December 30, 2002

Missouri convention criticizes William Jewell
___JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.--Leaders of the Missouri Baptist Convention, aided by the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, have taken aim at William Jewell College, accusing the Baptist school of advancing a "homosexual agenda."
___A subcommittee of the Missouri Baptist Convention's Executive Board has begun an inquiry into the matter, which has been fanned via Internet stories published by Baptist Press, a unit of the SBC Executive Committee in Nashville, Tenn.
___Following a pattern of the Missouri Baptist Convention's new leadership and of Baptist Press' frequent reports on homosexuality, the alleged problems at William Jewell have been portrayed as the result of a link to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.
___"A growing Cooperative Baptist Fellowship influence has been noted at William Jewell in recent years," one Baptist Press report proclaimed.
___William Jewell is an institution of the Missouri Baptist Convention, from which it receives some funding, but has no formal relationship to the CBF, a breakaway group of moderate Baptists disaffected by the SBC's conservative swing over the last 20 years.
___SBC leaders repeatedly have attempted to paint the CBF as friendly to homosexuals, charges CBF leaders have denied.
___Fundamentalists came to power in the Missouri Baptist Covnention in part through massive mailings of l

"We will not cede control of William Jewell to the Executive Board of the Missouri Baptist Convention." --College President David Sallee

iterature lambasting the CBF and former Missouri Baptist Convention leaders who in any way brushed up against the CBF. This literature, published by the Missouri Baptist Laymen's Association, attempted to link the CBF, former Missouri Baptist Convention leaders, support for homosexuality and support for abortion through a series of events critics called "guilt by association."
___As a result of the changing leadership of the Missouri Baptist Convention, five state convention institutions have amended their charters to declare self-perpetuating boards. William Jewell, located in Liberty, Mo., is not one of those, however, because the school has been governed by an independent, self-perpetuating board of trustees since its founding in 1849.
___The state convention provides about 3 percent of the university's annual budget, and the college identifies itself as a Missouri Baptist school.
___In a Dec. 10 meeting with the state convention's Executive Board, William Jewell President David Sallee defended the university's approach to education.
___"There are some who want us to adopt the model of indoctrination, simplifying truth to easily digestible nuggets and translating it into uniform action, both personal and corporate," he said. "We cannot do that. Diversity of views, ambiguity and creative conflict are necessary parts of the enterprise of higher education. ... As a result, we expect our college to address any and all topics, confident in the academic freedom we enjoy. We also expect that freedom, like every freedom, to be exercised responsibly."
___Sallee also sounded a decisive warning to the state convention that he will not be swayed by fundamentalism.
___"We will not cede control of William Jewell to the Executive Board of the Missouri Baptist Convention," he declared.
___"Decisions about how the college is managed are made by our board of trustees, by our faculty and administration, not by others. At this moment in the history of William Jewell College, it must be clearly and firmly stated that we will vigorously defend both the way we do our work and the systems of governance under which we operate."
___State convention President Kenny Qualls, however, told Sallee he believes a Baptist university should not allow free discussion of all matters.
___"We want your students to hear, 'Thus saith the Lord,'" Qualls said. "I think the spotlight is on the students and also on the faculty and you as the administrator of William Jewell. I think you ought to stand up and say this is what we believe and what the Bible teaches. I find nothing in Scripture where the opposite view of what God said is brought before the people."
___In seven stories over an 11-day period in early December, Baptist Press highlighted four primary charges against William Jewell:
___ The student senate has debated whether to add the phrase "sexual orientation" to the anti-discrimination portion of William Jewell's student bill of rights.
___ Patricia Schoenrade, chairwoman of the university's psychology department, has charged she sees a pattern of accepting homosexuality at the college and therefore warned the souls of students are at risk.
___ Two recent campus speakers, Jean Carnahan and Paul Duke, were deemed offensive by conservative Missouri Baptists.
___ The university's theater department will stage a student production of "The Vagina Monologues" in February. The Eve Ensler play features graphic talk about female sexuality.
___Roger Moran, leader of the Missouri Baptist Laymen's Association and a key leader in fundamentalists' rise to power in the state convention, called the play "sick" and "one more wretched, depraved example of what theological liberalism will produce."
___"This is what's wrong with the trustees at William Jewell," Moran said. "They have lost their biblical understanding that sin is serious. And because of that, they have become blinded to the necessity for holiness and moral purity."
___While defending academic freedom and inquiry into matters of contemporary concern, William Jewell President Sallee told a subcommittee of the state convention that the college administration and trustees are not advancing a homosexual agenda.
___Controversy has been generated on campus by a small number of students, he said.
___For example, if the amendment to the student senate's bill of student rights is approved, "it won't affect how the school handles threats of discrimination," Sallee said. Actions by the student senate are not binding on the college.
___"We offer a great liberal arts education," he said. "We are proud of the multiple views that are presented. You can find people on all sides of the issues. If we're going to provide students a good education, we've got to give them multiple views. Kids need to hear both (Jim) Talent and (Jean) Carnahan and Paul Duke and then make a decision for themselves."
___Carnahan, who was defeated by Talent in a November Senate race, was the school's 2002 commencement speaker. She is a Democrat and a longtime Baptist but was shunned by fundamentalist Baptists in Missouri who have labeled her a pro-abortion and pro-homosexual politician.
___Duke, who delivered William Jewell's 2002 baccalaureate address, is a former New Testament professor at Mercer University's McAfee School of Theology in Georgia.
___No accusation has been made that either Carnahan or Duke even mentioned homosexuality in their campus presentations. Rather, the objections have been based on the fact that some Missouri Baptists don't like the choice of campus speakers.
___In the environment of a college, students should learn to engage in respectful dialogue about contemporary issues, Sallee told the state convention board. "One of our goals is to help our students learn how to work through such difficult issues in a disciplined fashion.
___"We have always been a Baptist college, and we plan always to be a Baptist college. We have long been a faithful partner of the Baptists of Missouri and I hope you will support our endeavors to provide a Christian education to our students," he said.
___

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