Baptists dig their own grave...

I sent this to everyone on the Tennesse Baptist Convention staff. If you wish to do so as well you may use any part of it you'd like and there is a full list of email addresses at the bottom of this note. News story links are at the bottom as well, and I would encourage you to write to the Tennessean and City Paper if you're so inclined.

Members of the TBC "Belmont Study" Committee and extended members,

If you care a single bit about the opinion of the students of Belmont University, who you are going to so negatively effect, then you'll extend the courtesy to hear us out:

1 Corinthians 6:1-8
"[1] If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? [2] Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? [3] Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! [4] Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church! [5] I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? [6] But instead, one brother goes to law against another—and this in front of unbelievers!

[7] The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? [8] Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers."

Even while directly contradicting this belief in the "inerrancy" of scripture by disobeying the command to not sue your Christian family, I find it ironic Belmont's endowment is approximately the amount the TBC is asking.

In the case of a TBC victory, how many scholarships will be cut? How many programs will be lost? How many people will lose their job? But the truest question and maybe the only one that matters is how many non-Christians will be completely repulsed by this action of selfishness and greed. How many non-Christians on our campus will swear off Jesus Christ forever because of pettiness of the Christian church.

Members of the TBC, you are so far removed from this university that you have no idea of the great things that students are accomplishing here and the impact that this campus is making on Nashville and beyond. How can a group of people who call themselves Christians go about resolving this situation in such a legalistic, greedy and power-hungry way? I recognize that it is true that both sides bear at least a portion of the responsibility for the conflict; and second, these sides have an equal share in both the responsibility to act with respect and grace in accordance with each party's deep-seated beliefs and values, and the opportunity to turn the situation around. Yet, it is more certain that the harder you put your foot down the less love and grace you display, and the less dialogue you will create. You have no high ground. You have no claim to justice. You seek to humiliate your opponent rather than win his understanding; you seek to annihilate rather than convert. This is about power and vengeance rather than love and working for reconciliation. Your actions are destroying community and making brotherhood impossible. There will be no dialogue; there will only be a monologue and students will continue to flee from your churches and your point of view. Your actions here are shameful and in conflict with right Christian action. TBC, from the voices of the students, who have made and will continue to make this university the great institution that it is (no thanks to you), wake up; call off this ridiculous and meritless lawsuit; seek reconciliation; do the right thing before it's too late!

Sincerely,

Matt Ward (Belmont Senior)

P.S. Please read the following two articles in connection with my letter:

Ø There is a connection. We're not dropping out; you're sending us away:

SBC Leader Alarmed Over Young Adults 'Dropping Out' of Churches

By Jim Brown
August 7, 2006

(AgapePress) - The new president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) says he is disturbed that many students in both public and private schools -- even Christian private schools -- are leaving the church once they graduate.

In 2002, the SBC's Council on Family Life reported that roughly 88 percent of evangelical children are leaving the church shortly after they graduate from high school. Dr. Frank Page, the denomination's new president, says SBC churches need to counter that statistic by finding ways to make themselves more relatable, more pertinent and significant to students before they graduate.

"We're seeing a societal trend where a large number of young people are opting out of the church," Page notes. "Estimates of 15 to 20 million people now in America have said they are Christians but they simply don't want to be a part of the church," he says.

Some blame the church "drop-out rate" among young people after they graduate on the secularist influence of America's public schools. However, the SBC's president observes, "The sad thing is that we're seeing that number of dropouts from church [among] those who went to public school and private school, and that's an unfortunate trend."

Although he admits he has no "hard numbers" to back up his contention that graduates from private Christian schools are leaving the church almost as rapidly as others, Page says he is referencing anecdotal information heard from this year's Resolutions Committee at the recent SBC meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina. "It is a disturbing trend," he asserts, "and part of it is that our churches have become one- or two-generation churches, and we've failed to learn how to reach out to this younger generation."

Ø Finally, if you don't care about the opinions of the students then read this from one of your own members:

I may be a new blogger, but I am not new to the TBC:

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

http://refugeebaptist.blogspot.com/2006/10/not-pleased-with-tbc-suit-against.html

"I read all of the articles in the papers about the TBC's actions against Belmont University. I am not pleased at the failure of the two parties to settle this mess. There are Christian friends of mine on both sides of this issue and I read from both sides that they still believe that this can be resolved in a manner that will glorify God. From my view as of today, my Christian brothers, that is a load of manure...I know that's not a Biblical term, but is the most "amicable" term I can think of for now.

Maybe I wasn't at the same May TBC meeting that everyone else went to at Two Rivers Baptist Church, but I distinctly remember much being said about legal action against Belmont being a last resort. [http://www.tnbaptist.org/BRArticle.asp?ID=1486]. If what I hear is true about the minimal amount of contact by Clay Austin and the committee of 14 with the university, I believe there are some accountability questions than need to be answered. Mocking the convention's intentions by not actively engaging the university represents a gross failure of TBC leadership, in my opinion. Please prove me wrong. Soon.

To my TBC attorney friends (and I have known Tad Harris since he was a teenager), just who do you think you are suing? If you draw blood from Belmont (financially speaking) have you even thought about who you will be hurting? You may not like Bob Fisher, but he isn't going to write you a check for 50+ million dollars. If the track record of litigation against other Baptist colleges is a barometer, he may be retirement age before this is settled. If you think the trustees will write that check, just remember: you vacated their positions several months ago without ever bringing their original proposal for a new covenant to the convention. Do you really expect a board full of Baptist pastors and Christian lay people to write that check? You think the students will pay this bill...some 25% who happen to be Baptists? Would you like for me to pay this? Just so we are clear on that question: the monies that I gave personally to the cooperative program that ended up at Belmont were intended to be a GIFT. I do not take gifts back and I will not pay the TBC back money that I already gave the TBC to give to Belmont!

To my Belmont University friends responsible for negotiating this situation. I commend you for bringing forth THE document that now is forcing you into legal action (I still think the question is worth asking of our TBC stewards, "Where is your copy of such a critical document?") There are a few things in the way this issue reached a boiling point that make me wonder if the new generation of Belmont leadership learned as much as they needed from their esteemed Baptist statesman and Chancelor, Dr. Gabhart. I have heard the timeline regarding the submission of the new charter...say what you will, but filing that document without letting the people (not just the leaders) of the Tennessee Baptist Convention know of your intentions looks like spite. The university's leadership should accept their share of the responsibility for turning this situation into a crisis. The many good things you have done will be forgotten if this crisis ends up adversely affecting the students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community. You may be legally right, and you may not like the TBC leadership, but your institution is supported by individuals (including Baptists) who have higher expectations of their university leaders. I beg you at this juncture to negotiate in good faith with your TBC brothers. Demonstrate that you are not spiteful men playing chess with the future of the university.

Taking notes from how some of our "less-than-cooperative" churches give to the TBC, should this action move into litigation: I am fully prepared to go to my church and recommend that all future cooperative program funds going to the Tennessee Baptist Convention be designated exclusively for the missions and ministries of the convention, and that NO monies sent by our church are to be used to support the litigation against Belmont University... consider it my personal campaign to encourage the two sides to settle this "amicably".

Finally, I am disgusted that the TBC is already recommending that three quarters of a million dollars be diverted from missions and ministries to pay for this litigation for the Belmont Study Committee. [http://www.tnbaptist.org/BRARticle.asp?ID=1668] That is nearly HALF of the statewide, 2005 Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions amount ($1,501,811 ). Will the 2006 gift envelopes be labeled more truthfully, "Golden Offering and Belmont Litigation Fund?"

This is my first blog post, ever. I hate that it was on this topic. I have loved being a Baptist for over sixty years now and would prefer that we were celebrating victories over evil in the world than wasting precious time distracted from His kingdom's work. Thanks to friends who helped me tone down my first, angry draft."

Here are the addresses of the TBC staff members if you would like to drop them a line. Note that those are the TBC staffers, not the church members who voted in the convention. I'm still working on getting the committee's email addresses. In the meantime, have fun.

Info@tnbaptist.org, alexanderj@apsu.edu, mallen@tnbaptist.org, dacres@tnbaptist.org, scott.allen@vanderbilt.edu, vanderson@tnbaptist.org, javila@tnbaptist.org, jbailey@tnbaptist.org, bbaker@tnbaptist.org, pbates@tnbaptist.org, tbearden@tnbaptist.org, iambillings@yahoo.com, tbowden@tnbaptist.org, eboyer@tnbaptist.org, tbrady@uu.edu, dbronaugh@tnbaptist.org, nbrooks@tnbaptist.org, cbrown@tnbaptist.org, jburke@tnbaptist.org, bcarr@tnbaptist.org, bsudscc@ecsis.net, cynthia.chanin@volstate.edu, dchavers@tnbaptist.org, bchoate@tnbaptist.org, pclark@tnbaptist.org, jclaycorby@tnbaptist.org, jcoblentz@tnbaptist.org, dcox@tnbaptist.org, rdavenport@tnbaptist.org, cdavidson@tnbaptist.org, fdavis@tnbaptist.org, cdavis@tnbaptist.org, sdockrey@tnbaptist.org, tdubes@tnbaptist.org, leaton@tnbaptist.org, bedwards@tnbaptist.org, sedwards@tnbaptist.org, jessary@tnbaptist.org, lestey@tnbaptist.org, jferguson@tnbaptist.org, dferrell@tnbaptist.org, kgarland@tnbaptist.org, bgeorge@tnbaptist.org, rgilder@tnbaptist.org, lgilmore@tnbaptist.org, agunn@tnbaptist.org, rhall9@utk.edu, nhamilton@tnbaptist.org, chanson@tnbaptist.org, tharris@tnbaptist.org, jharvey@tnbaptist.org, bcmmuthsc@cs.com, jheath@tnbaptist.org, thill@tnbaptist.org, stevehixson@mindspring.com, ghogan@tnbaptist.org, etsubcm@chartertn.net, tholcomb@tnbaptist.org, eholmes@tnbaptist.org, smholt@charter.net, sholt@tnbaptist.org, vhulsey@tnbaptist.org, rhall9@utk.edu, gingram@tnbaptist.org, fjohnson@tnbaptist.org, rjohnson@tnbaptist.org, jeffandjan@networksplus.net, akinney@tnbaptist.org, aknight@tnbaptist.org, mknox@tnbaptist.org, blackey@tnbaptist.org, bleague@tnbaptist.org, mlemay@tnbaptist.org, rloxley@tnbaptist.org, amaer@tnbaptist.org, rmanor@tnbaptist.org, kmargrave@tnbaptist.org, smason@tnbaptist.org, wmaxwell@tnbaptist.org, ohbc@frontiernet.net, dmckinney@tnbaptist.org, kmckinney@tnbaptist.org, wmclaurin@tnbaptist.org, mmiller@tnbaptist.org, cmorton@tnbaptist.org, smurphree@tnbaptist.org, mnimmo@tnbaptist.org, anin@tnbaptist.org, clnored@comcast.net, bnorthcott@tnbaptist.org, boldham@tnbaptist.org, mowen@utm.edu, bowens@tnbaptist.org, spearson@tnbaptist.org, cphillips@tnbaptist.org, dpierson@tnbaptist.org, jporch@tnbaptist.org, bpowers@tnbaptist.org, bepowers@tnbaptist.org, lrader@tnbaptist.org, trankin@tnbaptist.org, grickman@tnbaptist.org, deniko14@hotmail.com, campusminister@chattanoogabcm.com, lrose@tnbaptist.org, msalva@tnbaptist.org, kshingleton@tnbaptist.org, csinger@tnbaptist.org, rskidmore@tnbaptist.org, rsmith@tnbaptist.org, bsmothers@tnbaptist.org, kstorts@tnbaptist.org, dtaylor@tnbaptist.org, rtaylor@sewanee.edu, alanteel@hotmail.com, wterry@tnbaptist.org, athorpe@tnbaptist.org, tramcubsu@aol.com, ktrundle@tnbaptist.org, ambervaden9@hotmail.com, mwaddey@tnbaptist.org, rwales@tnbaptist.org, ttubsu@multipro.com, lwilkey@tnbaptist.org, lwilliams@tnbaptist.org, gwilliams@tnbaptist.org, hwilson@tnbaptist.org, jwilson@cn.edu, rwilsonmjs@hotmail.com, swinfield@tnbaptist.org, rsccbsu@msn.com

Also, Here are links if you don't know what's going on yet:

Belmont's response to the lawsuit (10/3/06):
http://forum.belmont.edu/umac/archives/005880.html

Baptists sue Belmont (10/3/06): http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061003/NEWS04/610030356

News Release from TBC with official complaint:
http://www.tnbaptist.org/BRARticle.asp?ID=1690

Another TBC post (2 Views):
http://www.tnbaptist.org/BRArticle.asp?ID=1486

UPDATE:
Please consider attending the TBC Peaceful Procession of Protest
on Tuesday, October 10, 2006 at 4pm. Click on the link for more details.