Tag: Southern Baptists

Russell Moore Befuddles and Angers Many with Reformation Day Tweet

Wendy Wilson

Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), kicked up a storm Tuesday with a Reformation Day tweet in which he portrayed himself as a theological giant serving as a bridge between Protestantism and Catholicism. The tweet featured a photo of bobblehead dolls of Pope Francis, Moore and Martin Luther, with Moore standing between Francis and Luther. The tweet carried the words “A uniter, not a divider. #Ref0500.” Tuesday marked the 500th anniversary of the day Luther, a German monk, launched the Protestant Reformation with the posting of his 95 Theses. The movement led to a break with the Catholic Church and the creation of Protestant denominations, eventually including Baptist groups. Moore’s tweet confused and angered many conservative Protestants on social media. Many said he was minimizing the Reformation and also the doctrinal differences that continue to exist between Catholics and Protestants. Some called out Moore for being arrogant. Some took his tweet as a harmless joke, but others said that while it may have been a joke, it was an inappropriate one. Here are some of the comments tweeted Moore’s way in response: What denomination are you again? Was your account hacked? Seems a little…presumptuous,…

Read the full story

Union University Faces Backlash From Alumni Over Faculty Signing Nashville Statement

Wendy Wilson

  More than 400 Union University alumni have signed a letter of protest over the president and three faculty members signing the Nashville Statement, an evangelical declaration that upholds traditional marriage and describes homosexuality and transgenderism as sinful. Union University is a Southern Baptist school in Jackson, Tennessee. The letter of protest illustrates the challenges faced by conservative religious institutions as they seek to continue being an influence at a time when progressive ideas are becoming entrenched in the culture. Signed by recent graduates as well as some who graduated decades ago, the letter calls the Nashville Statement “a declaration of bigotry and condemnation that is a far cry [from] the faith, hope, love, and acceptance we were taught was the hallmark of the faith of Union University.” The Nashville Statement was approved Aug. 25 at a meeting of evangelical leaders in Nashville and was named for the city in keeping with a historical Christian practice of naming doctrinal statements for the places where they were written. Many of the initial signatories were Southern Baptists. The Union University alumni letter takes issue with various aspects of the Nashville Statement, including a section that says faithful Christians cannot agree to disagree about homosexual behavior…

Read the full story

Southern Baptist Ethics And Religious Liberty Commission Speaks Out Against Military Transgender Policy

Wendy Wilson

  Southern Baptist leaders object to the U.S. Army’s new mandatory transgender sensitivity training, reports Baptist Press. The training follows last year’s repeal of a ban on transgender men and women serving openly in the armed forces. Former President Obama’s defense secretary set a deadline of July 1 for fully implementing the new policy across all branches of service. Current Secretary of Defense James Mattis recently announced a six-month delay in enlisting transgender people, but those currently enlisted are allowed to transition. Soldiers are being told they must accept soldiers of the opposite sex who feel they have a different gender in barracks, bathrooms and showers. Andrew Walker, director of policy studies for the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), told Baptist Press that Army leaders’ acquiescence “to the demands of transgender activists is misguided.” “Most problematically, the Army is complicit in advancing a worldview that tells fundamental distortions about what it means to be a man or a woman,” Walker said. “The Army’s actions overlook the protests of dissenting soldiers uncomfortable with the idea of sharing private spaces with members of the opposite sex, which also pose risks to religious liberty. “It is unfortunate and lamentable that a venerable…

Read the full story

Baptist Pastor Resigns From Board Over Mosque Dispute

Wendy Wilson

The pastor of a large church near Knoxville has resigned from the board of a Southern Baptist missionary agency because of the board’s support for the construction of a New Jersey mosque involved in a legal dispute. Dean Haun, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Morristown resigned in November from the International Mission Board (IMB), on which he had served as a trustee. Haun objected to the IMB joining a friend of the court brief last May supporting the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge, N.J., in a religious discrimination lawsuit. Haun told the Baptist Press that Southern Baptists and Muslims advocate different doctrines and that Scripture forbids “unholy alliances.” “I understand the religious liberty aspect of the entire argument. But I do not understand why the International Mission Board, with our mission to reach the world for Christ, would have to jump into the fray of a mosque being built in New Jersey,” Haun said. In December, a judge ruled that a local planning board violated federal law by requiring the mosque to include more parking than is required for churches and synagogues. The township, which is considering an appeal, maintained that more parking was needed because of the mosque’s unique…

Read the full story