Paul Fisher to First Baptist Church in Farwell as pastor from First Baptist Church in Burkburnett, where he was associate pastor.
Byron Harper to First Baptist Church in Port Arthur as pastor.
Brett Holmes to Calder Baptist Church in Beaumont as pastor. He most recently served Azalea Baptist Church in Norfolk, Va., as pastor.
Texas Baptist Men disaster relief volunteers responded to the Dempsey Fire—a wildfire in Palo Pinto County that consumed nearly 11,600 acres—offering meals to firefighters who battled the blaze and to other emergency personnel. TBM volunteers donated more than 2,000 hours between their deployment on June 26 and when the wildfire was contained on July 4. They prepared 2,330 meals, washed 58 loads of laundry and provided access to 75 showers.
To encourage individuals to abide in Scripture, East Texas Baptist University has launched its Summer Scripture Steep emphasis and a Memorized Reading initiative. The goal is “soaking in Scripture so that when circumstances squeeze and wring our thoughts and emotions, the overflowing outcome is love and light and a peaceful, joy-filled life,” said Cari D. Johnson, director of the intercessory prayer ministry at ETBU. Participants are encouraged to read through the Epistles of John, one chapter per day each week—from 1 John 1 on Sunday to 3 John on Saturday—repeatedly throughout the summer. They also are urged to memorize a selected passage from 1 John each week. For more information, including memorization aids, email cjohnson@etbu.edu.
5th for Larry Tarver as director of missions for Abilene Callahan Baptist Association.
The constitution Cuba adopted three years ago fails to meet freedom-of-religion standards based on international law, and the rights it established are unenforceable, a new report from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom concluded.
The commission released its report, Constitutional Reform and Religious Freedom in Cuba, less than a week before the one-year anniversary of nationwide protests in Cuba and government retribution against those who participated in the peaceful demonstrations.
“Despite constitutional protections for religious freedom that exist on paper, independent religious communities in Cuba continue to experience violations” of freedom of religion or belief, the commission’s report states.
“The constitution fails to meet international standards, its rights are not enforceable, it fails to be supreme law, and it yields to laws that can conflict with constitutionally established rights.”
Based on a survey of faith leaders and other research, the commission concluded the Cuban constitution fails to meet 34 of 36 freedom-of-religion standards established in international law, and it only partially meets the other two.
“Cuba’s new constitution, approved in April 2019, dilutes [freedom of religion or belief] guarantees compared with the previous constitution,” the report asserts.
The survey revealed 95 percent of respondents agree freedom of expression in religious pastoral practice is partially or totally repressed in Cuba; 93 percent of the faith leaders said they were victims of state repression; and 84 percent agreed freedom of assembly is impeded.
The report asserts the constitution “reduces the possibility of legal reforms” to enable religious freedom, and the absence of a court structure and judicial appeals to protect constitutional rights leave any constitutional protections unenforceable.
Furthermore, the constitution “has no practical validity whatsoever over legislation that restricts rights” and no superior authority over laws adopted at the local level that restrict constitutional rights.
“The removal of the sovereignty of the people, the explicit subordination to lower-level laws in its text, the impossibility of reforming constitutional laws due to the absence of a court of constitutional guarantees or a process for the protection of these rights, and the definition of the Communist Party as the ‘superior’ power of the State, without regulation in the constitution, make it incompatible with the internationally accepted concept of a constitution,” the report states.
For all practical purposes, rights related to freedom of religion or belief cannot be defended, and Cuba “is not governed by its constitution,” the commission’s report asserts.
“There are no legal mechanisms or legislation to protect against discrimination, hostility, or violence on religious grounds,” the report states.
Cuba has “a long history” of applying “inferior and often opaque laws” rather than constitutional protections, as well as administration actions ordered by the State Security and Communist Party, the report says.
“These are carried out in blatant violation of the many principles in the previous and current constitution,” the report states. “As a result, religious institutions and individuals are repressed, fostering deep distrust of the government by faith leaders and laypeople.”
The commission’s report particularly noted increased repression of religious freedom and human rights in 2021, including the detention of individuals who participated in peaceful protests on July 11 and November 15. Research showed 869 people remained imprisoned in March 2022 in connection with the protests.
The Cuban constitution and many of the nation’s laws are “a showcase for international consumption” enabling the government “to boast of its socialist system and guarantees of human rights to international organizations such as the UN,” the report concludes.
Randel Everett, founding president of the 21Wilberforce human rights organization, commended the commission for its report. He particularly applauded the report for noting Cuba’s constitution and laws “largely function as a sop for international consumption” rather than to protect its citizens.
“In a deeply religious nation, the Cuban Communist party ruthlessly governs at will, repressing religious individuals and institutions, among others, through comprehensive tactics including harassment, threats, physical attacks, confiscation of property, frequent police summons, defamation and accusations of illegal or immoral behavior, and detention and imprisonment,” said Everett, former executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
“We cannot forget the many religious prisoners of conscience detained in Cuba including Protestant Pastor Lorenzo Rosales Fajardo, recently sentenced to eight years in prison for participating in last summer’s peaceful protests, and Loreto Hernández García, a leader of the Association of Free Yorubas [independent Santeria community], who was forced to return to prison in June after he was ordered expelled from the hospital where he had been receiving medical treatment.
Last November, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced he was placing Cuba—along with Algeria, Comoros and Nicaragua—on the Special Watch List for governments that engage in or tolerate “severe violations of religious freedom.”
Patrons who park behind a “Grub & Pub” on South Jennings Avenue in Fort Worth may notice a mural on a wall inviting them to “Pray for Ft. Worth.”
Pastor Erik Vance hopes they not only notice, but also will stop for a moment, respond to that invitation and “whisper a prayer at the wall.”
A prayer revival event initially brought Vance to Southside City Church in Fort Worth. Now, he hopes to see a prayer revival movement grow in the city.
As a student at Georgia State University and the Morehouse School of Religion in Atlanta, Vance launched a prayer ministry about 10 years ago. In the years that followed, he traveled extensively, leading conferences and prayer revival meetings.
So, he wasn’t surprised when he received a call inviting him to lead a prayer revival at Southside City Church in Fort Worth.
He was a little surprised when he received an invitation to preach a second time.
When the church called asking him to preach a third time, he called Darrel Auvenshine, the church’s founding pastor, to ask what it meant.
“He told me, ‘The people in Fort Worth love you,’” Vance said.
Vance said Auvenshine told him he felt it was time for him to step down as pastor at Southside City Church, and the church wanted Vance to consider coming in view of a call.
Vance later learned Dwight McKissic—pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington—had recommended him to the church. McKissic had never met Vance, but he had followed him online and was impressed with Vance’s emphasis on prayer.
Southside City Church called Vance as pastor last November. A few months later, he drew inspiration from the Old Testament story about how God honored the prayer of Hezekiah when he “turned his face toward the wall and prayed.” Vance developed the concept of a mural inviting local residents to pray for Fort Worth.
“So, I went around looking for walls,” he said. The owners of High Top Grub & Pub were receptive to the idea of the mural on the back side of their property.
Next, Vance presented his idea to local artist Karen Dodson.
“She told me, ‘I want to be a part of that project,’” he recalled.
Since Dodson completed her work about a month ago, Vance said, he has heard from a growing number of people who found the mural inspiring and encouraging. Some post pictures on social media. A few have sent emails with personal prayer requests.
In recent days, Vance ordered a box of “Pray for Ft. Worth” stickers he has already begun distributing in the community.
“My prayer is that God will bring revival to Fort Worth—a city I have grown to love,” he said.
In particular, Vance hopes to see God pour out his Spirit on Fort Worth’s Southside—a historically underserved area with high rates of crime and poverty—and use Southside Community Church to bring light to the neighborhood.
Through partnerships the church is establishing with other local ministries, he also hopes Southside Community Church can help connect neighbors to available resources.
“I tell people we’re a BMW church—Black, Mexican and white,” he said.
However, he is quick to add the congregation also includes Asian families and recent immigrants, along with African Americans, Hispanics and Anglos.
On any given weekend, the church building hosts multiple worship services contextually designed to make several ethnic groups feel at home.
“The makeup of our church is like the makeup of the kingdom,” he said, reflecting the heavenly vision of Revelation 7:9.
WASHINGTON (RNS)—For nearly five decades, abortion opponents held two truths to be self-evident: Abortion ends the life of a human being, and women who have an abortion are “second victims.”
Now, with Roe v. Wade overturned, a small but influential group of abortion foes believes women who have abortions should be prosecuted as criminals. Known as abortion abolitionists, they want to ban abortion with no exception. And they want women who have abortions to face jail time.
“You can’t abolish abortion without criminalizing the act of abortion,” said T. Russell Hunter, co-founder of Free the States Action Fund and Abolish Human Abortion, a pair of Oklahoma-based abolitionist groups.
The rise of groups like Free the States has complicated the post-Roe response of abortion foes, who have long positioned themselves as defenders of both unborn children and pregnant women.
Many established groups opposed to abortion find themselves fighting both supporters of abortion rights and abolitionists who want to ban abortion with no exceptions and oppose any incremental restrictions.
Carol Tobias, president of the National Right to Life Committee, said her group will support legislation to “save as many babies as possible.”
This would include bans on abortion in more conservative states and in states where abortion is legal, more education for women who seek abortions, as well as laws to protect the conscience of health care professionals who object to abortion.
She said her organization hopes to see an end to all abortions someday. For now, she said, it will support whatever restrictions are possible and push for tighter restrictions in the future.
“Our position has always been to save as many babies as you can, as soon as you can,” she said.
Tobias also encourages abortion foes to communicate to pregnant women they are not alone. For 50 years, she said, women have gotten the message abortion is the “easy solution” to an unwanted pregnancy. Now, she said, groups like hers want to stand by pregnant women and encourage them and provide assistance.
In her opinion, the abolition movement complicates matters post-Roe, especially its willingness to oppose candidates who are anti-abortion but don’t support abolition.
“If they insist on going after penalties for women who have abortions, that’s going to be a problem,” she said. “We’re never going to give in on that. And what they will do is make life difficult for the candidates we need to elect if we’re going to pass legislation to protect the babies.”
Hunter mocked that approach.
“You could have saved all the babies,” he said in an interview.
Hunter blames “pro-life” groups and politicians for the continued practice of abortion, saying they should have pushed for complete bans on abortion rather than partial restrictions. He argues that states should have defied the Supreme Court’s initial ruling in Roe v. Wade and banned abortion—in the same way some states now defy federal marijuana laws.
He sees the Dobbs decision as a “pro-choice ruling.”
“The Supreme Court could have ruled there’s no constitutional right to an abortion and no state shall deprive any innocent human beings of life,” he said. “States do not have the right to allow abortions because they are murder.”
Once considered a fringe part of the anti-abortion movement, the so-called abolitionists have become more influential in recent years, particularly in Oklahoma and other Bible Belt states.
An abolitionist-backed bill in Louisiana would have labeled abortion as homicide and imposed criminal penalties on women who choose to end their pregnancies. The bill was eventually withdrawn. Abolitionists have also pushed for bills that would ban abortion without exceptions for maternal health or rape and incest.
The idea of criminal penalties gained support this summer from Al Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. When asked during the SBC’s recent annual meeting if women who have abortions should face criminal penalties, Mohler said yes, some of them should.
Mohler held a different view a few years ago. In 2016, Mohler pushed back against Donald Trump when the then-presidential candidate told journalist Chris Matthews that women who have abortions should face criminal penalties. Trump, Mohler wrote at the time, showed ignorance about “very significant moral arguments” that drive opposition to abortion.
In a recent email, Mohler said that while he agrees with the “long-term pro-life strategy,” he no longer sees women as victims of abortion. Many women, he said, “claim that they are indeed directly exercising their own moral agency.”
“But if you ask me if my mind has changed, I will say that I have come increasingly to the realization that the presentation of women seeking abortion as universally to be treated as victims flies in the face of what many of those women are telling us as they defend abortion, demand abortion, repeatedly seek the same abortion services, and defy a pro-life position with very clear statements of their own intentionality,” he said.
Jennifer Holland, a University of Oklahoma professor who studies the history of abortion, sees abolitionist groups as a continuation of the broader anti-abortion movement. Holland said abortion foes have long had disagreements about strategy—whether they should push for an all-out ban on abortion or take a more incremental approach.
But they had the same goal: zero abortions.
Holland said abortion foes have generally held the idea that abortion is murder but have mostly wanted to blame abortion doctors rather than women. In the 1980s, the movement began to describe women who have abortions as victims who need to be saved. That line of reasoning allowed abortion foes to see themselves as being pro-women.
“I think that that has been one of the most successful lines of argument that the movement has put forward,” she said.
Now, she said, abortion foes can no longer ignore the tension between their core beliefs.
Timothy Head, executive director of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, dismisses the idea of criminal penalties for women who have abortions. He sees almost no support for that approach.
“I’m not aware of any state right now where that even looks realistically possible,” he said.
A recent Pew Research survey found that 14 percent of Catholics and 18 percent of Protestants—including a quarter of evangelicals (24 percent)—say a woman who has an illegal abortion should face jail time.
Head said his group would support a federal ban on abortion. But for now, the Faith and Freedom Coalition is still working through the implications of the Dobbs ruling before planning its next steps.
“We’re probably more in kind of a defensive analysis at the moment, to make sure that there isn’t anything from our perspective that is unfavorable to federal legislation,” he said.
The coalition is active in about two dozen states, where local partners will be working on legislation. Head said he expects to see about 15 different approaches to legislation post-Roe, depending on the state. He expects many of those states to implement laws banning most abortions and to set up criminal penalties for abortion providers. Head also expects more rules to regulate clinics, in places where abortion is still allowed.
Head said his group and other abortion foes would support what he calls “abortion alternatives” that give support to pregnant women and new mothers, such as supplying diapers and baby formula and organizing parenting classes.
He also expects to see more creative solutions to restricting abortion, such as the civil enforcement process in Texas, where private citizens can sue abortion providers or anyone who “performs, aids or intends to aid in an abortion,” according to The Texas Tribune. Head said such lawsuits would make it harder for abortion providers to get insurance and could eventually put them out of business.
Head also expects abortion foes to borrow from the playbook of environmental activists—and become more active at shareholder meetings for companies that support abortion rights or who offer to pay expenses for employees who travel to states where abortion is allowed.
He also said abortion foes will push for so-called long-arm statutes, which would allow states to prosecute out-of-state abortion providers who advertise across state lines.
“The glass is going to break in a lot of unexpected directions,” he said.
LUSAKA, Zambia (BP)—When Ricky Wilson began taking African American pastors on mission trips to Zambia in 2008, he had to dispel a myth.
“A number of the Africans have shared with us, what they were told (in the past) by the white missionaries, is that African Americans don’t care about the spiritual state of Africans in Africa,” Wilson said.
“Because of the conflicts and issues that African Americans were dealing with in America, (we) had a lot on our hands during those times. But it’s not because people did not care. If you notice,” the earlier groups told Zambian pastors, “we brought all these pastors. That lets you know somebody must care.”
Wilson took a team of 21 African American pastors and laypersons—including two Texas Baptist pastors—to Zambia April 22-May 6 for a multifaceted mission outreach through the Zambia Partnership he founded 15 years ago. Wilson is senior pastor of Christian Faith Fellowship in Downingtown, Pa.
Texans participating included Ross Cullins, senior pastor of Solid Rock Missionary Baptist Church in Houston, and Leonard Leach, pastor of Mt. Hebron Missionary Baptist Church in Garland.
A $5,000 George Liele Scholarship, an incentive launched in 2021 by the National African American Fellowship of the Southern Baptist Convention in partnership with the International Mission Board, helped cover expenses.
Those taking the trip raised their own fare and other expenses in the two years preceding the trip, which Wilson said amounted to $165,000.
The team held three days of simultaneous revivals at several churches, conducted pastors’ and women’s conferences and training, conducted community cleanup, held a multi-village cookout, and in advance of the trip, sent clothing and books. The partnership has built nine water wells since its founding, including two completed in 2022.
Revivals drew standing-room-only crowds. Vacation Bible School drew 500 to 700 youth daily, and the cookout planned for 300 drew about 1,000, Wilson said.
Jerome Coleman, NAAF eastern regional director and senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Crestmont in Willow Grove, Pa., describes the George Liele Scholarship as a recognition that African Americans have always been on mission.
“Missions for African Americans starts in the community and expands from there. We take seriously Acts 1:8, ‘And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth,’” Coleman told Baptist Press. “From South Carolina, to Georgia, to Jamaica, Liele embodied what it is to be a witness for Jesus.
“We are godly proud that Liele has finally been recognized, not only as the first American missionary, but if William Carey is considered ‘the father’ of the modern missionary movement, then George Liele is ‘the grandfather,’ since he left America and preached the gospel in Jamaica 10 years before Carey left England for India.
“We are overjoyed that, along with Annie Armstrong and Lottie Moon, (Liele) is now on the pantheon of SBC missionaries.”
Larry Anderson, director of church health and evangelism for the Baptist Resource Network of Pennsylvania/South Jersey, traveled to Zambia for the first time this year after making other mission trips to Africa.
The Zambians he ministered to considered themselves blessed to be able to worship the Lord irrespective of any wealth, Anderson said, with praise and worship lasting 45 minutes before the sermon was preached.
“It impacted me in a major way in regard to the appreciation of the Lord and the worship of the Lord that wasn’t (based) on materialism,” Anderson said. “These folks were blessed. They were willing to worship and praise the Lord for hours. And they may have 10 percent of the materialism that we have here in America.
“We don’t really believe that we’re blessed unless we have stuff,” Anderson said. “And they believe that they’re blessed just because they have a relationship with the Lord.”
Anderson, co-author with Kyle Canty of Ask Me Why I’m Not in Church, conducted a workshop on reaching the community. In preparation, he sent 100 copies of the book to Zambia in 2020, when the trip was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and conducted a survey months in advance of the trip about the needs of the communities pastors serve there.
“Based on that, we went over with workbooks, with T-shirts and we created a ‘Ask Me Why I’m Not In Church’ evangelism plan and strategy for those pastors,” Anderson said. “They were so appreciative.
“The shirts are meant to be thought-provoking. One of the pastors walked right out of the conference, got into a rideshare, somebody asked him why wasn’t he in church, and he shared his faith, and this guy accepted Christ. That was the highlight.”
Wilson is working to expose other African American pastors to missions on the African continent.
Zambian pastors appreciate meeting pastors on mission who share their skin color, Wilson said. He and another pastor visited Zambia a year in advance of the trip to plan the outreach conducted April 22-May 6.
“One of the things that we found enjoyable in dispelling the myth of African Americans’ absence in Africa, is that we were poisoned against what life is like in Africa,” Wilson said. “But if a person has never been there, you really can’t say what it is.
“I’ve shared with them, … I’ve done work in Kenya, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zambia,” he said, “and I’ve seen the beauty of the continent, and the beauty of the people.”
Wilson encourages U.S.–Zambian church partnerships to equip Zambian churches to impact communities for Christ through education, evangelism, edification and economic development.
A.K. Malemba, pastor of the multisite Moving Gospel Ministries in Zambia, served as the central host pastor. In the 15 years the Zambia Partnership has taken mission trips to Zambia, Wilson said, Malemba has planted 21 churches and leads a network of 31 congregations.
In addition to Cullins and Leach, African American Southern Baptist pastors and leaders joining Wilson, Anderson and Canty on the trip were George Blount, senior pastor of The Rock Community Baptist Church, Lansdowne, Pa.; Byron Day, pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Laurel, Md.; Hal Hopkins, pastor of Lighthouse Baptist Church of the Lehigh Valley in Breinigsville, Pa.; Brian King, senior pastor of Ezekiel Baptist Church, Philadelphia; Victor Kirk Sr., pastor of Sharon Bible Fellowship Church in Lanham, Md.; Stan Williams, Baptist Resource Network director of Next Collegiate Ministry; and Keith Watkins, senior pastor, New City Church Downtown, Macon, Ga.
The Liele scholarship is funded primarily through the approximately 4,000 congregations comprising NAAF, Coleman said, with additional funding from IMB and other contributors.
“The hope is that as awareness of the scholarship increases, funding from IMB, NAAF, other SBC churches, and other contributors will increase as well,” Coleman said. “We would love to get matching funds, an individual, group, entity, or church that would match the dollars that are contributed each year so that we can increasingly achieve the scholarship’s goal of reflecting the diversity of the Southern Baptist Convention by mobilizing and sending African American missionaries around the globe to reach a diversity of people groups with the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled two Texas Indian tribes—not the state government—have authority to regulate electronic bingo games on their lands.
Gambling opponents asserted the court’s ruling potentially could open the door to expanded gambling in Texas.
The court ruled the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo tribe near El Paso—also known as the Tiguas—and the Alabama-Coushatta tribe in East Texas have the autonomy to regulate gambling activities on their lands if those games are not specifically prohibited in the state.
The federal government already grants the Kickapoo tribe in Eagle Pass the right to operate a casino that offers some forms of gambling—slot machines, poker and bingo, but not blackjack or roulette—under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988.
Writing for the majority of the court in Yesleta del Sur Pueblo v. Texas, Justice Neil Gorsuch stated: “In this case, Texas contends that Congress expressly ordained that all of its gaming laws should be treated as surrogate federal law enforceable on the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo Reservation. In the end, however, we find no evidence Congress endowed state law with anything like that power Texas claims.”
Based on precedent established by California v. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians in 1987, the court ruled the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act distinguishes between prohibition and regulation.
Gambling activities prohibited by state law also are prohibited as a matter of federal law. However, the statute does not grant the state regulatory jurisdiction over gaming on tribal lands.
Texas allows bingo “subject to fixed rules about the time, place and manner in which it may be conducted,” the court noted.
So, the court concluded, Texas laws “fall on the regulatory rather than prohibitory side of the line.”
The state argued attempts to distinguish between prohibition and regulation are “unworkable.” It noted courts might be called on to decide whether electronic bingo qualifies as bingo that is regulated by the state or whether it is an entirely different form of gambling banned in Texas.
“It is not our place to question whether Congress adopted the wisest or most workable policy, only to discern and apply the policy it did adopt,” Gorsuch wrote. “If Texas thinks good governance requires a different set of rules, its appeals are better directed to those who make the laws than those charged with following them.”
The case returns to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for further deliberation.
Rob Kohler, consultant with Texas Baptists’ Christian Life Commission, called the court’s opinion “a significant ruling” that potentially could lead to the expansion of gambling in Texas.
“There are two more players on the field now,” noting the Tigua and Alabama-Coushatta tribes will join the Kickapoo tribe in likely pushing for electronic bingo in casinos on tribal lands. “The threat goes up.”
Russ Coleman, a Dallas attorney and chairman-elect of Texans Against Gambling, likewise expressed concern about the potential for gambling expansion in the state.
“Rightly decided or wrongly decided, the decision is harmful for the same many reasons why gambling in Texas is illegal with very limited exceptions,” Coleman said.
“Expect the two tribes to continue to push the envelope in labeling as ‘bingo’ addict-producing electronic gambling devices that are BINOs—bingo in name only.”
DALLAS—Houston Pastor Ralph Douglas West invited participants at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship general assembly in Dallas to “come and see the unique ways God encounters us.”
Just as no two sunrises, sunsets, mountain peaks or snowflakes are identical, the ways Jesus summons his followers and the disciples Christ calls are “wonderfully different,” said West, founding pastor of The Church Without Walls in Houston.
Basing his sermon on John 1:35-51, West identified four categories of individuals Jesus called as disciples.
He began with the spiritual seekers who were listening to John the Baptist when John identified Jesus as “the Lamb of God” and who were asking questions “life’s big questions.”
“There were some who already were looking for something good and found something—or someone—better,” West said.
He then examined three disciples of Jesus and the types of people they represent.
Simon—whom Jesus renamed Peter, “the rock”—represented people who are full of potential that God can turn into reality, West said.
“It took some time to get Simon to rock status,” he noted, noting Peter’s initial instability and unpredictability.
Philip—whom West said is portrayed in the Gospels often either stating the obvious or missing the point—represented the “clueless” whose eyes God can open to truth.
Finally, he focused on the cynical Nathaniel, who asked, “Can any good come out of Nazareth?”
“We need converted cynics,” West said. He gave the example of a man in his church who had been an embittered follower of the Nation of Islam. Once he became an enthusiastic Christian, he discipled hundreds of other followers of Jesus.
In his report to the general assembly, CBF Executive Coordinator Paul Baxley called on the Fellowship not just to make room at the table for others, but to “build a whole new table” that reflects “the dream of God” for his people.
He urged CBF to “answer a call that the Spirit is giving … to set a new table where all gifts are welcome and all gifts are unleashed.”
Baxley reported 154 churches, more than 1,000 individuals and 18 organizations contributed $1.12 million to the CBF Ukraine Relief Fund in four months. He called for ongoing prayer for people still in Ukraine and for the 5 million refugees spread across Europe.
At this point, however, Baxley announced CBF is ending active promotion of the relief fund. At the recommendation of field personnel in the region, CBF will hold back a significant portion of the funds received for long-term recovery in the months and years ahead, he said.
Preaching from Psalm 66, Pastor Courtney Stamey of Northside Baptist Church in Clinton, Miss., emphasized the importance of God’s people participating in worship services of testimony after tumultuous times.
“We need a sacred space to leach out this poison of pain, to celebrate the presence of the Holy Spirit, to confess our doubts and concerns, to lament, to cry, to sing, shout out and praise,” Stamey said. “We need it so we can truly know—deep, deep in our souls—what remains.”
From a global pandemic and racial reckoning to political division and a rise in Christian nationalism, she said, unsettling events should prompt Christians to reflect upon where “God’s steadfast love has showed up.”
Patricia Wilson, a Baylor Law School professor and member of Seventh and James Baptist Church in Waco, completed her time as CBF moderator at the general assembly. She reflected on serving during a global pandemic.
“What I found is that God is good. We have carried on,” Wilson said. “Many things have happened despite COVID. Because we haven’t been able to have a typical general assembly, we missed greeting friends, participating in uplifting worship services. Because of COVID, our field personnel and partners were unable to carry out ministry in usual ways. Because of COVID, we became more aware of inequities and injustices that exist in our local communities, country and world.”
In spite of the challenges COVID presented, Wilson said, “My hope and optimism for CBF have never been greater.”
Incoming CBF Moderator Debbie McDaniel from First Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ala., told the general assembly: “My dream is for each of us to come and see and know the people and the resources of the Fellowship on a deeper level. As I serve you, I will pray for you as you continue your journey of discovery and living into your own unique calling to Christ’s mission.”
Valley Ranch Baptist Church in Coppell received a Mission Excellence Award from CBF for its long-term support for ministries along the Texas-Mexico border and its local English-as-a-Second-Language programs. Other mission award recipients were Heritage Baptist Church in Heflin, Ala., and First Baptist Church in Corbin, Ky.
Stephen Reeves, executive director of Fellowship Southwest and director of advocacy for CBF, announced the creation of the Suzii Paynter March Advocacy Fellowship.
Endowed by the Eula Mae and John Baugh Foundation, the fellowship will provide a current student or recent school of social work, seminary or law school graduate practical experience in advocacy.
The first fellow will work in partnership with Pastors for Children to help develop a network of advocates for public education within CBF churches.
The CBF general assembly approved a $16.5 million budget for 2023, an increase of about $2 million in anticipated revenue. To fund the budget fully, CBF will need to raise $250,000 in new contributions from churches and individuals to CBF Missions and Ministries, and it will require $225,000 in new contributions to the CBF Offering for Global Missions.
With additional reporting by Aaron Weaver and Carrie Harris of CBF.
A 12-member task force is drafting a report and finalizing its recommendations on ways to increase Millennial and Generation Z involvement in the Baptist General Convention of Texas and its churches.
Demographers generally define Millennials as individuals born between 1981 and 1996, and they typically describe those born between 1997 and 2015 as belonging to Generation Z.
The task force will report its findings and recommendations to the BGCT Executive Board in mid-September and to Texas Baptists’ annual meeting Nov. 13-15 in Waco.
BGCT President Jason Burden, pastor of First Baptist Church in Nederland, appointed the task force early this year in response to a motion presented by Chris McLain, pastor of First Baptist Church in Bandera, at Texas Baptists’ 2021 annual meeting in Galveston.
In addition to McLain, others on the task force are David Adams and Ray Malone from Texas Baptists’ staff; Jason Atchley, pastor of Greenwood Baptist Church in Midland; David Foster, groups and connections pastor at Shiloh Terrace Baptist Church in Dallas; Scott Swingler, associate pastor of students at Sugar Land Baptist Church; Clint Followell, youth and college pastor at First Baptist Church in San Marcos; Nebiye Kelile, pastor of Pathway Church and Orchard Hills Baptist Church in Garland; Ryan Jespersen, executive director of Dallas Baptist Association; Meghan Hendrickson, minister to women at Park Cities Baptist Church in Dallas; Nathan Mahand, Baptist Student Ministries director at Houston Baptist University; and Nataly Mora Sorenson of Edinburg.
The task force held several Zoom meetings prior to an in-person April gathering in Waco, which both Burden and McLain characterized as “fruitful.”
The task force has demonstrated a “shared aspiration” to see more Millennial and Gen Z church leaders involved “in decision-making spaces” in Texas Baptist life, Burden noted.
At Texas Baptists’ annual meeting, Burden said, he anticipates the task force not only will present its report and “probably three to five” recommendations to the general session, but also likely will offer a breakout session about Millennials and Gen Z.
Burden applauded the “enthusiasm” and “passion” of young leaders who want to become more involved in strategic ways in Texas Baptist life.
McLain’s motion at the 2021 annual meeting called on the BGCT president to “appoint a task force to study and recommend ways to increase involvement of Millennial and Gen Z Baptists in the life of the convention and its cooperating churches. The task force will have a budget of up to $10,000 to cover the expenses of the committee. The task force will report its findings and recommendations at the September 2022 Executive Board meeting for review, and to the 2022 annual meeting of the convention for consideration.”
At the time, McLain spoke of the importance of Texas Baptists having “younger leaders in the pipeline” and creating “on-ramps for them to get involved.”
“We may be the only Baptist state convention blessed to be grappling with the issue of younger folks wanting to be more involved” in denominational and congregational leadership, Burden noted.
David N. Guel, Texas Baptist pastor and church starter, died June 20. He was 78. He was born Jan. 25, 1944, in Houston to Margarito Guel and Virginia Diaz Guel. The youngest of four children, he grew up frequently attending the church where he would eventually meet his future bride. At age 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. During his eight years of service, he was stationed in multiple places, including Wiesbaden, Germany; Washington, D.C.; and Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam. During his time in Vietnam, Guel felt God’s call to the ministry. He earned his GED while still in the service, and enrolled in Houston Baptist University upon returning home. David ultimately earned a master’s degree and doctorate from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. His early years of ministry focused on evangelism. In his last year in Vietnam, he and fellow servicemen prayed for a Vietnam veterans-led evangelism event. Their prayers were realized in 1970 at Delmar Stadium in Houston. With the help of Houston-area pastors, it was a successful, miraculous week. On Dec. 23, 1972, he married Cecilia Miranda in Houston. As a couple, they committed to starting English-language Hispanic churches. He was recognized as Pastor of the Year in 1986 by the language missions division of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Home Mission Board. He was then called to serve as a church starter with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, and in a dual assignment was appointed as a home missionary with the North American Mission Board. In that capacity, he was instrumental in the establishment of several hundred new churches in Texas. He also influenced churches and pastors to continue the same work both domestically and abroad. Later in his ministry, David became an advocate for strong and compassionate immigration reform and led groups to Washington, D.C., to meet with elected officials to discuss immigration issues. He served more than five decades in fulltime ministry and continued to give his time to churches after he retired as opportunities arose. He is survived by his wife of nearly 50 years, Cecilia Miranda Guel of Houston; sons David Stephan Guel and wife Lauren of Waco; son Eric Nathan Guel and wife Brandi of Waco; daughter Deborah Guel of Houston; and seven grandchildren. His family will receive visitors from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on July 6 at the chapel of First Baptist Church of Houston Loop Campus. A celebration of life service will be held at 1 p.m. on July 7, 2022 in the chapel of First Baptist Church of Houston Loop Campus. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Texas Baptist Men Disaster Relief.
The National Science Foundation awarded a $1.36 million Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program grant to Wayland Baptist University. The grant will help provide financial aid and scholarships for exceptionally qualified students who are studying to become high school math and science teachers. The project includes partnerships with Plainview High School and South Plains College to discover qualified candidates beginning with the fall 2022 semester. Qualified students attending the main Wayland campus in Plainview are eligible for up to $16,000 a year each in financial aid toward their degree. Project goals also include graduating 25 WBU Noyce scholars and retaining them as STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) educators in high-need districts. “This grant will have a huge impact on STEM education on the South Plains. We are constantly facing a shortage of STEM teachers in the area,” said Adam Reinhart, dean of the Kenneth L. Mattox School of Mathematics and Sciences at Wayland. “The grant will produce more than STEM teachers. It will produce uniquely qualified ‘scientist-educators’ through undergraduate scientific research and other programming such as mentoring, both as undergraduates and their first few years in the classroom.” For information about student applications, email reinhart@wbu.edu.
Former Attorney General William P. Barr spoke June 21 at Dallas Baptist University as part of a lecture series sponsored by DBU’s Institute for Global Engagement, in partnership with the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort-Worth. Lee Cullum, Dallas journalist and senior fellow of the John Tower Center for Political Studies at Southern Methodist University, served as the moderator for the evening’s discussion. Barr responded to questions about his testimony at recent hearings regarding the Trump administration’s claims of fraud in the 2020 election and accusations that former President Donald Trump was culpable in inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol building. Barr denied there was any clear evidence of election fraud under the current voting rules but also stated there was no evidence to substantiate prosecution of Trump for intent of collusion regarding the assault on the Capitol.
The English article is available here.
Los asistentes a la reunión anual de la Convención Bautista Hispana de Texas escucharon desafíos para revitalizar sus iglesias y estar en misión.
Durante la reunión del 26 al 28 de junio en Trinity Baptist Church en San Antonio, los mensajeros eligieron una lista histórica de nuevos funcionarios y aprobaron un presupuesto aumentado para 2023.
A los mensajeros también se les presentaron cambios propuestos a la constitución de la Convención, algunos de los cuales se someterán a votación en la próxima reunión anual durante la Reunión Familiar de los Bautistas de Texas en McAllen, del 16 al 18 de julio de 2023. Las enmiendas propuestas actualizarían la constitución con terminología.
La reunión anual atrajo una asistencia total de 816, incluidos 150 mensajeros. Los asistentes durante la sesión de trabajo del martes por la mañana aprobaron un presupuesto para 2023 de $407.928,91, un aumento de $12.105,63 con respecto a 2022.
En lo que se dijo que era la primera vez para la Convención, los mensajeros eligieron a tres mujeres oficiales.
Sergio Ramos, oficial de participación de la iglesia de Buckner International y miembro de La Promesa en Dallas donde fue un pastor interino, fue nominado para presidente por Dr. Julio Guarneri, pastor principal de la Iglesia Bautista Calvary en McAllen, presidente de la Convención General Bautista de Texas y parlamentario de la Convención. Ramos fue elegido por aclamación.
Sylvia Ake, de Primera Iglesia Bautista en Edinburg, fue nominada para primer vicepresidente por su esposo, Pastor Abiel Ake de Primera Iglesia Bautista en Edinburg y secretario de la Convención. Ella también fue elegida por aclamación.
Se presentaron tres nominados para segundo vicepresidente: Lili Martínez Lara, de la Iglesia Bautista Emmanuel en McAllen; Rev. José Cárdenas, pastor de El Calvario Iglesia Bautista en Mount Pleasant; y Rafael Solís de la Iglesia Bautista Azle Avenue en Fort Worth. Luego de una segunda vuelta entre Lara y Cárdenas, Lara fue elegida como segunda vicepresidenta.
Claudia Treviño, de la Iglesia Bautista El Calvario en San Antonio, fue nominada por Bea Mesquias, directora ejecutiva y tesorera de Unión Femenil Misionera de Texas y miembro de la Iglesia Bautista Ágape. Treviño también fue elegido por aclamación.
El presidente titular, Dr. Tony Miranda, cuyo nuevo libro Las Parábolas de Jesús en su Contexto debutó durante la reunion, recordó a los asistentes que restaurar la salud y la vitalidad de una iglesia en declive es una obra sobrenatural de Dios. Someterse a la palabra de Dios es un primer paso en esa restauración. Para revertir el declive, las iglesias deben recuperar la pasión por la santidad, la palabra de Dios y la oración.
Las iglesias estancadas o en declive también necesitan evaluar lo que están haciendo y formar un plan de acción. Encontrarán su propósito y misión en la comisión de Jesús grabado en Mateo 28:18-20.
Rev. Tomás Mackey, presidente de la Alianza Mundial Bautista, expedido un cargo similar. Haciendo referencia a Mateo 28:18-20, llamó a los asistentes a trabajar en el desarrollo de discípulos de Cristo en los ambitos de la familia, la iglesia y el público.
Rev. Luis López, director ejecutivo de relaciones hispanas y movilización del Comité Ejecutivo de la Convención Bautista del Sur, entregó el mensaje anual. Señaló la pandemia de COVID-19, la tensión racial y los inmigrantes que murieron en San Antonio el 27 de junio como evidencia de la necesidad de un avivamiento.
“¿Puede Dios revivir la iglesia?” preguntó López. Refiriéndose a la canción que precede a su mensaje, “Qué hermoso nombre”, declaró que la iglesia puede revivir a través del poderoso nombre de Jesús. Para tal avivamiento, Dios debe ser el primero en nuestras vidas, nuestra adoración y nuestras posesiones, proclamó.
Durante la sesión inaugural, Rev. Carlos Contreras, pastor de la Primera Iglesia Bautista de Uvalde; Rev. Neftali Barboza, pastor de la Iglesia Nueva Jericó en Uvalde; y Rev. Julián Moreno, pastor emérito de la Primera Iglesia Bautista en Uvalde y abuelo de Lexi Rubio, uno de los 19 niños asesinados el 24 de mayo de 2022 en un tiroteo masivo en la Escuela Primaria Robb en Uvalde, se dirigieron a los asistentes.
Contreras y Barboza expresaron su gratitud por las oraciones y el apoyo de los hermanos y hermanas cristianos después del tiroteo masivo. También comunicaron su dolor y tristeza, así como su confianza en la palabra de Dios y su esperanza en el cielo.
Entre lágrimas y palabras ahogadas, Moreno compartió su deseo inicial de condenar y dañar al tirador masivo. Recordó los mandamientos de Jesús de amar a nuestros enemigos y a nuestros vecinos, y supo que no debía condenar al asesino de su nieta. El ministerio de Moreno ahora es para sus otros nietos que luchan por entender lo que sucedió.
Se invitó a los pastores a reunirse alrededor de Contreras, Barboza y Mendoza para orar por ellos.
Los asistentes también dedicaron tiempo en sesiones separadas para orar por Ucrania y por las familias de los 51 inmigrantes que murieron después de quedar atrapados en un camión con remolque en San Antonio el 27 de junio.
Varios asistentes comentaron sobre la sólida actuación de las universidades y seminarios bautistas de Texas y otros lugares. La presencia de estas escuelas durante la reunión anual y la programación comunicó a los asistentes la seriedad con la que estas escuelas buscan inscribir, becar, capacitar y graduar a estudiantes y líderes hispanos.
Mientras celebraba el 75 aniversario de la Universidad Bautista de las Américas, el presidente Abe Jaquez anunció un memorando de entendimiento con la Asociación Bautista de El Paso. Comienzo el 22 de agosto de 2022, los estudiantes en línea de BUA en el área de El Paso que deseen obtener una licenciatura en Estudios Bíblicos/Teológicos estarán a punto de acceder a computadoras y asistencia técnica en el sitio de EPBA.