CO-CHAIR THOUGHTS FROM PHIL LINEBERGER

Sounds Like the Vatican To Me

It has been said that those who refuse to learn from history are bound to repeat it. The present leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention, represented by the Executive Secretary Treasurer, are taking Southern Baptists down the same road traveled by the early church into the present hierarchical ecclesialastical system known as Catholicism. Lets look at some of the significant signposts along that road.

First, during the early days of the New Testament Church, long before the sixty-six books of our Bible were brought together as our accepted authority for faith and practice, questions about scripture or church life were referred to a few strong pastors. Gradually, these few pastors became the authorities on Biblical interpretation and ecclesialastical organization. They were given the title bishop of the churches.

Second, since these bishops settled matters of scriptural interpretation, it was decided that the people did not need to possess copies of the scriptures. Thus the Bible was taken out of the hands of the people. Creeds about the Bible, written by the bishops, replaced the Bible as the authority in the lives of the people.

Third, since the bishops had become ecclesiastical authorities, they began to dictate to the churches what they could and could not believe and practice. Priests, intermediaries between God and man, were put into leadership in the churches. The people now had to go through the priests, who were answerable to the bishops, for any spiritual guidance. Eventually, the church, controlled by the bishops led by a head bishop called a Pope (Papa), also controlled the salvation of the people.

Fourth, since the heads of state were members of the church, the bishops under the leadership of the head bishop, the Pope, began to control the heads of state through the threat of kicking them out of the church and taking away their salvation. The local church now answered to a centralized authority.

Does this sound strangely familiar?

First, there was the question of scripture in the SBC. A few strong pastors have declared that they have settled the question of the interpretation of scripture. Never mind that every man and woman in every generation must personally settle the question of scripture, for these pastors have done it for everyone. Thus the Southern Baptist Convention has its bishops. Sounds like the Vatican to me.

Second, the Executive Secretary Treasurer of the Southern Baptist Convention, has told local churches that they must practice what the centralized authority has dictated. Each church can use their own money only in the way that the authorities in Nashville say. Does that sound backward to you? Sounds like the Vatican to me.

It is a Vatican mentality which has invaded the ranks of Southern Baptists. Listen to Greg Martin, trustee of the Home Mission Board from Long Beach, Mississippi, whose motion passed to instruct the Home Mission Board to study “state conventions that channel designated funds to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and other non-SBC entities.” Martin said, “We need to send a message to those conventions… don’t be uncooperative.” In other words, get in line or we’ll excommunicate you. Sounds like the Vatican to me.

Or here is a letter from Marvin Mosely, Director of Missions for the Harmony-Pittsburg Association in East Texas, “Could you please remove my name from your mailing list. (Baptists Committed) I am not interested in reading such trash. If you are a committed Baptist you will realize that the autonomy of the local church as Phil Lineberger interprets it is not the historic stance of Baptist. To say that the SBC, the BGCT or an Association cannot require anything from churches without violating their autonomy is pure nonsense. This takes away the autonomy of those other entities.” Sounds more like the Vatican to me.

What is historic Baptist polity regarding the autonomy of the local church and its relationship to conventions and associations? Listen to one of the principles of organization from the First Baptist Church, Carthage, Tennessee, July 16, 1881. “We believe that Christian churches as described in the New Testament to be independent bodies. They have no right to control each other. There is ample authority for cooperating in missionary, educational, and other benevolent works, for consultation as to question of Truth and Duty, but none for answering to legislates or in any sense to rule one another.” Sounds like historic Baptist Church autonomy to me!

Sorry Mr. Martin, Mr. Mosely, and Mr. Executive Secretary Treasurer, I have chosen to be a Baptist, which means a bottom up polity, not a top down polity.

I have chosen to agree with Article IV of the SBC: “sovereign in its own sphere, the Convention does not claim and will never attempt to exercise any authority over any other Baptist body, whether church, auxiliary organizations, associations, or convention.”

And furthermore, how many were present for the vote telling churches how they could give their money for educational, benevolent, and mission enterprises? The report said about 8000, with about 4800 voting for the motion. So, 4800 Southern Baptists tell 15 million Southern Baptists in 38,000 churches and missions, to get in line or get out. Sounds like the Vatican to me!

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