In the US, Southern Baptists see 13th year of membership decline
Nashville, TennesseeAP The largest Protestant denomination in the US is almost two per cent smaller than it was in 2018. The Southern Baptist Convention released its 2019 membership numbers on Thursday, showing a membership decline of more than 287,000. That brings their total membership down from 14.8 million in 2018 to 14.5 million last year. […]
Pass the plate? Not yet, as US churches rethink their routines
Tallahassee, FloridaAP It’s almost unheard of to go into a Southern Baptist church and not have a plate passed for donations. Until now. “It took a pandemic for a Baptist church to quit passing a plate. That’s almost unthinkable. It’s close to heresy. Real close,” said David Uth, pastor of the First Baptist Church of […]
Southern Baptist publishing arm, LifeWay, announces cuts due to COVID-19
RNS LifeWay Christian Resources, the publishing entity of the Southern Baptist Convention, has announced it will cut roughly 10 per cent of its operating budget through staff reductions, a hiring freeze and salary cuts. The move comes after five consecutive weeks of steep revenue decline in the wake of the coronavirus and the expectation that […]
BAPTISM: SOUTHERN BAPTISTS PUT HOPES IN ‘BAPTISM SUNDAY’ AMID PLUMMETING BAPTISM NUMBERS
ADELLE M BANKS, of Religion News Service, reports from the US on a new Southern Baptist initiative to encourage more people to be immersed in the waters of baptism…
Ronnie Floyd, US megachurch pastor and Trump advisor, nominated for key SBC post
RNS Former Southern Baptist Convention President Ronnie Floyd has been nominated to lead the US denomination’s executive committee, based in Nashville, Tennessee. An Arkansas megachurch pastor who serves as part of President Trump’s unofficial group of faith advisors, Floyd would succeed former executive committee President Frank Page, who resigned last year due to an “inappropriate […]
ESSAY: WHY CHRISTIANS SHOULD SUPPORT A FREE PRESS
Writing from the US, DANIEL DARLING, author and vice president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, argues, in an article first published by Religion News Service, that Christians should not only support a free press but “robust” reporting…
ESSAY: WHY THE US NEEDS A NATIONAL ALL FAITHS INQUIRY INTO CLERGY SEX ABUSE
In an article first published on Religion News Service, CHRISTA BROWN, board member of the Child-Friendly Faith Project, and DAVID CLOHESSY, former director of SNAP, argue for the US to hold a national inquiry into clergy sex abuse similar to Australia’s recent Royal Commission…
In the US, Southern Baptists to launch sexual abuse advisory panel
RNS After months of mounting pressure and new charges of ignoring sexual abuse claims, the Southern Baptist Convention is lining up experts and church leaders in a bid to help the denomination confront the problem. JD Greear speaks during the Pastor’s Conference on 11th June, 2018, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas. PICTURE: […]
Evangelical leaders push for criminal justice reform in the US
RNS Evangelical Christian leaders are spearheading a campaign for criminal justice reform, calling for equitable punishment, alternatives to incarceration and a different take on the “tough on crime” language of the Trump administration. “Our country’s overreliance on incarceration fails to make us safer or to restore people and communities who have been harmed,” said James Ackerman, CEO of […]
Faced with declining numbers, US Southern Baptists focus on evangelism
RNS Steve Gaines, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, speaks at the Pastors’ Conference at the Phoenix Convention Center on 12th June in Phoenix. PICTURE: Matt Miller Faced with continuing declines in membership and baptisms, Southern Baptist Convention President Steve Gaines implored delegates to the denomination’s yearly meeting to turn to God and put their […]