News

PERSISTENT PRAYERS FUEL GROWTH AT OAK GROVE

By David Dawson Baptist and Reflector [email protected] COVINGTON — Oak Grove Baptist Church, Covington, has seen a sizable increase in professions of faith and baptisms over the past year, with 13 new members joining the church and four additional individuals committed to joining in the coming weeks. These praise-worthy numbers would be impressive at any time, but they are especially encouraging right now, as the church — and much of

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TENNESCENE: JUN. 30

DEATHS Retired Tennessee Baptist Mission Board staff member Donald E. Mauldin died June 20 at the age of 88. A native of South Carolina, Mauldin served churches in his home state before moving to Nashville in 1966 to become minister of education at Woodmont Baptist Church. He later served as associate director of missions for Nashville Baptist Association before joining the staff of the Executive Committee of the Tennessee Baptist

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LITTON, GREEAR SAY LITTON HAD PERMISSION TO BORROW FROM SERMON

By Scott Barkley Baptist Press NASHVILLE — Following the release of a video showing similarities in a sermon, SBC president Ed Litton and his predecessor J.D. Greear said Litton had sought and received permission to use material from a sermon earlier preached by Greear. The video, which was released Thursday (June 24), contains six minutes, 57 seconds of interwoven clips from a sermon delivered by Greear in January 2019 and

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SUPREME COURT DENIES NAMB PETITION, CASE REMANDED TO DISTRICT COURT

By Jonathan Howe Baptist Press WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court of the United States denied a petition by the North American Mission Board (NAMB) to review its ongoing case involving a lawsuit filed by a former Southern Baptist state executive director. Originally filed in 2017 by Will McRaney, former executive director of the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware (BCMD), the lawsuit alleges NAMB had intentionally defamed him and wrongfully influenced his

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PAST PRESIDENTS DISCUSS FUTURE OF DENOMINATION

Baptist Press NASHVILLE (BP) – The SBC’s future hinges on a reemphasis on evangelism and missions, four former presidents agreed during a panel discussion before the 2021 SBC Annual Meeting. Former SBC presidents Steve Gaines, Johnny Hunt, James Merritt and Fred Luter, who gathered for a session on the Vision Stage in the exhibit hall of the Music City Center on June 14, one day before the annual meeting opened,

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COMING BACK WITH A BANG

After year’s absence, messengers return for ministry, business, fellowship By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist and Reflector [email protected] NASHVILLE — One year after COVID-19 forced the cancelation of the 2020 annual  meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptists came out in force in Nashville on June 15-16 with the highest messenger count since 1995 — and the largest since the turn of the century in 2000. The messenger count totaled

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PEW SURVEY: ALMOST HALF OF TEENS BELIEVE MANY RELIGIONS MAY BE TRUE

By Diana Chandler Baptist Press WASHINGTON — The largest portion of teenagers in the U.S. believe that more than one religion may be true, Pew Research said in its latest revelation from a study of the religious beliefs and practices of teens and their parents. Among 13- to 17-year-old teenagers, 45 percent believe many religions may be true, far outpacing the 31 percent who believe only one religion is true,

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BSU IMPACTED LIVES AT VANDERBILT

Baptist and Reflector FRANKLIN — Three researchers who have played various roles in the research and development of COVID-19 vaccines have a common thread — they were members of the Baptist Student Union (now Baptist Collegiate Ministry) at Vanderbilt University in Nashville while Bill Choate was BSU director at the university (see related story). Choate is now the BCM director for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. He remembers the three

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‘LIGHT AT END OF TUNNEL’

By Lonnie Wilkey Editor, Baptist & Reflector [email protected] FRANKLIN — Recent statistics reveal that less than half of the United States population has been fully vaccinated for COVID-19. According to Becker’s Hospital Review (visit site for full list of statistics), a total of 135,867,425 Americans have been fully vaccinated. That represents 40.9 percent of the country’s population as of June 1, according to data from the Center for Disease Control.

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TENNESCENE: JUN. 30

DEATHS Retired Tennessee Baptist Mission Board staff member Donald E. Mauldin died June 20 at the age of 88. A native of South Carolina, Mauldin

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