Baptist Press Archive

Friday, April 11, 2008

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  • Gospel shared in black & white to reach Philly inner city
    by Norm Miller, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    PHILADELPHIA (BP)--Keystone Fellowship Church in suburban Philadelphia celebrated its fourth birthday by planting Epiphany Fellowship Church amid some of the City of Brotherly Love's meanest streets.

          Keystone was barely three years old in 2004 when it partnered with the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board to plant Epiphany.

    Photo by Jim Veneman
          "It was church planting suicide," said Eric Mase, lead pastor of Epiphany.

          But that didn't matter to John Cope, Keystone's pastor. He had church planting in his blood. He knew all about it. Having begun in August 2000 with only six people -– the members of his family -- Keystone officially launched a year later with 300 people. And partnering with Cope to plant Keystone was First Baptist Church in Orlando, Fla. From this relationship Cope knew how important Keystone would be to the fledgling Epiphany Fellowship. Read More

  • Pastor, Christian rapper reach culture
    by Norm Miller, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    Photo by Jim Veneman
    PHILADELPHIA (BP)--As teaching pastor of Epiphany Fellowship Church in inner-city Philadelphia, William "Duce" Branch also is a Christian rap artist. The group he co-founded, The Cross Movement, has received two Grammy nominations. Read More

  • Artist blends Hip-hop, history & theology
    by Keith Collier, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    FORT WORTH, Texas (BP)--Staring at the cocaine in his hand while his mother prayed over him was a defining moment in Quincy Jones' life. Only a few days earlier, the 21-year-old was confronted with his need for a savior and put his faith in Jesus Christ. Read More

  • WRAP-UP: Churches filling missions gaps
    by Mark Kelly, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    DALLAS (BP)--Southern Baptist churches are catching a vision of taking the Gospel to people groups that have never heard –- even when there is no missionary to help them, International Mission Board trustees were told during their April 7-9 meeting in Dallas, Texas.

          Bartlett Baptist Church near Memphis, Tenn., is one of many churches nationwide that... Read More

  • IMB appoints 92 new missionaries
    by Don Graham, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    SUNNYVALE, Texas (BP)--How urgent is the world's need for the Gospel?

    The answer came to Grace Johnson* the day she held a young mother in her arms and watched helplessly as she slipped into eternity without Jesus Christ.

    At the time, Johnson was a 23-year-old journeyman from Missouri who had answered God's call to short-term missions using her skills as a nurse. She wound up ministering among the slums of a South Asian city, providing health care to pave the way for the Gospel. Read More

  • Puerto Rican church helped save marriage
    by Mickey Noah, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    COAMO, Puerto Rico (BP)--For Adalberto Munoz and Elga Torres, married for 23 years and living in Coamo, Puerto Rico, the Caribbean island had turned from paradise into a living nightmare by November 2006.

    The 40-something Adalberto had lived in Coamo –- a city of 35,000 in south-central Puerto Rico -– since leaving Boston nearly 20 years ago.

    "It was total chaos," Munoz describes his life. "I wasted a lot of money ... there was a lot of adultery. My life was a complete disaster."

    ... Read More

  • INTERNATIONAL DIGEST: Venezuela loses record $19B in private capital in 2007; ...
    by Mark Kelly, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Billions of dollars are flowing out of Venezuela's banks in spite of President Hugo Chávez's efforts to prevent it.

    A record $19 billion in private capital was transferred out of the country in 2007, according to Central Bank of Venezuela statistics reported by the El Nuevo Herald. "This is only the official figure. There is an escape of [illegal] capital investments that the Central Bank cannot account for," economist José Guerra told the newspaper. It was the larges... Read More

  • McCain 'committed to Christ,' pastor says
    by Michael Foust, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    PHOENIX, Ariz. (BP)--Presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain isn't a Southern Baptist, but he's closer to being one than you might think.

    The U.S. senator from Arizona was raised Episcopalian but has been attending North Phoenix Baptist Church for approximately the past 15 years when in Arizona. He's not a member, although his wife is.

    Despite questions about McCain's faith -– a Politico.com story recently had a headline referencing how the senator "shies away from reli... Read More

  • Huckabee wonders what might have been
    by Michael Foust, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee told a teleconference of supporters April 10 he plans on "vigorously" supporting John McCain for president, but also said he wonders if his campaign would have won the nomination had conservative leaders backed him sooner.

    He also didn't rule out a run for the presidency in 2012.

    Huckabee appeared on a teleconference sponsored by Charisma Magazine that drew far more participants than the phone system would al... Read More

  • Criswell trustees lay rumor to rest
    by Gary Ledbetter, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    DALLAS (BP)--A rumor that Criswell College, started in 1975 by First Baptist Church of Dallas, would become part of nearby Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary was laid to rest by the college's trustees during their regularly scheduled board meeting April 10.

    As the college and the church continue to discuss their future relationship, some had suggested that Criswell College might become part of the seminary's undergraduate program. That apparently was the motivation for the Criswell C... Read More

  • Education loses in La.
    by Kelly Boggs, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    ALEXANDRIA, La. (BP)--"I stressed academics, and my players will tell you that," basketball coach John Wooden once said. Read More

  • Epiphany Fellowship Church Collection
    by Staff, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    [URL=http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=27818]Gospel shared in black & white to reach Philly inner city[/URL]

    [URL=http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=27819]Pastor, Christian rapper reach culture[/URL]

    [URL=http://www.bpnews.net/mediaplayer.asp?Id=29]VIDEO: Interview with "The Ambassador"[/URL]

    William “Duce” Branch, teaching pastor at Epiphany Fellowship Church in Philadelphia and the man known in Christian rap as “The Ambassador,” talks about his life and God’s grace.

    [UR... Read More

  • Nueva iglesia portorriqueña ayudó a salvar un matrimonio
    Por Michael Noah, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    COAMO, Puerto Rico (BP)--Por noviembre de 2006, para Adalberto Muñoz y Elga Torres, casados por 23 años y viviendo en Coamo, Puerto Rico, la isla caribeña había pasado de ser un paraíso a ser una pesadilla viviente.

          Adalberto, de cuarenta y tantos años, había vivido en Coamo -- una ciudad de 35,000 habitantes en la parte centro sur de Puerto Rico -- desde que dejara Boston hace casi 20 años.

          "Era un caos total," así describió Adalberto su vida. "Desperdicié un montón de dinero ... hubo mucho adulterio. Mi vida era un completo desastre."

          Finalmente, Muñoz abandonó el hogar que había formado con Elga, planeando presentar una demanda de divorcio.

          "Siempre fue un torbellino," dijo Elga. "Peleábamos casi a diario. Nuestras vidas se basaban en cosas materiales. Le dimo valor a cosas que realmente no lo tenían.

    "Mi esposo y yo pasamos por problemas, pero nunca esperé o nunca pensé que iba a haber adulterio en nuestras vidas -- que mi esposo me sería infiel. Read More

  • Los adversarios del Diseño Inteligente no son rivales para Stein en 'Expelled'
    Por Michael Foust, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--El actor, comentarista y comediante Ben Stein afirma que no ha perdido la razón. Bueno, dice con su famoso tono seco monótono, por lo menos no en esto.

    Por el contrario, Stein -- cuyo filme documental "Expelled: No Intelligent Design Allowed" se estrenará el 18 de abril -- cree estar involucrado en una de las batallas culturales y políticas más importantes en su vida: ... Read More

  • AFA refuta los correos electrónicos que McDonald's envía a los ciudadanos
    Por Erin Roach, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Ciudadanos preocupados que le enviaron correos electrónicos a McDonald's para protestar por el apoyo que la cadena de restaurantes da al programa homosexual están recibiendo un correo electrónico de respuesta de parte de McDonald's que defiende sus acciones. Read More

  • El 20º Cruce annual inscribe voluntarios
    Por Mickey Noah, posted Friday, April 11, 2008 (11 years ago)

    INDIANÁPOLIS (BP)--Durante 20 años consecutivos, el "Cruce" (o "Crossover" por su palabra en inglés) de los Bautistas del Sur comunicará el evangelio a través de toda la ciudad anfitriona durante la reunión anual de la Convención Bautista del Sur a llevarse a cabo en junio.

    "Cruce08" -- Seis y siete de junio en Indianápolis –- se añadirá a los resultados espirituales acumulados desde el alcance inaugural efectuado antes de la reunión anual de la CBS en 1989 en las Vegas. Cerca de 40.000 per... Read More