I enjoy watching fascinating shows on cable TV's history channel.

Japanese Kamikaze airplane pilots recently were portrayed sacrificing their lives by flying their planes into American ships during World War II. Pilots, believing in the dominance of their country around the world, preceded their flights with a religious ritual. Rightly or wrongly, the depth of their convictions cannot be questioned.

We should be used to guilt by association by now, but once again, another missile has been discharged against Mainstream Baptists Committed in Missouri, the group patterned after Texas Baptists Committed. The attack also took aim at Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, TBC and me.

The assault was launched by-you guessed it-none other than Roger Moran, director of Missouri Baptists Laymen's Association. The 16-page document, with 154 footnotes, attacked Mainstream Baptists Committed for being a sister organization of TBC, CBF and me because I serve on the CBF Coordinating Council and the board of The Interfaith Alliance.

Some seriously question whether Moran is the author, due to his background. Whoever wrote it, I have to give him credit for being a person of conviction. The writer is mean, implies things that are not true, twists truths to make false accusations-but, he is a person of conviction. Rightly or wrongly, fundamentalists are people of conviction. They are like kamikaze pilots, willing to give their all for their cause.

In case you doubt that assessment, think about Paige Patterson's, Richard Land's and R. Albert Mohler's responses to messengers refusing to endorse the revised Baptist Faith and Message at last year's BGCT convention.

They accused Texas Baptists of not believing the Bible. They honestly believed it and said it, regardless of consequences. They are as strongly convinced of their opinions as Kamikaze pilots were of theirs. Seemingly, they care only about their convictions and gaining control of all of Baptist life. Texas Baptists sent over $40 million last year to support SBC undertakings, but these men voiced their conviction anyway. so what if Texas Baptists get offended?

Asking the Fear Question

Now consider conservative/moderates-do we have the same level of conviction? Not a chance. We always ask the FEAR question. "How is this going to affect my church? How many churches will the BGCT lose if we take this action? We do not want to rock the boat. We do not want to have any conflict in our local church." We ignore our convictions because of our fear of the consequences.

The Kingdom of God suffers and more people are lost. The Baptist name is tarnished as Mohler says one stupid thing after another. Land speaks for Baptists in Washington, D.C. Jerry Falwell is a hero to leaders in the SBC. Meanwhile, more money is needed for students to train in our new seminaries as traditional Baptist ministers. Buckner Benevolences needs more money to change lives through social ministries such as their seriously under-funded adoption program. And many Baptist preachers across the country have not said one word for 20 years and most never will!

Why is this the case? Lacking courage, we do not follow our convictions. We live in fear. We are more concerned with people thinking we are "nice people" than we are in doing what is right. Some of us are so anxious for peace that we are willing to say and do anything (or not say or do anything). Many will give the SBC leadership what they want-total submission-rather than say a word that someone might consider "divisive."

There is a choice

TBC supporters have a choice. We can allow fear to continue to control the actions of the BGCT or we can have as much courage as the Kamikaze pilots. We know fundamentalism is wrong. We know sending money to support SBC endeavors, except foreign missionaries, is poor stewardship, but we keep doing it. We feel we must never abandon our missionaries, but we need to know how to really help.

We continue giving because we are afraid not to. We are fearful some churches will stop supporting the BGCT. We are scared that doing what is right will divide our church or state convention.

Fundamentalists do not share this fear. They do not mind splitting their local church for the cause. They are willing to pay the price for what they believe. They are people of conviction, not fear. They will dominate SBC life forever unless they are resisted by real Baptists with MORE conviction for Jesus and Baptist Principles than we now have.

Look at recent events. The Baptist Faith and Message statement is being used as a creed and will soon be rewritten to the point that it no longer is a Baptist document. Land fights the historic definition of religious liberty Baptists have held for hundreds of years. Mohler attacks people of other faith perspectives and now attacks Baptists most cherished doctrine, soul competency (see page 8).

 The SBC has become an independent fundamentalist convention because current leadership fails to affirm Baptist principles like our Baptist forefathers.

It promotes exactly what Jerry Falwell promoted when he was an independent fundamentalist. And yet most Baptist state convention leaders, Directors of Missions and pastors urge everyone to ignore these truths, reveal no conviction and keep the peace.

TBC supporters, we have not worked the past 10 years to continue to support fundamentalism. It is time to start a new dream of building the Kingdom of God without fundamentalism. It is time to act out of conviction rather than fear. It is time to go forward, ignoring the consequences.

Southern Baptists' part in the Kingdom of God is at stake. No future for Texas Baptists lies in the SBC. It is dead as we know it.

We are dealing with Kamikaze pilots. If American sailors in WWII had stood on their ships and said, "I can't shoot that plane down because it is being flown by a man created in the image of God just like me. He probably has a family just like me, or at least a Mommy and Daddy. I can't shoot him down," and refused to respond with conviction, every American ship in the Pacific would have been sunk and we might all speak Japanese today.

We won that war because we had the conviction to fight with everything we knew how to fight with. Adrian Rogers has declared -"We are at war!" As crazy as his words sound, we must take him seriously, or he and other SBC leaders will destroy the Baptist witness in America.

May 2000