interesting...

In the light of the recent "open letter" drama regarding Cecil Sherman's remarks at the CBF convention, I felt the need to throw in my two cents, and pass along an interesting quote...

I do not condone the Holocaust remark. It is distasteful and wrong to use that as an analogy for the SBC takeover. However, Dr. Sherman is still worthy of great respect for the role he played in the formation of the CBF. You can't ask him to stop talking about it...the man lived it! And to write an "open letter" (which was not even sent first to Dr. Sherman) claiming to speak for all "young CBF members" (which it does not) that is signed by people who to my understanding are not even directly in ministerial positions in local churches (which helps one to see the complexity of how denominational life works)...it's a bit presumptuous. I have not had time to fully process the entire situation, but this is what I know:

I am a young CBF member. These people do not speak for me. Yes, the CBF needs to continue searching for a new direction, but to ignore the past is wrong. We cannot dwell in it, or continually rehash it, but it is important to learn from it. Why, you ask?

Well, just this afternoon, a quotation was passed along to me from a fellow minister. It's taken from a sermon last year preached by Colleen Burroughs at the CBFV General Assembly on March 10, 2007. I know that a husband and wife can have separate opinions, but given the recent events it caught my attention...

“If you are students or someone under the age of 30 in this room, you may be tired of hearing about your Baptist history, but it is important to understand how the people before us have lived. It’s important to know and understand with whom we have disagreed with as Baptists and why it has made people uncomfortable. You may think it has nothing to do with you, that it’s not your fight, but you would be wrong. It is woven into the very fabric of who you are as young Baptists.”

Just my two cents...

live from Memphis

I've been at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship meeting in Memphis since Wednesday, and it's been quite an experience. This is my first national convention, so I wasn't sure what to expect. But I've run into several people that I know from various parts of my life (one remembered me when I was a PASSPORTkids staffer two years ago!), so it's fun to make those connections again. I'm not really into the political side of Baptist life, so I haven't been attending the business sessions, just the breakouts and worship. Perhaps I should care more about it. But it's given me time to explore the downtown area with friends - and yes, I've been to Beale Street :o)

More thoughts on it after I return to the East Coast.

And yes, the ribs here are AMAZING.

Women in ministry

This is worth reading. It's a blog post picked up by Ethics Daily talking about women in ministry.

Yes, we have come a long way. My aunt was one of those twenty or so years ago who first began breaking this "glass ceiling" of women in ministry. But unfortunately, it is still an issue in many churches. I'm all about picking your battles, but this is an area where I cannot stay silent. This is one that is worth the fight. As a woman looking to enter the ministry, I am very sensitive to this topic. It's tough for women to find churches where they are welcome and respected as ministers. I am fortunate to be in a place where I am; many are still fighting for equal respect. And that's not right.

I could go on and on about this, but I'll step off my soapbox right now and let the article speak for itself :o)

hello CBF

Tonight, the church where I am employed voted to affiliate officially with the CBF. Not sever ties with the SBC, just add CBF to the list of affiliates. It was nerve wracking to say the least. As a woman looking to go into the ministry (most likely with ordination as a part of that process), this was an important decision for me personally. From here on out, I cannot be a part of a church that will not support me in following wherever God may lead, which basically means within the Baptist tradition, it has to be CBF. If the church had voted this down...I would have been extremely uncomfortable remaining there.

Really, it was a loud minority that was against it. And there was a degree of unprofessionalism in their efforts to stop the change from passing. I stood outside the doorway, listening to all the comments and questions being made, partially because I did not trust my facial expressions to hide my true feelings, but also because I am not an official member and cannot vote. As they called for the vote, I stood there, whispering, "Dear Jesus, please let it pass" and gripping the edge of the door for support. It was close, but it passed.

I'm still coming off of the adrenaline rush. I should be elated at the fact that this passed, but the mixture of so many emotions following that meeting have drained me a bit. I tried really hard not to take it all personally, because I know it's not about me...but as a woman, it still is personal on some level. I've been fortunate to grow up in a household and family that respected and encouraged God's call in my own life (thanks to my ordained aunt), and I guess this was my first real encounter with steadfast opposition to women in ministry. Yes, I've met individuals who have disagreed with it before, but when it comes to a church vote, it's a much more powerful thing. But again, this was a loud minority. The majority of this church does support me and other women, and the constitution now shows that in black and white, with the addition of three words. And now that they have done this, it will be much harder to turn back.

An historic moment in the life of this church...may they continue to move forward.