Selected Short Spots

                                                                                                                                                                Vol. VIII, No. 10, Nov./Dec. 1995

CP Tops Previous Year's Record: The SBC ended fiscal year 1994-95 with a record $145,739,489 in Cooperative Program gifts, almost $3 million above the record set in the previous year. The 94-95 gifts were 2.01% or $2,872,706 above 93-94. In addition, designated gifts for the year rose to $132,830,194, also a record, compared to last year's $127,828,517 - a wonderful increase of $5,001,677 or 3.91%. The 94-95 total is more than $9 million above the budget. When gifts exceed the budget, the overage is distributed according to a special SBC-approved method: 37% ($3,150,095 this year) to the FMB; 31.5% ($2,681,837) for a capital needs budget for the Home Missions Board, our six seminaries, and the Radio and Television Commission; and the remaining 31.5% distributed according to the regular program allocation budget percentages to all SBC entities. [BP]

SBC Leaders Protest Disney Pro-Homosexual Action: A Walt Disney Co, decision to provide health insurance to live-in partners of homosexual employees is stirring strong criticism from key SBC leaders. "It is a travesty that Disney is no longer a pro-family industry, "said Morris Chapman, president of the SBC Executive Committee. "It has clearly joined hands with others in the entertainment industry intent on waging war against biblical beliefs and family values that have been the backbone of this country." While covering the live-in partners of homosexuals, the Disney policy will not cover the live-in partners of heterosexuals! Richard Land, executive director of the SBC Christian Life Commission, commented, "This lamentable decision by Disney is yet one more indication of the radical gay rights movement's efforts to get preferential treatment for its lifestyle." Chapman said contractual obligations already in place for convention facilities likely will prevent a change of site for the SBC meeting in Orlando in 2000. [BP] [Editorial Note: The Disney pro-homosexual, anti-family stance has become increasingly obvious over the last few years. My wife and I have twelve grandchildren, and we will buy no Disney toys, videos, or movies for our rather large tribe. Nor will we take them to any of Disney's theme parks. It seems clear that a boycott of all Disney products, productions, and theme parks is incumbent upon all true Christians. TCP]

Midwestern Trustees Elect 4 Vice Presidents: Trustees of Midwestern Seminary enthusiastically elected new president Mark Coppenger's nominees to four vice presidential slots at their semiannual meeting 16-17 October in Kansas City. The 35-member board elected Lamar Cooper VP for academic affairs, dean of faculty, and professor of Old Testament and Hebrew; Martin F. King VP for institutional advancement; Gary K. Ledbetter VP for student development; and Michael Whitehead VP for business affairs. All four were selected by President Mark Coppenger and are considered conservative leaders, actively involved in the conservative resurgence. In a resolution trustees voted to ask the WMU to "back away" from its decision in July to publish missions materials for the "Cooperative Baptist Fellowship." The resolution requests the WMU to "once again ... identify with the heart of Southern Baptist missionary work and thereby secure the trust of the grass root churches of the Convention." The resolution expressed "deep regret" and "disappointment" in the decision by the "WMU leadership to give increasingly open support to those who criticize and oppose our SBC work." Trustees also approved a new faculty questionnaire to be given to all prospective faculty. It includes questions about the person's support of the Baptist Faith and Message as well as whether the candidate can support the SBC's position in opposition to abortion, exclusion of churches actively supporting homosexual behavior, and opposition to women's ordination and women pastors. Trustees learned that initial enrollment figures for 1995 are up over last year with 484 enrolled compared to 431 in 1994 and 495 in 1993. Trustees held a Presidential Recognition dinner for former president Milton Ferguson who led the seminary from 1973 to his 1994 retirement. [BP]

Texas Association Expels Church: Austin Baptist Association at its annual meeting ousted University Baptist Church for ordaining a homosexual as a deacon last year. Larry Bethune, pastor of the church, stated "Our church had no agenda concerning the issue of homosexuality or ordination. At no point was the question of sexual orientation raised or considered relevant in relation to the biblical qualifications for deacon outlined in our bylaws. Neither did the church choose to take a stand one way or another in regard to the question of sexual orientation." Bethune said the man is in a "long-term continuing relationship" with another man, and Bethune and the congregation were aware of his homosexuality before the ordination. Bethune noted that "diversity is reflected in the life and leadership" of the church. University Baptist Church is dually aligned with the Southern Baptist Convention and the American Baptist Churches in the USA. The church is also affiliated with the "Cooperative Baptist Fellowship" and the Alliance of Baptists. [BP]

[Editorial Note: Notice the pastor's playing word games: the church did not "choose to take a stand" on sexual orientation. Can he be serious in maintaining that the church did not take a very dramatic stand? Bethune referred to "the biblical qualifications for deacon" but obviously the church chose to ignore them and place its own desires above God's Word. He claimed with satisfaction that "the church had no agenda concerning the issue of homosexuality...." Yet Christians by definition are to have an agenda, Christ's agenda as presented in the Bible; to deny having an agenda on a subject where God has spoken so clearly is to deny God. And what in the world has the duration of the sin to do with the decision? Suppose a member were engaged in a "long-term, continuing" series of thefts or murders, would the church elect him a deacon? Persistence in sin does not ameliorate but exacerbates culpability. This is a perfect example of paganism infiltrating the church. See "Preaching in an Age of Pervasive Paganism" in this Banner. TCP]

New Orleans Saga: The presidential search committee at New Orleans Seminary has gone back to the drawing boards. On 27 October Baptist Press announced that the committee had selected the candidate and that trustees would vote at a special meeting on 8-9 November. However, subsequently it came out that the potential nominee, Fred Lowery, had received massive opposition apparently due to the fact that his doctorate is from Luther Rice, and he has withdrawn from consideration. Now the search committee begins yet once again.

CBF Seeks Director: Cecil Sherman, 67, CBF coordinator since 1992 announced 28 September he will retire 30 June 1996. CBF chairman Pat Anderson named an 11 member search committee for Sherman's successor, to be chaired by Carolyn Weatherford Crumpler, the CBF's past moderator and retired executive director of the Woman's Missionary Union. Also during the coordinating council meeting Anderson reported that a committee studying whether the CBF should declare itself a denomination has begun its work. [BP]

Southern to End Social Work Degree: Trustees of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY, voted unanimously to discontinue the master of social work degree and continue seeking a home for the Carver School of Social work, apparently rejecting a transfer offer from Samford University. Speaking to the subject of discontinuing the social work program, Southern president Al Mohler said there is a "basic conflict" between theological education and social work "world views," including social work's code of ethics regarding homosexuality. [BP]

FMB Earmarks $10 million for Former Soviet Bloc: Meeting 11 October, FMB trustees approved a 1996 budget of $202.6 million which sets aside $10 million for work in former Soviet bloc countries where unparalleled opportunities and great thirst for the gospel are evident. In 1994 Southern Baptists gave 99.9% of the $86 million Lottie Moon offering goal. This year in honor of the 150th anniversary of the SBC's founding the LM goal is $100 million and the Annie Armstrong Easter offering goal is $50 million. We will have to give 16.6% more this year to reach the $100 million goal. A 16.6% increase may sound large, but when we remember that every dollar given to the Lottie Moon offering goes to evangelism overseas, and when we recall that primarily we are not talking about a budget or about a program, but rather about millions of souls being saved for eternity, every Southern Baptist will feel God's call to give out of our abundance to serve their need. [BP]

 [Editorial comment: A suggestion for guaranteeing we oversubscribe our missions offer goals: Let every Southern Baptist family and individual pledge to contribute to the Lottie Moon offering an amount of money equal to the amount spent on Christmas presents, and to the Annie Armstrong offering an amount equal to that spent on birthdays throughout the year! How about that as a test of our REAL priorities? TCP]

Sexual Diseases and Teens: Presently, there are approximately 25 significant types of sexually transmitted diseases, while prior to 1960 there were only two that were common: syphilis and gonorrhea. And today an estimated 12 million Americans are newly infected each year. Sadly, one-fourth of those infected are teenagers, while they comprise only 10% of the population. Teens are also much more susceptible to STD infections than older people. For example, if a 15 year-old girl has intercourse, she has a one in eight chance of developing pelvic inflammatory disease, giving her approximately a 20% chance of being sterile for the rest of her life. But if a 25 year-old female has the same type exposure, she has only a one in 80 chance of developing such an infection. Teenagers do not have the resistance to sexually transmitted organisms that older people do. [Assist Crisis Pregnancy Center newsletter, October 1995]

AFA Ends Kmart Boycott: Recently the long-term chairman of Kmart Corporation, Joseph Antonini, who refused for years to pull pornography from bookstores owned by Kmart, resigned. His successor, Floyd Hall, has announced that Kmart has sold all book subsidiaries and no longer has any connection with Waldenbooks or Borders. The American Family Association, headed by Rev. Don Wildmon, had sponsored a four-year boycott of Kmart. Lamar Cooper, an SBC Christian Life Commission staff member, noted two lessons: (1) economic boycotts to express moral convictions can be effective, and (2) sometimes it requires much perseverance to gain the intended result. Cooper also said that, regrettably, "It seems that economic consequences are the only thing [some companies] are willing to consider. Because this is tragically true, it will be necessary to address these issues by economic means with other corporations such as AT&T who have shown unwillingness to listen to concerns about support of homosexual rights groups, Planned Parenthood, and other anti-family organizations." [BP] [Editorial comment: PTL for a victory over sleaze and moral corruption. We all owe deep gratitude to Don Wildmon who has faithfully fulfilled a much needed ministry where few if any others were involved. There is a Kmart store within two miles of our house which we have not entered during this four-year boycott. We look forward to the convenience of shopping Kmart again. TCPJ

Sunday School Board Finances Improve: For several years the Sunday School Board has lost money and had to dip into reserves, but the recently completed 1994-95 fiscal year marked a decided change for the better. The Board completed the year with some $244.5 million in income, more than $1 million over budget and almost $20 million ahead of last year. Revenue above operating costs was $5.6 million compared to last year's loss of $8.2 million. [BP] [Editorial comment: Jimmy draper, president of the BSSB, has instituted many managerial improvements for which he is to be commended. Another important factor is that as Sunday School materials have been revised to a perspective which accepts the Bible as inerrant, more and more churches have returned to using BSSB quarterlies and other materials. TCP]

CBF Committee to Study Convention Issue: CBF moderator, Pat Anderson, has appointed a committee headed by Randall Lolley to study whether the organization should become a separate national convention. The committee will report to the April Coordinating council meeting and the 1996 General Assembly in Richmond 27-29 June. Anderson also named a planning task group to assist with strategic planning for the CBF's future. [Fellowship News, October 1995.]

Alcohol Use Costs beyond $100 Billion: The cost of alcohol use and abuse in the United States is staggering. The aftermath of alcohol use was more than $100 billion in 1994, or $404 for every man, woman, and child. Alcohol is the greatest factor contributing to crime, with police, judges, and prosecutors saying it is involved in at least 80% of crimes. Alcohol is heavily involved in 68% of manslaughters, 54% of murders, and 48% of robberies. Each MONTH as many as 500,000 persons are victims of alcohol-related crimes. Violent crimes committed by people under the influence of alcohol have dramatic annual costs, including $2 billion in medical care, $8 billion in lost wages, and $48 billion in pain, suffering, and lost quality of life. [BP]