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Amber’s story: Joy on Christmas Eve

MIAMI (FBW)—Christmas Eve 1995 the entire Satterwhite family gathered at 14-year-old Amber’s bedside in a South Carolina hospital. A noisy respirator delivering air to her lungs, a feeding tube in her nose, and the earnest prayers of her family were the only signs of life.

Earlier in the evening Amber’s 11-year-old brother Dean had roamed the hallways of the intensive care unit, crying and upset. He had been told the inevitable. Amber would not wake up.

BP photo by Jim Veneman

The sun sets just over the makeshift tent city at Falcon Forward Base which houses the 82nd Airborne, Third Battallion in Baghdad.

Chaplains keep the faith on war’s front lines in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq (BP)–The toughest thing Chaplain (Col.) Doug Carver has faced since arriving in Baghdad less than a year ago was seeing the dead body of a soldier he had just shaken hands with less than 30 minutes before. The sight of 18 black body bags, victims of a recent Chinook helicopter crash, being loaded onto a C-130 is still fresh in the mind of Chaplain Major Dan Wackerhagen. Chaplain (Cap.) Eddie Cook will never forget holding a young soldier from his battalion as he died from a mortal wound to the head, the first death for his unit.

Guardian’s report ‘academic’ but not ‘practical’

CLEARWATER (FBW)-Though he might be striving to serve as a mediator, and though his conclusions may sound profound — a long-time Florida litigator said the court-appointed guardian ad litem for Terri Schiavo, has failed to apply simple logic in a case that is not typical, but is instead full of unanswered questions and suspect motives.

Opinion

Editorial

Editorial

(Parents, this editorial is not suitable for children)

Hollywood got an early Christmas present this year when the Federal Communications Commission recently endorsed indecent speech on the nation’s airwaves—something that seemed impossible in our already terribly indecent television and radio programming— and made the job of parenting just a little bit harder in the process.

Editorial

Along a similar vein to the FCC editorial, it’s necessary to update readers on my editorial from last week, "A&F: ‘Purveyors of perversity’ changes its ways?" (Dec. 4, 2003). As suspected, A&F has not changed its ways —and neither should those who are faithfully boycotting the indecent clothier which is popular among teens and college students.

Point-of-View

Point-of-View

ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP)– Mirror, mirror, on the wall: Who’s the smartest of them all?

Is it Michael Jackson, enticing young boys to his Neverland Ranch so he can spend time with them?

Is LifeWay’s ‘Rickshaw Rally’ culturally sensitive to Asians?

Recently a debate has begun among Southern Baptists about LifeWay Christian Resources’ 2004 Vacation Bible School materials, "Far Out, Far East Rickshaw Rally: Racing to the Son."

Nov. 7-8 at their annual state convention meeting in Warwick, R.I., New England Baptists voted not to endorse next year’s Vacation Bible School curriculum from LifeWay due to concerns by some Asian Americans that the "Rickshaw Rally" theme is a poor representation of the Asian culture, according to Baptist Press.

Is LifeWay’s ‘Rickshaw Rally’ culturally sensitive to Asians?

LifeWay’s 2004 Vacation Bible School materials are getting an enthusiastic response from the vast majority of pastors, education ministers and teachers who use our products, but admittedly not from everyone. A few are questioning this year’s theme: "LifeWay’s Far-out Far East Rickshaw Rally: Racing to the Son." And they’re challenging our use of symbols like rickshaws, umbrellas and kites, saying they are stereotypical of Asian culture, or even racially insensitive. Most critics readily admit we would never intentionally offend anyone, and I am truly sorry if we have done so. At the same time, I believe this year’s VBS curriculum is some of the best we’ve ever put together — and I urge you to check it out for yourself.

Is LifeWay’s ‘Rickshaw Rally’ culturally sensitive to Asians?

Southern Baptists are closed-minded, bigoted, and provincial—or so Robert Parham of the Baptist Center for Ethics would have us believe. In his critique of "Far out Far East Rickshaw Rally," LifeWay’s Vacation Bible School materials for this summer, Parham says that "racism has metastasized in Southern Baptist life." Of course, there are closed-minded, bigoted, and provincial Southern Baptists, but by no means are all Southern Baptists like that.

Bibliocipher

Bibliocipher

Have fun with cryptography and exercise your Bible knowledge. A King James Version verse is encoded by letter substitution. The same letter is substituted throughout the puzzle. Solve by trial and error.

Florida

Florida News

Historical Vignette: Mays: ‘Father of the Florida Baptist Convention’

JACKSONVILLE (FBW)-Richard Johnson Mays (January 22, 1808-July 18, 1864) could be considered the "Father of the Florida Baptist Convention." W. N. Chaudoin would later (1880) be seen as the organizational genius of the convention but it was the spirit, leadership, and impetus of Mays that was so important in the foundation days of the new state convention. It was in the home of Richard Johnson Mays that the Florida Baptist Convention was organized on Monday, November 20, 1854, at 8 p.m., in the parlor of his plantation mansion. He was elected the first convention president.

National

National News

State Conventions address budgets, affirm marriage

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–A third of state Baptist conventions this fall reduced their budgets for next year in order to address declines in giving by churches. Meanwhile, 15 conventions affirmed marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

Feature

Media Montage

The Kingdom comes with new ‘Rings’ trilogy release

THE RETURN OF THE KING, the final chapter of THE LORD OF THE RINGS, tells what further trials Frodo, Sam, and their friends must face in order to defeat the demonic forces led by Sauron. THE RETURN OF THE KING, based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien, is one of the great movie masterpieces that weaves many biblical principles and allegorical Christian metaphors into a magnificent story. A factasy /action-adventure movie, it is too scary and intense for younger children.

Bible Study

Family Bible Study

December 21: What Child Is This?

Wiley Richards is a retired professor of theology and philosophy at The Baptist College of Florida in Graceville.

December 28: Life in the Son

Wiley Richards is a retired professor of theology and philosophy at The Baptist College of Florida in Graceville.

Explore the Bible

December 21: Rejoicing in the Savior's Birth

Steve Smartt is pastor of Moultrie Baptist Church in St. Augustine.

December 28: Understanding God's Compassion

Steve Smartt is pastor of Moultrie Baptist Church in St. Augustine.

Florida Baptist Witness welcomes Steve Smartt as new Sunday School writer

The Witness welcomes Steve Smartt as its Explore the Bible Sunday School Commentary writer.