Baptist Press Archive

Tuesday, November 06, 2018

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  • IMB taps Paul Chitwood as presidential candidate
    by Julie McGowan, posted Tuesday, November 06, 2018 (6 months ago)

    Photo by Robin Cornetet/Kentucky Baptist Convention
    RICHMOND, Va. (BP) -- The International Mission Board trustees' presidential search committee announced Tuesday (Nov. 6) that the committee will recommend Paul Chitwood, 48, to be elected as the 173-year-old entity's 13th president.

    The vote to elect Chitwood is scheduled for the Nov. 15 plenary session during their IMB board meeting in Richmond.

    A former chairman of IMB's board of trustees, Chitwood currently serves as executive director of the Kentucky Baptist Convention, the state's largest religious organization with 750,000 members in 2,400 churches and 70 associations. He has served in the role since 2011. Read More

  • Election Day: Churches assist, reassure voters
    by David Roach, posted Tuesday, November 06, 2018 (6 months ago)

    Photo courtesy of Susan Fogg
    NASHVILLE (BP) -- Praying, offering their church buildings as polling places and teaching new U.S. citizens to vote were among the ways Southern Baptists served their communities on Election Day (Nov. 6).

    With 36 million Americans casting their ballots early this year, according to Politico, a "much-higher-than-usual" turnout for a midterm was expected, and opportunities to serve voters abounded.

    In Kentucky, a Southern Baptist pastor who also is a chaplain at the state capitol in Frankfort hosted a 12-hour, come-and-go prayer meeting in the capitol chapel. The gathering's hours paralleled Kentucky's poll hours, 6 a.m.-6 p.m. Read More

  • Pakistan may review Bibi acquittal, forbids travel
    by Diana Chandler, posted Tuesday, November 06, 2018 (6 months ago)

    Screen capture from Twitter
    LAHORE, Pakistan (BP) -- Christian mother Asia Bibi's freedom is once again in jeopardy, just days after Pakistan's Supreme Court acquitted her of blasphemy and freed her from death row.

    The government is allowing her detractors to request a review of the Oct. 31 acquittal and are forbidding Bibi to flee the country, the Guardian reported Nov. 2. Angry mobs of thousands in several cities are demanding her death.

    While Bibi's exact location remains undisclosed, the government essentially signed Bibi's death warrant by forbidding her international travel, her supporters said. The nation was said to be paralyzed by street mobs for three days after the verdict, inciting fears of civil war. Read More

  • Ark. Baptists unanimous in opposing more casinos
    by Arkansas Baptist News Staff, posted Tuesday, November 06, 2018 (6 months ago)

    Photo by Caleb Yarbrough/Arkansas Baptist News
    JONESBORO, Ark. (BP) -- Just two weeks before Nov. 6 balloting, Arkansas Baptists expressed their opposition to Issue 4, a proposed constitutional amendment to allow casino gambling to expand to four additional Arkansas counties.

    Arkansas Baptists unanimously approved a resolution encouraging all voters to vote against Issue 4, which would expand casino gambling beyond Hot Springs and West Memphis.

    Messengers at the 165th annual meeting of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention (ABSC) further committed to restore and rehabilitate individuals involved in "problem gambling" and also provide a "safety net" for gamblers' families and communities if Issue 4 is approved. Read More

  • Int'l Religious Freedom Act marks 20 years of impact
    by Tom Strode, posted Tuesday, November 06, 2018 (6 months ago)

    WASHINGTON (BP) -- The International Religious Freedom Act addressed a serious shortcoming in American foreign policy, the law's advocates said at the 20-year mark of its stand against religious persecution.

    The legislation, promoted by many evangelical Christian and other religious leaders, became law with President Clinton's signature on Oct. 27, 1998, and its effect has been widespread. The International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) established mechanisms within the State Department and an independent commission that have raised the visibility of freedom of belief and conscience in U.S. relationships with other countries. Read More

  • FIRST-PERSON: Jesus took naps
    by Jim Futral, posted Tuesday, November 06, 2018 (6 months ago)

    Jim Futral notes that Jesus -- "who was fully God robed in flesh" -- experienced times when He needed rest. Likewise, everyone needs times during the day to "rest, reflect and be renewed." Read More