April 7, 2003

Missionary resigns IMB, says
BF&M makes humans model for Jesus
___By Mark Wingfield
___Managing Editor
___The 2000 Baptist Faith & Message has it backward in describing the correlation between marriage and the union between Christ and the church, according to a veteran Southern Baptist Convention missionary who has resigned.
___Bill McCall and his wife, Judy, served 26 years in Togo with the Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board. He has been a seminary professor.
___Like an unknown number of other IMB missionaries, the McCalls have resigned rather than sign an affirmation of the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message as required by IMB President Jerry Rankin.
___The seminary professor's reason, however, is somewhat different than the explanations given by others who have not signed.
___He cites the document's Article 18 on the family. The second sentence of that section states that marriage "is God's unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and his church."
___That states the biblical teaching in reverse, McCall insists. "Does the Bible teach that marriage is God's unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and his church? I checked all of the Bible references given and could not find this. In effect, Paul taught the Ephesians the opposite, that Christ's relationship with the church teaches what the marriage relationship should be like."
___In Ephesians 5:22-32, verses cited by the SBC document, the Apostle Paul "puts the emphasis on Christ and his love for the church," McCall said. "The emphasis in this teaching is the responsibility of the man to ensure that the marriage relationship be correct in God's sight. To state that marriage is God's unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and his church reverses what the Bible states."
___Marriage may offer a good metaphor for the relation between Christ and the church if the marriage is good, McCall explained, but Jesus offers a more perfect example for marriage. "Jesus always fulfills his responsibilities to the church; therefore he is a perfect example, always. Man is an imperfect example; Christ is the perfect example."
___To test his reading of the passage, the professor copied the second paragraph of this article from the Baptist Faith & Message and showed it to his third-year New Testament students without explaining the statement's origin. He asked the students to find biblical references to support the statement as drafted by the SBC.
___"When I asked them how it was coming, they were apparently troubled," he said. "Since they thought I had written the statements, they were reluctant to criticize them. When I explained that I had not written them, they were quite free in stating that they could not find any references to support this very part of the statements that had troubled me."
___McCall said he could not in good conscience sign and pledge to teach in accordance with such a doctrinal statement.
___"That does not mean that I question the need for accountability to our board," he said. "It does mean that if I find conflict between my accountability to the IMB and my accountability to the word of God, I must be accountable to God according to my understanding of his word and my conscience."
___Despite this painful decision, the McCalls contend they have no anger.
___"We are not mad at anyone," he said. "We still pray for and support our missionaries. ... God's task has not changed, but our place and opportunities for service have changed."

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