Pennies from Heaven...

Many congratulations to Julie Pennington-Russell on being chosen as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Decatur, Ga., a nearly 3,000 member mega-church in the SBC. Congrats to the congregation itself on choosing someone for their merits as a clergy person rather than to "make a statement." Pennington-Russell has certainly blazed a trail from Waco to Decatur. It's my understanding that only a few folks (or at least less than ten) are not supportive at Decatur, unlike some of the fights it seems she had at Calvary Baptist at Waco.

This is certainly a step in the right direction for the churches of the SBC, in my opinion, and reflects what we're hearing about who's actually graduating from seminaries these days. Kudos to Pennington-Russell for her tenacity and her faith, kudos to the congregation for choosing who they felt was the best pastor for them, regardless of what it "said" about them as a church.

Hucky Feels Yucky after Carter Gets Plucky

When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. (Mk 13:7, NRSV)

Well, what can we say? It's every citizen's right to complain about the administration and its policies, something we all enacted faithfully during the respective reigns of Presidents Carter, Reagan, Bush the First, and Clinton. But it seems to still be taboo for the current administration.

Is this a political blog? No, but it is Baptist. And Baptists have been all over politics since Baptists began. Anyone who tells you otherwise is lying.

So the bass-player above left (hahaha) is taking issue with the icon above right (I know it's all too much) for having said that the "w" administration will be remembered as, well, less-than-perfect. The exact quote is a little less diplomatic. What Carter really told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette was: “I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history.”

Strong words, maybe even unfair, depending on where you stand; but completely expected by anyone who has listened to what Carter has been saying since the beginning about the "w" administration. Had Mike forgiven all that had gone before? Had he just told his aids, "Don't worry about that Carter fella," or not? Did he honestly think he was going to agree with everything every member of the New Baptist Convenant said? Yikes, Huck. But you can comfort yourself with this: you won't be the last to go.

There will be lots of talk about unity over the next year. That's good. There will be lots of talk about collective missions initiatives, better press for the non SBC folks, and many other things. But sooner or later, someone is going to find themselves in a room that they can't stand to be in (because of the beliefs espoused there) and that person is going to balk. It's unavoidable. I don't know who said it about Baptist mathematics, but it goes something like this: "Baptists divide in order to multiply." So don't be surprised when you hear that this one or that one jumped the ship, because the fact of the matter is that most folks do not have the stomach for this kind of unity. This brand of unity says that what unites us--a faith in God through Jesus Christ, and the power of that to help others--is more important than what divides. If you are too stuck in your right or left-lean, then you can forget about coming together in this group. Especially in an election year.

So I, for one, say "So long Huckabee!" This is the temperature of the kitchen we're in. I was willing to join a group that YOU were a part of. What I'm looking for is a group that you will join even with ME involved. That is the beloved community of Christ.

Signed in at the Biennial

Just for the record, I'm signed in at the Biennial in D.C. Anybody else set up already? When are you going to be there? What are you looking forward to? I'm going a little early (thought not by much) to do the interim ministry workshop. NONONO, I'm not looking to leave. I just want to know more, because I assume that many of us will serve as interims before our time in ministry is over, especially with so many churches needing resuscitation or comfort measures in our denomination (and most others in the Protestant "mainline").

For those who don't know, interims are intentionally temporary ministers who work with churches after the previous pastor leaves to prepare them to call their next pastor. There's a lot more to it than that, but you can read more here.

I attended attended an excellent workshop at the TABCOM annual gathering this year with Rev. George Sinclair (one of my parishioners, Hi George!) and Rev. Dr. Anita Farber-Robertson. I really recommend this workshop for an overview of what interims entail, as well as the various types of interims you can do and how to get connected with the denomination to learn more. Part of the reason I think interim work sounds so great is the different approach it entails with the congregation. You can have more of a prophetic voice when the time you are going to spend together is finite. Of course, I'm setting myself up for an earful about speaking prophetically when we're "permanent" as well.

Last Biennial was not so fun for me--not that I go just for fun, but you assume it will be. I am way too much of an introvert (and probably borderline agoraphobic) to enjoy being surrounded by hundreds of folks I don't know. Networking may be a part of denominational life, but some of us have to work at it a little more than others. That said, I had only been in ministry for months at the time of the Denver event, so I also didn't know nearly as many folks as I do now. Now if some of them would just pretend not to be looking the other way when I wave...

When You Shake Hands With the Devil, Don't Expect Him to Come to Your Last Party...

"LYNCHBURG, Va. (ABP) -- Although Jerry Falwell did more than about anybody else to identify conservative evangelical Christians with the Republican Party in the last 30 years, top GOP leaders were notably absent at his May 22 funeral in Virginia."--from American Baptist Press.


Let's be honest: I was never a fan of Falwell, even before his post-9/11 comments. But I think he was probably savvy enough to know that luminaries like "w" and his compatriots wouldn't show up for the funeral. It was a marriage of convenience, when things were humming along, and Falwell got to galvanize his church empire at the same time that the GOP made use of the votes; everybody won. But it does help to remind us of the way folks will line up to shake our hands when we are on the rise, and consign us to the b-list when we're gone; either literally gone or just out of the spotlight.

Know anyone like this in your own life? Have you ever been one yourself?
It's not too late to stop.

I'm not saying that having a big memorial is the measure of anything, other than having a big memorial. But if it really is as Woody Allen says, that "Eighty percent of success is showing up," then those who profited so richly from Falwell's efforts during his life should have had the guts to be successful memorial attendees. Of course, we don't put a premium on good ends anymore, and the collective fear of death has reached such a pitch that it is likely difficult for incumbents or candidates to turn up for funerals other than the most obvious ones.

Maybe Devil is too strong a word, but you get the point.

What Does It Mean to be LAST?

Everywhere you go, you likely see one white clapboard church that is in the center of town, or near it, with the legend, "First Baptist Church of (insert town here)." It meant a lot to be the first, to be out there on the green, with the Town Hall, the Unitarians, and the local saloon. But, as characters say in King's The Gunslinger: "The world has moved on."

They say that when two Baptists gather there are three opinions. Funny thing is, there are fewer and fewer of us who still cleave to historic baptist principles, the things that made our brand of Christianity important. In light of that, we set up a lot of meetings, network, send e-mails, call for this, call for that, and...nothing much happens. Meanwhile, a vast number of folks have adopted the appellation "Baptist" to mean a whole bunch of things that have little to do with what it meant to be Baptist in the first place.

Who will be the last Baptist standing? That's unknown, but I can assure you: we'll have to choose from among the available Baptists. All three or so.