Missouri churches are working through a Denominational Relations Committee process to best determine where and how they relate to a changing denominational landscape. What follows is a report from Cornerstone Baptist Church in Columbia. They have opted to use the CBFMO Cooperative Plan.
THE BAPTIST LANDSCAPE
It all started with a meeting in the Cafe du Monde in New Orleans in 1976. Judge Paul Pressler and a Criswell College president Paige Patterson, discussed a long-range strategy for fundamentalist domination of the Southern Baptist Convention. Three years later Judge Pressler publicly announced a detailed plan: elect an SBC president a sufficient number of times to gain a fundamentalist majority on the boards and agencies of the Convention. This would be accomplished by the appointment powers of the president.
In order to secure the office of president each year a "get out the vote” campaign was organized for each annual meeting of the SBC until their goal was accomplished. In the year 2000 this goal was announced to have been reached. The culmination of the whole process was signaled by the adoption of the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message, which has become a document of "accountability" for SBC employees, missionaries, and seminary professors.
The fundamentalist takeover group has defined itself as a "Conservative Resurgence", perhaps to make itself more palatable to the rank and file Southern Baptist. Whatever it is called, it was offensive to thousands of traditional Southern Baptists, who saw this movement as a violation of principles which have historically characterized Baptists: Bible freedom, soul freedom, Church freedom, and Religious freedom.
The Baptist Faith and Message of 2000 has, among other things, redefined Scripture and the role of women in ministry in such a way as to demote the centrality of Jesus Christ as a criterion for Bible interpretation; and the autonomy of the local church by dictating whom the church may call as pastor. These changes are unacceptable to most traditional Baptists.
Recognizing that the number one concern of Baptists is to fulfill the Great Commission in Matthew 28, a group of these traditional Baptists met in Atlanta, and in May 1991, organized the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. The mission statement of this group is: to be "a fellowship of Baptist Christians and churches who share a passion for the Great Commission of Jesus Christ and a commitment to Baptist principles of faith and practice. Our mission is to network, empower, and mobilize Baptist Christians and churches for effective missions and ministry in the name of Christ."
CBF subscribes to the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message adopted by SBC action in Kansas City, MO in June 1963, a document that has served Baptists well for almost 40 years (it is also identified in the Cornerstone Constitution as our document of belief). It is used as a confession describing what Baptists believe. Baptists have never adopted creeds, as have many other Protestant groups. Baptists have persisted in having no creed but the Bible. The Bible is adequate to give us direction and the way of salvation.
Contrary to this history, the Baptist Faith and Message of 2000 is used in a creedal manner to provide “accountability" of faith and practice. "But what is wrong with that?" some are asking. This is what is wrong with it, up until now, Baptist employees, missionaries, and seminary professors have been asked to agree to operate "within the framework" of the Baptist confession. This principle has been acceptable to Baptists for as long as we have had confessions of faith. NOW, however, they must sign a document to say that they AGREE with it at every point. THAT, most traditional Baptists believe, makes it function as a creed.
This tendency toward creedalism, and the heavy-handedness with which SBC agencies have been taken over, has led us to this place in Baptist history. The same process has now been mirrored in the Missouri Baptist Convention. James Hill, whom many believe to be our finest Executive Secretary, resigned late last year because he found it difficult to work with people who were trying to oust him.
Given this course of events, many Baptists felt disenfranchised. They were tired of the fight. They wanted to get on with fulfilling the Great Commission as Baptist Christians. Along this line Cornerstone decided several years ago to send its Global Mission monies to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.
It
is the conviction of many that the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is the new
model for being faithful to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. It is a model
of "partnering" with agencies already existing to do the Great
Commission. For example, rather than establishing a new seminary, CBF partners
with Central Seminary in Kansas City and other theological schools for the
training of ministers and church workers. CBF
sends missionaries to unreached people groups and difficult places where there
are few other missionaries. Furthermore,
as another example, this model is reflected in what Cornerstone is already doing
as we partner with groups such as Coyote Hill Children's Home, Habitat for
Humanity, The Wardrobe, Food Pantry, Morningstar Counseling Center, Shepherds
Basket, and such other ministries that help us fulfill the Great Commission.
For
additional information contact any member of the Denomination Relations Task
Force listed below.
Candy Adams
David Mallory
Bill Marshall
Heather Scott
David Wilson
Vernon
Westenbroek, Chairman