Prepared by Anne Cameron of the Baptist Church Archives Qld, the BUQ Historical Record (edited to 14 November 2012) contains a list of all significant appointees of the Baptist Union of Queensland (Queensland Baptists) from its inception in 1877 to 2012. It is based on, and is an update of, the section called ‘Historical Record’ which appeared in various forms in the Baptist Union Yearbook/Handbook until 2005.

The Historical Record provides a handy reference of the names of people appointed to key positions, their start/completion dates and their qualifications. It also serves as a guide to changes in the organisational structure of the Baptist Union of Queensland over time.

 Australian Baptist Ministries today welcomed the announcement by Prime Minister Julia Gillard of a Royal Commission into child abuse and institutional response.

“Abuse of any kind is incompatible with Christian mission and Christian community. Where abuse is alleged to have occurred, information should be treated seriously and addressed through established protocols,” ABM National Ministries Director, the Reverend Keith Jobberns, said today. Continue reading ABM media release, 13 November 2012: Baptists welcome Royal Commission on child abuse

Baptist theologians in Australia participated in an interchurch dialogue that resulted in the publication of a report that draws attention to the challenges surrounding the notion of church membership.

The authors represented theologians from Australian Baptist Ministries and the Uniting Church in Australia. The Uniting Church was formed in 1977 as a union of the Congregational Union of Australia, the Methodist Church of Australasia and the Presbyterian Church of Australia. The teams met between 2006 and 2011.

The influence of culture on church membership was identified as a challenge. There are “strong cultural pressures against traditional forms of organized church life,” the authors wrote.  Individual identity has “replaced earlier forms of shared identity and a weakening of the willingness to commit beyond culturally defined limits.” There is therefore a need to ground the life of the church” in the call of Christ and the coming together of those called for mutual challenge and assistance in following the way of Jesus.”

Full report at http://www.bwanet.org/news/news-releases

Australian Baptist Ministries has cautiously welcomed the introduction of long-awaited gambling reform legislation in federal parliament, saying it was a small step forward but much more needed to be done to provide consumer protection for gamblers. Continue reading ABM media release, 31 Oct 2012: Baptists call for further gambling reform

Washington, DC (BWA)–Baptist World Aid, the relief and development arm of the Baptist World Alliance® (BWA), has granted an initial sum of US$20,000 for relief to the Caribbean following the passage of Hurricane Sandy through the northern Caribbean and the United States. Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti, the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands were the islands most affected by the late-season tropical cyclone. 

Haiti, which shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic, suffered especially hard. Ronel Mesidor of the Haiti Baptist Convention reported that areas in and around Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince were particularly affected. A number of church buildings, including those of the Duvivier, Damien, Leogane and Tigoave Baptist churches were flooded. At least one member of TigoaveBaptist Church died as a result of the hurricane. 

Full report at http://www.bwanet.org/news/news-releases

Baptists in the United States are putting together a coordinated response to the disaster caused by Hurricane Sandy. The North American Baptist Fellowship (NABF), through its Disaster Response Network (DRN), is pulling together information and resources to assist those most affected and created a special website to assist in the process. The DRN is a tool used by the NABF, one of six regional fellowships of the Baptist World Alliance® (BWA), to avoid duplication and to better coordinate disaster response.

“I wish to convey to all Americans who have been adversely affected by the super storm in the Northeastern United States the concern of Baptists worldwide,” said BWA General Secretary Neville Callam.  ”I am pleased to have heard from George Bullard, BWA regional secretary for North America that the Disaster Response Network of North American Baptist Fellowship is already in action to respond to this disaster. Together, we will seek to mobilize resources to respond to what is an urgent need.”

Full report at http://www.bwanet.org/news/news-releases