Georgia Baptists To Oust Women Pastors, FBC Decatur

Here's the story from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Georgia Baptists take aim at women-led churches

Georgia Southern Baptists approved a policy Tuesday aimed at diminishing the role of churches led by women pastors.

The policy is a broad one and provides the Georgia Baptist Convention the ability to refuse donations from entities out of sync with Southern Baptist beliefs. There is only one church that currently falls into that category: the 2,700-member Decatur First Baptist headed by the Rev. Julie Pennington-Russell.

Only men can hold the position as head pastor, but individual churches are independent and can call whom they wish as pastor, according to a Southern Baptist statement of faith. Decatur called Pennington-Russell in 2007.

Last year, there was talk of breaking ties with Decatur First Baptist over Pennington-Russell, said J. Robert White, executive director of the convention.

He and other leaders believed the new policy would be a more prudent move. If convention executives take action, that would allow Decatur First to remain associated with Southern Baptists, but would not accept donations from it. Churches whose gifts are not accepted lose their organization voting privileges and the ability to give to Southern Baptist missions and help programs.

Churches with women in lesser roles, such as deacons or youth ministers, would not be affected, White said. Church conference leaders also could turn down gifts from questionable sources, such as alcohol distributors.

Pennington-Russell was out of town and did not attend the convention.

“I kept waiting for someone from the Georgia Baptist Convention to call us or come visit with me and other leaders of our church to inform us that these matters were being discussed,” she said in an e-mail.

Decatur First Baptist has been in the convention since 1862 and provided leadership and millions of dollars in support over the decades.

“I assumed that a 146-year relationship was worth, at very least, a personal conversation,” she said.

“To me, the saddest ripple effect will be that some members of our church who have faithfully supported Southern Baptist ministries and missionaries through the years, often with money given from their monthly Social Security checks, will have to be told that the [convention] doesn’t welcome their support any longer.”

The headquarters for the GBC is in Norcross.  Robert White didn't have the decency to drive over to Decatur, from one Atlanta suburb to another.  No phone call.  No e-mail.  

Robert White has no shame.  Some of us have known that for years now.  

Not surprising that this has happened in Georgia.  Once you go fundamentalist, you don't go back.  The Georgia Baptist Convention became a thoroughly fundamentalist convention more than a few years ago.  

John Pierce of the Georgia-based Baptists Today has a post titled Isolation and Irrelevancy on this same subject.  Pierce writes:

In another deliberate and continuous move toward isolation and irrelevancy, the Georgia Baptist Convention (GBC) approved a policy yesterday that gives leadership the right to reject cooperation with congregations deemed to be out of line with Southern Baptists' ever-narrowing doctrine.

Julie Pennington-Russell @ Covenant Celebration

Tonight’s sermon at the Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant was given by Julie Pennington-Russell, Senior Pastor of the historic First Baptist Church, Decatur, Georgia. Before coming to Decatur, Julie was my pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Waco, Texas. Read my past posts about her here. The title of Pastor Julie’s sermon was “The Bible Speaks About Respecting Diversity.”

You can watch the Video HERE. Below are a few snippets from her sermon.

On Our Big Baptist Tent:

“Friends, that is no small accomplishment, we do have some diversity. At least this week we have racial diversity. Thank You Jesus!

We have other differences as well. Theological differences. We Baptists are People of the Book. We look to the pages of this Book, looking for guidance on every subject: War, Women in Church Leadership, Borrowing Money, Creation Care, Alcohol Consumption, Peacemaking, Speaking in Tongues, Role and authority of pastor in the church, miracles, interfaith relationships, abortion, immigration, death penalty, and human sexuality.

Some of our differences are small and some of our differences are substantial but as Baptists we agree to respect each other in our diversity.

A question jogging her mind:

Is this really the gift we came so far to give each other this week? Respecting diversity? Diversity. It’s a fine word. When we’re respectful of each other, God is in that. But truthfully, when you and I open the box and peel back the tissue, is respectfulness the gift we most wanted to find? Or is it something else?

Respect in the end has no power to change something that is fundamentally broken in you and me and between you and me. Only love can do that. Respectfulness is not a bad gift. It’s just that it runs out of steam at the 50 yard line. But love runs all the way down the field like Forest Gump – Out the Endzone and Into the Parking Lot!

The thing that gives me trouble is this. See I know, I have it in my power to be respectful of our differences and can keep you at arms length and even secretly harbor this prideful satisfaction that I am not like you. Love won’t do that. Love doesn’t give a hoot about propriety. And of course Jesus is the face of Love. And when He was here, didn’t he show us that?

It’s love y’all. Why is that so hard for us? And what they often find instead is pews full of people who seem to have figured out everything about Christianity except that it’s about Love. Above us, let’s not doubt that the love of Jesus Christ in Us and Throug Us has the power to change the world. We’re talking about real power.

Friends, there is power just as free and just as frightening running through your church and this room tonight. The power of love wants to blow a hole in our assumptions about each other. Love will uproot you. Love will dislodge you from the place you’ve been living. It’s love – that’s the gift!

BDW Sr. Makes Baptist Blogosphere Debut

Well, I'm here today to announce that my dad has officially put one foot into this thing called the Baptist Blogosphere. You can find him below or at http://drweaver.blogspot.com

His first post is a response to Al Mohler's "tragedy" comment regarding FBC Decatur, Georgia's decision to call Julie Pennington-Russell as their pastor. It's also a plug for the upcoming Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant. Here's a snippet...

The Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant in January 2008 gives the wider Baptist fellowship an opportunity to show the American public (or anyone looking at us) that the calling of women is not a tragedy but indeed is a triumph of the liberating, equalizing Good News of Jesus. The meeting of cooperative Baptists will be a demonstration that pastoral ministry is based on calling and gifts rather than gender. What should be clear is that the calling of God means “sons and daughters will prophesy.”

So, check it out.

Al Mohler, FBC Decatur, and Julie Pennington-Russell

"Gay-baby curing" Al Mohler is the recipient of the highly prestigious Quote of the Day...

Mohler recently wrote...

A look at Julie Pennington-Russell's education, experience, and related qualifications would appear to qualify her for a major pulpit . . . except for the fact that she is a woman.

Yuck. Too bad the 1984 Al Mohler who took out an ad in the Louisville-Courier in support of women in ministry is long gone...

Mohler concludes....

Would the election of Julie Pennington-Russell as pastor of this church make history? Of course it will. This development would set a precedent that, until now, has eluded those pressing for women in major pulpits. First Baptist Church, Decatur, is in the heart of the South, has a proud place in the history of the Southern Baptist Convention, and can claim a legacy of prominent pastors. For a church of this stature to call a woman as senior minister is undeniably historic.

What does this mean? Only time will tell. Advocates for women as pastors will hope to see this precedent followed in other historic moderate pulpits. Any number of factors may play into this equation, including a generational shift and a relatively small number of male seminary graduates from moderate schools headed for the pastorate.

One prediction is an almost certain -- Julie Pennington-Russell will quickly become one of the most prominent leaders among moderate and liberal Baptists.

One additional development is just as certain. This move increases the visible distance between the Southern Baptist Convention and the constellation of moderate Baptist organizations disaffected from the denomination. The distance is theological, cultural, ideological -- and growing.

The Decatur church is set to vote on Pennington-Russell as Senior Minister on June 17. By all accounts, the church is indeed set to make a statement -- and to make history. The distance between those who hold to different positions on the question of women in the pulpit is most evident in the fact that while some will see this move as a triumph, others will see it as tragedy.

Read the entire article here.

Al must not pay close attention to moderate Baptist life anymore. Julie Pennington-Russell is and has been a prominent leader in moderate Baptist life for quite some time. Weeks before being called to FBC Decatur, Pastor Julie was named as a speaker at the upcoming Celebration of the New Baptist Covenant. That's kinda a big deal, Al.

This is much ado about nothing. Through its involvement with the CBF, FBC Decatur has been preaching for years that God actually does call women to preach and pastor. So, how big of a statement is Decatur making now that they've been given an opportunity to practice what they preach?

Oh well.

To me at least, Al Mohler's recent quote is the real tragedy.

Next time he's in the ATL, maybe Brother Al should stop by Decatur for an hour of worship and high quality preaching.....might do him some good.