News & Mission Stories
News / Mission Story
ABHMS calls for prayers, donations toward long-term recovery efforts after deadly Texas flooding
VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 07/17/2025)—American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS) is calling for prayers and financial support following severe flash flooding across Central Texas over the July Fourth weekend that overwhelmed families and communities with unprecedented losses.
'The church should be more like that': Union Baptist’s journey toward beloved community
VALLEY FORCE, PA (07/17/2025)—Union Baptist Church in Mystic, Conn., one of American Baptist Home Mission Societies’ (ABHMS) many longtime supporters, looks like many small-town churches in New England. It is a beautiful, historic, white-steepled building; it also houses a congregation charting a bold course. Under the leadership of Rev. Dr. Lonnie Brown, Union Baptist has embraced a public theology of welcome and justice, becoming a spiritual home for those often pushed to the margins. The church is doing more than proclaiming openness: it’s practicing it. At a time when many churches are shrinking or disagreeing over social justice issues, Union Baptist is finding growth not in numbers, but in courage and clarity.
ABHMS Board of Directors reflects on ministry momentum, responds to ‘perilous times’
VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 07/07/2025)—The Board of Directors of American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS) convened for a three-day working retreat and regular meeting June 30-July 2 in Omaha, Nebraska, prior to the Biennial Mission Summit of American Baptists Churches there July 3-6.
The Church as Refuge: A Pastoral Response to Mass Deportations
OMAHA, NE (ABNS 07/02/2025)—What follows is a pastoral response from the senior leadership of American Baptist Home Mission Societies on behalf of its Board of Directors to recent actions by federal authorities directed at immigrants, asylum seekers, refugees, and those facing deportation.Dear American Baptist Family,Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.For generations, American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS) has responded to Christ's call to welcome the stranger and walk with those on the margins.
With help from ABHMS, a mustard seed grows: Reimagining Black ownership in Chicago
A visitor to the corner of 79th and Cottage Grove in Chicago will see a derelict, half-vacant strip mall. Framed by cracked pavement and shuttered storefronts, the building is a silent testament to decades of disinvestment. This once-lively commercial hub now feels abandoned. There are no grocery stores or pharmacies nearby, just a payday lender and a liquor store. For longtime residents of the neighborhood, this landscape is not just inconvenient. It is demoralizing. Without access to grocery stores selling healthy food or necessary services, areas like this one are caught in a cycle of neglect. This reinforces inequality and stifles opportunity, as run-down shopping centers attract crime and drag down neighborhoods.
Courage in community: MBMM’s ministry amid rising fear on World Refugee Day
Valley Forge, PA (06/20/2025)—Massachusetts Baptist Multicultural Ministries is one of ABHMS’ partners that supports refugees and immigrants in their journey of resettlement, integration, and healing. It serves newcomers from Afghanistan, Somalia, Burma (Myanmar), Bhutan, Iraq, Central America, and Haiti, among others. Every year, it celebrates the resilience and dignity of people it serves on World Refugee Day, in the spirit of its mission: “to advocate, celebrate, and empower (A.C.E.) ethnic churches, pastors, and new Americans from different parts of the world. We promote and speak the language of love. Our work is weaving God’s love across cultures.”

