Consider my two posts an open letter to the Executive Committee (EC) of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and to SBC legal counsel where feedback and clarity are welcomed concerning the current text of the revised and updated SBC Business & Finance Plan (BFP) being brought before the messengers of the 2021 SBC annual meeting in Nashville, TN. For reference, you can find the current BFP on pg. 25 here and the proposed plan to be voted on in Nashville here. First, know that I am certainly for business and financial stewardship, accountability, and transparency among the SBC and its … [Read more...] about Significant Concerns about the New SBC Business & Finance Plan (Part 1) by Jon Canler
Seminaries
NAAF Statement Responds to Council of Seminary Presidents
The National African American Fellowship, led by SBC First Vice President Marshall Ausberry, yesterday released a response to the January 6th meeting with the Council of Seminary Presidents (CSP). The January 6th meeting was a result of the CSP Statement from Nov. 30 and the subsequent NAAF response on December 6, 2020. Background available at Christianity Today and Baptist Press. I'm really glad to see a strong statement like this. The 3 requests listed by the NAAF seem to me entirely reasonable and, more than that, steps of healthy growth for our convention and seminaries. Our convention … [Read more...] about NAAF Statement Responds to Council of Seminary Presidents
J.D. Greear’s Powerful Message to the SBC Executive Committee
Last night SBC President J.D. Greear brought this message to the Executive Committee meeting in Nashville. It's well worth watching in its entirety, but here are a few key excerpts in case you don't have time for the full message. More coverage is available at Baptist Press. Key moments: 3:40 Greear said he had no desire to see us change our doctrine or change our mission. "We are not, at our core, a political activism group. We love our country, but God has not called us to save America; he’s called us to build the church and spread the gospel." 5:30 The change we do … [Read more...] about J.D. Greear’s Powerful Message to the SBC Executive Committee
A Letter from Dr. Jamie Dew to the NOBTS Faculty
We received this letter from a friend of the NOBTS community. It was addressed to the faculty of NOBTS which was circulated around noon yesterday. After receiving the letter we contacted Dr. Dew for permission to post it here. Upon our request and our encouragement to him that this is an important statement which we believe could be a healing salve in the midst of our family strife he gave us permission to do so. Dear NOBTS & Leavell College Faculty, Greetings and Merry Christmas to you all. I hope that you are having a restful break and that you are enjoying your time with family and … [Read more...] about A Letter from Dr. Jamie Dew to the NOBTS Faculty
Response to Seminary Presidents’ Statement (Marshal Ausberry)
SBC First Vice President and President of the National African American Fellowship of the SBC Marshal Ausberry, pastor of Antioch Baptist Church in Fairfax, VA, released the following statement this past Friday. You can also see the statement along with an interview with Baptist Press here. December 11, 2020 Over the last week and a half I have received much communication related to the Council of Seminary Presidents’ statement and related comments published in the Baptist Press on November 30, 2020. Let me say that first and foremost I and the National African American Fellowship of … [Read more...] about Response to Seminary Presidents’ Statement (Marshal Ausberry)
From Boys to Men: My Response to the SBC Seminary Presidents’ CRT Statement
“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put aside childish things.” (I Corinthians 13:11 CSB) I am often asked the question, why do I remain in the Southern Baptist Convention? A recent joint statement on race made by the six seminary presidents of the SBC has brought that question back into discussion once again. The crux of the seminary presidents’ statement is as follows: In light of current conversations in the Southern Baptist Convention, we stand together on historic Southern Baptist condemnations of racism in … [Read more...] about From Boys to Men: My Response to the SBC Seminary Presidents’ CRT Statement
On Rescinding Resolutions
I’m seeing a strange suggestion being floated around social media of late and it concerns me. Most recently in the form of a tweet from the Conservative Baptist Network. On December 3rd 2020 someone from the organization posted… The post states, in part, “Furthermore, we look forward expectantly to the presidents’ cooperation with us in rescinding Resolution 9…” I believe the suggestion of rescinding any resolution is a misguided one with significant challenges and unfortunate consequences. Likely well meaning, but concerning nonetheless. For those who have expressed concern … [Read more...] about On Rescinding Resolutions
An Open Letter to Dr. Al Mohler and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Board of Trustees Regarding Honoring the Founding Slaveholders
Dear Dr. Mohler and Board of Trustees, Greetings in the Name of our Triune God, “in whom we live, move and have our very being” (Acts 17:28). The impact you have made on the SBC and the nation will be felt for generations to come (Psalm 145:4). The purpose of this correspondence is to humbly and respectfully request that the President and Board of Trustees at SBTS remove from SBTS campus, any memorabilia of the founders: James Pettigru Boyce, John Broadus, Basil Manly, and William Williams. Why? The founders should be acknowledged and appreciated for their role in the establishment … [Read more...] about An Open Letter to Dr. Al Mohler and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Board of Trustees Regarding Honoring the Founding Slaveholders
Open Letter to R. Albert Mohler, President, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Rev. Joel A. Bowman, Sr.)
The Credentials Committee: A Call for Patience (Susan Codone & Megan Lively)
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)