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Archives For November 30, 1999

Tuesday Briefing: Christian schools weigh marriage ruling amid liberty concerns

Meredith Flynn —  July 14, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

The_BriefingFollowing the Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage, churches and Christian institutions, including colleges and universities, are navigating the potential religious liberty ramifications.

Christian colleges in Michigan and Tennessee announced last week they would extend benefits to same-sex spouses of employees. But a representative for the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) told Baptist Press that as long as Christian colleges and universities “ensure that all of their policies are clearly tied to their religious beliefs,” the threats of losing tax-exempt status and being held liable for discrimination aren’t immediate.

“At this point, there is no reason to believe that religious institutions, who do immense good by educating first-generation and low-income students, providing thousands of hours of volunteer time to their communities, and are institutions essential to the fabric of their communities, would be targeted to be penalized in this way for their longstanding religious beliefs,” said Shapri LoMaglio. “The test for tax-exemption is public good, and our institutions absolutely serve the public good.”

Neither of the two schools who announced benefits for same-sex spouses–Hope College in Holland, Mich., and Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn.–are affiliated with the CCCU. Belmont, which was affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Convention until 2007, added “sexual orientation” to its non-discrimination policy in 2011, BP reports.

Durbin says schools are ‘challenging area’ after marriage decision
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he doesn’t “have a quick answer” about whether religious schools that oppose same-sex marriage are protected from religious liberty concerns in the same ways as churches. “There’s no question this was an historic decision, and now we’re going to go through a series of suggestions for new laws to implement it,” Durbin told The Weekly Standard. “I can’t predict how this will end. But from the beginning we have said that when it comes to marriage, religions can decide what their standards will be.”

But on the schools question, Durbin said, “Getting into a challenging area, and I don’t have a quick answer to you. I’ll have to think about it long and hard.”

Baylor drops ‘homosexual acts’ ban from conduct policy
Christian school Baylor University in Waco, Texas, has removed “homosexual acts” from behaviors banned in its sexual conduct policy, the Houston Chronicle reported this month. However, a “Statement on Human Sexuality” on the Baylor website says, “Christian churches… have affirmed purity in singleness and fidelity in marriage between a man and a woman as the biblical norm. Temptations to deviate from this norm include both heterosexual sex outside of marriage and homosexual behavior.”

Carter says Jesus would be OK with same-sex marriage
Former President Jimmy Carter says he has no problem with same-sex marriage, and Jesus wouldn’t either. “I think Jesus would encourage any love affair if it was honest and sincere and was not damaging to anyone else, and I don’t see that gay marriage damages anyone else,” Carter told interviewer Marc Lamont Hill on HuffPost Live.

Carter did say he’s not in favor of the government being able to force churches to perform same-sex weddings.

Wheaton denied injunction against contraceptive mandate
Wheaton University in Illinois will be required to notify the federal government that it objects to providing emergency contraception through its employee healthcare plans, after a judge denied the school’s request for an injunction. That notification will allow health plan participants to receive free contraception coverage, Christianity Today reported.

“…[W]e remain hopeful for a time when the government will allow us to provide healthcare for our employees and their families in full accordance with our common faith,” said Wheaton President Philip Ryken.

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Marriage ruling finds favor with 49% of Americans, 28% of practicing Christians

Meredith Flynn —  July 7, 2015

The_Briefing

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

While 62% of American adults believed nationwide legalization of same-sex marriage was inevitable, slightly less than half (49%) are in favor of the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 26 decision in favor of it, Barna reports. 43% disagreed with the decision, and 7% were unsure how they felt about it, according to the researcher’s July 1 report.

When it comes to how Christians feel about the Court’s decision, Barna found, 28% of practicing Christians (defined as “those who say their faith is very important to their life and who have attended one or more church services during the past month”) approve of legalized same-sex marriage, compared to 43% of people who identify as Christians but don’t qualify as practicing.

Only 2% of evangelicals support the Court’s decision. Read the rest of Barna’s report at Barna.org.

U.S. Episcopal Church votes to approve same-sex marriage
Right after the Supreme Court made it legal nationwide, the U.S. Episcopal Church moved to approve same-sex marriage in the denomination, The Christian Post reports. Episcopal clergy are now authorized to perform same-sex marriages, but can opt out, according to two marriage-related resolutions passed in late June at the denomination’s General Convention.

The resolutions were opposed by 20 bishops who issued a minority report stating, “The nature, purpose, and meaning of marriage are linked to the relationship of man and woman,” and by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who said the decision “will cause distress for some and have ramifications for the Anglican Communion as a whole, as well as for its ecumenical and interfaith relationships.”

Church violence survivors share in Charleston grief
After nine people were killed in a South Carolina church last month, Southern Baptists who have experienced similar tragedies expressed their sympathy and grief over the June 17 shooting.

“I don’t know if you ever recover from something like that,” said Cindy Winters, whose husband, Fred, was killed in his Maryville, Ill., pulpit in 2009. “I think you learn how to get through it, but I don’t think you ever get over it this side of eternity,” Winters told Baptist Press. “I know one day I will when I’m with Jesus. Obviously only by the grace of God am I able to get up each day and go forward, and find beauty and meaning…and find goodness in living.”

Burned churches receive assistance from Baptist missions agency
African American churches in need of assistance after a recent spate of church fires can receive help from a fund established by the North American Mission Board, the domestic missions agency of the Southern Baptist Convention. “Southern Baptists should be the first to condemn acts of hatred toward African Americans,” NAMB President Kevin Ezell said, according to Baptist Press. “Regardless of the causes of these fires, as brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to come alongside and offer whatever assistance we can.”

None of the fires have been deemed hate crimes, and only some are suspected arsons. However, one confirmed arson case is Charlotte’s Briar Creek Road Baptist, a predominantly black Southern Baptist church.

Barnabas Piper: Parents, ‘Don’t fight unbelief in your kids’
“At least don’t think of it as fighting,” Piper said in an interview about his new book “Help My Unbelief.” “Belief, ultimately, is a miracle, death made life by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit can work in myriad ways, and questioning is a significant one,” Piper, son of preacher and author John Piper, told Ed Stetzer.

“As parents our job is to declare and display the work of the Spirit, our relationship with God, so that children can see where the answers to those questions truly lie. Don’t argue; answer. Don’t fight; exemplify. Don’t give up; pray.”

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Cultures in conflict are key topic at Southern Baptist Convention in Columbus

Meredith Flynn —  July 2, 2015

Columbus_SBC_blogNEWS | Lisa Sergent

The signs up at the Greater Columbus Convention Center read, “Welcome Southern Baptist Convention,” while banners on the lampposts declared “Gay Pride Festival.” With only a day separating these gatherings, their juxtaposition—and shared subject matter—was especially noticeable.

Awaiting the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, the case that will likely determine whether same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states, SBC leaders and messengers talked marriage and a host of other issues that threaten to isolate the gospel from the people who need it.

Columbus_blog“Whatever happens in the culture around us,” Russell Moore, president of the SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, reminded attenders at the Pastors’ Conference, “it does not take one bit more gospel to save the people protesting us than it took to save us, the people who were once protesting God.”

But there weren’t a lot of people protesting Southern Baptists in Columbus. In fact, for several years now, the controversial conversation has been inside the hall rather than parading the sidewalks outside, with messengers taking up issues—such as same-sex marriage and ministry to transgender people—that would not have been handled so candidly a decade or two ago.

“For most of this last century Southern Baptists have been comfortable in the culture in their soft cocoon,” Moore said in his convention report. “Some said that the Southern Baptist Zion was below the Mason-Dixon Line. Those days are gone, and not a moment too soon. Those days are over, thankfully.”

Southern Baptists are taking on hard issues.

Firm positions, softer hearts
“The mission of the church isn’t to un-gay people. The mission of the church is to win people to Christ,” Houston pastor Nathan Lino said at a breakfast hosted by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. He challenged churches, asking why they try to “run off” homosexuals and transgendered people. “Do you realize that it’s a miracle they are there? It’s because of God and it’s glorious.”

Former lesbian, now pastor’s wife Rosaria Butterfield agreed that salvation comes first. “I was not converted out of homosexuality, I was converted out of unbelief and then God went to work.” She spoke as part of a panel called “The Supreme Court and Same-Sex Marriage: Preparing Our Churches for the Future.” The panel was the first of its kind staged during a convention business meeting. Some panelists reinforced a fortress mentality for churches. Others introduced a new kind of missionary to the culture. Moore observed that Butterfield is probably the “Lottie Moon of the 21st century mission field, a Presbyterian ex-lesbian sitting right here.”

SBC President Ronnie Floyd framed the field this way: “The Southern Baptist Convention has not moved, the culture has moved. We stand on the Word of God that abides forever, always has been, and will forever be.”

‘Bonhoeffer moment’
On the final day of the convention, Floyd and eight past SBC presidents held a press conference stating their commitment to biblical marriage. The statement, endorsed by Floyd and 16 living past convention presidents, served notice to the nation and to the Supreme Court that they “will not recognize same-sex ‘marriages,’ our churches will not host same-sex ceremonies, and we will not perform such ceremonies.”

The presidents also stressed the need for churches to be prepared by having clear bylaws and constitutions that say what it means to be married in their churches.

Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, urged Christian colleges, universities, and seminaries to do the same. He said he could see a time when accreditation would be withheld from Christian educational institutions that do not approve of same-sex marriage or transgenderism.

Patterson said what concerns him most are the churches “that have never thought through their bylaws and constitutions. Challenges will probably come to those small churches that are ill-prepared.”

At the same press conference, Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, concurred: “We want to challenge pastors and church members. This is coming and it’s coming now. The trajectory is on breakneck speed…We encourage Christian leaders everywhere to make some noise and to be a voice.”

Other threats to religious liberty were also highlighted at the convention:
Former Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran spoke at the Pastors’ Conference. Cochran was fired from his position for stating on one page of his 160-page book, “Who Told You That You Were Naked?” that homosexuality is sinful. “There are self-inflicted sufferings and the ones God allows,” Cochran said. “What I’m experiencing is a God-allowed suffering that has nothing to do with me, but that God is using in and through me.”

And Barronelle Stutzman, the Washington state florist who was sued for not providing flowers for a same-sex wedding, made an appearance during the ERLC report. She lost her case and is in danger of losing her home and business. After Moore shared her story, she came to the stage for prayer.

“This is a Bonhoeffer moment for every pastor in the United States,” Floyd warned in a sermon citing the example of pastor and Nazi-fighter Dietrich Bonhoeffer. “We will not bow down nor will we be silent. We will hold up and lift up God’s authoritative truth on marriage. While we affirm our love for all people, we cannot deviate from God’s Word.”

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Tuesday Briefing: Same-sex marriages begin in all 50 states

Meredith Flynn —  June 30, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

All 50 states have begun issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Baptist Press reports, even those in which officials disagree with the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 26 ruling to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide.

The_Briefing“We don’t have a choice but to comply,” said Louisiana Governor and presidential candidate Bobby Jindal, “even though I think this decision was the wrong one.”

In Texas, the state’s attorney general said “numerous lawyers” are willing to defend officials who refuse to issue same-sex marriage licenses and therefore could face lawsuits and fines. Gov. Greg Abbott said, “Despite the Supreme Court’s ruling, Texans’ fundamental right to religious liberty remains intact.”

Read the full story at BPNews.net. And here’s a state-by-state update from CNN.

The Supreme Court’s decision continued to dominate headlines over the weekend, as Christian leaders and others offered a range of perspectives on what the country now faces:

In other news:

Six people were arrested after heckling Houston pastor Joel Osteen during a church service Sunday.

Among Barna’s findings on women and church: While only 5% name church or religious activities as their top time commitment, 22% say that’s the area of their life they’d most like to improve.

Almost the same number of Americans believe Islam is a threat to religious liberty at home and abroad, LifeWay Research reports in a new survey.

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Marriage ruling: What now for the church?

Meredith Flynn —  June 26, 2015

Church_blogNEWS | Following the Supreme Court’s decision Friday to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide, Christian leaders quickly weighed in on how churches should respond to the ruling.

“The challenge for Christians now is to speak the truth in love & to speak love in truth. Love of neighbor means we cannot lie about marriage,” tweeted Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.

Russell Moore, president of the SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, released a statement calling himself a “conscientious dissenter” from the Court’s decision.

“Despite this ruling,” Moore continued, “the church of Jesus Christ will stand fast. We will not capitulate on this issue because we cannot. To minimize or ignore a Christian sexual ethic is to abandon the message Jesus handed down to us, and we have no authority to do this.

“At the same time, now is not the time for outrage or panic. Marriage is resilient. God created it to be so. Marriage in the minds of the public may change, but marriage as a reality created by God won’t change at all. The church must now articulate and embody a Christian vision of marriage and work to rebuild a culture of marriage.”

Moore also issued a statement Friday along with other evangelical leaders, opposing the ruling and offering six “points of engagement” for churches:

1. Respect and pray for governing authorities.
2. Teach the truth about biblical marriage.
3. Affirm all persons are created in God’s image and deserve dignity and respect.
4. Love our neighbors regardless of disagreements over marriage.
5. Live respectfully alongside those with whom we disagree.
6. Cultivate a common culture of religious liberty.

Other leaders who signed the statement include Focus on the Family’s Jim Daly, author and radio host Nancy Leigh DeMoss, pastors Tony Evans, David Jeremiah and Matt Chandler, and theologian J.I. Packer. For the full statement and a list of signatories, go to ERLC.com/erlc/herewestand.

Prior to the Court’s decision, several past SBC presidents at the June 16-17 Southern Baptist Convention in Columbus, Ohio, signed a statement vowing they would not participate in same-sex unions. The presidents also stressed the need for churches to be prepared with clear bylaws and constitutions that say what it means to be married in their churches.

Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, said what concerns him most are the small and medium-sized churches “that have never thought through their bylaws and constitutions. Challenges will probably come to those small churches that are ill-prepared.”

GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention said Friday in a statement that while it will likely take weeks to determine the impact of the decision and next steps, “In the meantime, churches should work with their legal and accounting advisors to determine whether their governing, employment, building use and other documents or policies need to be reviewed in light of the expanding definition of marriage.”

GuideStone President O.S. Hawkins said, “GuideStone remains committed to advocating for the churches, ministries and pastors we serve during these days and will share information to help churches remain compliant in their health care and retirement plans.”

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Marriage ruling: What will you say on Sunday?

Meredith Flynn —  June 26, 2015

Springfield, Ill. | Illinois Baptist pastors and leaders shared what they will say Sunday to their congregations following Friday’s ruling by the Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage.

Fear and anger are responses that reflect lack of faith. Only in the gospel of Jesus Christ can all people find identity, hope, and peace. We as the church have our priorities set: Love the LORD your God…and love your neighbor…Nothing has changed about that. In fact, our opportunity is greater than ever. Now let’s continue our purpose of making, baptizing, and teaching disciples.
Scott Nichols, Crossroads Community Church, Carol Stream

Exactly what Dr. Ronnie Floyd said at the SBC Annual Meeting—love them, show them Jesus, but in no way will I or our church be involved in a same-sex union. We must not compromise God’s Word, even if it means lawsuits and jail time.
Bob Stilwell, First Baptist Church, Paxton

This is a matter that I have addressed before, especially in light of the fact that Illinois had previously declared same-sex marriage to be legal. I have spoken clearly from God’s Word about how and why it is wrong. I have spoken privately with numerous persons in my church family about this issue. I have discussed the potential ramifications for our church ministry and pastoral leadership.

Through it all, I have repeatedly reminded people that to declare this act as sin does not mean we don’t love those who practice it. God’s call to holiness leaves no sin untouched or insignificant. We are heartbroken by this decision from the Supreme Court. We pray for God’s mercy upon our nation and, as always, we seek to be messengers of God’s reconciling message of grace.
Odis Weaver, Friendship Baptist Church, Plainfield

Psalm 33:10-12 says that God’s purposes will always prevail no matter what. The very ruling of the Supreme Court will be used by God to further his purposes. We do not need to throw our hands up and think that God did not know this was going to happen.

Our very faith says that the worst possible legal decision [was] handed down by both Jewish and Roman courts to accomplish the salvation of God’s people. If God accomplished that much through the legal proceedings that sent our Lord to the cross, then we have no reason to fear any decision from any court under heaven. God reigns over every legal decision ever handed down so let us rejoice in our sovereign God who has his way in the whirlwind.
Phil Nelson, Lakeland Baptist Church, Carbondale

We will continue to teach God’s design for marriage and we will agree with God and call any activity that falls short of his design what the Bible calls it: sin. Since the Bible says in Romans 3:23-24 (NKJV), “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” we will love those who disagree with God’s design the way Jesus told us to love them, we will share with them how to receive His grace and redemption in Christ, and we will teach them to embrace God’s design by turning from what they want to what God wants.
Bob Dickerson, First Baptist Church, Marion

At Delta, we are going to use our pastoral prayer time to address all that has taken place today. We are going to shepherd our people by guiding them on what to do/not do and how to think/not think. We will point to Scripture as to the goodness of marriage and God’s design in how it relates to the gospel (Eph. 5). Then we will point our people toward the gospel, pointing out that it is all-sufficient even in times such as these, and that the gospel compels us to love our neighbor. We will look to the scriptures for encouragement on how all this holds together and then pray.
Jonathan Davis, Delta Church, Springfield

I understand it, I believe that we should love other folks, people that believe in same-sex marriage. I believe that we should love them and try to share the gospel with them just like we would anyone else. But when a person rejects the word of God, there’s nothing else we can do.

It’s not about us, it’s just about the Word of God. And I think it’s very plain and simple that [the ruling is] against what he says. I’m not concerned about how politicians feel about it, or the president, or the Supreme Court, or even [church members]. It’s just against the Word of God, and we are people who believe in the Word of God.

I know a lot of Christians may have different points of view on it, but that’s our take on it.
Marvin Parker, Broadview Missionary Baptist Church

This is just one more attempt to undermine God’s authority. But God will not be mocked. Keep praying to Jesus; and continue reaching out to the individual and show God’s love anyway we can to save them from an eternity in hell.
Jerry Higdon, New Hope Baptist Church, Coal Valley

While we may be outraged and angry about the Supreme Court’s ruling…our response must follow the biblical mandate to do what is honorable in the sight of God and thus the world. Anger only begets bitterness and eventually hate.

The church needs to steadfastly stand firm for biblical marriage and simultaneously demonstrate godly love, mercy and grace towards those bound up in sexual immorality and racial hatred by being light in the darkness.
Kevin Carrothers, Rochester First Baptist Church, who’s finishing a series of messages from Romans 12 on “Elevating Others”

The world around us is changing, but our God is unchanging and his Word stands forever. As a pastor, I would want my congregation to know that what God identifies as sin we must also identify as sin. Marriage in the Bible is the union of one man and one woman and is described in the Book of Ephesians, by the Apostle Paul, as a picture of Christ and his bride.

Therefore, I would declare before my congregation that if it meant being sued, fined, prosecuted or ultimately jailed, I WOULD NOT perform a same-sex marriage or allow the church to be used for such a union. And once I made that public statement, I would stand on my conviction, just as the early apostles did when it says in Acts 4:18-20, “So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.'”
Pat Pajak, Illinois Baptist State Association

It’s a sad day in America when five of the nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court voted to legalize same-sex marriage as a constitutional right. While the U.S. Supreme Court has spoken, they are not the final nor supreme word on this subject.

Long before there was a U.S. Supreme Court, there was and is and ever will be The Universal Supreme Court of Heaven which has the final and most supreme word on this subject. Here it is:

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth,b and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.’ (Gen. 1:26-28, NIV)

“The LORD God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.'” (Gen. 2:18, NIV)

“So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman, for she was taken out of man.’ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” (Gen. 2:21-25)

May God add His blessing to the reading and obedience to His word.
Michael Allen, Uptown Baptist Church, Chicago

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IBSA urges churches: Prepare for challenges to liberty

Meredith Flynn —  June 26, 2015

Court_columnsSpringfield, Ill. | Following the 5-4 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, the Illinois Baptist State Association urged measured and thoughtful action by church leaders to protect their congregations’ religious liberties.

“This split decision by the Supreme Court is indicative of the increasingly split moral fiber of our nation,” said IBSA Executive Director Nate Adams. “In times like these, it is reassuring to remember that God is neither surprised nor anxious about decisions made in human consciences or human courts. We must be resolute in trusting Him and in obeying in His word.”

The Court’s ruling comes after several years of argument over the legalization of same-sex unions and a shift in public opinion toward approval by a slight majority of Americans. In that time, Southern Baptists have taken stands defending a biblical definition of marriage as being between one man and one woman. Illinois Baptists opposed legalization of same-sex marriage in Illinois with a 2013 resolution approved by messengers at the IBSA Annual Meeting.

“For a few years now, leading up to the time ‘same sex marriage’ became legal in Illinois, IBSA has been seeking to inform and resource churches regarding steps they can take to protect their freedoms of speech and religious exercise,” Adams said. “In light of this latest Supreme Court ruling, we would again urge churches to be vigilant in pursuing the recommended steps in their constitutions and policy manuals to help protect those freedoms. On this issue, as on others before it, the local church and churches banding together in unity and cooperation are likely to be the primary opponents of laws that threaten religious freedom.”

IBSA offers several marriage-related resources at IBSA.org/marriage, including:

  • sample bylaws on marriage and church membership
  • a sample facilities use agreement
  • the 2011 and 2013 resolutions on marriage approved by messengers to the IBSA Annual Meeting

The Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission has published “Protecting Your Ministry,” a 44-page booklet designed especially for churches. The free guide may be downloaded at ERLC.com/store.

A number of Southern Baptist leaders have said the marriage issue would prove to be a dividing line among evangelicals.

“Even churches that have not been actively engaged in the defense of marriage issue must now be vigilant in defending their freedoms of speech and religious expression,” Adams said.

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Columbus Discoveries: What an ‘unlikely convert’ told the Southern Baptist Convention

Meredith Flynn —  June 23, 2015

Columbus, Ohio | Meredith Flynn

The most personal testimony shared publicly during the 2015 Southern Baptist Convention in Columbus, Ohio, came from a source most Baptists probably had never heard of prior to the meeting.

Rosaria Butterfield (second from left) was part of a panel discussion on same-sex marriage at the 2015 Southern Baptist Convention.

Rosaria Butterfield participated in a panel discussion Wednesday afternoon with some very familiar faces—men that have been instrumental in calling Baptists to a deeper reliance on the gospel when it comes to understanding how it intersects with cultural issues.

When it was her turn to speak, she delivered the truth, plain and simple:

“I often tell people I was not converted out of homosexuality,” said Butterfield, a former lesbian. “I was converted out of unbelief. And then the Lord started working on some other stuff.”

One reporter in the press room later commented they were glad Butterfield had been in Columbus, so that more people could hear her story. Her past and, in a different way, her present—her husband pastors a Reformed Presbyterian Church—set her apart from her audience in Columbus. But as she nodded encouragingly as the other panelists talked, and when she delivered the short version of her testimony with an almost-constant smile, the value of hearing from a new voice at the Southern Baptist Convention was clear.

As a professor at Syracuse University, Butterfield said she had finished the book she needed to write to achieve tenure and turned her attention to what she really wanted to write: “a critique of the religious right from a lesbian feminist point of view.”

In the process, she met a Christian pastor and his wife who invited her into their home (and visited hers) and truly befriended her. At first, “I thought I simply got free research assistants,” Butterfield told the audience in Columbus.

But after two years and reading through the Bible seven times, she said, “The Bible simply got to be bigger inside me than I. And one of the things that I realized was that I wanted Jesus.”

Butterfield’s fascinating testimony, detailed in her book “The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert: An English Professor’s Journey Into Christian Faith,” stands alone as encouragement to churches trying to reach out to their neighbors with genuine love and the truth of the gospel.

But it was what she said later in the discussion that could prove to be most helpful. In just a few minutes, Butterfield laid out a prescription for how the church can minister compassionately to the LGBT community:

Make your Christian community an accessible community. That means giving up ownership of our time, Butterfield said, and also gaining a more “collective” understanding of sin.

She quoted 1 Corinthians 10:13, about God providing a way of escape from temptation. “What if your home is the way of escape?” she asked.

Share “the means of grace” in a public way. How can Christians make repentance more known (and understood) among their neighbors?

Get to know the Bible—better than we do now. Time with the Lord is “a public community service,” Butterfield said. It’s how Christians get ready to speak a word of truth.

“Don’t deny the power of the gospel to change lives and to travel at the grassroots level,” Butterfield said near the end of the conversation. “Your friendships matter.”

For those listening to her story in Columbus, the power of the gospel was undeniable.

Watch the panel discussion, held during the Wednesday afternoon session of the Southern Baptist Convention, at http://live.sbc.net.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/ondemand.html.

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Tuesday Briefing: Wheaton removes Hastert’s name from policy center

Meredith Flynn —  June 2, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

Wheaton College has removed the name of former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert from the school’s public policy center, following Hastert’s indictment on charges he paid $1.7 million to cover up past sexual misconduct, and then lied to the FBI about it. J. Dennis Hastert Center for Economics, Government, and Public Policy opened in 2007.

Hastert resigned from the board of the J. Dennis Hastert Center for Economics, Government, and Public Policy May 29, and college officials announced the name change two days later in a statement on its website:

“We commit ourselves to pray for all involved, including Speaker Hastert, his family, and those who may have been harmed by any inappropriate behavior, and to continue the work and mission of the Wheaton College Center for Economics, Government, and Public Policy.”

Gallup: Americans are thinking less traditionally on moral issues
American views on key moral issues continue to trend in a less conservative direction, Gallup reports. According to research from May, “gay or lesbian relations” is morally acceptable to 63% of people, up from 40% in 2001. Also on the rise: perceived acceptability of having a baby outside of marriage, sex between an unmarried man and woman, divorce, and embyronic stem cell research.

Young people key in Ireland’s marriage vote
After a majority of Irish citizens voted to legalize same-sex marriage, Dublin’s Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said the vote is indicative of the Catholic Church’s relationship with young people. “I ask myself, most of these young people who voted yes are products of our Catholic school system for 12 years,” Martin told national Irish broadcaster RTE. “I’m saying there’s a big challenge there to see how we get across the message of the church.”

A new Gallup poll of American adults found 60% support same-sex marriage, an all-time high.

Coach withdraws from fundraiser amid controversy over group’s marriage stance
Clemson University football coach Dabo Swinney was to be honored by South Carolina’s Palmetto Family Council today along with “defenders of religious liberty” in the state. But after Swinney’s appearance at the conservative group’s fundraiser raised objections from Clemson students, GLAAD, and others, he withdrew from the event.

“I appreciate the recognition of my and the foundation’s efforts,” Swinney said, according to this ESPN report. “However, after much thought, in order to avoid a distraction for the team and the entire football program, I’ve decided it is in the best interests of all involved that I not attend the event on June 2.”

Subsidiary wins bid to purchase bankrupt Family Christian Stores
Family Christian Stores, the country’s largest Christian bookstore chain in number of locations, has avoided closure for now, Christianity Today reports. A bid to purchase the bankrupt company by FC Acquisitions, a subsidiary of Family Christian’s parent company, was awarded last week and must be approved by a bankruptcy court this month. The chain filed for bankruptcy in February.

Black Hawk Down vet graduates from Baptist seminary
Jeff Strueker, a hero of the Somalian conflict portrayed in the 2001 movie “Black Hawk Down,” recently received his Ph.D. in Christian leadership from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Baptist Press reports.

Church’s photo project restores Joplin
After a massive tornado barreled through Joplin, Mo., five years ago, First Baptist Church in nearby Carthage started a ministry to help restore and return lost family photos. The “Lost Photos of Joplin” project, begun by Minister of Music Thad Beeler, has returned more than 17,500 photos to people through reunification events.

“Why God landed [this ministry] here, I don’t know,” Beeler told The Pathway newspaper in Missouri. “But I do know that we chose to follow His lead, and we’re going to keep doing that until He shuts the door.”

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Tuesday Briefing: Scouts talk policy change–again

Meredith Flynn —  May 26, 2015

THE BRIEFING | Meredith Flynn

Boy Scouts of America President Robert Gates said last week that the organization should end its ban on gay leaders, a move that some Baptist leaders said was inevitable following the Scouts’ decision two years ago to allow gay-identifying youth to join.

The_Briefing“Back when they changed their thinking regarding the boys themselves, I knew that within a year or so they would reverse their stand with the leadership,” Georgia pastor Ernest Easley, chairman of the SBC Executive Committee in 2013, told Baptist Press. That year, messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention adopted a resolution affirming “the right of all families and churches prayerfully to assess their continued relationship with the BSA,” and urging the removal of leadership who sought the policy change “without seeking input from the full range of the Scouting family.”

Gates said May 21 that “Between internal challenges and potential legal conflicts, the BSA finds itself in an unsustainable position, a position that makes us vulnerable to the possibility the courts simply will order us at some point to change our membership policy. We must all understand that this probably will happen sooner rather than later.”

Mentioning councils already operating in defiance of the policy on gay leaders and the Supreme Court’s expected decision on same-sex marriage this year, Gates said, “We must deal with the world as it is, not as we might wish it would be.” The councils’ charters could be revoked, he said, but “such an action would deny the lifelong benefits of scouting to hundreds of thousands of boys and young men today and vastly more in the future. I will not take that path.”

Gates’ remarks reflect “an attitude that has infected many faith-based and religious organizations—and even entire Christian denominations,” blogged Joe Carter of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. “Like Gates, many religious leaders simply lack the courage to stand up to internally destructive dissidents for fear of losing the broader organization.”

LA Governor signs executive order for religious liberty
After legislators in his state struck down a religious freedom bill May 21, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal signed an executive order designed to protect “people, charities and family-owned businesses with deeply held religious beliefs that marriage is between one man and one woman.”

“We don’t support discrimination in Louisiana and we do support religious liberty,” Jindal said in the order. “These two values can be upheld at the same time.”

Gallup: Support for same-sex marriage at all-time high
60% of Americans support same-sex marriage, Gallup reported last week, up from 55% in 2014. The pollster also found Americans continue to overestimate the number of people who are gay or lesbian.

Theology debate among Arizona churches goes public
A group of churches in Arizona are working across denominational lines against the “progressive Christianity” they see evidenced at a sister church, Bob Smietana reports at ChristianityToday.com. The campaign, which includes a sermon series delivered at eight churches and advertised in the local paper, opposes the theology of The Fountains, a United Methodist church in Fountain Hills, Arizona. Pastor David Felten’s views include support for LBGT rights and rejection of the Virgin Birth, according to CT.

IMB missionary remembered in Malawi
An International Mission Board missionary who died of malaria last week is being remembered as “a mother to all.” Susan Sanson, 67, had been serving in Malawi with her husband, Billy, since 2000. The couple had no children, “but she didn’t feel the gap because we were all [her] children,” posted one student who knew her from her ministry at Chancellor College in Zomba, Malawi.

Illinois pastor details journey through anxiety
In an interview on Crossway.org, Joe Thorn, pastor of Redeemer Fellowship in St. Charles, shares about what he calls “the most difficult season in my personal life,” when anxiety got so bad he considered leaving ministry.

Millennials slightly less tuned in to TV
Barna’s report on what we watch on TV is fun and full of interesting facts, like the number of hours of television Millennials watch compared to older adults. (It’s two hours a day versus five for people 69 and over.) Other findings: Procedural shows scored big among Boomers and Elders, and almost everyone likes “The Big Bang Theory.”

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