CO-CHAIR THOUGHTS JEROLD McBRIDE
A Candid Look at the Austin Convention

It is time for Texas Baptists to “cut through the fat,” to “put all the cards on the table” and to “tell it like it is.” We must avoid the fine art of almost, but not quite, saying something. Therefore, in retrospect, I offer these comments concerning the BGCT convention in Austin.

FIRST—The Nashville Brass’ visit. When the Nashville Brass spends SBC Cooperative Program money to fly to Austin the week of our state convention and participates in a Fundamentalist rally the evening prior to our opening session, it is obviously a matter of control. This is as transparent as it would be should Russia send its top brass to the Ukraine the week of that country’s national elections.

Our relation with the SBC is one of voluntary cooperation and not compulsive coercion. The current SBC leadership has become paranoid about Texas Baptists exercising their freedom of choice. SBC leadership reminds me of a jealous suitor forcing himself on a young lady. Such relations are to be mutual, not unilateral. Texas Baptists will work with the SBC, the CBF, the BWA or any other Baptist group as an act of Christian cooperation but we refuse to be dominated, controlled and manipulated!

During my trips to Russia and the Ukraine I learned there is a group of old line leadership in the Ukraine that has lost its good standing with its own people. When the Ukraine was dominated by the USSR, these people, representing the central government, abused their power. Their leadership has been rejected by their countrymen. They are now in the minority. The only way they can be restored to position would be for Russia to seize control of the Ukraine, override the will of the people and put the hard liners back in power.

There are those “hard liners” in Texas, representing the thinking of our national leadership, who want to control our state convention. They are in the minority and, like the former leadership of the Ukraine, their only hope for gaining control is found in forces outside the state. And so these outside forces invade the state the week of our convention in hopes of bolstering the chances of this minority Fundamentalist faction.

SECOND—the amendment concerning messengers. The desperation of the fundamentalists is seen in their duplicity concerning qualifications for SBC and BGCT messengers. It does not take a brain surgeon to figure out that it is all a matter of control.They contend that messengers to the SBC must come from churches that contribute to the SBC Cooperative Program but that messengers to the BGCT need not come from churches that contribute to the BGCT Cooperative Program. Let’s quit blowing smoke and playing games-it is all a matter of control!

The reason these people follow this line of thinking is obvious. They belong to the group that controls the SBC and therefore they will contribute to the SBC Cooperative Program. They do not control the BGCT and therefore they contribute little, if any, to the BGCT Cooperative Program. What they are saying is this,

Our Lord said, “Where your treasure is there will your heart be also.” Our “treasure” is with the mission and ministry of the BGCT and consequently our “heart” is there also. The opposition has neither “treasure” nor “heart” in the work of the BGCT, yet they want to control it.

THIRD—Russell Dilday’s nomination. A spokesman for “Southern Baptists of Texas” referred to Russell Dilday’s nomination for the BGCT presidency as an “in your face” move. Ironically, this same spokesman was a member of Southwestern Seminary’s trustees who fired Dilday. If ever there were an “in your face” flaunting of power, the firing of Dilday was! In fact, Dilday was informed just prior to his firing, “We have the votes and we will fire you!”

Rather than Dilday’s nomination’s being an “in your face” move it was an “in your hands” move. His nomination said to our messengers, “Here is a capable and dedicated leader. We nominate him, but whether he is elected or not is “in your hands.” This is the antithesis of the “We have the votes and we will fire you!” mentality.

FOURTH-Pressler’s takeover threat. Matthew Brady, of the Fort Worth Star- Telegram, reported, “Retired state appeals court Judge Paul Pressler of Houston, who mapped the political strategy that helped… take over the national convention, suggested that conservatives wait until next year to break away so they can first try to defeat a proposal to link money donations to the number of messengers a Texas church can send to the state convention.” What he said next is absolutely unbelievable. “We need to vote it down. It’s an abomination to try to buy our votes. It’s putting a poll tax on Texas Baptist.”

Can you believe one who supports a church’s contributing to the SBC as a messenger requirement would make such a ludicrous statement? How dumb does the judge think Texas Baptists are? Perhaps Pressler’s followers might be so naive as to be hoodwinked by such double talk, but I can assure you that informed intelligent Texas Baptists are not fooled one bit!

FIFTH—Your presence in Houston next year. The future of the BGCT merits your being present next November at the state convention in Houston. Although the messenger amendment requires only a two-thirds vote, it received a 72% vote in Austin. But this will not be so easily done in Houston which is the hotbed of the fundamentalist movement in Texas. You can be sure that Pressler and his crowd will exert every effort to defeat this amendment and wrestle control of our state convention from rank and file supportive Texas Baptists. They know this will be the last opportunity they will have for large churches who give little to bus people in, pack the convention and cast their votes. It is hard to believe that anyone,especially Christians, would have such unmitigated gall as to show up at a convention which they do not financially support and vote on how other people’s money will be spent. Such crass behavior does not set well with churches like mine that gave more than $93,000.00 through the BGCT Cooperative Program last year while in desperate need for adequate buildings!

Begin immediately enlisting your church’s full slate of messengers. Encourage other like-minded traditional Texas Baptist churches to do the same. Provide transportation and assistance to smaller churches that may need help. Years to come, you will look back and thank God that you did. The BGCT deserves your best efforts. No matter how far you must travel, be present! Your one vote in Houston might well be the vote that keeps Texas free from a fundamentalist takeover.

December 1997