Southern Baptist Coburn remembered for faith, integrity
WASHINGTON, D.C. (BP)—Retired U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, a Southern Baptist, is being remembered for his Christian faith, pro-life advocacy, campaign against government waste and friendships with political opponents following his March 28 death. Coburn, 72, who died after a prolonged struggle with prostate cancer, served Oklahoma as a Republican member of the Senate from 2005 to 2015. He retired with two years remaining in his second...
Efforts to protect born, unborn babies fail in Senate
WASHINGTON (BP)—The U.S. Senate failed again Tuesday, Feb. 25 to approve protections for unborn babies late in their mothers’ pregnancies and newborns who survive abortions. Supporters of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act and the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act fell short in afternoon attempts to bring the proposals to the Senate floor. They needed 60 votes to invoke cloture, as the procedural move is...
House drops deadline for ERLC-opposed ERA
WASHINGTON (BP)—The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to rescind a deadline established nearly 50 years ago for a constitutional amendment a Southern Baptist Convention entity says would threaten the sanctity of human life and freedom of conscience. The House voted 232-183 in an almost party-line roll call to remove the deadline set by Congress in 1972 for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a controversial proposal that failed to...
ERLC agenda: Working on multiple tracks in 2020
WASHINGTON (BP)—The Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) plans in 2020 to continue its work with not only Congress but the Trump administration and the states on priority issues such as abortion and religious freedom. The ERLC released its annual Legislative Agenda in early February in the face of another year of a divided legislative branch. Democrats control the House of Representatives and Republicans...
High court gives hope on scholarship program
WASHINGTON (BP)—Supporters of a state tax credit scholarship program that includes religious schools found hope Wednesday Jan. 22 that the U.S. Supreme Court would agree the plan passes constitutional muster. The high court heard oral arguments regarding a program created by the Montana legislature that provides a tax credit of up to $150 for a donation to a Student Scholarship Organization (SSO). Contributions to SSOs finance...
