DECATUR, Ga.—Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Moderator Doug Dortch appointed a Houston pastor to a five-member ad hoc committee that will oversee implementation of the Illumination Project.
Steve Wells, pastor of South Main Baptist Church in HoustonSteve Wells, pastor of South Main Baptist Church in Houston, will serve on the committee, designed to create a cooperative and collaborative way to address potentially divisive matters, such as LGBTQ issues.
The CBF governing board adopted the project at the general assembly in Greensboro, N.C., to build and strengthen unity through cooperation across the Fellowship.
The Illumination Project is a process of discernment and accompaniment involving CBF congregational leaders to shed light on the qualities that have built unity in CBF and identify intentional efforts by which the Fellowship can maintain and grow unity through cooperation.
‘More light and less heat’
Designed to create models of dialogue and decision-making for a cooperative body, the Illumination Project aims to provide “more light and less heat” in situations where the Fellowship finds itself in conflict or has varying convictions, CBF officials said.
In consultation with CBF Executive Coordinator Suzii Paynter, Dortch selected Charlie Fuller, minister for congregational life at Second Baptist Church in Little Rock, Ark., to serve as the committee’s chair.
“As a former dean of the School of Fine Arts at Ouachita Baptist University, Charlie knows how to manage diverse viewpoints and personalities,” Dortch said. “As a church staff member, he understands how conversations on potentially controversial topics have a bearing on local congregations. As a valued governing board member, he has made many valuable contributions to our work together. He is, without question, the right person for this responsibility.”
Serving with Fuller and Wells on the committee are Paul Baxley, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Athens, Ga.; Kasey Jones, past CBF moderator and senior pastor at National Baptist Memorial Church in Washington, D.C.; and Rebecca Wiggs, an attorney in Jackson, Miss.
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‘Build and strengthen CBF unity through cooperation’
The committee’s charge is to implement the Illumination Project “as a means by which to build and strengthen CBF unity through cooperation in light of our current cultural context,” Dortch said.
“I have asked that the committee proceed with this charge through a process that is broad-based and transparent; deliberate and intentional; and without any predetermined outcome, other than the desire to encourage CBF unity through cooperation. Knowing the caliber of people we have on this committee, I have no doubt that they will be able to fulfill this charge most effectively.”
The ad hoc committee is “committed to implementing a process that models what we claim to be—Cooperative Baptists,” Fuller said.
“Our objective is to listen and truly hear the voices from CBF stakeholders across the rich and diverse breadth of our Fellowship,” he said. “A process that seeks to discern the voice of God can’t have a predetermined outcome or a predetermined timeline. We must wait until we’ve heard God speak through the Fellowship itself.
“We will work together to determine what issues of human sexuality mean for us as a cooperating network of Baptists. We will work diligently and be as transparent as possible throughout the length of our work. Most importantly, we covet your prayers for us as we discern the voice of God, who speaks to all of us in our ‘big tent’ Fellowship.”
Prayer and input requested
The ad hoc committee held its first conference call July 13, will hold a two-day retreat Sept. 19-20 in Decatur, Ga., and will convene again Sept. 29-30 during the fall meeting of the governing board.
“I encourage everyone in the Fellowship to be in prayer for this committee and the important work they will undertake,” Dortch said. “Be ready also to join your voice to the conversation, and let us be hopeful that we will come to a place where we have the necessary clarity to forge forward as a unified Fellowship in addressing issues that come before us.”
Contact Fuller with questions or comments at [email protected].
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