Baptists, urged Virginia lawmakers Jan. 7 to abolish the state’s death penalty, equating it to lynching and a declaration that Black lives do not matter. The ministers’ press conference, held on Zoom,…
Religion Notes: Faith-based groups take on religious freedom, clergy health and shoes for asylum seekers
New BWA position oversees evangelism, religious freedom The Baptist World Alliance has created a new position tasked with helping develop evangelism and missions. BWA also announced that the full-time position — called director of integral mission — includes “providing administrative…
Norfolk Street Choir infuses dignity with a dose of music
No one would mistake the Freemason Street Baptist Church Norfolk Street Choir concert for professionals. But that’s hardly the point. With this group, rehearsals are in large part the purpose. Performance is a byproduct.
Photo Gallery: Norfolk Street Choir
View the photo gallery from the Norman Street Choir.
Pray for immigrants? We need them to pray for us, minister-activist says
Religious leaders gathered at a vigil in December to declare support for Rosa Gutierrez Lopez, an El Salvadoran immigrant who had just taken sanctuary in a Maryland church to avoid deportation. Baptist minister and immigrant rights activist Julio Hernandez was…
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CBF honors Virginia pastors with leadership awards at ChurchWorks
Two Virginia pastors were honored Feb. 26 for their outstanding leadership during the opening day of ChurchWorks, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s annual conference for Christian educators meeting at Trinity Baptist Church in San Antonio, Texas. ChurchWorks is three-day event for all practitioners of education and spiritual formation in the congregational setting.
Trump insult making life difficult for overseas missionaries
The outrage over the comment made to senators in a meeting on immigration, and which the president eventually denied, has faded as Trump deals with newer scandals, including revelations of a tryst with a porn star. But there are those who continue to simmer about the “shithole” reference, including American Christians who have served as long- and short-term missionaries in some of the African and other nations Trump disparaged.
Mission work takes on legal dimensions for Va.-based field personnel
Mission work and ministry are taking on a dizzying array of new looks in the 21st century. Just ask Greg and Sue Smith, Baptist missionaries who spent years performing traditional mission work in Latin America before opening a ministry serving…
At Women’s Get-Away, participants challenged to hear and tell stories of God’s work in their lives
LYNCHBURG, Va. — Fall colors and bright sunshine highlighted the Nov. 1-3 Women’s Get-Away, an annual event sponsored by Woman’s Missionary Union of Virginia, which this year drew almost 800 women to Eagle Eyrie Baptist Conference Center around the theme,…
Three leaders draw kudos from BGAV, which also commends new Baptist media platform
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — A trio of Virginia Baptist leaders — a financial officer, a staff administrator and a veteran editor — were honored for distinguished service Nov. 13 by the Baptist General Association of Virginia, which also commended the upcoming…
Former Bluefield College president Roy Dobyns, whose tenure saw enrollment growth, dies at 82
DANDRIDGE, Tenn. — Roy A. Dobyns, the eighth president of Bluefield College, died Nov. 12 in a Dandridge, Tenn., nursing home. He was 82. Roy Dobyns Dobyns was president of the Baptist-affiliated school from 1989 until he retired in 1996,…
Virginia Baptist ministries looking at largely unchanged funding levels in BGAV’s 2014 budget
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Virginia Baptist ministries next year will be funded essentially at 2013 levels following adoption of a $12,214,00 budget by the Baptist General Association of Virginia Nov. 13. The 2014 budget, approved at the BGAV’s annual meeting without…