By Staff, Baptist Message LIVINGSTON – A Louisiana Baptist chainsaw team spent most of their Thursday cutting up trees around homes and removing debris left behind from a tornado that caused massive destruction earlier in the week in Livingston Parish. The team comprised of volunteers from Eastern Louisiana Baptist Association and Baptist Association of Southeast Louisiana worked on five homes three miles northeast of Livingston. David Brown, associational missions coordinator for Eastern Louisiana Baptist Association and a member of the association’s disaster relief team, said the team expects to remain in the area through at least Saturday before possibly moving onto other locations in the parish. Ben Fussell, a member of the Baptist Associations of Southeast Louisiana chainsaw team, said the homeowners they came in contact expressed gratitude. “Everywhere we went we heard ‘thanks for coming, thanks for helping, thanks for working, thanks for caring,’” said Fussell, a member of First Baptist Church in Franklinton. Teams from the National Weather Service out of Slidell spent much of Thursday investigating the damage from the tornadoes and by Thursday evening confirmed that at least 12 tornadoes had set down in … [Read more...]

By Message Staff LAPLACE/RESERVE – Since early Thursday, Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief teams have completed work in LaPlace and Reserve on eight homes, tarping the roofs and removing debris and cutting down tree limbs, according to Billy Puckett, director of community ministry at New Orleans Baptist Association. Puckett is also coordinating Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief efforts in St. John the Baptist Parish. Two chainsaw teams, one tarp team and three assessor teams that include a chaplain with each assessor team are working the area. Puckett said they will continue their effort at least through the weekend. At which time, they will determine if will still be needed since many other organizations are coming to the aid of storm victims. Puckett said the unity portrayed by the faith-based community and the residents of St. John the Baptist Parish has been evident, not just in work on homes but in a prayer service held at Percy Hebert Building in LaPlace. More than 100 people attended the service. The various denominations are rotating days and times of feeding the community, Puckett said. “This community is very familiar with disaster relief,” Puckett said. “A lot of neighbors who didn’t receive any damage are … [Read more...]

By Staff, Louisiana Baptist Message BATON ROUGE - Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and State Rep. Mike Johnson (R-Bossier City) both applauded the unanimous decision by three judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Feb. 23 to issue a stay of a federal district court opinion that had declared unconstitutional Louisiana’s statutory requirement each physician who performs outpatient abortions must have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital. The law, named The Unsafe Abortion Protection Act of 2014, was challenged in federal court by state abortion providers before its effective date. The case, June Medical Services, LLC and Bossier City Medical Suite, et al., v. Gee, was litigated in a six-day bench trial last summer. Seven months later, Judge John W. deGravelles ruled in favor of the abortion providers, concluding that the law was unconstitutional on its face and must be enjoined.  The state then sought a stay of the ruling pending a full appeal. “Our emergency request for a stay of the lower court’s ruling on Act 620 was granted by the Fifth Circuit today,” said Landry in a news release. “I applaud the Fifth Circuit’s decision to halt the erroneous ruling and allow Louisiana’s pro-life … [Read more...]

By Message Staff LAPLACE – The River Parishes campus of Celebration Church is collecting donations for those affected by Tuesday’s powerful tornadoes that ripped through southeast Louisiana. The biggest immediate needs for tornado victims in LaPlace according to Checkerz Williams, pastor of River Parishes campus of Celebration Church, are tarps and cleaning supplies. Among the items needed are gloves, yard rakes, all-purpose cleaner, bleach, Clorox wipes, mops, brooms, five gallon buckets and yard trash bags. All donations can be dropped off today at the church, located at 3400 US 51 in LaPlace. Ten tornadoes hit Louisiana on Tuesday according to the National Weather Service, including four EF-2 tornadoes that were responsible for significant damage in Convent, LaPlace, Paincourtville and Livingston Parish. Thursday, the National Weather Service said the four EF-2 tornadoes packed winds of 111-135 miles per hour. The Convent tornado destroyed more than 100 structures at the Sugar Hill RV Park, causing two confirmed deaths and injuring 30 more. The LaPlace twister destroyed or severely damaged more than 200 homes in several subdivisions. LaPlace is located just 25 miles west of New Orleans while Convent is 50 … [Read more...]

NEW ORLEANS - A unanimous three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an emergency stay of the district court's opinion that struck down the state's admitting privileges law. The panel accepted all of the state's arguments that the district court did not follow 5th Circuit precedent; ignored the state's rebutted evidence that more than 90 percent of Louisiana women would still be within 150 miles of a provider; and ignored the secretary's determination that Dr. Doe 2's privileges at Tulane were sufficient. The 5th Circuit in its ruling states that this is a legitimate means to protection for women’s health and safety by granting Louisiana a stay today. It is likely, by granting of this stay, that this law will be ruled constitutional. Louisiana Rep. Katrina Jackson, who authored the legislation, said: "This stay by a unanimous three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit is a victory for the health and safety of women who are harmed by abortion. I am very pleased the Legislature's interest in protecting both women and unborn children is being respected by this court." Dorinda Bordlee, chief counsel of the Bioethics Defense Fund who drafted model legislation for the bill, said: "There is no constitutional right … [Read more...]

By Message Staff A powerful storm ripped through south Louisiana Tuesday (Feb. 23), spawning at least seven tornadoes, damaging many Louisiana businesses and homes, leaving thousands without power and causing two confirmed deaths. As many spent today assessing the damage, Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief Teams are prepping their gear as they prepare to respond as early as Thursday. Southeast regional coordinator Tom Long said individuals are still assessing areas where teams will minister, including Livingston and Assumption Parishes, two areas that sustained significant damage from tornadoes. Currently, teams are on standby. “We haven’t had a major storm recently in the state, but it takes just one event to remind people of a need to reach out and pick up a tarp, work on a chainsaw unit or serve a meal,” Long said. “It’s so important we get our people and churches involved in disaster relief. This is one of the largest ministry arms we have in our convention.” According to the National Weather Service, seven tornadoes touched down in Louisiana Tuesday. The outbreak was caused by a strong low pressure system that moved in from Texas early  that morning but was completely out of the state by 9 p.m. The powerful … [Read more...]

By Marilyn Stewart, NOBTS communications NEW ORLEANS - A noted evangelical-turned-agnostic and a well-known agnostic-turned-evangelical were the featured speakers Feb. 12-13 at the 12th annual Greer-Heard Point-Counterpoint Forum at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Bart D. Ehrman, author of numerous best-selling books including How Jesus Became God: the Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee; Jesus Interrupted; and Misquoting Jesus, dialoged with Michael F. Bird, a lecturer in theology at Ridley College, Melbourne, Australia and the editor of How God Became Jesus and author of the award-winning The Gospel of the Lord. The Greer-Heard forum is a venue in which respected scholars of differing opinions dialogue on critical issues in religion, science, philosophy, or culture. It designed to help students and ministers learn to think critically and to be prepared to engage secular society. The forum’s theme, “When Did Jesus Become God?,” posed the question of when and how the early church came to believe that Jesus was the divine Son of God. The title was a play on words of Ehrman’s book How Jesus Became God and the book Bird edited, How God Became Jesus that were released on the same day two years ago by … [Read more...]

By Message Staff BATON ROUGE – Theft has struck another Louisiana Baptist ministry, this time at the Louisiana State University Baptist Collegiate Ministry. According to LSU BCM Director Steve Masters, a man walked into one of their buildings on Feb. 19 at 2:30 pm and stole two skill saws and a jig saw. Masters was in his office in the lodge/worship center side when the suspect walked into its chapel, which is a separate building. The tools were used to build a set for the BCM’s summer missions dinner theater. One of the saws and the jigsaw are owned by the BCM while the other saw is owned by a local pastor. The stolen equipment is worth $300. Masters is asking anyone who recognizes the suspect, who was caught on surveillance video, to contact LSU police at 225.578.3231. Campus police are searching for the suspect. “It is discouraging that he was brazen enough to do this while our BCM staff and students were in the building area next door to the Chapel,” Masters said. The incident comes a few weeks after someone stole $20,000 worth of disaster relief equipment from the chainsaw unit for Woodland Park Baptist Church in Hammond and the feeding unit for the Northshore Baptist Association between Jan. 24 and Feb. 5. … [Read more...]

By Norm Miller, LC communications PINEVILLE - Louisiana College’s inaugural Christ, Church, and Culture seminar drew 58 students. Dr. William Osborne -- associate professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at College of the Ozarks -- keynoted the Feb. 4 Webcast, discussing how Christians can engage a post-modern culture. “Dr. Osborne gave some great insight on the many ways Christians engage culture today and explained how we ought to witness in this post-Christian culture,” said LC student Chet Broussard. “I really enjoyed hearing from him.” Dr. Russ Meek -- LC’s assistant professor of Christian Studies -- established the Christ, Church, and Culture seminar to help students integrate faith and culture by thinking Christianly about various issues Christians face in an increasingly post-Christian society. “The purpose of this first meeting was to introduce the concept of engaging culture as a Christian,” Meek said. “Future events will focus on specific topics and areas of culture that Christians can and should be engaging.” LC student Allison Glass said she enjoyed hearing about the church’s role in reaching culture. The March 10 seminar features Matthew Soerens, the US Church Training Specialist for World … [Read more...]

The Louisiana Baptist Foundation exists to encourage and assist individuals with gifts that support the work and ministry of churches, institutions and organizations affiliated with the Louisiana and Southern Baptist Conventions. “Give A Gift” was developed, with the cooperation of the Baptist Message, to illustrate how the LBF assists Baptists with gifts to Baptist ministries. A submission form for Give A Gift is available in each issue of the Message.  A link to an on-line form is also available below.  Each month the Foundation will draw a name, at random, from the submissions received through the on-line form and submissions received by mail.  The person whose name is selected will have the opportunity to direct a $1000.00 gift from the Foundation to the Louisiana Baptist church, ministry or organization they choose. The name of the ministry receiving the gift will be published in the following issue of the Message. The rules: Completely fill out the form found in the Message (or CLICK lbfinfo.org/give_a_gift/ to fill out the online form.) Mail to: GIVE A GIFT, c/o Louisiana Baptist Foundation, P.O. Box 311, Alexandria, La 71309 A name will be drawn at random from the month’s submissions on the last … [Read more...]