March 22, 2000
Texas Baptist Forum
Plan for Orlando
___In just a few weeks now, June 13-14, the Southern Baptist Convention will convene in Orlando, Fla. This year's convention theme is "Partners in the Worldwide Harvest" and will provide churches and messengers with the greatest insight into what is happening in the international mission scene that has ever been provided to audiences on this side of thegreat oceanic divides.
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___In addition to this wonderful experience, we are asking each church to consider electing one interested spiritually minded teenager as a messenger to this year's convention in an effort to begin the passing of the torch to a younger generation. We are asking God that the number of churches represented at the convention through their messengers this year might actually double over last year's participation.
___Therefore, please plan to ask your church if you can be a messenger now. We will see you in Orlando with the world on our hearts and the hope of Christ held before us.
___ Paige Patterson, President
___ Southern Baptist Convention
___ Wake Forest, N.C.
The evil of evil
___We are born into this world as innocents, accountable to God for the days ahead. The evil of evil is the speed this blessed unique time of innocence is being taken from us.
___Evil is not man-made or God-made. Evil is the outcome of rebellion in heavenly places. Evil became an identity all its own. Its core turned to hate, and its motivation is desire. This becomes part of humanity because there is seemingly some kind of exterior osmosis, and it just soaks in.
___I am part of the oldest generation. What I knew when I was 19, boys now know when they are 10. Our innocents are being subjected to all nature of information, termed as desirable knowledge--secretly, openly, blatantly--with a serpentine tongue to say, "To make you wise." The evil of this evil is the fact the instructor of this course is condemned.
___No wonder our young see purpose in notoriety and skill in murder.
___God help us see our purpose is to honor the God who made us and to be part of the group he asked to subdue the world.
___ Ford Falkner
___ Belton
Much in common
___Recently, I called (Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Director) Charles Wade's office in response to the letter he sent to all the pastors. We played a brief game of phone tag until he reached me.
___I was impressed he found time to call one pastor of a small Baptist church in East Texas. Even more humbling was the fact he called from home. In the course of our 30-minute conversation, I asked all the big questions--virgin birth, homosexuality, abortion and his relationship with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. I found honest answers that showed we had much, much more in common than we did not.
___Common sense should tell every Texas Baptist that if we had "liberal" leadership or leanings we, the BGCT, would decline like other mainline denominations, but that simply isn't the case. In regard to unanswered questions about the positions of the BGCT from its leadership, that simply isn't the truth. By the way, my understanding of John 8:32 is that Jesus is the Truth, and he is the only one who brings freedom.
___ Phillip F. Miller
___ Blossom
Positions published
___A recent letter indicated a desire to know the position of the BGCT on abortion, homosexuality and ordination of women as senior pastors (March 8). The BGCT has made its positions clear.
___The convention has expressed opposition to abortion on numerous occasions--seven times since 1980.
___The BGCT also has spoken forthrightly on the matter of homosexuality. In 1996, the convention approved a committee's report on homosexuality that declared, "The Bible teaches that the ideal for sexual behavior is the marital union between husband and wife and that all other sexual relations--whether premarital, extramarital or homosexual--are contrary to God's purposes and thus sinful. Homosexual practice is therefore in conflict with the Bible."
___As for the ordination of women, Baptists have traditionally maintained ordination is strictly a local-church matter. The BGCT respects the autonomy of local churches.
___The position of the BGCT on these and some other issues has been published in two pamphlets, "Answers to Some Questions" and "For Your Information." Copies are available by calling (888) 731-2667; also visit the BGCT web site: www.bgct.org.
___ Bob Polk
___ Dallas
Majority disturbed
___I could not let Van Christian's letter (March 15) go unchallenged. He called Jack Graham's claims outrageous for suggesting 40 percent of the Baptist churches are not content with the direction of the BGCT.
___Christian should have attended a meeting between the Kaufman and Van Zandt Baptist associations with Charles Wade. Christian is right about one thing: It is not 40 percent in our two associations of 58 churches and missions. It is more like 98 percent who are deeply concerned about the direction of our state convention.
___Christian asked for cold, hard facts. Well, in our two associations, the fact is the overwhelming majority are disturbed about the BGCT.
___ Mark Moore
___ Canton
Produce proof
___I was taken back by Jon Gardner's assertion that "philosophical reasons" are not the cause of the disassociation of several Texas churches with the BGCT, but rather that the "pro-abortion, anti-scriptural stances" of the BGCT have been the impetus for the breaking away (March 15).
___I would offer Gardner his own challenge to produce any written or verbal representation of the BGCT as "pro-abortion, anti-scriptural."
___Realizing perception is reality to all of us, let us be cautious in making claims that are inflammatory and without base.
___ Joan Parmer Barrett
___ Temple
Jesus favors penalty
___Regarding the death penalty, what would Jesus do? He would do exactly as he did in the Old Testament and as he promised in the New Testament.
___Jesus, as the Word, instructed Moses to write the death penalty for a large number of crimes that were essential to the society of his day.
___Jesus promised to kill non-Christian foes in the Revelation (19:21). Jesus promised to send non-Christians to a fate far worse than death--to be tortured in the lake of fire forever.
___We Christians are witnesses to Christ's love and sacrifice for all men. But the opposite of Christ's love is his wrath to non-Christians. When we fail to be faithful witnesses, we share in the guilt of the spiritual death penalty of others.
___Does Jesus favor the death penalty? Yes.
___ Herbert Warren
___ Whitehouse
Why Truett
___To those who are wondering why we need Truett Seminary (March 8), I have the answer--women.
___Fundamentalists have decided women cannot be called by God into ministry. I don't know what they do with Phoebe (Romans 16). Therefore, without Truett, Logsdon and others, we would have a real brain drain. Some very talented, intelligent ministry prospects would go to the Methodists and Presbyterians. We Baptists need all the help we can get in winning this state and this world for Christ.
___ Janet Henderson
___ Corpus Christi
The 'best week'
___Two summers ago, our family attended the Texas Baptist Family Reunion Week, sponsored by the BGCT, in Glorieta, N.M. That week was the best vacation we have ever had.
___The mornings were filled with a choice of inspirational and applicable sessions, while the glorious afternoons were for hiking, sight-seeing, shopping, visiting and other modes of choice family time. Finally, the evenings were filled with huge camp-style meetings, complete with glorious congregational singing, musical worship that was the "best of the best," heart-touching testimonials and awe-inspiring preachers.
___My children still refer to that week as the "best week of their lives." My young son asked, "Do you think heaven will be just like our week in Glorieta?"
___We are anxiously awaiting the Reunion 2000 week, which is to be held in Glorieta again this summer. What a wonderful time for all Baptists to join together for a taste of heaven!
___ Jan Semple McKinney
___ Paris
Problem with Richard Land
___The Southern Baptist Convention's Richard Land "lashed out" (March 8) at Sen. JohnMcCain for calling Pat Roberston and Rev Jerry Falwell "agents of intolerance" and comparing them to Rev Al Sharpton and Rev Louis Farrakhan. Land called Sharpton and Farrakhan "racists and hate-mongers."
___Where was Land when Pat Robertson was calling McCain's campaign manager a "vicious bigot"?
___Why does Land think he has the right to call Sharpton and Farrakhan "racists" and "hate-mongers"? Have they spoken in opposition to hate-crimes legislation? Have they made political speeches at Bob Jones University? Do they send their children to Falwell's Liberty University? Have they "no opinion" on whether the Confederate Battle Flag should fly over the capitol of South Carolina (or over the capitol of any other state)?
___Since Land and some other SBC officials are enthused about boycotts, have they considered joining the NAACP's boycott of South Carolina because of the flag over the capitol? What better way to show the world that the SBC is no longer a racist organization?
___I think Southern Baptists should be asking Richard Land why he feels obligated to defend Falwell and Robertson when someone such as John McCain speaks the truth about them.
___Carl L Hess
___Ozark, Ala.
Pass the corned beef
___The latest controversy in the Catholic church is whether the bishops should give dispensation on eating corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's day during Lent, since it falls on a meatless Friday this year. Apparently the bishops are divided, with some dioceses relenting and others requiring strict adherence to Lenten abstinence. Of course a good Catholic may still honor the saint with the traditional meal as long as he consumes it in
___Before we Baptists become too smug about such blarney (what a blessing if our pastors were arguing about such trivia rather than about splitting the convention), let us remember that we have leaders who advocate the principle of the pastor making spiritual decisions for his congregants. Whether it is boycotting Disney or the meaning of authority in a marriage, Baptists long ago learned from Scripture that such decisions are best left to the individual believer under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Before we abandon priesthood of the believer in our churches, let us reflect on how easily even well intentioned authority can degenerate into Phariseeism. Pass the corned beef !
___ Dolan McKnight
___Richardson
Bible says 'Judge not'
___One would think that if a person is literate and a self-judged committed Christian, he would also be knowledgeable of the contents of the Bible. However this does not seem to be true of Roger Moran (Feb. 23). If he had researched the Bible instead of the people he
___Others in our day see it as their ministry for the Lord to try and work things out for the right even if it means associating with people all of whose views they do not share. Like Christ, they are not contaminated. I am surprised that some pastors of large churches have been taken in by this man's smut-peddling--or do they just want to be?
___The Bible also says, "Judge not that you be not judged" and "'Vengeance is mine; I shall repay,' says the Lord."
___So that is God's business, and he will handle it.
___Mrs. John A. Moore
___Brownwood
Truett Seminary is needed
___Why a seminary at Baylor, indeed (March 8)!
___Like most Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary graduates, I attended seminary under the able leadership of many great Christian men who made an effort to teach us
___For this, one by one, they were removed, starting with the most fiscally responsible seminary president in the history of religion. They were all spitefully replaced with out-of-state politically influenced people, not Texans or people who identify with our culture.
___Not since the Reconstruction has Texas had such a slap in the face. Texans built Southwestern to glorify God, not church politics.
___That's why we need Truett Seminary. It is being built on the same compass we originally built Southwestern. Unfortunately, it has been built in a reactionary atmosphere, but God will use it greatly, as he has used Southwestern in the past.
___Many Texans are not willing to ignore God's "called" female prophets or otherwise disrespect women as inferior creatures. God had much to say about those who cause division, disruption, confusion and unrest in his church.
___Charles Placker
___Victoria
Take up the cross
___The emphasis on the changing model of missions (March 1) is good.
___The essential, the thing that does not change but is too often overlooked, however, was never mentioned. It was set forth by Christ himself and has never changed; although often
___Or, as enunciated by Jesus to his disciples after Peter's great confession: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it" (Matthew 16:24-25).
___This is the essential too often ignored in today's world. The too-frequent result: "We abide by ourselves, alone!"
___Joseph Underwood
___Richmond, Va.
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