Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting
Resolution No. 7
WHEREAS, The Bible stresses the protection of and care for children, as evidenced by: its condemnation of the ancient pagan practice of child sacrifice (Leviticus 20:1-7; Ezekiel 16:20-21); its special regard for orphans in the nation of Israel (Deuteronomy 24, 26); and the teaching of Jesus, who welcomed and valued little children (Matthew 18:1-5; 19:14); and
WHEREAS, Faithful Christians throughout history have risen to the defense of children, as seen in the Early Church’s protest of the practice of “child exposure”—in which unwanted infants were abandoned and left to die; the work of nineteenth-century Christians such as Lord Shaftesbury and others, who campaigned against child slavery and enacted child labor laws; and the diligence of those who defend the right to life of unborn children today; and
WHEREAS, Violent physical and sexual crimes against children have reached alarming levels in our nation, thus showing child abuse to be a leading issue requiring the urgent response of God’s people; and
WHEREAS, This abuse has occurred too often in churches and homes—which ought to be places of shelter and safety—and it has happened at the hands of family, educators, ordained ministers, and ministry workers—who ought to be trusted persons of authority; and
WHEREAS, The Southern Baptist Convention in 2002: called Southern Baptists to practice integrity and fidelity to God; urged accountability among spiritual leaders to the highest standards of Christian moral practice; urged seminaries and related educational institutions to emphasize ministerial integrity; encouraged religious bodies to rid their ranks of predatory ministers; called on civil authorities to punish to the fullest extent of the law sexual abuse among clergy and counselors; called on our churches to discipline those guilty of any sexual abuse as well as to cooperate with civil authorities in the prosecution of those cases; and urged our churches to offer support, compassion, and biblical counseling to victims and their families; and
WHEREAS, LifeWay Christian Resources and many state conventions offer extensive resources designed to assist churches in addressing this issue; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in San Antonio, Texas, June 12-13, 2007, express our deep level of moral outrage and concern at any instance of child victimization; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we implore Southern Baptist churches to utilize materials from LifeWay Christian Resources and state conventions and other relevant research that help churches prevent child abuse; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we strongly recommend that Southern Baptist churches and Convention entities respond to any suspicions or allegations of child abuse in a timely and forthright manner; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptist churches and Convention entities to exercise moral stewardship by observing responsible employment practices, including performing criminal background checks on all ministers, employees, and volunteers; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we renounce individuals who commit heinous acts against children; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we renounce individuals, churches, or other religious bodies that cover up, ignore, or otherwise contribute to or condone the abuse of children; and be it finally
RESOLVED, That we pray for righteousness and justice to prevail in our land and intercede on behalf of victimized children, asking God to heal their deep emotional and physical wounds, grow them into mature and healthy adults, and stop the cycle of abuse from repeating itself in another generation.
http://ministry-to-children.com/southern-baptist-convention-2007-resolution-on-protecting-children-from-abuse/
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Clergy Suffer From Hypertension and Depression More Than Most Americans
The New York Times gives a sobering report about the pressures associated with our ministerial vocation. Read this and you will discover the reason I now take a cruise every chance I get as well as why I have absolutely abandoned the institutional churches "ABC's competetion model". [attendance-buildings-cash]
[rgh]
"The findings have surfaced with ominous regularity over the last few years, and with little notice: Members of the clergy now suffer from obesity, hypertension and depression at rates higher than most Americans. In the last decade, their use of antidepressants has risen, while their life expectancy has fallen. Many would change jobs if they could."
"Public health experts who have led the studies caution that there is no simple explanation of why so many members of a profession once associated with rosy-cheeked longevity have become so unhealthy and unhappy."
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/nyregion/02burnout.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&hp
[rgh]
"The findings have surfaced with ominous regularity over the last few years, and with little notice: Members of the clergy now suffer from obesity, hypertension and depression at rates higher than most Americans. In the last decade, their use of antidepressants has risen, while their life expectancy has fallen. Many would change jobs if they could."
"Public health experts who have led the studies caution that there is no simple explanation of why so many members of a profession once associated with rosy-cheeked longevity have become so unhealthy and unhappy."
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/nyregion/02burnout.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&hp
Friday, August 6, 2010
The Pastor's Family and Church Involvement
SBC Voices posted this "relevant" article that addresses every leader in the local church. I've extracted two of the models [family commitment vs laissez faire]relating to family involvement in the life of the local church.
For 38 years I have personally advocated "the family commitment model" for ministry team members,elders,deacons and leaders. This mean't having to exhort,reprove and and even rebuke at times those who drifted toward the laissez-faire model.
Even worse,in recent years, I had the most unfortunate experience of serving with a "Pastor" and some of his "elders" who actually dumbed down the commitment level for their own family while publicly advocating a higher standard for all the other families in the church. Obviously, we had some serious "face time" over such flagrant hypocrisy.
[rgh]
"When the only one of a family who shows up on Sunday receives a check for it, the people in the pews wonder why they bothered to show up and get told about how much more involved they need to be each week."
>The Family Commitment Model: The pastor’s family is committed as members to the church. They attend with the same involvement that would be considered “faithful” for a regular member (aka not gone for soccer 6 months of the year), and are allowed to find their own ministry niche. The church is taught not to freak out if the kids aren’t at the 6 am senior adult prayer breakfast. The wife is free to use her gifts and talents within... the church as she deems appropriate.
Positive: Church commitment and involvement is kept serious for the family. Within that commitment, there is freedom for individual family members to find their place. Pastor’s family can set model for how other busy non-paid church members can reasonably be involved....
>The Laissez-faire Model: For those who slept during economics class, laissez-faire basically means “hands-off.” In this model the pastor adopts a “hands-off” model towards his family’s church involvement. If they want to go, he’ll give them a ride, but he’s not twisting arms or waking people up on a Sunday morning. If they come, they won’t be asked to do much more than fill a pew. Forget ministry involvement; if they want his wife to be involved, they should pay her! And of course, if Junior joins one of those traveling carnivals known as “tournament teams”, then the wife and kids can disappear for 6 months and no one will care as much. If the family is tired on Sunday night, then dad will show up and preach, but it’s Home Makeover time for everyone else.
Positive: Kids can never complain about being forced to go to church. If they are involved it is a credit to their personal interest and effort. Negative: Kids can never complain about being forced to go to church. Tell me which 5 year-old will set their alarm and get themselves ready for church each week, especially if they find out Spongebob is on tv. Some forced activity is healthy for children. And usually this “non-committal” kind of model winds up leading kids to other commitments in place of church, often still not at their own choosing. The pastor’s family may not hate him for taking them to church each week, but they might resent him for sending them to softball games all weekend in 100-degree heat. Dad and family may end up living two totally separate lives. It also sends the message to other church members that if one isn’t paid to be at church, then showing up isn’t important. When the only one of a family who shows up on Sunday receives a check for it, the people in the pews wonder why they bothered to show up and get told about how much more involved they need to be each week.
http://sbcvoices.com/the-pastors-family-and-church-involvement
For 38 years I have personally advocated "the family commitment model" for ministry team members,elders,deacons and leaders. This mean't having to exhort,reprove and and even rebuke at times those who drifted toward the laissez-faire model.
Even worse,in recent years, I had the most unfortunate experience of serving with a "Pastor" and some of his "elders" who actually dumbed down the commitment level for their own family while publicly advocating a higher standard for all the other families in the church. Obviously, we had some serious "face time" over such flagrant hypocrisy.
[rgh]
"When the only one of a family who shows up on Sunday receives a check for it, the people in the pews wonder why they bothered to show up and get told about how much more involved they need to be each week."
>The Family Commitment Model: The pastor’s family is committed as members to the church. They attend with the same involvement that would be considered “faithful” for a regular member (aka not gone for soccer 6 months of the year), and are allowed to find their own ministry niche. The church is taught not to freak out if the kids aren’t at the 6 am senior adult prayer breakfast. The wife is free to use her gifts and talents within... the church as she deems appropriate.
Positive: Church commitment and involvement is kept serious for the family. Within that commitment, there is freedom for individual family members to find their place. Pastor’s family can set model for how other busy non-paid church members can reasonably be involved....
>The Laissez-faire Model: For those who slept during economics class, laissez-faire basically means “hands-off.” In this model the pastor adopts a “hands-off” model towards his family’s church involvement. If they want to go, he’ll give them a ride, but he’s not twisting arms or waking people up on a Sunday morning. If they come, they won’t be asked to do much more than fill a pew. Forget ministry involvement; if they want his wife to be involved, they should pay her! And of course, if Junior joins one of those traveling carnivals known as “tournament teams”, then the wife and kids can disappear for 6 months and no one will care as much. If the family is tired on Sunday night, then dad will show up and preach, but it’s Home Makeover time for everyone else.
Positive: Kids can never complain about being forced to go to church. If they are involved it is a credit to their personal interest and effort. Negative: Kids can never complain about being forced to go to church. Tell me which 5 year-old will set their alarm and get themselves ready for church each week, especially if they find out Spongebob is on tv. Some forced activity is healthy for children. And usually this “non-committal” kind of model winds up leading kids to other commitments in place of church, often still not at their own choosing. The pastor’s family may not hate him for taking them to church each week, but they might resent him for sending them to softball games all weekend in 100-degree heat. Dad and family may end up living two totally separate lives. It also sends the message to other church members that if one isn’t paid to be at church, then showing up isn’t important. When the only one of a family who shows up on Sunday receives a check for it, the people in the pews wonder why they bothered to show up and get told about how much more involved they need to be each week.
http://sbcvoices.com/the-pastors-family-and-church-involvement
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Five Kinds Of Deep Preaching
How many times have we heard parishoners say they are not being spiritually "fed" by the preaching in their home church? Scott Chapman does us all a favor by addressing the issue in his article,"Five Kinds of Deep Preaching".
Lets see how each of us fare by placing Chapman's grid over the message we last preached. Read the entire article for an explanation of his points.
[RGH]
>Biblical Depth
>Intellectual Depth
>Experiential Depth
>Cultural Depth
>Application Depth
http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/preachingworship/preaching/fivekindspreaching.html?start=1
Lets see how each of us fare by placing Chapman's grid over the message we last preached. Read the entire article for an explanation of his points.
[RGH]
>Biblical Depth
>Intellectual Depth
>Experiential Depth
>Cultural Depth
>Application Depth
http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/preachingworship/preaching/fivekindspreaching.html?start=1
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Offending the Bible- Believing Religious
Ouuuuuuuuch! Tim Keller is a prophetic truth teller in this assessment.
[rgh[
"Jesus' teaching consistently attracted the irreligious while offending the Bible-believing, religious people of His day.
However, in the main, our churches today do not have this effect.
The kind of outsiders Jesus attracted do not bother coming to our churches, even our most avant-garde ones. We tend to draw buttoned-down, moralistic people. The licentious and liberated or the broken and marginal avoid church.
That can only mean one thing.
If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then we must not be declaring the same message that Jesus did."
- Dr. Tim Keller
http://jonathanherron.typepad.com/jonathan_herron_dot_com/2010/06/i-heart-tim-keller.html
[rgh[
"Jesus' teaching consistently attracted the irreligious while offending the Bible-believing, religious people of His day.
However, in the main, our churches today do not have this effect.
The kind of outsiders Jesus attracted do not bother coming to our churches, even our most avant-garde ones. We tend to draw buttoned-down, moralistic people. The licentious and liberated or the broken and marginal avoid church.
That can only mean one thing.
If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then we must not be declaring the same message that Jesus did."
- Dr. Tim Keller
http://jonathanherron.typepad.com/jonathan_herron_dot_com/2010/06/i-heart-tim-keller.html
Monday, July 5, 2010
Churches Grapple With Welcoming Sex Offenders
Back in May I did a post about the conflicting topic of sex offenders that is increasingly confronting the local church. While many ministers would like to be simply dismissive of the issue or just flatly deny that it is a pressing issue for congregants, our culture is unwilling to do either. For this I am truly grateful.
The Saturday headline of the Washington Post read,"Churches grapple with whether to welcome convicted sex offenders". My brothers, we Ignore this issue to the peril of the innocent and vulnerable among us. Note that I took the liberty to highlight two significant portions for emphasis.
[rgh]
"All are welcome" is a common phrase on many a church sign and Web site. But what happens when a convicted sex offender is at the door?
Church officials and legal advocates are grappling with how -- and whether -- people who have been convicted of sex crimes should be included in U.S. congregations, especially when children are present:
-- Last month, a lawyer argued in the New Hampshire Supreme Court for a convicted sex offender who wants to attend a Jehovah's Witnesses congregation with a chaperone.
"What we argued is that the right to worship is a fundamental right and the state can only burden it if it has compelling interest to do so, and then only in a way that is narrowly constructed," said Barbara Keshen, a New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union attorney for Jonathan Perfetto, who pleaded guilty in 2002 to 61 counts of possessing child pornography.
-- On Monday, the Seventh-day Adventist Church added language to its manual saying that sexual abuse perpetrators can be restored to members only if they do not have unsupervised contact with children and are not "in a position that would encourage vulnerable individuals to trust them implicitly." Garrett Caldwell, a spokesman for the denomination, said the new wording in the global guidelines tries to strike a balance between protecting congregants and supporting the religious freedom of abusers in "a manifestation of God's grace."
-- On Thursday, a law took effect in Georgia that permits convicted sex offenders to volunteer in churches if they are isolated from children. Permitted activities include singing in the choir and taking part in Bible studies and bake sales.
The Rev. Madison Shockley, pastor of Pilgrim United Church of Christ in Carlsbad, Calif., which publicly grappled with whether to accept a convicted sex offender three years ago, said he hears from churches several times a month seeking advice on how to handle such situations.
"The key lesson for churches is this: The policy, however it winds up, must be a consensus of the congregation," Shockley said. "I talked to so many pastors who decided they're going to make the decision because they know what's theologically and spiritually right -- and that's absolutely the wrong thing to do."
Shockley's church will soon commission a minister to address the prevention of child sex abuse; the church also distributes a 20-page policy on protecting children and dealing with sex offenders....
Read the full article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/02/AR2010070205128.html?hpid=sec-religion
The Saturday headline of the Washington Post read,"Churches grapple with whether to welcome convicted sex offenders". My brothers, we Ignore this issue to the peril of the innocent and vulnerable among us. Note that I took the liberty to highlight two significant portions for emphasis.
[rgh]
"All are welcome" is a common phrase on many a church sign and Web site. But what happens when a convicted sex offender is at the door?
Church officials and legal advocates are grappling with how -- and whether -- people who have been convicted of sex crimes should be included in U.S. congregations, especially when children are present:
-- Last month, a lawyer argued in the New Hampshire Supreme Court for a convicted sex offender who wants to attend a Jehovah's Witnesses congregation with a chaperone.
"What we argued is that the right to worship is a fundamental right and the state can only burden it if it has compelling interest to do so, and then only in a way that is narrowly constructed," said Barbara Keshen, a New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union attorney for Jonathan Perfetto, who pleaded guilty in 2002 to 61 counts of possessing child pornography.
-- On Monday, the Seventh-day Adventist Church added language to its manual saying that sexual abuse perpetrators can be restored to members only if they do not have unsupervised contact with children and are not "in a position that would encourage vulnerable individuals to trust them implicitly." Garrett Caldwell, a spokesman for the denomination, said the new wording in the global guidelines tries to strike a balance between protecting congregants and supporting the religious freedom of abusers in "a manifestation of God's grace."
-- On Thursday, a law took effect in Georgia that permits convicted sex offenders to volunteer in churches if they are isolated from children. Permitted activities include singing in the choir and taking part in Bible studies and bake sales.
The Rev. Madison Shockley, pastor of Pilgrim United Church of Christ in Carlsbad, Calif., which publicly grappled with whether to accept a convicted sex offender three years ago, said he hears from churches several times a month seeking advice on how to handle such situations.
"The key lesson for churches is this: The policy, however it winds up, must be a consensus of the congregation," Shockley said. "I talked to so many pastors who decided they're going to make the decision because they know what's theologically and spiritually right -- and that's absolutely the wrong thing to do."
Shockley's church will soon commission a minister to address the prevention of child sex abuse; the church also distributes a 20-page policy on protecting children and dealing with sex offenders....
Read the full article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/02/AR2010070205128.html?hpid=sec-religion
Equipping The Saints With Focused Gender Distinction
The new 9Marks eJournal addresses relevant topics associated with Pastoring Women.Here are some of the highlighs and click on thier site for the full journal.
[rgh]
> Why Complementarianism is Crucial to Discipleship
> How Pastors Can Equip Women for Ministry
> Older Women Discipling Younger Women
> Wise Words for Young Mothers
http://www.9marks.org/ejournal/pastoring-women
[rgh]
> Why Complementarianism is Crucial to Discipleship
> How Pastors Can Equip Women for Ministry
> Older Women Discipling Younger Women
> Wise Words for Young Mothers
http://www.9marks.org/ejournal/pastoring-women
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