Updated curriculum adds safety coordinators and response plans for churches NASHVILLE (BP) – The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee is relaunching its abuse prevention and response website with expanded resources to equip churches to create safe spaces for children and adults to worship God unhindered by abuse. An updated Essentials 2.0 curriculum, blog posts from experts in the field and a centralized landing page for all related state convention resources

An open letter released today (May 22) urges messengers planning to attend the upcoming Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting in Dallas to vote to keep the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission as an entity of the SBC should the anticipated motion to abolish it be proposed. Ten former SBC presidents signed the letter that also notes concerns related to ERLC and acknowledges that “every entity — including the ERLC —

NASHVILLE (BP) – An SBC entity president has expressed “grave doubts” about the usefulness of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) in Southern Baptist life. The ERLC and its advocates followed those comments with a flurry of defense for the Convention’s public policy Commission. Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said he “has grave doubts about the utility of the ERLC. And it’s not just about the

JOHANNESBURG (BP) – Josh Sullivan, the pastor who was abducted by armed and masked men last week as he preached, was rescued yesterday (April 15) by police after a shootout with his captors in a nearby township. Officers in a “multi-disciplinary law enforcement operation,” said a police statement, received information that Sullivan was being held in a safe house. On approaching the house the team observed a vehicle, whose occupants attempted to flee

DALLAS (BP) – Leaders of 13 Southern Baptist ethnic groups have approved a joint statement on immigration seeking religious liberty protections, compassion without demonization and enforcement options including fines or other penalties in lieu of deportation. Signers of the statement said they share the “federal government’s desire to protect citizens, promote legal immigration and refugee policies, and robustly safeguard the country’s borders.” But “enforcement must be accompanied with compassion that

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (BP) – The city of Zaporizhzhia is vulnerable to Russian attack, adjacent to cities in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast and a treasured nuclear power plant Russia captured since renewing its assault on Ukraine in February 2022. As recently as Jan. 8, a Russian air strike killed at least 13 and injured another 113 in the industrial city of 700,000. Mayor Rehina Vladyslavivna Kharchenko has formally recognized the strength of

NASHVILLE (BP) – At last month’s SBC Executive Committee meeting, EC President and CEO Jeff Iorg reported that as of Dec. 24, some $13 million had been spent on investigations related to sexual abuse and related legal costs. He further reported that the EC is pursuing a $3 million loan to cover legal costs in the current fiscal year. Additionally, EC members approved a 2025-26 budget that includes a $3 million