Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
The Passion Outreach
Icon Productions has partnered with Outreach, Inc. to help market Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" to faith communities as an evangelistic tool. Gibson, Icon's founder and director of the movie opening Feb. 25,...
Seminary Magazine Describes ‘Biblical’ Womanhood
"Biblical" women submit to their husbands, value homemaking over a career and dress modestly, according to Southern Baptist Theological Seminary's current issue of its alumni magazine. The seminary in Louisville, Ky.,...
‘Merit’ Scholarships Shifting Funds to the Wealthy
Kelly Ryan, a "B" average student at the University of Georgia, used her college trust fund to purchase a new Honda, trips to Italy, Switzerland and Argentina, and to invest (and lose) in the stock market. Enough was...
Bush Suggests Support for Marriage Amendment
President Bush suggested in last night's State of the Union address that he would support a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. Talking about defending the institution of marriage, Bush criticized "activist...
State of the Union 2004: Bush’s Buzzwords
President Bush spoke for 54 minutes last night, using roughly 5,200 words in his State of the Union address. Bush referred to the "economy" 14 times, most often speaking of it "growing stronger" or moving "forward." He...
Gibson’s ‘Passion’ Will Open Wide
Mel Gibson's gamble—a movie depicting Jesus Christ's final hours—will open on 2,000 screens, a number significantly larger than most "niche" films. "The Passion of the Christ," which Gibson personally financed for $25...
WMU Executive Board Affirms Ties With BWA
The Woman's Missionary Union's executive board voted unanimously to affirm their historic relationship with the Women's Department of the Baptist World Alliance, according to a news release distributed Monday. The...
Breaking the Da Vinci Code
Dan Brown wrote a book and for weeks it has been at the top of the New York Times bestseller list. I understand why: I could not put it down. If you like architecture, history and religion mixed into a crime story,...
The Faith-Based Initiative of Martin Luther King
President Bush announced last week a dramatic expansion of his "faith-based initiatives" plan. These initiatives, which have been the centerpiece of Mr. Bush's domestic social agenda, are aimed at channeling tax...
Activist Group Seeks Big TV Time for Bush Ad
An advocacy group that sponsored an anti-Bush ad contest has chosen a winner—and will place that ad before the president's State of the Union address. It is also seeking ad time during the Super Bowl. MoveOn.org, an...
Selma’s ‘Turnaround March’ Was Turning Point
Of all of Martin Luther King Jr.'s activism experiences, one of the lesser known remains one of the more compelling. Many people associate King with Bloody Sunday in Selma, Ala., on March 7, 1965—even though he wasn't...
Memo to Baptists Gathering in Greensboro
Baptists across the country will be watching North Carolinians who gather in Greensboro, Jan. 23-24, for what could be the most important gathering since moderate Baptists met in 1990 to form what became the...
‘House of Sand and Fog’
Almost two years ago a film was released entitled "Changing Lanes." It told the story of two imperfect men who end up entwining one another in a series of vengeful reactions—because of a fender-bender. "House of Sand...
What’s the Book on EthicsDaily.com?
EthicsDaily.com is emerging as one of the premier Baptist Web sites. Launched two years ago this week, EthicsDaily.com creates a synergy between the two primary wings of the Baptist Center for Ethics. One wing is news...
Worthy Worship
The single greatest worship experience he ever had, Gordon MacDonald says, occurred after the benediction had been pronounced and people were actually leaving the building. It was 1976, and MacDonald, now editor at...
Questionable Enterprises?
It is now three weeks since past and present leaders of Baptist World Aid asked the chair of the Southern Baptist Convention's committee on its relationship to the Baptist World Alliance to substantiate its accusation...
Bush Planning Program to Promote Marriage
President Bush plans to spend $1.5 billion to promote marriage among low-income couples in a move expected to win favor among religious conservatives in an election year, according to a report the New York Times....
No Closed Doors, No Hidden Agendas
Editor's Note: This editorial from the December 1980 issue of Baptist Program, was the last written by Albert McClellan, a 31-year employee of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee who retired Dec. 31,...
Samson: Judge of Israel
"With great power comes great responsibility." That is the famous line penned by Stan Lee in the origin of Spiderman. In comics, those with supernatural powers are faced with a choice: Use those powers for good or for...
Gambling in Greene County
Last Tuesday's Tuscaloosa News carried on its front page two articles about gambling. One reported that Pete Rose, after 14 years of denial, has confessed that he bet on the Cincinnati Reds while he was the team...
Planner Says N.C. Moderates Likely to Realign, But Not Split
Moderates in North Carolina aren't likely to form a rival convention like conservatives in Virginia and Texas or moderates in Missouri, says a convener of a Jan. 23-24 meeting for Baptists desiring to disengage from...