News

As governors and mayors across the United States seek to slow the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, a church-state issue quickly emerged as some governmental officials included houses of worship in their bans of mass gatherings. Even while some officials created religious exemptions, Baptists who monitor church-state issues agree that such exemptions are not constitutionally necessary.

Speaking from self-quarantine because of recent travel, Baptist World Alliance President Paul Msiza expressed concerns about the potential impact of coronavirus on his home country of South Africa as well as Baptist communities across the globe. The BWA also announced today (March 25) an international prayer effort to start March 30.

A sobering new report released today by Gospel for Asia in the wake of World Water Day reveals that two billion people globally are struggling to find enough water to survive.

In response to the growing impact of COVID-19 around the world, the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) calls on the global Baptist family to join together for a 24-hour prayer marathon, launching with an audio conference on Monday, March 30, at 8:15 a.m. CT.

The White House held calls with religious leaders last week to encourage their support of its guidelines for addressing the coronavirus, gathering more than a thousand people on three phone calls. When Trump briefly took part in the Friday call, he addressed the pending election as well as the pandemic.

As the global coronavirus pandemic shuts down countries and endangers livelihoods and lives, some Baptist leaders warn that people already vulnerable in our society are the most vulnerable to the virus and its economic impact. And while the drops in the stock market and the woes of large global conglomerates dominate the news, Christians are urged to focus on those being left out.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting has been canceled for the first time in 75 years in a unanimous vote of SBC officers, the SBC Executive Committee, and leaders of the SBC's boards and institutions.The June 9-10 meeting is not being rescheduled.

As countries across the world work to prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the Balkan nation of Croatia found its work complicated by a massive earthquake on Sunday (March 22) — which adds to the ministry work of the small Baptist community there. After a 5.4 earthquake struck a few miles north of the capital city of Zagreb at 6:23 a.m. local time, relief efforts were complicated by efforts to keep social distancing amid the coronavirus outbreak.

As in-person worship services are canceled or downsized amid the coronavirus outbreak, some churches across the U.S. are bracing for a painful drop in weekly contributions and possible cutbacks in programs and staff.

Caleb Borchers planned to preach on the biblical Book of Haggai as he met with his five-year-old church in Asa Messer Elementary School in Providence, Rhode Island. In the end, the sermon on Sunday (March 15) was one of the few things that turned out the way Borchers thought it would.