Five years ago, the SBC in their annual session passed a resolution "On the Sexual Abuse of Children." The resolution was offered by a blogger, Peter Lumpkins, and an amendment was added which was offered by a frequent blog commenter, Bob Cleveland. It is my observation that the issue of sexual abuse in churches is more widely reported and discussed on blogs than in any other arena. The 2013 resolution aimed at not just sexual abuse of children in general but noted that " instances of sexual abuse have been perpetrated within Southern Baptist congregations, churches of other denominations, … [Read more...] about Five years since the SBC Resolution “On the Sexual Abuse of Children” and earlier SBC level actions
Admirable, deplorable, or forgettable?
While not exceptional individually, stringing together untenable, pervade, malleable, immaterial, cognitive, sophomoric, and lobotomy in a single article does elevate writing to a higher grade level. Lobotomy, a barbaric but accepted medical practice of an earlier time, is used in conversations today when one wants to offer a more sophisticated insult to one's opponents. As a collection of terms, admirable. "“No American — whether a nun, nurse, baker, or business owner — should be forced to choose between the tenants of faith or adherence to the law,” the president said in his statement." … [Read more...] about Admirable, deplorable, or forgettable?
Another denominational election war?
I'm not up for another Conservative Resurgence kind of denominational war where the lines are drawn, candidates are classified, willing nominees are prearranged, and votes are sought for "our guy" and not the other guy. I'm not up for a system where there is a Calvinist candidate and a Traditionalist candidate and no other candidate who is not pigeonholed as one or the other. I'm not up for a fight over every nomination where there is a Calvinist nominee and a Traditionalist nominee for and where success is judged by getting "our" trustees confirmed. My view is that there are rabid, … [Read more...] about Another denominational election war?
Nine less than stellar moments in the SBC in 2017
SBC blog touts lawsuits against SBC entities. It's one thing for someone who believes they have been aggrevied to sue some SBC entity. People do that. It's one thing to report that someone is suing us. It's newsworthy. But it is an entirely different thing to tout the lawsuits and plaintiffs publicly and uncritically. For shame! Annual meeting hijacked by alt-right resolution fiasco. I don't know how to fix this. Alt-right miscreants dominated the twitter feed for the SBC annual meeting app. A resolution against the alt-right was not returned by our Resolutions Committee. The two together … [Read more...] about Nine less than stellar moments in the SBC in 2017
Maybe next year…
The SEC will prove that the ACC's crown in NCAA football was merely a pigskin interregnum. If so, we must prepare ourselves to be appropriately humble about it as befits our station in the football world. C. B. Scott told me to say that. Alan Cross will venture into the 800-1,000 word article territory. Alan is the author here who is likely the most informed on the subjects on which he writes. He is the contributor who in my view should write much more here than his once-a-month on average. Dave Miller, having left the Pastor's Conference in a blaze of denominational glory (a "roaring … [Read more...] about Maybe next year…
Scare headline of the year
CLERGY MAY SOON FIND TAXES SOARING AS RESULT OF AN UNDER-THE-RADAR RULING Yeah, that's under-the-radar if you are The Rev. Rip V. Winkle who slept for the last decade or so and just woke up. The article is about the clergy housing allowance. Other than the screaming, vein popping headline it is one of the best summary articles I've read on the clergy housing allowance and recent ruling. My CPA friend Peter Reilly on Forbes is better but then the HA is never under his radar. He has had many timely articles on it. His latest,Tax free housing benefits for clergy will be safe for … [Read more...] about Scare headline of the year
Your church’s Christmas gift from the government…
...that you might like to return: The new tax bill, signed into law by President Trump the other day. Evangelical leaders warn of ‘devastating’ impact of GOP tax plan on the charitable deduction God loves a cheerful itemizer Bad news for nonprofits Charities in the Chicago area and across the country are bracing for the potential loss of billions of dollars in annual contributions The gloom-and-doomers that are worried about churches and other charities losing revenue as a result of the tax policy changes in the new bill (most provisions go into effect January 1, 2018) are … [Read more...] about Your church’s Christmas gift from the government…
Irreverent, renegade, random thoughts about SBC stuff
I think alliteration is silly...except when I use it. The lawsuit against LifeWay over Glorieta (the sale of which was over four years ago) continues to hang by a thread. It's like the wierd uncle that won't go away. The underlying issue is a complaint about compensation of one couple who had a house on camp property, a land lease renewed annually. For those who complain about fair market value not being offered to the few dozen who were in this situation, exactly what would the fair market value of your house be if you did not own the land it sits on? Not a whole lot if the landowner could … [Read more...] about Irreverent, renegade, random thoughts about SBC stuff
Roy M., sticky wicket, a soul-sucking rabbit hole, and The Edicule
I always appreciate little language nuggets and interesting things I haven't thought about. While they are rather scarce among us, here are a few I've run across (trigger alert: political hot topics included): Let’s face it: the Roy Moore situation is a sticky wicket. This from Fox News contributor and Southeastern Seminary Provost Bruce Ashford. I like the metaphor, sticky wicket, and am a bit of an anglophile myself, but what is it about these seminary profs and their affection for British figures and language? We're talking cricket here, a game no American has ever seen. We improved that … [Read more...] about Roy M., sticky wicket, a soul-sucking rabbit hole, and The Edicule
Let’s reserve “without error” for Scripture and Scripture alone
The Baptist Faith and Message says, in part, about the Bible: The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God's revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. The phrase "truth, without mixture of error" is our most popular operative phrase about Scripture. Most of us are completely comfortable describing themselves and being described by others as "inerrantists." The inerrant Bible, of course, refers to the original writings, … [Read more...] about Let’s reserve “without error” for Scripture and Scripture alone