Baptist Briefs

Posted: 8/18/06

Baptist Briefs

Foundation grant benefits CBF medical missions. Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions received a $66,000 grant from the W.C. English Foundation to support the ministry of a CBF medical missions worker in the Middle East. The grant will benefit a CBF worker who serves as medical consultant for a micro-enterprise that hires people with physical disabilities. She offers medical screening, first aid and health education to the employees.

No medical insurance rate increases for 2007. Participants in GuideStone Financial Resources’ personal medical plans will receive no rate increase for 2007—the third year in a row with no rate hike, GuideStone President O.S. Hawkins reported to the agency’s trustees. Other than regular age increases, no personal medical plan participants will receive rate increases, and 40 percent will see their rates decrease, he announced. All state Baptist conventions that have their medical coverage with GuideStone will receive no rate increase in 2007, and 46 percent of the conventions will receive a rate decrease. For all other group plans, 88 percent will receive no increase, and 53 percent will receive a rate decrease.

NAMB leader resigns pastorate to press hot-button issues. Terry Fox, former chairman of the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board and chair of the NAMB presidential search committee, resigned as pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Wichita, Kan., after 10 years, saying he wants to spend more time traveling the country to encourage conservative Christian involvement in addressing issues such as same-sex marriage, evolution and abortion. He was instrumental in pressuring the Kansas legislature to place a constitutional marriage amendment on the ballot, and he has been involved in an ongoing battle in the state over teaching evolution in public school science curriculum.