Church

The election was one of the closely watched aspects of the two-day meeting, during which messengers, or delegates, addressed a sexual abuse investigation. Barber received 61% of the votes in the second round of voting at the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention on Tuesday evening, defeating Florida pastor Tom Ascol in a runoff election.

Last year, leaders at the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting pulled a resolution that would have had messengers declare they “denounce the Capitol insurrection.” This year, messengers might elect a new leader who amplified false claims about the 2020 election.

Survivors of sexual assault in church settings and their advocates have been calling on churches for years to admit the extent of abuse in their midst and to implement reforms. In recent weeks #ChurchToo has seen an especially intense set of revelations across denominations and ministries.

Tom Ascol has long argued Southern Baptist churches are filled with people who believe they are Christians but really aren't — a belief shaped by growing up with an abusive father who was also a church deacon.

In this issue of A Public Witness, we recount the politics animating the SBC, hop on the virtual bus to follow Tom Ascol’s campaign, and then consider what his victory could mean well beyond Southern Baptist life. 

Randy Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, called on the SBC to “break all ties” with the investigative firm Guidepost Solutions, which produced the long-awaited sexual abuse report, after the company posted on Twitter its support for LGBTQ+ Pride month.

The first transgender bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has resigned amid criticism over the decision to remove the pastor of a Latino congregation on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe in December. Questions remain about the timing of the resignation.

In this issue of A Public Witness, we sign up for a quick history of VBS before heading to Zoomerang to experience a unique VBS for today’s culture wars. Finally, we pack up for the day by reflecting on what this means for churches.  

A group of church members at First Baptist Church in Bossier, Louisiana, has sued the church, claiming the pastor diverted money from missions to a conservative Baptist group. The pastor says Satan is trying to destroy the church.

After more than four decades, the pastor of one of the nation’s largest and most influential churches is ready to step down. And he has named a young couple to take his place.