BGCT board asks Houston Baptist University to sever ties with SBTC_53104

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Posted: 5/28/04

Michael Bell, pastor of Greater St. Stephen First Baptist Church in Fort Worth, helped negotiate the original relationship agreement between HBU and the BGCT.

BGCT board asks Houston Baptist
University to sever ties with SBTC

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

DALLAS–The Baptist General Convention of Texas wants Houston Baptist University to rescind its “fraternal relationship” with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention. And the convention will escrow most funds budgeted for the university until the matter is settled.

With only about a dozen dissenting votes, the BGCT Executive Board voted May 25 to approve a recommendation from the BGCT Christian Education Coordinating Board asking HBU to cut ties with the competing state convention.

Fewer than 20 members of the 234-member board voted in favor of an amendment that would have softened the language of the motion.

The board also affirmed the coordinating board's decision to escrow funds budgeted for HBU, except for financial aid to ministerial students.

HBU President Doug Hodo declined to comment on the board's action.

With only about a dozen dissenting votes, the BGCT Executive Board voted to ask Houston Baptist University to cut ties with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.

Last September, university trustees voted to establish a fraternal relationship with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, a group that broke away from the BGCT in 1998.

The university's governing body made that decision two years after signing an agreement to “maintain a unique affiliation with the BGCT by not affiliating or establishing a formal relationship with other denominations, conventions or religious entities.”

In response, messengers to the 2003 BGCT annual meeting approved a motion instructing the Christian Education Coordinating Board to “evaluate the implications” of the university's relationship with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and clarify its status with the BGCT.

The motion by Robert Creech of University Baptist Church in Houston instructed the coordinating board to report to the BGCT Executive Board at its May meeting.

A six-person review committee of the coordinating board concluded HBU's fraternal relationship with the SBTC “violates the spirit and intent” of the BGCT's agreement with the university.

“HBU has chosen to relate to a convention that has been publicly critical of the BGCT, that holds certain differing values and convictions from those expressed by the BGCT, and that has openly encouraged churches to divert Cooperative Program funds in ways that have negatively impacted all of the ministries of the BGCT, including the affiliated and related institutions,” the committee report stated.

“Failure on the part of the BGCT to address this violation of the relationship agreement … would set a precedent for our other educational and ministry institutions that would not be in the best interests of the BGCT and those institutions.”

The BGCT Executive Board voted to affirm the review committee's report, as submitted by the Christian Education Coordinating Board and to reaffirm the 2001 relationship agreement between HBU and the BGCT.

Based on what the committee termed the “clear language” of that agreement, the board asked HBU trustees to rescind the fraternal relationship between the university and the SBTC.

The board also affirmed the coordinating board's decision to escrow most budgeted funds for HBU–effective June 1–until the school's trustees “respond positively” to the board's request or until the coordinating board determines “appropriate levels of future spending” for the university.

Money earmarked as financial aid for ministerial students will not be affected by the escrow. The BGCT budgeted about $750,000 for HBU this year, including $169,000 for ministry students.

The Executive Board rejected an amendment by Ed Seay, pastor of First Baptist Church in Magnolia and an HBU trustee, that would have asked HBU's board to “redefine and defend” rather than “rescind” its relationship with the SBTC.

The Executive Board rejected an amendment by Ed Seay, pastor of First Baptist Church in Magnolia and an HBU trustee, that would have asked HBU's board to "redefine and defend" rather than "rescind" its relationship with the SBTC.

“The idea most of the trustees have concerning the fraternal relationship is not to step away from the BGCT but to reach out to the thousands of young people in churches whose pastors have led them away from the BGCT,” Seay said.

He appealed to the board “not to communicate something that can be interpreted as a veiled threat.”

But Craig Vire, pastor of Bethesda Baptist Church in Burleson and chairman of the coordinating board review committee, said the BGCT entered into a relationship agreement with HBU in good faith.

“The 'unique relationship' language of that agreement is clear and unambiguous in the opinion of the committee,” he said.

“The fraternal relationship violates the spirit and intent of the relationship agreement.”

Vire indicated that while the HBU trustees interpreted a “unique relationship” to mean “one of a kind,” the BGCT intended from the beginning that it mean “one and only.”

Michael Bell, pastor of Greater St. Stephen First Baptist Church in Fort Worth, helped negotiate the original relationship agreement between HBU and the BGCT.

He insisted the BGCT made substantial concessions to HBU in those negotiations, prompted by HBU's unilateral decision to change the way its trustees were elected and reduce BGCT representation on the board.

Both sides “left the table” clear about what the terms of the agreement meant, he said. “We have not been ogres. We negotiated in good faith … then went beyond the extra mile.”

Randall Scott, pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Paris, agreed the BGCT had done everything possible to accommodate the HBU board.

The convention acted “in good faith” when it reached a relationship agreement with HBU in 2001, and then HBU trustees two years later changed their interpretation of it, he said.

“What does that say about their integrity? What message does that send to students?” he asked.

Larry Womack, an HBU alumnus and pastor of Copperfield Baptist Church in west Houston, urged the board to support the amendment, saying the review committee's language would “drive a wedge” between the university and the BGCT.

Womack called on the BGCT to “turn the other cheek” and “adjust the language so we don't alienate them.”

Roxi Vanstory from Oakwood Baptist Church in New Braunfels asked if any other BGCT entities had relationships with the SBTC.

Keith Bruce, coordinator of BGCT institutional ministries, replied HBU is the only BGCT-affiliated institution that relates to the SBTC.

Texas Baptist Men–a self-governing affiliate of the convention that receives BGCT budget funding–has a fraternal relationship with the break-away convention.

The Korean Baptist Fellowship of Texas also has a similar relationship but lost BGCT funding when it established formal ties to the SBTC.

BGCT Executive Director Charles Wade explained the BGCT “made an accommodation” for Texas Baptist Men because of the awkward situation some lay leaders of the group faced when their churches pulled away from the BGCT. “But our institutions are different,” he said.

Wade, Bruce and BGCT President Ken Hall all noted escrowing funds is a temporary measure, and the BGCT wants to continue its relationship with HBU.

“We intend to continue the dialogue,” Hall said, expressing his desire to “redeem the relationship” with HBU.

In other business, Wade and consultant Sherrill Spies presented a progress report on the revisioning and restructuring process in the BGCT.

A 17-member strategy committee will conduct listening sessions around the state this summer and survey as many Texas Baptists as possible.

Wade will work with the group to develop a report with specific recommendations for the BGCT Administrative Committee to consider Sept. 2-3 and for Executive Board action Sept. 28.

The BGCT Executive Board also:

bluebull Approved charter changes for East Texas Baptist University, Hardin-Simmons University and Howard Payne University. The technical changes concerned matters such as board sizes, eliminating archaic language and bringing charters into compliance with state and federal laws.

bluebull Affirmed an amended relationship agreement between the BGCT and Baptist Health Services, a foundation created from the proceeds of the sale of Baptist Health Systems in San Antonio.

The revised agreement extends the geographic scope of the new foundation to include not only Bexar County, but also all contiguous counties.

It also stipulates that the chief executive officer of the foundation be a Baptist, requires the foundation to use outside investment advisers, and clarifies issues regarding the board's structure and transition to a 16-member governing board with 12 elected by the BGCT and four elected by the board itself.

bluebull Approved the 2003 financial audit, provided by the Grant Thornton agency and reviewed by the audit committee. Auditors issued an unqualified or “clean” opinion.

The auditors found no material weaknesses or evidence of fraud. The only concern they cited was the need to fill the vacant controller/assistant treasurer position as soon as possible.

New board members elected

Baptist Foundation of Texas

bluebull Kim Askew, Park Cities Baptist Church, Dallas

Wayland Baptist University

bluebull Gene Meacham, First Baptist Church, Hale Center

Baptist Health System Foundation

bluebull Mary Brogan, Shearer Hills Baptist Church, San Antonio

bluebull Ray Dinstel, Crossroads Baptist Church, San Antonio

bluebull Alice Gong, First Chinese Baptist Church, San Antonio

bluebull Connie Jones, First Baptist Church, Boerne

bluebull Roland Lopez, Northwest Hispanic Church, San Antonio

bluebull Bill McCandless, Trinity Baptist Church, San Antonio

bluebull Philip McCraw, Baptist Temple, San Antonio

bluebull Kim Moore, First Baptist Church, Boerne

bluebull Sam Pearis, First Baptist Church, Universal City

bluebull Dale Wood, Trinity Baptist Church, San Antonio

BGCT Executive Board

bluebull Nestor Menjivar, Iglesia Bautista Principe de Paz, Austin

bluebull Glen Mitchell, Faith Baptist Church, Iowa Park

bluebull Joel Odom, Oak Hills Baptist Church, Floresville

bluebull Gene Shelburne, Crestview Baptist Church, Midland

Ferrell Foster of Texas Baptist Communications contributed to this report.

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