NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Not all pro-life Americans are religious, but religious Americans are more likely to be pro-life.

DULUTH, Ga. – The Southern Baptist Convention’s network of associations plays an important role in the nation’s largest protestant denomination, the three announced candidates for the SBC presidency say. In a Q&A with The Christian Index, they described associations as the entities that help congregations fulfill their missions, create closer ties between sister churches, and provide important training for Christian leaders.

Children are one of the most vulnerable groups of people in our nation. We're living in a day when children are suffering the most from societal ills that are facing our culture. Whether it's abortion, sex abuse or school shootings, children are reaping the greatest consequences of the most grievous social ills of our time.

PARIS (AP) — French authorities have defended police for indiscriminately firing tear gas and pepper spray at Liverpool supporters at the Champions League final while blaming industrial levels of fraud that saw 30,000 to 40,000 people try to enter the Stade de France with fake tickets or none at all.

UVALDE, Texas (AP) — The blame for an excruciating delay in killing the gunman at a Texas elementary school — even as parents outside begged police to rush in and panicked children called 911 from inside — has been placed with the school district’s homegrown police chief. It’s left residents in small city of Uvalde struggling to reconcile what they know of the well-liked local lawman after the director of state police said that Pete Arredondo — as the commander at the scene — made the “wrong decision” last week not to breach a classroom at Robb Elementary School sooner.

UVALDE, Texas (AP) — It should have been the first day of a joyous week for Robb Elementary School students — the start of summer break. Instead on Monday, the first two of 19 children slain inside a classroom were being remembered at funeral visitations.

BEIJING (AP) — Shanghai authorities say they will take some major steps Wednesday toward reopening China’s largest city after a two-month COVID-19 lockdown that has throttled the national economy and largely bottled up millions of people in their homes. Full bus and subway service will be restored as will basic rail connections with the rest of China, and schools will partially reopen.

SLOVIANSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian forces in a “frenzied push” have seized half of the eastern Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk that is key to Moscow’s efforts to quickly complete the capture of the industrial Donbas region. The city's mayor also told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Sievierodonetsk "is essentially being destroyed ruthlessly block by block."

PUERTO ESCONDIDO, Mexico (AP) — Hurricane Agatha has made history as the strongest hurricane ever recorded to come ashore in May during the eastern Pacific hurricane season. It made landfall Monday afternoon on a sparsely populated stretch of small beach towns and fishing villages in southern Mexico's Oaxaca state.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. markets were headed for losses Tuesday after the European Union agreed to embargo most Russian oil imports by the year’s end, sparking a fresh spike in oil prices.

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders have agreed to embargo most Russian oil imports into the bloc by year-end. The move is part of new sanctions on Russia worked out Monday at a summit focused on helping Ukraine with a long-delayed package of new financial support.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Chris Kreider scored twice, and the New York Rangers ended Carolina’s perfect postseason run at home by beating the Hurricanes 6-2 in the decisive Game 7 of their second-round playoff series. Igor Shesterkin was strong in net again, finishing with 36 saves. New York won for the fifth straight time in an elimination game this postseason.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The strongest hurricane on record to make landfall in May in the eastern Pacific has swept ashore on a stretch of tourist beaches and fishing towns in southern Mexico. Torrential rains and howling winds whipped palm trees and drove tourists and residents into shelters at the approach of Hurricane Agatha.

MACON, Ga. (AP) — A middle Georgia school system could be among those facing hard choices in coming years as federal COVID-19 relief money runs out. The Telegraph of Macon reports that district officials are warning that declining enrollment means the Bibb County school system will need to close schools to save money in coming years.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Protesters angry over a building collapse in southwestern Iran that killed at least 32 people have shouted down an emissary sent by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. A crackdown saw riot police club demonstrators and fire tear gas.

KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian troops pushed farther into a key eastern Ukrainian city and fought street by street with Kyiv’s forces Monday. The mayor said the battle has left the city in ruins and driven tens of thousands from their homes.

DULUTH, Ga. – All three announced candidates for president of the Southern Baptist Convention want to see the nation’s largest protestant denomination return to its soul-winning roots. In a Q&A with The Christian Index, they spoke of the need for Southern Baptists to resolve scandals that serve as distractions, to return to a healthy fear of God, and to “do something concrete and demonstrative to promote evangelism.” “The president of the SBC can, with God’s help, steer us away from creating new divisive controversies and toward resolution of old scandals,” said Bart Barber, pastor of First Baptist Church in Farmersville, Texas. “By doing so, he can eliminate distractions and obstacles that compete with revival for our prayers and affections."

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Denny Hamlin held off Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch in overtime to win the longest — and perhaps wildest — Coca-Cola 600 in history. NASCAR’s longest and most grueling race lasted more than 5 1/2 hours and took 413 laps to complete.

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — As more than 3,000 firefighters in northern New Mexico continue to battle the nation’s largest active wildfire, federal forest officials are worrying about future flash floods, landslides and destructive ash from the burn scar. The 7-week-old fire is the largest in New Mexico history.

ATLANTA (AP) — Hundreds of flights worldwide were canceled by mid-afternoon Sunday, adding to the mounting number of scrubbed flights during the busy Memorial Day holiday weekend. About 1,460 flights had been canceled as of 7 p.m. EDT Sunday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.

LVIV, Ukraine (BP) – While others have fled to safety, 80 percent of the 1,300 students at Ukrainian Baptist Theological Seminary (UBTS) have chosen to stay in the country to serve those in need. In cities as close as 15 miles to warzones, students have fed, clothed, housed and sheltered refugees.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Families across Africa are paying about 45% more for wheat flour as Russia's war in Ukraine blocks exports from the Black Sea. Some countries like Somalia get more than 90% of their wheat from Russia and Ukraine.

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Rescuers searching a mountainside in Nepal have recovered the bodies of 17 of the 22 people who were on board a plane that crashed a day earlier. The Tara Air turboprop Twin Otter lost contact with the airport tower on Sunday while flying on a scheduled 20-minute flight in an area of deep river gorges and mountaintops.

Flags and flowers decorated graves at Marietta National Cemetery in Marietta, Ga., this weekend as the nation celebrates Memorial Day and honors fallen soldiers.

WEYBRIDGE, Vt. (AP) — The remains of a Revolutionary War soldier were moved this Memorial Day weekend to another resting place in Vermont because erosion threatened some of the graves at an old cemetery near a river bank.