Alabama Baptists lost “a giant of a Christian leader” Feb. 4 when Thomas E. Corts, president emeritus of Samford University in Birmingham, died unexpectedly of a heart attack. Corts, 67, served Samford for 23 years before retiring in 2006, exuding what his contemporaries called a “contagious example” and “visionary leadership.” During his tenure, he awarded more than 17,000 diplomas to…