Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835
Tennessee Baptists have the opportunity to be involved in disaster relief on the island of Dominica, which was nearly totally destroyed. Phillip Hardee, of Bellevue Baptist Memphis, is leading that effort and answers questions in this episode for how you can be involved.
By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
Morgan Clough displays a copy of his new book, Renegade Preacher: From Rape to Recovery.
MADISONVILLE — Morgan Clough would be the first to admit he did not take the traditional path to becoming a Southern Baptist pastor.
In fact, he was well off the path for most of his first 35 or so years of life — having been raped 52 times as a child and later falling into a life of alcohol, addiction, and crime. [Read more…]
Baptist Press
NASHVILLE — Year-to-date contributions through the Southern Baptist Convention’s portion of the Cooperative Program are 0.98 percent ahead of the same time frame at the end of 2016 and 3.69 percent under the SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget projection for the year according to a news release from SBC Executive Committee President Frank S. Page. [Read more…]
By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
FRANKLIN — In December members of Congress passed what may be the most significant changes in federal tax laws in more than three decades.
The law is so new, however, that specific impact on churches and ministers is still unknown, according to multiple sources.
Chris Kelly, executive vice president and general counsel for the Tennessee Baptist Foundation, has been monitoring the tax laws, especially as they relate to charitable giving. [Read more…]
By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector
Pastor Tony Crisp, center, leads in prayer at the conclusion of the New Year’s Eve service at Eastanallee Baptist Church.
EASTANALLEE — Instead of ringing in the new year, Tony Crisp was bringing the Word of God.
All 66 chapters of the Bible. In one night.
Crisp, the lead pastor of Eastanallee Baptist Church, led a five-hour service on New Year’s Eve in which he guided attendees down the “Crimson River of Redemption” — from Genesis to Revelation — in a brisk, but detailed, journey through the Scriptures. Crisp used a systematic method of preaching that he used several times in the past while leading similar sessions and seminars. [Read more…]
Baptist Press
Melissa and Aaron Klein
-Sweet Cakes web site photo
WASHINGTON — Christian wedding vendors who decline to provide services for same-sex ceremonies have suffered another legal setback.
The Oregon Court of Appeals ruled Dec. 28 that the state did not violate the First Amendment rights of Aaron and Melissa Klein in a 2015 order that included a $135,000 fine. The three-judge panel upheld a decision by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) that found the Kleins’ refusal to design and bake a cake for a lesbian couple’s commitment ceremony was based on unlawful discrimination against homosexuals. [Read more…]
Baptist and Reflector
NASHVILLE — A federal appeals court ruled Jan. 9 to uphold the results of a 2014 statewide vote in Tennessee that provided for stricter abortion regulations in the state. [Read more…]
Pastor James Dean, right, of New Day Church, Nashville, presents the church’s first donation through the Cooperative Program to Lewis McMullen, new churches group leader/church planting specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.
The Glade Church, Mount Juliet, will host The Whole Child Initiative on Jan. 27. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. and the event concludes at 5:15 p.m. The event, which is sponsored by the Southeast Produce Council, will provide continuing education credits to social workers and foster parents. The meeting features local presenters who can connect caregivers and professionals to trauma-sensitive resources in the area. Childcare and lunch are provided. For more information, including cost, visit wholechildinitiative.org/events.
Grace Baptist Mission in Braden recently was voted into the Fayette Baptist Association as it constituted into a church from its missions status. Dennis Golden is pastor. [Read more…]
David Platt
Posted: Feb. 17, 2017
Written by: Lonnie Wilkey, B&R Editor
ONTARIO, Calif. – David Platt, president of the Southern Baptist International Mission Board, issued an apology to Southern Baptists on Feb. 15 for the IMB’s involvement in an amicus brief last summer. Platt apologized during a meeting of the Association of State Baptist Publications held in Ontario, Calif. He also apologized to Baptist state convention executive directors during their session on the same day. In May of 2016, the IMB, along with the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, signed an amicus brief in support of a mosque to be built in New Jersey. The action, which was done without the knowledge of IMB trustees, led Tennessee pastor Dean Haun of First Baptist Church, Morristown, to resign as a trustee. “I grieve how the amicus brief in the recent mosque case has been so divisive and distracting,” Platt told editors, adding that his purpose in bringing it up “is not to debate religious liberty” but to say he wants the IMB to remain focused on its mission. [Read more…]
Draper Tower, an icon on the former campus of LifeWay Christian Resources, was imploded Jan. 6. It was the first implosion in Nashville in more than 30 years. The 12-story Draper Tower is being cleared for a mixed-used redevelopment of the former LifeWay property that was sold in 2015 for $125 million. The campus included nine buildings with more than 1 million square feet of space.
— Photo by Jim Veneman
