The Southern Baptist Convention seems to have been frozen in time for a few decades, entrenched in doctrinal disagreements, ongoing concerns of sexual and spiritual abuse, and so focused on operational autonomy that renders it unable to police itself. For good reason, a small army has risen to protest the harm this torpor has generated. Their voices are both valid and valuable. There is a tipping point, though, at which genuine advocacy slips into routine outrage, especially regarding a large and lumbering religious system that has managed to ride by most cultural reforms on the backs … [Read more...] about The Credentials Committee: A Call for Patience (Susan Codone & Megan Lively)
SBC Issues
What Does Autonomy Mean for the SBC?
In the past months, writers and commenters here at Voices have used the word autonomy often. The word basically means “self-ruled.” For example, some nations have regions that are semi-autonomous, meaning the region has a measure of independence. What does this word mean in the context of the Southern Baptist Convention and its churches? To answer this question, I consulted the Encyclopedia of Southern Baptists. I assumed it would include an article on church autonomy, but to my surprise, it did not. I did find an article entitled “Authority of the Southern Baptist Convention.” Here is an … [Read more...] about What Does Autonomy Mean for the SBC?
The enhanced Credentials Committee: observations and questions
Baptist Press reported yesterday about the SBC Credentials Committee's establishment of an "online submission portal for reports of a church's alleged departure from Southern Baptist polity, doctrine or practice." I want to be optimistic and supportive of the effort. It's a difficult task. Good people are involved with the best motives and highest concern for these things. My observations are not criticisms. I'm reading the stuff for the first time and relaying what strikes me about it. A few observations: It should be remembered that this is about CHURCHES, not INDIVIDUALS. The … [Read more...] about The enhanced Credentials Committee: observations and questions
New Credentials Committee Outlines Submission Process
The Biblical Recorder reports that the new SBC Credentials Committee has announced a new online submission process to report church misconduct. This comes after the past Annual Meeting and the decisions by the messengers to rework the Credentials Committee's process and function to allow them to conduct inquiries in the case of churches who are obviously outside of friendly cooperation with the SBC by virtue of mishandling abuse, racism, or other matters of cooperation. The website for submitting information is http://www.sbc.net/credentials Visiting the site you start of with two … [Read more...] about New Credentials Committee Outlines Submission Process
Can the gang that can’t shoot straight save the SBC?
The gang would be the Founders group but there's always an unhappy segment of our beloved Southern Baptist Convention and the dolorous brethren always justify their feelings. When you have a moderately large tent, some folks will always be dissatisfied with the flow of convention politics. I'm a fairly happy guy in the SBC, imperfect though it may be and I don't see anything happening that is worthy of another Resurgence. We had the Traditionalists who created their own statement of belief. The call went out from that group for quotas (er, 'parity') in entity head theological persuasion. … [Read more...] about Can the gang that can’t shoot straight save the SBC?
A Question for Dr. C.B. Scott*
*And the rest of you SEC-loving, Alabama Crimson Tide-cheering cretans, whom I love with the love of the Lord, of course! I've never made much of a deal about it, but I'm not a fan of either the Southeastern Criminals (er, Conference - sorry) or of the Alabama Crimson Crud. I don't like to make a big deal of sports, because I'm a uniter, not a divider. But this year has absolutely baffled me. At the end of last season, the Crud was getting steamrolled by a clearly superior team from Clemson, which started the season at #1 and has won all of its games, though one of them was a near-miss … [Read more...] about A Question for Dr. C.B. Scott*
Ask Mohler anything…but don’t expect him to give a short or simple answer
We hear, about seven and a half months before the event, that Albert Mohler is willing to be nominated for SBC president. It's a little early for this but here we are. May I guess that it's not Calvinism that will define his candidacy nor the discussion before, during, and if he's elected, after the convention. It will be that most prickly matter in Southern Baptist life these days, complementarianism. 'Ask Al anything' is my shorthand of the title of the tour by our leading intellectual and flagship seminary president. I appreciate that he does this. I also appreciate that some … [Read more...] about Ask Mohler anything…but don’t expect him to give a short or simple answer
There Should Be Peace. A Response to Tom Ascol.
On November 21st, Tom Ascol of Founders Ministry, wrote a piece encouraging either Karen Swallow Prior to "reconsider her endorsement of Revoice and withdraw it or that Danny Akin will reconsider this hire and retract it." Though I'm not sure how viable that first option is for her because Ascol also framed the discussion this way: ...one of our seminaries just hired a professor who doesn’t have enough discernment to recognize a false religion for what it is. Is this who you want teaching your students? Is this how you want your Cooperative Program dollars to be spent? I'm hesitant to enter … [Read more...] about There Should Be Peace. A Response to Tom Ascol.
Is Caring Well doing well in our autonomous churches?
It is doing well in my view. Caring Well is the abuse resource and effort that resulted from the joint work of the SBC's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and the ad hoc Sex Abuse Advisory Group appointed by SBC president J. D. Greear. The Caring Well initiative was presented at the SBC Convention this past June with considerable fanfare and strong attendance. The ERLC's conference last month was on the subject of abuse and was very well attended by SBC pastors and others. This week a new Caring Well guide (free, downloadable pdf) was released. I've downloaded it and looked it … [Read more...] about Is Caring Well doing well in our autonomous churches?
Response to Paige Patterson’s 2012 Letter (Dr. Marshal Ausberry)
I was saddened and wounded to read the letter from seven years ago from our Brother Paige Patterson to Jimmy Draper. I was asked by a couple of news agencies to give comment. But as I prayed about it, I felt led to share first with my SBC family through the Baptist Press. I agree that anyone holding the office of President of the Southern Baptist Convention must have sound biblical doctrine, to include inerrancy of Scripture. That is one distinctive of Southern Baptists; we have a high view of Scripture. Southern Baptists hold that “…all Scripture is totally true and trustworthy.” (BFM … [Read more...] about Response to Paige Patterson’s 2012 Letter (Dr. Marshal Ausberry)