Shame
They passed this resolution at their national conference last week:
WHEREAS, Years of research confirm biblical warnings that alcohol use leads to physical, mental, and emotional damage (e.g. Proverbs 23:29-35); and
WHEREAS, Alcohol use has led to countless injuries and deaths on our nation’s highways; and
WHEREAS, The breakup of families and homes can be directly and indirectly attributed to alcohol use by one or more members of a family;
And
WHEREAS, The use of alcohol as a recreational beverage has been shown to lead individuals down a path of addiction to alcohol and toward the use of other kinds of drugs, both legal and illegal; and
WHEREAS, There are some religious leaders who are now advocating the consumption of alcoholic beverages based on a misinterpretation of the doctrine of “our freedom in Christ”; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, June 13-14, 2006, express our total opposition to the manufacturing, advertising, distributing, and consuming of alcoholic beverages; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptists to take an active role in supporting legislation that is intended to curb alcohol use in our communities and nation; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptist to be actively involved in educating students and adults concerning the destructive nature of alcoholic beverages; and be it finally
RESOLVED, That we commend organizations and ministries that treat alcohol-related problems from a biblical perspective and promote abstinence and encourage local churches to begin and/or support such biblically-based ministries.
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and quoted from this story...
"Also Wednesday, the SBC unofficially barred members who drink
alcohol from serving as trustees or members of any SBC entity.
The ban, part of a larger anti-alcohol resolution that was
easily approved by delegates, was proposed by Jim Richards,
executive director of the Southern Baptists of Texas
Convention. While stopping short of officially preventing
drinkers from serving, it "urges" that no one be elected or
appointed to SBC offices if they are "a user of alcohol."
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Let us pray for our tragically deceived brothers and the 16 million church members they represent. In the early 1990s a group of liberals within the SBC tried to take over and were smacked down by a wonderful conservative Reformed resurgence. Let us pray for a backlash to this new resolution. Let us pray fervently that the legalists would be as ashamed by 2010 as the liberals were in 1990. Amen. Let us drink together.
posted by isaiah543 at 12:28 AM
5 Comments:
"In the early 1990s a group of liberals within the SBC tried to take over and were smacked down by a wonderful conservative Reformed resurgence."
Conservative, yes, but Reformed, no. Paige Patterson was one of the key architects of the conservative victory in the SBC, and is extremely opposed to Calvinism. Patterson and Al Mohler had a public discussion at this latest SBC conference in which Patterson took the anti-Calvinist side. Several of the sermons from the podium took visible swipes at Calvinism. The recently elected president of the SBC, Frank Page, has written a book entitled "The Trouble With The TULIP". The non-Reformed in the SBC view Calvinism as the next battlefront, now that liberalism is no longer an issue.
The Reformed in the SBC are a small, but thankfully growing, minority thanks to men like Tom Ascol and the Founders movement.
I meant to add a couple of links to my comment:
Founders Website
and
Tom Ascol's Blog
My knowledge of the SBC is pretty limited to Southern Seminary, which I assume must be HQ for the Reformed wing, no? A few reformed profs left Trinity in the early 90s to go fight the good fight in the SBC.
So then, "Reformed resurgence" should be understood to refer only to their growth. How small is the minority, do you know? Where was Mohler when Patterson was taking the field? Did he come late to the party or was he in on the ground floor? Outmix that metaphor!
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I'm not sure about numbers, but may God grant their increase!
Southern Seminary has a reputation for being Reformed HQ for the SBC, but I don't think you could say that the school is Reformed--it's probably more accurate to say that some of the professors are Reformed.
Someone who attended there once told me "If you go to Southern Seminary looking for a Reformed Mecca, you aren't going to find it."
Another friend, a librarian at the seminary, was told she should "keep your Calvinism to yourself" when she gave some reading material to a visiting speaker, because "it might be perceived as intimidating." My friend is a quiet 4' something female, and the person she was potentially intimidating with her Calvinist literature was Johnny Hunt, one of the candidates for SBC president at this recent conference. :-)
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