Famous Baptists

The thread on "ashamed" of being a Baptist made me think how many may not KNOW some of the FAMOUS Baptists of the past/present.

Famous Baptist Religious Figures</font>

• John Bunyan - seventeenth century author, wrote The Pilgrim's Progress (1678)</font>
• Charles Haddon Spurgeon - nineteenth century English preacher</font>
• Alexander Maclaren - (1826-1910) Baptist preacher, author of "Expositions of Holy Scriptures"</font>
• Alexander Campbell - Founder of the Churches of Christ (Stone-Campbell Restoration movement)</font>
• William Miller - a Baptist in New York whose predictions that Christ would come in 1843 or 1844 were the precursor to Adventism</font>
• Billy Graham - evangelist</font>
• Fred Phelps - preacher and anti-Latter-day Saint/anti-homosexual activist from Topeka, Kansas</font>
• Rev. Jerry Falwell - popular American Evangelical leader</font>

Famous Baptists in Politics</font>

• Warren G. Harding - 29th president of the United States</font>
• Harry S. Truman - 33rd president of the United States</font>
• Jimmy Carter - 39th president of the United States</font>
• William Jefferson Clinton - 42nd president of the United States</font>
• Clarence Thomas - 2nd black Supreme Court justice. (born Baptist, now Catholic)</font>
• Newt Gingrich - former Speaker of the House (U.S. House of Rep.)</font>
• Trent Lott - U.S. Senate Majority Leader until 2002, when he was ousted from leadership under the spectre of racism</font>
• Gary Condit - U.S. Representative from California; son of a Baptist minister; outwardly purported himself to be a practicing Baptist, despite his lifestyle; famous for his role in the disappearance of Washington intern Chandra Levy.</font>
• John D. Rockefeller - American industrialist</font>
• Al Gore - Vice-president to Pres. Clinton</font>
• Strom Thurmond - Senator from South Carolina. Oldest senator in office</font>
• Jesse Helms - Conservative senator from North Carolina</font>

Baptists in the News</font>

• Rev. Martin Luther King - civil rights leader</font>
• Rev. Jesse Jackson - black activist; founder of the Rainbow Coalition; ran for U.S. President; widely regarded as an important leader of African-Americans, yet he is a controversial and widely disliked figure, seen by many as an adulterous, racist, divisive opportunist</font>
• Will Campbell - white colleague of Martin Luther King in the Civil Rights movement; opposed Southern Baptist support of the KKK</font>
• Arthur "J.R." Warren Jr. - gay Baptist church usher beaten to death in Grant Town, West Virginia in July 2000</font>
• Thomas Piper</font>
• Harry Longabaugh - "The Sundance Kid", famous train robber in the Old West</font>
• Payne Stewart - golfer; died in a plane accident on Oct. 25, 1999</font>
• Jonathan Edwards - British Olympic triple jumper</font>

Baptists in the Arts</font>

• Glen Campbell - singer</font>
• Donna Summer - singer, songwriter</font>
• Britney Spears - pop singer</font>
• Gladys Knight - famed singer who sang with the "Pips". (Now LDS)</font>
• Rick Wakeman - member of 1970s rock group "Yes"</font>
• Jessica Simpson - pop singer</font>
• Otis Redding - "soul" singer (famous for "Sitting on the dock of the bay" and other classics)</font>
• Aretha Franklin - classic soul singer</font>
• David Ball - country music singer; son of a Baptist preacher</font>

Baptists in Media/Literature/Films</font>

• Aminah Assilmi - broadcast journalist; director of the International Union of Muslim Women</font>
• Terry Mattingly - nationally prominent syndicated religion journalist (former Southern Baptist)</font>
• Liz Smith - nationally syndicated gossip columnist</font>
• John Grisham - best-selling author of legal thrillers, including The Pelican Brief; The Firm and The Client</font>
• Robert Don Hughes - science fiction writer; author of The Fallen and Eternity Game</font>
• Carolivia Herron - author of Nappy Hair; convert to Judaism</font>
• Octavia Butler - science fiction writer; winner of Hugo, Nebula awards for "Bloodchild" and "Speech Sounds"; former Baptist</font>
• Robert Heinlein - considered one of the greatest science fiction authors ever; author of Stranger in a Strange Land; Starship Troopers; and many other award-winning novels; former Baptist</font>
• Ray Bradbury - science fiction writer; author of Something Wicked This Way Comes; Fahrenheit 451; The Illustrated Man; and many other famous works</font>
• Chuck Norris - actor ("Walker, Texas Ranger")</font>
• DeForest Kelley - actor ("Dr. McCoy" on Star Trek)</font>
• Ron Shelton - director/screenwriter/filmmaker ("Bull Durham", "Tin Cup", etc.)</font>

 

Wasn't Jessica Simpson the featured entertainer on the NFL Kickoff Show Thursday? Know that they put it on a 6-second delay to avoid "accidentally showing skin".

The black gals singing (sorry, don't know the name) had skin-colored tops under their shirts so it would LOOK like they were showing naked. Know that some gymnasts and ice skaters do the same.