Patterson Speaks; Attacks Frank Page & "Liberals"

Unlike Al Mohler, Paige Patterson does not publish his opinions very often. Nor does he grant many interview requests. However, today PP has released an 1800 word diatribe via SBC's propaganda-arm, Baptist Press. A few interesting snippets are below:

Just over a week ago, Lifeway released a study which showed that the number of people baptized in Southern Baptist churches had fallen for the third straight year in 2007 and this number of folks baptized is the SBC's lowest since 1987. In response to this study, SBC President Frank Page blamed the decline in part on a perception that Southern Baptists are "mean-spirited, hurtful and angry."

In his op-ed, Patterson comes back swinging at Frank Page with this:

Who are these "mean-spirited" among us? Is it also "mean-spirited" to make broad imprecise allegations of "mean-spiritedness"? Are some who make these charges guilty themselves?

And Patterson continues with a few swipes at "moderates and liberals." He writes:

Thrashing the Conservative Renaissance as though it were somehow responsible for this decline is irresponsible. One need only ask for the evangelistic and missionary statistics for the moderate churches whose leaders provided the opposition to conservatives in order to debunk this allegation. The present state cannot please our Lord, but it is a safe bet that He is more pleased about what we are attempting globally than about the social and environmentally based programs of moderate and liberal churches. If the Conservative Renaissance had not happened, our evangelism would look exactly like moderate churches, which are in decline.

Patterson is one classy fundamentalist.

When the going gets tough, deny deny deny and then blame the "liberals"

And since when did the so-called "Conservative Resurgence" become the "Conservative Renaissance" ?

What's that all about?