SBC Archives - Page 2 of 43 - Baptist & Reflector

ABORTION DECLINE CALLS FOR ONGOING PRO-LIFE EFFORT

December 7, 2018

By Tom Strode
Baptist Press

iStock photo

WASHINGTON — The continued drop in the number, rate and ratio of abortions in the United States is a cause for celebration but also for further efforts to protect children and assist women in need, Southern Baptist pro-life advocates say.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported Nov. 23 the total, rate and ratio of abortions in 2015 — the latest year for which statistics are available — all declined by two percent from 2014. The ratio and rate reached their lowest points since the Roe v. Wade ruling legalized abortion in 1973, while that year was the only one since the Supreme Court decision with fewer abortions than in 2015, according to numbers attributed to the CDC. [Read more…]

W.C. FIELDS, SBC PUBLIC RELATIONS PIONEER, DIES AT 96

December 5, 2018

By Art Toalston
Baptist Press

W.C. Fields led public relations for the Southern Baptist Convention for 28 years, including a Saturday Evening Post article that sold more than 1 million reprints. BP file photo

NASHVILLE — W.C. Fields, a forerunner in denominational journalism as vice president for public relations for the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee from 1959-1987, died Monday (Dec. 3) in Nashville at age 96.

As an Executive Committee vice president, Fields was the SBC’s press representative and director of Baptist Press, the convention’s news service. He also was editor of the Executive Committee’s former Baptist Program magazine from 1959-1972. [Read more…]

$1.5 BILLION PLAN MIGHT REVIVE DYING DEAD SEA

December 3, 2018

Dead Seas (iStock photo)

DEAD SEA, Israel — The Dead Sea has been receding for decades, with some experts predicting its total demise by 2050. But a $1.5 billion plan to resurrect the biblically prominent sea is nearing fruition, NBC News reported Nov. 29.

Meetings are expected within weeks to finalize the plan considered for two decades, NBC reported, to build a desalination facility in Jordan to essentially remove salty brine from the Red Sea and pump it into the Dead Sea. The desalinated water remaining in the Red Sea would be suitable for drinking, meeting water demands amid rainfall that continues to decrease. [Read more…]

GREEAR GIVES LOTTIE MOON CHALLENGE

December 3, 2018

By David Roach
Baptist Press

“Is there something you would be willing to do if we hit $170 (million)?” Todd Unzicker (left) asked SBC President J.D. Greear during a Nov. 27 Facebook Live event. Screen capture from Facebook

DURHAM, N.C. — Southern Baptist Convention President J.D. Greear thinks Southern Baptists can exceed their $160 million goal for this year’s Lottie Moon Christmas Offering (LMCO) for International Missions. So he’s offering a lighthearted incentive to encourage a challenge goal of $170 million.

If the 2018-19 LMCO hits that mark, Greear will perform a stunt suggested by Southern Baptists on social media, he announced Nov. 27 during a Facebook Live event, which had been viewed more than 6,100 times by midday Nov. 30. A video clip of Greear’s challenge tweeted by the International Mission Board had been viewed more than 2,500 times in the same timeframe. [Read more…]

S.C. CHURCH HONORS MEMORY OF ENSLAVED MEMBERS

December 3, 2018

By Baptist Courier Staff

Marshall Blalock, pastor of First Baptist Church of Charleston, and Leonard Griffin, pastor of Morris Street Baptist Church in Charleston, embrace after unveiling a marker to honor the memory of enslaved members of First Baptist Church.

CHARLESTON, S.C. — A South Carolina congregation has taken a step to officially honor the memory of past members of the church who were enslaved prior to 1865.

On Nov. 11, First Baptist Church of Charleston dedicated a marker that says: “In memory of the thousands of enslaved members of the First Baptist Church of Charleston whose names we do not know, but are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Revelation 7:9.” [Read more…]

STUDY: MOST CHURCHGOERS STILL ABSTAIN FROM ALCOHOL

November 28, 2018

By Carol Pipes
Baptist Press

AlNASHVILLE — Most churchgoers say the Bible teaches against drunkenness. But that doesn’t stop about 4 in 10 from taking a drink now and then, a study released Tuesday (Nov. 27) shows.

While 41 percent of Protestant churchgoers say they consume alcohol, 59 percent say they do not. That’s a slight shift from 10 years ago, according to the LifeWay Research survey, which was conducted Aug. 22-30, 2017. [Read more…]

VOTE SPLITS CONGRESS; JUDICIAL OUTLOOK CALLED HOPEFUL

November 8, 2018

By Tom Strode
Baptist Press

iStock image

WASHINGTON — Voters returned control of the U.S. House of Representatives to the Democratic Party Tuesday (Nov. 6) but seemed to have strengthened the Republican Party’s hold on the Senate and on its ability to confirm conservative Supreme Court justices and federal judges.

Meanwhile, at least two Southern Baptists appear to have won first-time seats in Congress, and two states approved pro-life measures among a host of ballot initiatives that were decided. [Read more…]

THIS SUNDAY: DISASTER RELIEF APPRECIATION DAY

November 8, 2018

By Brandon Elrod
Baptist Press

A Southern Baptist Disaster Relief team from Georgia provides tear-out for a homeowner after the house suffered flooding as a result of Hurricane Florence. Photo by Laura Sikes/NAMB

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — For more than 50 years, Southern Baptists have been providing disaster relief to the United States and its territories after the gravest of tragedies. Whether it is major natural disasters that affect millions or localized events that hit small communities, Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) volunteers regularly arrive to bring help, healing and hope to those impacted.

On Sunday, November 11, Southern Baptists will celebrate Disaster Relief Appreciation Day, an opportunity to recognize and thank SBDR leaders and volunteers. [Read more…]

ABORTION, MARIJUANA, GAMBLING WIN, LOSE IN STATES

November 8, 2018

ABORTION, MARIJUANA, GAMBLING WIN, LOSE IN STATES

By Diana Chandler
Baptist Press

NASHVILLE — Abortion rights, marijuana use and legalized gambling drew mixed results on state ballots across the U.S. Nov. 6.

Alabama voters authorized display of the Ten Commandments in public places in a measure that prohibits the use of public funding to support challenges to the state constitutional amendment in court. The amendment, which requires displays to comply with federal constitutional requirements, carried 72 percent of the vote, the Montgomery Advertiser reported. [Read more…]

TENNESSEAN NOMINATED TO LEAD IMB

November 6, 2018

By Lonnie Wilkey & Julie McGowan
Baptist & Reflector

Tennessee native Paul Chitwood and other short-term missionaries in South Africa pray for a terminally ill AIDS patient on July 2, 2015. The trip was conducted through a partnership between the Kentucky Baptist Convention and Baptist Global Response, a primary ministry partner of the IMB. Participants delivered buckets filled with supplies to AIDS patients. — Kentucky Baptist Convention photo

RICHMOND — Paul Chitwood, executive director of the Kentucky Baptist Convention, will be nominated as the 13th president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s International Mission Board.

The IMB’s presidential search committee announced Nov. 6 that Chitwood, 48, will be presented to the full trustee board for a vote during their Nov. 14-15 meeting in Richmond. If elected during the plenary session on Nov. 15, Chitwood will take office immediately. [Read more…]

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