We have received word that Dr. Paige Patterson has been transitioned to the president emeritus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, effective immediately, after a lengthy Board of Trustees meeting today. Jeffrey Bingham is Interim President. Baptist Press has more detail. We realize that this decision will bring about a wide range of reactions, from joy to anger. We feel it is best to let the information come out fully in the next day or so before we begin to add opinion to these facts. Comments are closed for now. God bless Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. … [Read more...] about Paige Patterson Has Been Made President Emeritus of SWBTS – Effective Immediately
SBC Institutions & Entities
Email to SEBTS Students on Washington Post Story [Full Text]
This afternoon, SEBTS released this email to seminary students to address the steps they have taken and are taking as a result of information that's recently come to light in today's Washington Post story. Dear SEBTS Students: Today an article was released in the Washington Post that mentions Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. The focus of the article is the handling of a rape accusation that involved two students in 2003. The event took place under a previous administration. I was only recently made aware of this event. Since being made aware of the event, I have asked our … [Read more...] about Email to SEBTS Students on Washington Post Story [Full Text]
Washington Post: Allegation Patterson Urged Student Victim Not to Report Sexual Assault
The Washington Post has just released a story with disturbing allegations against Dr. Paige Patterson. Patterson is accused of pressuring a rape victim not to report the rape during his tenure at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. You can read the story at the Washington Post. The article was released during the time SWBTS trustees were in closed meeting. Comments are closed. … [Read more...] about Washington Post: Allegation Patterson Urged Student Victim Not to Report Sexual Assault
Pray for the Trustees of SWBTS
The Trustees of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary are meeting today in a special session to deal with the very public issues that have been discussed recently about Dr. Paige Patterson and the future of the seminary. I am sure each of us has an opinion about these things but ultimately the men and women entrusted with that responsibility will make it. I would ask you to pray for them, that God would grant them wisdom to do what is best for the seminary, the SBC, and the Kingdom. Note: we have decided that comments on Paige Patterson/SWBTS topics might be counterproductive today. … [Read more...] about Pray for the Trustees of SWBTS
Possible Outcomes of Tuesday’s SWBTS Trustee Meeting
Tomorrow the full trustee board of Southwestern Seminary will meet to discuss what action, if any, will be taken in light of the recent controversy surrounding the seminary’s president, Dr. Paige Patterson. No one knows what to expect. The Baptist Press story linked above indicates that Patterson himself requested the meeting. The trustees’ decision will likely have deep and far-reaching consequences regardless of what conclusion is reached. Opinions on this issue have been strong, and no doubt will continue to be. My purpose here isn’t to argue the merits of one choice over the other, but … [Read more...] about Possible Outcomes of Tuesday’s SWBTS Trustee Meeting
Announcing the SBC Leadership Diversity Initiative
In the preface to Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote, “That part of the line where I thought I could serve best was also the part that seemed to be thinnest. And to it I naturally went.” We see a need in the Southern Baptist Convention, and our desire is to provide a means to strengthen that weakness. The SBC Leadership Diversity Initiative is designed to be a networking tool that helps open channels of communication within our convention. We are receiving nominations of ethnic minority leaders and women who may be available, interested, and willing to serve the SBC in leadership … [Read more...] about Announcing the SBC Leadership Diversity Initiative
So you want to get a resolution passed? Here’s the process…
There's a presumption rolling around among SBCers that the Resolutions Committee has what they want to do in mind before the convention and sloughs off or dismisses all resolutions that get submitted from individual SBCers. Not so. Those individuals who properly submit a resolution according to the provisions of By-Law 20 will be properly considered. Here's what the By-Law says is necessary for a properly submitted resolution: Be submitted to the Committee no earlier than April 15th and no later than 15 days prior to the annual meeting. Be addressed to the Committee on Resolutions … [Read more...] about So you want to get a resolution passed? Here’s the process…
Why I Am Voting for J.D. Greear to be the Next SBC President (K.V. Paxton)
K.V. Paxton is Lead Pastor at Grace Baptist Church, Quinlan, Texas. He's a Palestinian-American, graduate of Criswell College, Midwestern Seminary, and a veteran of the United States Air Force. The Southern Baptist Convention is at a crossroads. We may not be battling for inerrancy like we did during the often-referenced “Conservative Resurgence,” but the future is no less at stake for our convention. Millennials and minorities, both inside and outside of the SBC, are watching what we do next with great interest on a host of topics. And though I am often given to hyperbole, I do not think it … [Read more...] about Why I Am Voting for J.D. Greear to be the Next SBC President (K.V. Paxton)
Requesting and Utilizing an IMB Missionary at Your Church
This is the third in what has become a three-part series. Section one lightly sketches some reasons why IMB missionaries don't frequent many churches, with the main thesis being churches no longer request missionaries as speakers. Part two is a more in-depth treatment of that initial thesis, pointing to trends and patterns which have led the SBC to this condition. Today we'll look over how to request an IMB missionary and what to do with them once they arrive. Do not expect a comprehensive listing; I imagine comments from current and former IMB workers will far outshine my own in terms of … [Read more...] about Requesting and Utilizing an IMB Missionary at Your Church
Why Good Trustees Don’t (And Shouldn’t) Blog About Their Business
I'm the one guy who contributes here who sits on the board at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. I'm the one guy who contributes here who has had nothing whatsoever to say about recent controversies at the seminary. At the end of this post, those two things will still be true. But I aspire someday to be a full-fledged SBC polity wonk, and it seems to me that this is an opportune moment for us to think together about the way that our polity works. Why haven't I put to writing my thoughts about these important matters? A superficial answer would be this: I wish to end my term as a … [Read more...] about Why Good Trustees Don’t (And Shouldn’t) Blog About Their Business