By Staff, World News Magazine Four years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a California university could force Christian groups to accept non-Christian leaders, all of the state’s public universities have adopted the policy, pushing one of the nation’s largest Christian groups off 19 campuses. Leaders with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship announced this month that all 23 of its affiliated chapters in the California State University System would move off-campus this fall, operating as unofficial student groups. California’s challenge to Christian student groups started with the Christian Legal Society (CLS) at the University of California’s Hastings Law School. Administrators at Hastings instituted an “all-comers” policy that required all groups to be open to all students, regardless of beliefs. CLS and other Christian groups, including InterVarsity, ask student leaders to affirm a statement of faith that defines their shared Christian belief. In 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the policy in a narrow ruling that pertained only to Hastings. Although the California university system has rolled out the policy at all its campuses, conservative legal experts say they’re taking the interpretation too far. At Hastings, the … [Read more...]

By Staff, Baptist Message MINDEN – Zip lines, archery, BB guns and a dog used to share the gospel are all on the schedule of activities for this year’s Camp-o-ree. The event will take place Oct. 17-18 at Camp Harris Retreat and Conference Center in Minden. Johnny Morgan of the ministry Obedience 2 Death based out of Denham Springs will use his trained Labrador retriever, Glory, to communicate the message of Jesus Christ. Also on the schedule is a testimony from a family from the area near Camp Harris, who will share their story about a call to missions in Nicaragua and ways they can be supported while on mission there. Other highlights of the camp will include a chance to participate in such outdoor activities as zip line, archery, BB guns, first aid education, sawing logs and camp crafts. “I believe this will be a very memorable event where boys will learn about faith and obedience from Bro. Johnny Morgan and participate in lots of fun outdoor activities,” said Mike Collie, RA and Men’s Ministry Consultant. The cost to stay in a dormitory at Camp-o-ree is $45 and those staying in a tent will pay $35. To attend without lodging is $20. All meals are included in the fees. The deadline to registration is Oct. 10. To register, … [Read more...]

Louisiana Baptist Convention Annual Meeting Nov. 10-11, 2014 First Baptist Church, Lafayette, La. Bylaw Amendment Change The Executive Board will present the following Louisiana Baptist Convention Bylaw Amendment to the messengers at the annual meeting of the Louisiana Baptist Convention meeting at First Baptist Church, Lafayette, November 10-11. According to Article VII of the Louisiana Baptist Convention Bylaws, amendments sponsored by the Executive Board shall be posted to the LBC website and published in one(1) issue of the Baptist Message no later than fifteen (15) days before the meeting of the Convention. That the Executive Board of the Louisiana Baptist Convention recommend to the Louisiana Baptist Convention meeting at First Baptist Church, Lafayette, November 10-11, 2014, that the duties of the Louisiana Baptist Convention Committee on Louisiana Baptist History be assigned to the state mission services staff and that Article III, Section 8 of the Louisiana Baptist Convention Bylaws regarding the Committee on Louisiana Baptist History be deleted and that Article II (Permanent Plan of Organization of the Convention and its Committees and Boards) be amended as follows: Permanent organization of the Convention shall be … [Read more...]

ubmitted by philip on Fri, 10/03/2014 - 11:31 Volunteer Dorothy Wargo (far right) dishes up food at Ozanam Inn, or ‘The Oz,’ as part of First Baptist Church of New Orleans’ hunger ministry to its neglected neighbors. The church uses Southern Baptist Global Hunger Relief funds at the Oz and one other fixed feeding location as well as to help provide meals for the homeless and homebound. Also pictured are volunteers (from far left) Rufus Johnson, Jerry Seetin, Beth Akin and Victor Mitchell. By Kristen Camp, Baptist Press NEW ORLEANS (BP) – Victor is one of thousands of people left homeless and hungry after Hurricane Katrina stormed through New Orleans in 2005. The trauma drove Victor to become significantly dependent on alcohol. He began to seek help from a feeding ministry at Gentilly Lowe’s, a neighborhood in Louisiana that was severely damaged by Katrina. This feeding ministry falls under the umbrella of The Care Effect, one of a dozen community engagement ministries First Baptist Church of New Orleans uses to serve its neglected neighbors. Nearly 100 volunteers assist each week, some of which are church members while others are community residents. “The Care Effect was born when our staff began to pray and … [Read more...]

By Joe Westbury, Baptist Press MOUNT VERNON, Ga. (BP) – Brewton-Parker College has been notified that it will remain an accredited member of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) while appealing its accreditation status. Brewton-Parker, one of three educational institutions affiliated with the Georgia Baptist Convention, was notified of the decision Sept. 29 – 103 days after it learned on June 19 that SACSCOC was suspending its accreditation. In a prepared statement on Sept. 30, Brewton-Parker stated it had been informed that “the Appeals Committee of SACSCOC ordered a remand of the decision of the Board of Trustees of SACSCOC to remove Brewton-Parker College as a member. Brewton-Parker’s case will now go to the Committee on Compliance and Reports of SACSCOC for reconsideration.” The statement further noted that the effect of the decision is to continue BPC’s accreditation, on probation, as it existed before the June 19 vote by SACSCOC trustees. Peter Lumpkins, vice president of communications at the south Georgia college, said it had presented new material evidence demonstrating improvement in its financial position that “warranted a remand and the continuation of its … [Read more...]

Submitted by philip on Fri, 10/03/2014 - 11:34 By Baptist Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) – Compensation for full-time Southern Baptist pastors has not kept pace with inflation over the past two years, while salaries for other full-time ministers and office staff increased at a rate higher than national inflation. These findings are part of the 2014 Southern Baptist Convention Compensation Study, an in-depth survey of 12,907 staff members in Southern Baptist churches. Baptist state conventions along with LifeWay Research and GuideStone Financial Resources conduct this survey every two years. All the data acquired by the study has been compiled into an online tool at LifeWay.com/CompensationSurvey. Compensation Adjusting for church size (see Methodology below), the average full-time Southern Baptist senior pastor’s compensation (salary and housing) rose 1 percent between 2012 and 2014. That rate of change was significantly lower than the 3.9 percent inflation rate for the same two-year period, according to figures supplied by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index. According to Scott McConnell, director of LifeWay Research, “While inflation has remained moderate by historical standards, average salaries … [Read more...]

By Mark Kelly, Baptist Press EDITOR’S NOTE: On World Hunger Sunday, Oct. 12, Southern Baptist congregations will address the hunger crisis across North America and around the world, many by focusing on the theme Hunger Happens Everywhere. Donations received are channeled through Global Hunger Relief, which uses 100 percent of each gift to meet hunger needs. For more information, visit www.globalhungerrelief.com. NASHVILLE (BP) – With World Hunger Sunday (Oct. 12) approaching, churches and other groups who want to engage the global hunger crisis have a variety of free and inexpensive resources available to them. Global Hunger Relief, the new cooperative initiative of Southern Baptist hunger ministries, offers a range of resources on its website, www.globalhungerrelief.com. Visitors will find a range of free promotional resources available – from bulletin inserts and children’s coloring pages to videos and the long-popular soup can labels. Access to art files useful in creating customized promotional items and a GHR display booth also are available. The GHR website also prominently promotes a Hunger Happens Everywhere campaign (www.helpghr.org/now) that helps churches engage hunger needs both globally and locally through the … [Read more...]

ubmitted by philip on Fri, 10/03/2014 - 11:39 … [Read more...]

By Kelly Boggs, Message Editor Are you willing to be ridiculed for your beliefs? Are you prepared to take a loss in exchange for remaining true to your faith? It seems these questions will one day have to be reckoned with considering that religious intolerance is on the rise in the United States. There really is no dispute that in America some are advocating for religious restraint when it comes to the practice of religion. Private expression is just fine. However, some insist the public expression of religion must be regulated by government. Consider that four years ago the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a California university could force Christian groups to accept non-Christian leaders. In essence, America’s high court said that faith-based organizations, specifically Christian groups, could not enforce faith or belief standards on those who would provide leadership for their organizations. In light of the SCOTUS ruling, the California State University System recently required all organizations to adopt an all access policy in order to be officially recognized by the campus on which they operated. InterVarsity, a well-respected Christian organization refused to comply. Leaders with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship announced … [Read more...]

By Jimmy Draper, President Emeritus LifeWay Christian Resources Here is an impossible dream: to think we can change our nation and our world simply by being present without being passionate and evangelistic in our faith and actions. The mere presence of Christian institutions has never been a deterrent to the downfall of nations. In fact, the opposite is true. Consider: Muhammad, the father of Islam, grew up in the sixth century, untouched by the Christian churches that surrounded him. Abdiyal Akbar Abdul-Haqq, author of “Sharing Your Faith with a Muslim,” wrote, “The evangelistic fervor and missionary fire of the church of the earliest centuries began to cool off gradually as she started on a course of increasing secularization.” When the church was confronted with the growing influence of Islam, it believed its presence was enough to make a difference. As Samuel Moffett, professor at Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Seoul, Korea, noted: “Faced with a choice between survival and witness, the church chose survival. It turned in upon itself. It ceased to evangelize. It survived, but what survived was no longer a whole church. It was a sick, ingrown community” (quoted at findthepower.net). Communism arose at a time when … [Read more...]