Texas Baptist Forum: Casual faith?

Closed churches

Do you think the general public is becoming more casual about faithfulness to the Lord? I can't find any church that does not close its doors and turn out the lights in the evenings on all would-be churchgoers on holidays such as Mother's Day, Easter, Father's Day and many summer days, and the list of days is growing. So it's not just the world; it's our churches!

Satan would like nothing better than to stop all worship services. Why in the world do preachers and deacons vote to put a smile on Satan's face by canceling more and more worship services? They say, for example, it's to honor our mothers or our families.

I keep wondering: How does a closed and locked church door and empty pews on certain holidays honor our mothers or families or the Lord? If there were anyone who wanted to go to church on these days, they have no choice because the churches are closed—satisfying those who do not.

What if Abraham had chosen to put his family or only child before the Lord? He would not have received God's promises, and neither would we. And how does avoiding going to church honor mothers and families anyway?

What does the Lord think? Is he honored? Is he still first?

Janet Kennedy

Waco

CP & discretion

Richard Land's comments on the Trayvon Martin murder (April 30) confirm again why I do not contribute to the Cooperative Program.

When CP money goes to pay for his salary and his Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, I cannot conscientiously support his continual biased and political opinions. He probably is not alone in making the SBC an adjunct of the Republican Party, but he has been a major player in doing so. Our convention has no business supporting any political party as far as I am concerned.

My home church allows us to designate our contributions to stay in the church treasury and not be sent to the CP. I appreciate our church allowing us that option, because there are many things I cannot fully support with the way CP funds are being handled.

Don Baxter

Oklahoma City, Okla.

Left at intermission

My wife and I just returned from a New York visit, where we saw several Broadway shows, including The Book of Mormon. It is the hottest ticket in town.

Regretfully, I did not research the play or its originators, who are the creators of the TV show South Park.

From the beginning, the show depicted the young Mormons, about to be given their mission assignments, as clean-cut nerdy young men. One, who later becomes a lead, is an idiot. Later, the group is depicted as people with suppressed homosexual desires.

The plot really starts after the young men pair off to their assignments. The story builds around two assigned to an African village where other Mormon missionaries have toiled for many months with no results.

Their challenge is set by natives in the village, who sing in their dialect. Then they re-sing the profane, blasphemous song in English.

We left at intermission as our hope for a redeeming purpose of the play never developed. Later, we felt we had not honored God by not leaving earlier.

I don't know Matthew Bowman (April 30). I do, however, question offering his comments about anything in the Baptist Standard, as he apparently felt this show worthy of mention.

David Lykes

Georgetown

More about educators

While I am grateful for the note in Baptist Briefs about the Fellowship of Baptist Educators (April 30), it left out some important things we do.

Not only do we link volunteers to opportunities to teach overseas, but also we have volunteers who teach here in the States, leading English as a Second Language programs in churches. And while we are upgrading our website, our primary way of inspiring and informing members is by publishing our newsletter called Educomis.

Membership is free, and anyone can join to be on the mailing list.

Bob Lamb

Shelby, N.C.