TENNESSEE PASTOR RECALLS USFL DAYS, WITNESSING ALONGSIDE THE MINISTER OF DEFENSE
By Scott Barkley Baptist Press MORRISTOWN — Alan Duncan had plans for a professional football career after his years as a placekicker for the University of Tennessee ended in 1980. And while those plans did not have go as originally intended, they led to service on the foreign mission field as well as having an […]
SBC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE TO HOLD SPECIAL CALLED MEETING
By Brandon Porter Baptist Press NASHVILLE — Chairman Rolland Slade announced on April 18 that the SBC Executive Committee will hold a special called meeting Thursday, April 28. The meeting is being called primarily to discuss the relocation of the 2023 SBC Annual Meeting currently slated to be held June 13-14, 2023, in Charlotte, N.C. […]
SBC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OFFICERS ADDRESS LAW FIRM CONCERNS
By Jennifer Davis Rash The Baptist Paper As the Sexual Abuse Task Force finalizes its report in the coming weeks, the law firm representing the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee during the investigation will be wrapping up its service in the coming months, according to an announcement on April 14. The upcoming change in attorneys […]
MISSOURI BRINGS BACK PLAN B GIVING OPTION AMID EC LEGAL CRITICISM
By Scott Barkley Baptist Press NASHVILLE — A secondary option for Cooperative Program giving through the Missouri Baptist Convention “is by no means permanent,” said that state’s president and board chair. “This is only temporary,” explained Jon Nelson, pastor of Soma Community Church in Jefferson City. “As our new interim (executive committee) director Willie McLaurin […]
GUIDESTONE’S EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SUMMIT CONCLUDES IN DALLAS
By Roy Hayhurst Director of denominational and public relations at GuideStone DALLAS — Almost 150 church and ministry business, HR and finance leaders from 22 states left Dallas with actionable insights and encouragement after the GuideStone Employee Benefits Summit (EBS). This year marked the first time the normally annual event could occur in two years […]
TENNESSEE BAPTISTS NAMED TO SBC COMMITTEE ON COMMITTEES
By BP staff ANAHEIM, Calif. — Southern Baptist Convention President Ed Litton has announced his appointments to the 2022 Committee on Committees. Litton, pastor of Redemption Church in Saraland, Ala., announced the chair and vice chair for the committee last fall, naming Jeremy Freeman, pastor of First Baptist Church, Newcastle, Okla., as chair, and Amanda […]
U.S. OFFICIALS, SOUTHERN BAPTIST LEADERS DENOUNCE RUSSIAN ‘WAR CRIMES’
By Tom Strode Baptist Press WASHINGTON — President Biden and the U.S. House of Representatives are persuaded Russian President Vladimir Putin and his military have committed war crimes in Ukraine. If those assessments prove correct, justice requires accountability for the perpetrators, a Southern Baptist ethics leader said. The war crimes designations by United States officials […]
TEXAS PASTOR BART BARBER ANNOUNCED AS CANDIDATE FOR SBC PRESIDENT
By Jonathan Howe Baptist Press FARMERSVILLE, Texas – Southern Baptist Convention Pastors’ Conference president Matt Henslee announced his intention to nominate Texas pastor Bart Barber for the office of SBC president at the upcoming SBC Annual Meeting in Anaheim, June 14-15, 2022. Barber becomes the fourth announced candidate for the office this year but only […]
RICE WITHDRAWS NAME FROM LIST OF CANDIDATES SEEKING SBC PRESIDENCY
The Baptist Paper CLEARWATER, Fla. — Willy Rice, pastor of Calvary Church in Clearwater, Fla., withdrew his name on April 6 from the list of candidates seeking the presidency of the Southern Baptist Convention. Roughly a month after announcing his plans to accept a nomination for the position, news broke April 1 about a leadership position at […]
TROUBLING TREND: A SHORTAGE OF STUDENT MINISTERS
By Scott Barkley Baptist Press NASHVILLE — Richard Ross has decades of experience when it comes to student ministry. And today, he’s observing a troubling trend. “I often hear from churches searching for student pastors,” said Ross, senior professor of student ministry at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. “It would be a joy to provide them […]