2007 Archives
-
Christian Churches Together seeks united front against poverty
Posted: 3/02/07
Christian Churches Together
seeks united front against poverty
PASADENA, Calif. (ABP)—Leaders from 36 Christian bodies and religious organizations have issued a joint statement addressing domestic poverty and urging constituents to alleviate the problem as part of their Christian duty.
“As Christian leaders in the wealthiest society on earth, we are called by God to urge our churches and nation to strengthen and expand efforts to address the scandal of widespread poverty in the United States and around the world,” the statement said. “The gospel and our ethical principles place our service of the poor and vulnerable and our work for justice at the center of Christian life and witness.”
Leaders convened at a meeting organized by Christian Churches Together, a loose coalition begun in 2001 to unify the “diverse expressions of Christian faith today.” It includes representatives from evangelical, Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal and Protestant congregations.
Leonid Kishkovsky of the Orthodox Church of America said the annual gathering is “good news” for American Christians.
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
Faith Digest
Posted: 3/02/07
Faith Digest
No pope for Anglicans. An Anglican-Catholic commission has warned that doctrinal disputes within the Anglican Communion are an obstacle to unity between the two churches. An upcoming report by the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission lays out areas of doctrinal agreement and disagreement between the two churches and outlines ways to continue ecumenical dialogue. But contrary to rumors, officials said, the report does not propose a plan for Anglicans to unite under the pope. “Talk of plans to reunite the two communions is, sadly, much exaggerated,” the commission said. The “present context” of Anglican dispute would make it premature to issue a formal Anglican-Catholic statement of shared beliefs, which was the goal set by Anglican and Catholic bishops who launched the commission in 2000.
Beliefnet names ‘most influential black spiritual leaders.’ Two Texas pastors—T.D. Jakes of the Potter’s House in Dallas and Kirbyjohn Caldwell of Windsor Village United Methodist Church in Houston—have been listed among the 17 “most influential black spiritual leaders” by Beliefnet, an interfaith website. “Whether inspiring their congregations to stand up against social injustice or urging a focus on God-centered family values, African-American religious leaders are a crucial component of a rich and diverse spiritual landscape,” the Beliefnet editors wrote in their introduction to the list. Others on the list include William Shaw, president of the National Baptist Convention, USA, and Gardner Taylor, senior pastor emeritus of Concord Baptist Church of Christ in Brooklyn, N.Y.
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
Author seeks to connect the dots between sex and God
Posted: 3/02/07
Author seeks to connect the
dots between sex and God
By Charles Honey
Grand Rapids Press
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (RNS)—About halfway through his new book, Sex God, Rob Bell recalls a scene of exquisite torture at a middle-school dance.
He was 12, lined up with all the boys on one side of the cafeteria, while all the girls were lined up on the other. Then he worked up the guts to “bravely venture across this massive chasm” and ask a girl to dance.
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
Continuous ministry key to transforming neighborhood
Posted: 3/02/07
Former Hardin-Simmons University students Lindsey Snodgrass (left) and Cassie Cash help decorate a Friendship House designed to bring a community together. (HSU Photo) Continuous ministry key
to transforming neighborhood
By John Hall
Texas Baptist Communications
ABILENE—Two years ago, Hardin-Simmons University called Danyel and Brandon Rogers to a special task—transform a neighborhood.
After moving into the community and building relationships with their neighbors, they started ministry programs for children and mothers.
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
-
Page cautiously optimistic about Southern Baptists
Posted: 3/02/07
Page cautiously optimistic about Southern Baptists
By Tony Cartledge
North Carolina Biblical Recorder
PHILADELPHIA—The future is bright for the Southern Baptist Convention if its members have the right mindset, follow the right motives and adopt the right methodology, SBC President Frank Page told a group of Baptist state newspaper editors.
Repeating themes he has emphasized in several recent speeches, Page said he is challenging the SBC to be “more authentic in faith and more intentional in sharing the gospel,” to “reach the lost and challenge the saved.”
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
-
-
Texas Baptist Forum
Posted: 3/02/07
Texas Baptist Forum
‘All will be well’
The Feb. 19 editorial notes valid concerns of the Baptist General Convention of Texas—missions funding, recent parliamentary rulings, etc. I believe reports from the Executive Board and the convention’s executive leadership will very much satisfy the concerns of all Texas Baptists who can be satisfied.
• Jump to online-only letters below Letters are welcomed. Send them to marvknox@baptiststandard.com; 250 words maximum. 
“The Holy Spirit works best when we’re weak. There’s pressure in the church to look like you’re strong; it’s a false sense of what it’s like to be in Christ.”
Kenneth Fong
Pastor of Evergreen Church in Los Angeles (Baptist World Alliance)“I’m running for a secular position. I subscribe to what Abraham Lincoln called America’s political religion. The Constitution and the rule of law are the highest promises I would make in taking the oath of office.”
Mitt Romney
Presidential candidate, discussing the potential impact of his Mormon faith (USA Today/RNS)“If your name is Barack Hussein Obama, you can expect it, some of that. I think the majority of voters know that I’m a member of the United Church of Christ, and that I take my faith seriously.”
Barack Obama
Presidential candidate, explaining he doesn't believe voters have a ‘litmus test” on religion or his childhood years spent in Indonesia, a predominantly Muslim country (RNS)“If God is on anyone’s side in this mess, he’s on everyone’s side.”
Oliver Thomas
Minister and lawyer, commenting on strife in the Middle East (USA Today/RNS)The matters this editorial mentions have been and are being addressed in appropriate ways by appropriate leaders, and all will be well, and we should not doubt that that is so.
For every true or perceived problem in church life, 1,000 great things are happening. They certainly deserve Texas Baptists’ continued attention while problems are being corrected.
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
Mainstream Baptists cite freedom as Baptist hallmark
Posted: 3/02/07
Mainstream Baptists cite
freedom as Baptist hallmark
By Marv Knox
Editor
IRVING—A refrain of freedom echoed throughout the Mainstream Baptist Network convocation Feb. 23-24.
About 80 participants gathered from across the South and Southwest for the sixth-annual event. The Mainstream movement is composed of Baptists who strive to preserve traditional Baptist doctrine and distinctives in the face of fundamentalism.
03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
-
Christians use movie to spotlight modern-day human trafficking
Posted: 3/02/07
Christians use movie to spotlight
modern-day human trafficking
By Robert Marus
ABP Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON (ABP)—Nearly 200 years after William Wilberforce brought an end to England’s slave trade, a wide audience has a chance to see his story told on film. But the producers of Amazing Grace, and a wide coalition of Christian and other groups, hope the legendary reformer’s inspiring tale will focus the West’s attention on a more disturbing story—the modern-day slave trade.
The feature-length film uses the beloved hymn for its title and organizing theme in telling Wilberforce’s story. After rediscovering his Christian faith in his 20s, the member of Parliament struggled for nearly three decades in the 18th and 19th centuries to abolish England’s trade in African slaves.
Actor Youssou N'Dour portrays freed slave Oloudah Equiano in Amazing Grace, a new film about British abolitionist William Wilberforce. Equiano worked with Wilberforce to ban slavery in the British Empire. (RNS photo courtesy Samuel Goldwyn Films) 03/03/2007 - By John Rutledge
