Missouri board retains
attorney for opinion on self-perpetuating boards
Dec 12, 2001
By Don Hinkle
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (BP)--The Missouri
Baptist Convention's executive board voted Dec. 11 to hire an attorney
and obtain a legal opinion on whether trustees of five MBC entities
acted illegally in voting to give themselves the power to appoint their
successors.
The action, taken in response to a motion passed overwhelmingly by
messengers at the Oct. 29-31 MBC annual meeting in Cape Girardeau, came
just one day after letters from the rival Mainstream Missouri Baptists
organization were mailed throughout the state announcing it is closing
its doors effective Dec. 31 in view of a breakaway state convention
"on the horizon."
The MBC executive board vote is the convention's latest reaction to
votes by moderate trustees -- several have ties to the Mainstream
Missouri, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF) of Missouri, and the
national CBF organizations -- at The Baptist Foundation, Windermere
Conference Center, Missouri Baptist College, the Word & Way state
news journal, and The Baptist Home to become self-perpetuating, thus
removing any meaningful MBC involvement with each agency.
"We are appointing a subcommittee to retain legal counsel and a
legal opinion with the emphasis on restoration and reconciliation and to
include Christian arbitration," said Bill Curtis, MBC president and
pastor of First Baptist Church, Ballwin.
"We're trying to work this out in a Christlike manner."
The subcommittee, chaired by Gary Taylor, pastor of First Baptist
Church, O'Fallon, is expected to report to the full board at its next
meeting in April at the Windermere Conference Center, although Curtis
said a special meeting could be called before then if needed.
The board also took several other actions in response to motions passed
at the October MBC meeting:
-- A subcommittee was formed to study the feasibility of starting a new
MBC newsjournal. The action follows the vote by messengers at the
October state convention to escrow more than $2 million to the five
agencies whose trustees voted to become self-perpetuating. Among the
escrowed funds is $450,000 earmarked for 2002 for the Word & Way.
The escrowed funds will be released only if trustees rescind their
votes.
Trustees for The Baptist Home hired a St. Louis law firm that threatened
to bring criminal trespassing or civil action against any MBC-elected
trustees attempting to take their board seats. However, MBC-elected
trustees attended the Dec. 4 board meeting of The Baptist Home without
incident, although none were seated as trustees and all were refused
committee appointments. MBC-elected trustees were treated similarly at a
board meeting of Missouri Baptist College.
-- Another subcommittee will review the contractual and lease agreements
the MBC has with The Baptist Foundation, the Word & Way and
Windermere. The Baptist Foundation leases space in the MBC's Baptist
Building in Jefferson City, while the Word & Way maintains offices
in the building rent-free. Contracts, like the one that calls for the
MBC executive board to hold its April meeting at Windermere, also will
be examined, Curtis said.
-- An 11-member search committee will begin to seek a new MBC executive
director to replace Jim Hill, who resigned in October. Hill said he
could no longer work with conservatives who hold a majority on the MBC
executive board. The committee chairman is Kenny Qualls, MBC vice
president and pastor of Spring Hill Baptist Church, Springfield. The
committee is composed of one representative from each of the state
convention's eight regions and includes three executive board members,
two directors of missions as well as laypersons and pastors. Two members
of the committee are women.
"A process will be put in place and solicitations will be made and
received in and out of state," Curtis said. "Kenny will be
systematic in his approach -- including getting input from Missouri
Baptists. This will take time. It is not going to happen
overnight," he added, noting that it was about 18 months before
Hill was hired.
"I went into the executive board meeting prayed-up," Curtis
said. "You hear all kinds of rumors about people being angry and
mad. Yes, there were disagreements, but even amidst the disagreements
there was a sweet and congenial spirit. No one left mad. I think we have
a great executive board and a great state convention staff. We're all
excited about the future."
Meanwhile, Doyle Sager, president of Mainstream Missouri Baptists and
pastor of First Baptist Church, Jefferson City, announcing in a Dec. 10
letter the group's decision to close its doors, said it comes "with
great sadness, but with a great deal of gratitude to God and our
supporters ... .
"A new Missouri Baptist Convention is on the horizon, free from
Fundamentalist domination," Sager writes. "Many of our beloved
Missouri Baptist institutions have become free from Fundamentalist
control. One of those autonomous institutions is Word & Way, thus
guaranteeing a free Baptist press for all Missouri Baptists."
Sager also encourages Missouri Baptists to utilize the new giving plans
endorsed by state moderates last month. It asks Southern Baptists to
give through the Missouri Baptist Foundation, a move viewed by
conservatives as a step toward a new, de facto state convention.
"Missouri Baptists now have new giving options, including plans
through the Baptist Foundation and through CBF of Missouri (these new,
expanded options offer nearly everything MMB has offered in our three
plans)," Sager writes.
Sager recommends that donors contact Drew Hill, pastor of First Baptist
Church, Sedalia, who is spearheading the new three-option giving plan.
Hill, the brother of Jim Hill, also has run as a
CBF/Mainstream-supported candidate for state office at past conventions.
Hill's church hosted a Nov. 17 meeting of about 20 churches supportive
of the new giving plan.
"In short," Sager continued in the letter, "we've
accomplished our goal -- a climate of freedom in Missouri Baptist life.
So, we are stepping aside so that more permanent options in Missouri
Baptist life may come to the forefront without confusion or
duplication."
He said MMB will close its offices Dec. 31, and will return mail and
gifts after March 31, noting that it will take some time and money to
close the operation.
Conservatives in the state have anticipated the dissolving of MMB prior
to the creation of a new, moderate-led state convention. Expectations to
that end were raised earlier this year when MMB Executive Director Rob
Marus, an outspoken critic of the SBC's conservative leaders, abruptly
quit and took a job as a reporter in the Washington bureau of Associated
Baptist Press, a CBF partner organization.
"This is not a surprise at all and it should be noted that this
will be the first state convention where moderates were the ones to
split off," said Roger Moran, research director the Missouri
Baptist Laymen's Association and a member of the SBC Executive
Committee. Previously, it was conservatives who left moderate-controlled
state conventions in Texas and Virginia to form new state conventions
more supportive of the SBC.
"Mainstream Missouri Baptists is closing its doors because it hopes
to reopen in 2002 as a new state convention. However, Missouri Baptists
need to understand that these people are attempting to build a new
convention on a foundation of deceit and deception.
"They are trying to portray themselves as Southern Baptists when in
fact they are anti-SBC and pro-CBF. Obviously their hope is to start
this new convention with five partnering institutions that hard-line
moderate trustees 'stole' from the MBC," Moran said.
The following is the entire text of
the letter by Mainstream Missouri Baptists president, Doyle Sager
announcing that MMB is closing its doors.
December 10, 2001
Dear MMB supporter:
This letter is to
inform you that as of December 31, 2001, Mainstream Missouri Baptists
is closing its doors. With some sadness, but with a great deal of
gratitude to God and our supporters, we are celebrating our victories.
~A
new Missouri Baptist Convention is on the horizon, free from
Fundamentalist domination.
~Many
of our beloved Missouri Baptist institutions have become free from
Fundamentalist control. One of those autonomous institutions is
“Word and Way”, thus guaranteeing a free Baptist press for all
Missouri Baptists.
~Missouri
Baptists now have new giving options, including plans through the
Baptist
Foundation and through CBF of Missouri (these new, expanded
options offer nearly
everything MMB has offered in our three plans).
In short, we’ve
accomplished our goal—a climate of freedom in Missouri Baptist
life. So, we are stepping aside so that more permanent options in
Missouri Baptist life may come to the forefront without confusion or
duplication.
I am sorry that I am
not able to sit down with each of you personally, to thank you for
your faithful support over the last three and a half years. Together,
we have told the wonderful story of our rich Baptist heritage.
I apologize, too, if
you had to hear this news of our closing through means other than this
letter. We mailed it as soon as humanly possible following the board
action of Saturday, Dec. 8.
What next for you,
our faithful MMB donors? In terms of giving, we encourage you to look
carefully at the giving routes afforded through the Missouri Baptist
Foundation. This was mentioned in the Dec. 6, 2001, issue of “Word
and Way”. You may learn more about that plan by contacting Dr. Drew
Hill at 660.826.2160 or at ajhill@iland.net.
We also urge consideration of CBF of Missouri’s new giving routes.
Contact Harold Phillips at 1.800.873.2950 or at hap@cbfmo.org.
Please consider
subscribing to AND donating to TWO PUBLICATIONS: 1) The “Word and
Way” (at 573.635.7931, ext. 550 and wordandway@wordandway.org.)
and, 2) The Mainstream Baptist national
network newsletter (915.659.4102 and cowboy@wcc.net).
We will close our
office on Dec. 31, 2001. We will return mail and gifts after March 31
(this is an acknowledgement that it will take some time and money to
close out the operation). May God continue to bless our Missouri
Baptist life, as we carry out the work necessary to guard our liberty
and heritage. God bless you and thank you!
Grace,
Doyle Sager
President
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