Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835
Baptist Press
DALLAS — The legal challenge to the constitutionality of the ministerial housing allowance is over — for now.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) announced June 14 it would not appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court its March judicial loss.
The decision concluded the latest effort to gain nullification of the allowance that is part of a 65-year-old federal law. [Read more…]
By Aaron Earls
LifeWay Research
NASHVILLE — Spiritual topics aren’t a part of regular conversations with fellow believers for many Protestant churchgoers, but most seem at least somewhat confident others know they’re a Christian.
The 2019 Discipleship Pathway Assessment study from Nashville-based LifeWay Research found those who regularly attend Protestant churches are split on how visible and pervasive their faith is in their daily lives. [Read more…]
LifeWay News Office
NASHVILLE — The 2019 Discipleship Pathway Assessment study from Nashville-based LifeWay Research found few Protestant churchgoers say they strongly agree they are personally taking actions that indicate a life of service to God and others.
Fifteen percent of Protestant churchgoers strongly agree they intentionally give up certain purchases so they can use that money for others. Including those who somewhat agree, 41 percent say they practice that type of intentional generosity.
Among 18- to 34-year-olds attending a Protestant church once a month or more, 22 percent strongly agree they give up purchases to use that money for others.
By Grace Thornton
Baptist Press
J.D. Greear (far left), president of the Southern Baptist Convention, leads a panel discussion titled “Gospel Above All: Keeping Secondary Issues Secondary,” June 12 during the 2019 SBC Annual Meeting in Birmingham, Ala. Other panelists included Willy Rice, pastor of Calvary Church in Clearwater, Fla.; Juan Sanchez, pastor of HighPointe Baptist Church in Austin, Texas; Kathy Litton, director of planter spouse development for the North American Mission Board; Jason Allen, president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Ken Whitten, pastor of Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz, Fla. — Photo by Adam Covington
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — “In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty” — that was Ken Whitten’s closing statement and the overall theme of the Gospel Above All panel Wednesday morning (June 12) at the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting.
The panel was one of three during the meeting in Birmingham, Ala., “designed to spotlight some conversations already taking place,” SBC President J.D. Greear said. Other panels addressed racial reconciliation and the value of women in God’s mission. [Read more…]
By Julie Walters
Baptist Press
Jordan Ball (far right, back to camera), a Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU) leader, helps RAs and GAs from First Baptist Church Jackson, Miss., and First Baptist Church Alexander City, Ala., remember their motions as they perform songs June 11 during the WMU report to messengers at the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex in Birmingham, Ala. — Photo by Van Payne
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — WMU Executive Director Sandy Wisdom-Martin welcomed the Southern Baptist Convention June 12 to Birmingham, Ala., where the national missions organization is headquartered.
“This has been our home for the past 98 years, but for the entire history of our organization, we’ve stayed focused on our assigned task,” Wisdom-Martin said. “Our mandate is making disciples of Jesus who live on mission. This is what we do.” [Read more…]
Baptist Press
IMB President Paul Chitwood (right) tucks away his passport in its new passport cover, which features the logo of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The cover, symbolizing the seminary’s focus on international missions, was a gift from Dr. Adam Greenway (left), the new president of the Fort Worth seminary.
-Photo by Chris Carter/IMB
RICHMOND — International Mission Board trustees approved the appointment of 26 new missionaries to take the gospel to the nations during their May 22-23 meeting near Richmond.
Trustees also considered pivotal changes in ministry advancement and prayer strategies; heard recommendations related to IMB’s handling of past allegations of child abuse and sexual harassment; and elected 2019-2020 officers.
The new missionaries were to be commissioned for service at a Sending Celebration on June 11 during the afternoon session of the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting in Birmingham, Ala. [Read more…]
By Julie McGowan
Public relations director, International Mission Board
International Mission Board President Paul Chitwood reports on the work of Southern Baptist international missions personnel during the June 11 afternoon session of the 2019 SBC annual meeting in Birmingham, Ala. — Photo by Chris Carter/IMB
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Massive cyclones in sub-Saharan Africa. Political and humanitarian crises in the Americas. Gangs among the Deaf. Police arrests in Southeast Asia. Slander in Central Asia.
Even amid such difficulties, International Mission Board personnel are seeing God create opportunities for people to hear a clear Gospel witness, IMB President Paul Chitwood reported June 11 during the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting in Birmingham, Ala. [Read more…]
By Tom Strode
Baptist Press
Curtis Woods (left), chairman of the Southern Baptist Convention Resolutions Committee, and Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, speak during a press conference after the conclusion of the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting. — Photo by Kathleen Murray
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Messengers to the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention advocated for the vulnerable against abortion, sexual abuse and religious persecution in approving 13 resolutions Wednesday (June 12).
The resolutions also addressed a variety of other noteworthy issues in the convention and the world, including local church autonomy, same-sex attraction, justice, women in the military draft and gene editing. [Read more…]
By Myriah Snyder
Baptist Press
Morgan Bush, a messenger from Alabama, brings a motion during the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting June 11 at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex in Birmingham, Ala. — Photo by Matt Miller
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Eighteen of the 23 motions by messengers at the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Birmingham, Ala., were referred to SBC committees or entities; five were ruled out of order.
The Committee on Order of Business made the recommendations to messengers during the SBC’s June 11-12 meeting. [Read more…]
By Diana Chandler
Baptist Press
President J.D. Greear introduces a report on June 12 compiled by the Sexual Abuse Advisory Group he initiated with the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. — Photo by Van Payne
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — “Bold resolutions and sweeping statements are not sufficient” to tackle the crisis of sex abuse, Southern Baptist Convention President J.D. Greear said today (June 12) at the 2019 SBC Annual Meeting in Birmingham, Ala.
“Victims have told us, words without follow-up actions are worse than no words at all,” Greear said in what is his latest update on the Sexual Abuse Advisory Study he and the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission initiated in 2018. Victims “want to see … that we care enough about this issue to do whatever it takes to make our churches safe for survivors and safe from abuse.” [Read more…]
