In the new Southwestern Journal of Theology, Dr. Paige Patterson briefly notes the presence of a generational gap within the Southern Baptist Convention. However, Patterson is optimistic, at least he says so while also creating false dichotomies and casually dismissing the legitimacy of blogging. Continue Reading…
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It is has been a tough week for Dr. Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC). Earlier this week, Land made several comments about the Trayvon Martin case and how some are using the case as political race-baiting. Land’s further comments regarding the statistic that you are more likely to be harmed by a black man than someone of another race also caused waves. Southern Baptist President Bryant Wright even appeared on CNN to defend Land and his apologies. Continue Reading…
Once again, SBCToday.com has made itself the proliferator of paranoia, conspiracy, and outright fear mongering on the issue of Calvinism in the SBC.
Yesterday, I quoted former SBC Executive Committee chairman Bill Harrell’s recent comments on Calvinism in a post documenting Eric Hankins’ unfortunate comments on Calvinism. Today, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary Provost Steve Lemke posted an article by Harrell titled “Things That Bear Watching.”
I am not going to interact with Harrell’s words as he has made it clear he has no desire to listen to anyone younger or less experienced than himself. His self-importance is made aware in the last paragraph:
I know that what I have said will be decried as harsh, but we are dealing with harsh realities in the SBC. If things follow a normal course, it will be the young theologues who have little or no experience who will be the harshest in their criticism of my thoughts. They are still “wet behind the ears” and don’t have the experience or background to say very much at all. In general they have no respect for those who have had a ministry of forty or more years. I really don’t care who says what. My observations are built on the foundation of sixteen years on the Executive Committee and thirty eight years of pastoring Southern Baptist churches.
So, instead of interacting with Harrell’s words I will merely post quotes from his writing that display the unfortunate fear mongering and division that need not take place in a convention that has a rich history of Calvinism and welcomes Calvinists as good Southern Baptists. Continue Reading…
On Easter Sunday, Bubba Watson won the Masters Tournament. Other than a man named “Bubba” winning the Masters, also notable is Bubba Watson is a strong and unashamed Christian. That is not all, no, Bubba Watson also is a big Lecrae fan, even appearing on stage with Lecrae a few weeks ago.
Here is a quote from Bubba quoting Lecrae and video of Bubba getting down onstage at a Lecrae concert.
Congratulations to Bubba on the big win and may he continue to glorify the risen King Jesus in all his gifts. Continue Reading…
Liberty University is none too pleased with Southern Baptist gadfly Peter Lumpkins’ recent post regarding LU’s Board of Trustees ruling to disapprove of the invitation of Mark Driscoll and his “Real Marriage” book tour. In the post, Lumpkins questions and criticizes the leadership of LU President Jerry Falwell Jr. for inviting Driscoll, among other criticisms.
Tony Kumer, the owner of SBCVoices.com which links to Lumpkins’ blog, received this “cease and decist [sic]” email from LU’s General Counsel David Corry. Continue Reading…
Though the title of this post may be a lame attempt at a play on words, the Baptist21 panel luncheon at the 2012 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting in NOLA this June will be far from lame. The panel, thus far, will include Drs. Al Mohler, Danny Akin, Paige Patterson, and David Platt.
The panel will be discussing the Conservative Resurgence, the Great Commission Resurgence, and the future of the SBC. Continue Reading…
Here is the full video from Louisiana College’s press conference regarding the college’s recent court victory. Continue Reading…
For the past 7 years, Louisiana College has been defending itself in a lawsuit brought against the school by former college faculty. According to Wildcats Media, the lawsuit was filed on behalf of “four former faculty members, Dr. Carlton Winbery, Dr. Connie Douglas, Dr. Fred Downing, and Dr. James Heath, who taught Religion and Values classes.”
The former faculty members were let go by the college for their inability to affirm the Baptist Faith & Message 2000 because of their denial of biblical inerrancy. Continue Reading…
SBCVoices.com is, by my estimation, the largest and most popular Southern Baptist blog on the internet. The blog receives thousands of hits per day, posts several blog posts by various authors per day, and receives hundreds of comments per week. SBC Voices is the reigning champion of the SBC blogosphere.
Recently, after much consideration, the powers that be announced that a more robust comment moderation would begin to take place. While minor moderation had taken place in the past, there would now be a new era of moderation, an era that actually stopped the thread hijacking, personal attacks (even the ones that are passive aggressive) and trolling that is too often present. Continue Reading…
Former Louisiana College (L.C.) professor and current Bethlehem College & Seminary professor Dr. Jason Meyer has been unanimously approved by the elders of Bethlehem Baptist Church to replace Dr. John Piper. Meyer still must be approved by a congregational vote. According to TGC:
The vote will come in two stages: (1) on May 20, 2012, the congregation will vote on him as associate pastor for preaching and vision, beginning that role on August 1, 2012; (2) then, as Piper’s pastoral ministry draws to an end, there will be a vote for Meyer as pastor for preaching and vision.
John Piper recently wrote this about Meyer: Continue Reading…
Though still unconfirmed it appears It is now confirmed, Mark Driscoll is stepping down as president of Acts 29, the church planting network that has now planted over 400 churches in the United States. There is some overlap between Acts 29 and the Southern Baptist Convention, as some SBC churches also belong to the Acts 29 Network. Acts 29 has been well-received by many Southern Baptists, while others see the network as a threat to the convention. Continue Reading…
Zondervan is currently running an amazing sale on three of their academic books. You can buy each of these books in Kindle format for only $3.99 each. This is a steal for such quality academic tools! Every student of the Bible would benefit by having any of these three titles in their library.
Do you not have a Kindle but would still like to buy these books while on sale? No problem! You can download a free Kindle application from Amazon for your computer, Android device, Blackberry, or iPhone that allows you to read books in Kindle format. So now you have no reason not to take advantage of these great deals!
An Introduction to the New Testament
D.A. Carson & Douglas Moo
Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know
Wayne & Elliott Grudem
How to Read the Bible Book by Book
Gordon Fee & Douglas Stuart
My blog is in the running over at SBCVoices’ Blue Collar Blog Madness. There are some great blogs in the competition! Would you mind clicking here and voting for The Daily Bleat? My blog is in the first region listed (Southern). Thanks a lot!
The Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) at Vanderbilt University is under attack by a newly implemented “non-descrimination policy.” The Nashville university has instituted a new non-descrimination policy called the “all-comers policy” which prohibits all organizations on campus from having requirements for membership or leadership.
The dilemma for the BCM and other organizations on campus is what criteria can be used to select leadership. The new policy states that student organizations cannot discriminate in membership or leadership, cannot have a statement of faith that they require leaders to sign, cannot have a faith prerequisite for leadership and cannot select leaders in a discriminatory manner, Thornton noted.
This means that Christian organizations on campus must allow non-Christians membership and even leadership positions or be faced with a university policy violation. Continue Reading…
Dave Miller over at SBCVoices has posted an excellent interview with Trevin Wax, managing editor of Lifeway’s forthcoming Sunday School curriculum The Gospel Project.
As I understand The Gospel Project, it takes the students through the entire Bible teaching what you call “The Grand Narrative” of the gospel that weaves through the whole Bible. Is that accurate?
The grand narrative of Scripture is a key component, but “Christ-centeredness” is the major aspect, and missional focus is woven throughout.
The paragraph on Scripture in The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 ends with this statement: “All Scripture is a testimony to Jesus Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation.” That phrase – “All Scripture is a testimony to Jesus” – sums up what we are seeking to do here. We are fleshing out what this statement looks like in regards to curriculum. How do we encourage people to study the Bible in a way that shines light on the supremacy of Jesus Christ in all things?
