Baptist Press MILL VALLEY, Calif. — Construction is progressing rapidly at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary’s two new campuses, and more than 40 new jobs have been posted on the seminary’s website, President Jeff Iorg reported in mid-January. Iorg, speaking to the seminary’s staff and students, said the new campus in Ontario, Calif., is still on target for the June 2016 move from Mill Valley even though there have been

Baptist Press IRAN — American pastor Saeed Abedini and three other prisoners have been released from prison in Iran, according to news reports. Abedini was detained in 2012 for organizing house churches and later sentenced to eight years in prison. The 35-year-old pastor suffered beatings and harsh punishment during three-and-a-half years in prison in Iran, where he had been held due to his Christian faith. The release reportedly comes as

By Julie Walters WMU News Office BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –– Wanda Lee announced a search committee will be appointed to seek her successor as executive director/treasurer of national Woman’s Missionary Union. Though no date is set for her departure, Lee shared her intentions to retire during her report at national WMU’s board meeting on Jan. 11 at Shocco Springs Conference Center in Talladega, Ala. Lee pledged to continue to lead WMU

By Lisa Cannon Green Baptist Press NASHVILLE — When Americans make New Year’s resolutions, a better relationship with God ranks almost as high as better health, according to a study by LifeWay Research. And for many groups, faith actually outranks health. Older Americans, African-Americans, Hispanics, and Christians are all more likely to say they’ve made resolutions about God than about health. Overall, 57 percent of Americans report making health-related New

Baptist Press NASHVILLE — Bill Sumners,  a Tennessee Baptist and director of Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives since 1988, will retire from his post next July, he recently announced in a letter to the Council of Seminary Presidents, which governs the organization. “It has been my pleasure and joy to serve in this position, in this place, for most of my career,” Sumners told the CSP. Since the 1997