News

(RNS) — While the Roman Catholic world digests a Vatican letter confirming the church’s prohibition on gluten-free wafers, Protestant churches continue to place orders for a Eucharist that won’t bother the gluten-intolerant.

Gluten or no gluten — the difference is theological.

Baptists from nearly 50 nations focused on religious liberty concerns in multiple nations during the annual gathering of the Baptist World Alliance in Bangkok, Thailand, the first week of July.

Through resolutions, presentations and advocacy, the historic Baptist concern for religious liberty led to attention given to Iraq, Myanmar, Russia, Thailand, the United States and elsewhere.

(RNS) The latest in a long line of studies, now numbering in the hundreds, if not thousands, shows that church attendance is good for your health.

But even as the studies pile up and the literature appears close to conclusive, many questions about the association between religious service attendance and health have yet to be answered.

(RNS) Hobby Lobby’s claim that it did not know it was buying ill-gotten artifacts is disingenuous, say those who work in the field and study the ancient Near East.

About 300 Baptists from nearly 50 nations trekked to Bangkok, Thailand, this week for the annual gathering of the Baptist World Alliance.

Meeting in a predominately Buddhist nation, global Baptist leaders learned from Thai Baptists and offered encouragement to Baptists in the region.

ATLANTA — Cooperative Baptists heard from the Fellowship’s two top-elected leaders during the Friday business session of the 2017 General Assembly: current CBF Moderator Doug Dortch, and incoming 2017-18 CBF Moderator Shauw Chin Capps.

Native Texan Elijah Brown is being nominated to be the next general secretary of the Baptist World Alliance. 

Brown was formally approved by the BWA Executive Committee in Bangkok, Thailand, on Tuesday, July 4, and his name will be presented to the General Council on Friday, July 7, for a final vote.

The Partee Missouri Baptist Archive at William Jewell College won a digital imaging grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Studies to digitize every issue of Word&Way from its launch in July of 1896 through 1980 — a total of 71,320 pages. The grant will also pay for the digitizing of The Central Baptist, a Baptist newspaper in Missouri that ran from 1866 until the Word&Way bought it in 1912.

(The Conversation) The first truly African-American musical form, the “Spirituals,” took shape in the 17th and 18th centuries within the generations of slaves born into the tough American experience. Music was a daily part of their survival and sustenance.

As an author of a book on the gospel canon, “Great God A’Mighty! The Dixie Hummingbirds: Celebrating the Rise of Soul Gospel Music,” I have been particularly drawn to a compelling but lesser known outgrowth of the spiritual tradition – the African-American “folk” preachers.

ATLANTA — Stepping out in faith not knowing the destination is part of the story of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, popular author and theologian Brian McLaren told nearly 1,500 attendees Thursday evening at the 2017 General Assembly.