THE BAPTIST STUDIES BULLETIN

"A Monthly Emagazine, Bridging Baptists Yesterday and Today"

September 2004                 Vol. 3  No. 9

Produced by The Center for Baptist Studies, Mercer University

Walter B. Shurden, Editor, The Baptist Studies Bulletin

Bruce T. Gourley, Associate Director, The Center for Baptist Studies–

Wil Platt, Associate Editor, The Baptist Studies Bulletin

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Table of Contents:

I Believe . . . : Walter B. Shurden

         "Passion Wins"

The Baptist Soapbox: Brent Walker

         "God is Not a Republican or Democrat"

Baptists, the Bible, and the Poor: Charles E. Poole

         "The Poor and Our Premises"

The Baptist Spirit: Strengths and Challenges: Charles W. Deweese

         "Theological Variety: Should We Celebrate It or Curse It?"

What I Learned in My First Year as a Baptist Female Pastor: Wendy Joyner
         "Surprising Lessons of a Great Adventure"

BSB Book Review Special: John D. Hendrix's Nothing Never Happens:
         Experiential Learning and the Church

         Review by Bo Prosser

The Story of Primitive Baptists: John G. Crowley
         "Washing the Saints' Feet"

Dates to Note: Upcoming Events

I Believe

"Passion Wins"

By Walter B. Shurden

I believe . . .

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Baptist Soapbox

The Baptist Soapbox: Invited guests speak up and out on things Baptist (therefore, the views expressed in this space are not necessarily those of The Baptist Studies Bulletin, though sometimes they are). Climbing upon the Soapbox this month is Dr. Brent Walker, Executive Director of the Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs.

"God is Not a Republican or Democrat"

By Brent Walker

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Baptists

Bible and Poor

Baptists, The Bible, and the Poor: Charles E. Poole is a Baptist minister with Lifeshare Community Ministries in Jackson, Mississippi where he delights in ministering alongside the poor. "Chuck" Poole, a provocative preacher and servant pastor, served Baptist churches for twenty-five years. Among the churches he has served are First Baptist Church, Macon, GA, First Baptist Church, Washington, DC, and Northminster Baptist Church, Jackson, MS.

"The Poor and Our Premises"

By Charles E. Poole

            I have been a minister since 1977. Across the last few of those 27 years, whenever the churches I served wanted to build, buy, acquire, enlarge or renovate facilities, I was always haunted by this question: “Wouldn’t those dollars be better spent lifting the lives of the poor and powerless?”

            There is an assumption behind that question.  The assumption, obviously, is that spending money here means not spending money there. Spending money on this means not spending money on that, because there isn’t enough money to spend it here and there; to pay for this and that. 

            My friends who know infinitely more than I about economics have tried, patiently and repeatedly, to deliver me from this flawed reasoning.  They tell me that whenever the church makes its buildings bigger, more people will come, generating more giving to the church, which thus enables the church to give more to the true gospel missions of caring for the poor, the broken, the outcast and the defenseless. 

            But I’m not so sure.  Here’s why: I live in a city where, by the most conservative calculation, forty million dollars worth of new church building, enlarging, renovating, etc. has happened in the last five years.  But I receive calls almost every week from various faith-based helping agencies in need of money to meet urgent human needs, needs that they want to meet in the name and spirit of Christ, needs they can’t meet because they don’t have enough funds.  Which tells me that there is not enough money for churches to “do it all,” and which also tells me that when churches “enlarge the bucket” by expanding their facilities, most of what goes in that bigger bucket gets used on bigger staffs, bigger programs, bigger insurance, custodial and utility bills; which results in churches with huge institutional maintenance budgets, which does, ultimately, reduce what they are able to spend on the very things Jesus called us to give ourselves to. 

            I’m not an economist.  But I am a preacher of the gospel, and, as a preacher, I wish that I, and others like me, had done a better job of leading our churches to be content with our possessions, so that we would have more to help those who struggle in our nation and starve in other nations.  You’d think we Baptists would come to such conclusions naturally, what with us being so big about the Bible and all.  But the truth is, all our protestations of Baptist biblicism notwithstanding, we simply have not embraced, as congregations, the biblical principle that “those who have much should not have too much, so that those who have little will not have too little” (II Corinthians 8:14-15).

            We can’t have it all and do it all.  The money runs out. Something gets funded and something else doesn’t.  So we have to choose.  But where do we start?  I don’t know.

            How about at Matthew 25: 31-46?

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The Baptist Spirit

The Baptist Spirit: Strengths and Challenges: Charles W. Deweese, Executive Director-Treasurer of the Baptist History and Heritage Society, writes this section of BSB. An articulate and passionate Baptist, he identifies the historic Baptist Spirit in America.
 

"Theological Variety: Should We Celebrate it or Curse It?"

By Charles W. Deweese

           Theological variety dominates the global Baptist landscape. That pattern started in the 1600s. The General Baptists defended a general atonement for all, but the Particular Baptists advocated a limited atonement for the elect. Most Baptists worshipped on Sunday, but the Seventh Day Baptists claimed that Saturday was the right day to worship. Many Baptists favored closed communion; others preferred open communion. Some chose to lay hands on all baptized believers; others objected.

           Today is no different. Several dozen varieties of Baptists reside in the United States. Theological differences characterize these bodies. Some view women's ordination as anti-biblical; others view it as a natural extension of Christ's teachings. Some would go to the stake in the name of biblical inerrancy; others claim that biblical writers were as human as we are today, equally prone to mistakes. Some hate abortion but love capital punishment; others respect abortion in certain cases and speak against capital punishment. Some recommend relationships with Baptists around the world; others prefer to separate themselves into isolated bodies. Some want to recite the Apostles' Creed at the 2005 Baptist World Congress meeting in Birmingham, England; others will undoubtedly resist that effort. Some advocate church-state separation; others would merge the two in a New York minute. The list of theological differences among Baptists is possibly endless.

           To the outsider, Baptists must sometimes appear to be theologically confused, a people with no doctrinal standards and no sense of identity. Candidly, Baptists themselves struggle with the same concerns. But which is better: mindless robotic conformity to someone else's notions about faith or faith hammered out on the anvils of personal encounters with Christ, intellectual study, church worship and discipleship, and sacrifice—even if theological variety results? When Baptist individuals or organizations arrive at different conclusions about theology, they are simply responding to the claims of God to be honest about who they are and what they believe.

           Theological variety exists primarily because Baptists are a freedom-based group of Christians for whom voluntarism, nonconformity, and dissent are essential elements of faith. Created in God's image, they use their unique God-given abilities to fashion their own lives under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. As souls competent before God and united in a priesthood of all believers, they read the Bible and make their own choices about ethics and ministry. Churches, associations, conventions, fellowships, unions, federations, and alliances autonomously decide on mission statements, programs, budgets, and personnel. In liberty, Baptists write their own confessions of faith, or choose to let the Bible be their sole guide.

           Theological variety is a good thing. The alternative would be doctrinal conformity and uniformity, forced faith, and top-down theology, all anti-Baptist concepts. The chief enemy of theological variety is the arrogant claim to hold a monopoly on God's revelation; then that claim twists revelation into a self-serving pattern and forces that pattern in roughshod fashion onto the principles of others. Ironically, such efforts to insist on lockstep, do-as-I-say theology only enhance theological variety.

           In freedom, every Baptist has the right and duty, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, in the context of a Bible study class, or sitting alone under a tree, to arrive at personal decisions. No two individuals will reach exactly the same conclusions, and no Sunday School teacher, preacher, seminary professor, or denominational executive committee has the right to expect that they will or should. Christ simply says, "Whoever would be my disciple, let that person deny self, take up a personal cross, and follow me." He does not say, "Straighten out your belief system and then come and follow me." That's good news, indeed. Let's celebrate.

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Baptist
Female
Pastor

What I  Learned in My First Year as a Baptist Female Pastor: The Reverend Wendy Joyner is longtime pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church, Americus, Georgia.  She describes what she learned in her first year as the senior pastor of a local Baptist church.

"Surprising Lessons of a Great Adventure"

By Wendy Joyner
 

           Nine years ago, I embarked on one of the greatest adventures of my life.  Filled with much fear and trepidation, I headed to a small church in Southwest Georgia.  I knew that I had found a home among the members of my congregation, but I was certainly unsure of the kind of reception I would receive in the larger community.  The lessons I learned that first year were surprising.

           I learned that when people are hurting, most of the time your gender is irrelevant to them.  The ministry that you offer in the name of Christ is what matters the most.  Rather than theological arguments, church doctrines, or long held tradition, people will remember your love and your kindness in their hour of need.

           I learned that my colleagues in ministry would be my life line. I was also surprised at the colleagues who became my most treasured friends.  When I first moved to Americus, people made a point to introduce me to other “women preachers” in the area.  Some of these become quick friends, and others did not – just because we were women did not mean that we would automatically have much in common.  Conversely, upon my arrival in town,  I met two male pastors from more theologically conservative congregations.  My assumption was that we would not get along at all, but once we moved past our prejudices, we discovered that we shared much in common.  Our theological conversations are often lively, but we have come to respect the ministries that all of us share in the Body of Christ.  These two men are among my closest friends, and also two of my biggest supporters.

           I realized that it’s important to make a place for the next generation of ministers to gain experience.  One of my biggest challenges in starting to preach each week was my lack of pulpit experience.  Due to the fact that in 1995, few Baptist churches in my area were inviting women to preach, I had never preached a sermon outside of a classroom before my trial sermon!  Since I began serving here, we have made it a priority to help other women who are called to pastor.  We have invited a female seminary student to preach at our church one Sunday each spring.  These worship services help to give women students experience and encouragement as they begin their ministry.

           As a female in a male-dominated profession, people are often curious about how life is for those of us who are “pioneers.”  My favorite question is “What’s it like being a woman pastor?”  I often answer, “I can’t really compare it to anything else – it’s the only kind of pastor I’ve ever been!” Although being a woman pastor gives me a distinct point of view and provides some unique experiences, most  of the important lessons I learned in my first year as a woman pastor were lessons that any first-year pastor learns.

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            In Nothing Never Happens: Experiential Learning and the Church, John D. Hendrix, former Basil Manly Jr. Professor of Christian Education at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and recently retired pastor from Northside Baptist Church in Clinton, Mississippi, delivers his “magnum opus” for those of us who have been patiently waiting. Hendrix, hero to a generation of Christian educators and teaching/preaching pastors, shares a detailed study of “experiential learning.” Anyone who has ever journeyed in learning with John has longed for a text of his thoughts. He delivers in the masterful style that his students expect.
            Hendrix begins with an introduction to set the tone for what follows, “This is a book about learning theory and biblical interpretation” (7).  From there, he takes readers on a fascinating journey through philosophy, theology, and praxis. Along the pathway, he shares personal stories that reveal his own struggles and learning adventures. “I sensed that I had to let the text say what it wanted to say and not what I had already decided it should say. I was walking into a whole new world of biblical studies…” (8).
            John also shares some of the foundational experiences of his own learning development. He reveals his first days as a student at Midwestern Seminary, a 36-hour “silent retreat” with Gordon Cosby, interactions with David Kolb, and relationships with a host of scholars and church folk.  He especially intimates the affirmation and love of his wife Lela. For the author, the people along his learning journey are perhaps more important than the lessons he's learned. “It is people, always people, who carry on the memory of Jesus. We have access to the Jesus story through a long line of personal telling and retelling” (65-66).
            Chapter One gives an overview of the cycles and polarities of experiential learning. His understanding of “experiential learning” begins with a definition, “concrete participation in the daily processes of living rather than categories of information” (15).  He then  introduces a four-stage cycle of experiential learning that incorporates experience, perception, cognition, and behavior. He challenges the reader to be suspicious of steps of learning that would be clear and simple. “Instinctively, we catch truth 'on the way,' a momentary glimpse that lacks smoothness and symmetry…” (16). The chapter also includes a model for experiential learning that begins to form his thesis without giving in to the smoothness and symmetry about which he warns.
            Hendrix then weaves his chapters to examine the tools of experiential learning. Metaphors help us to “taste and see” (Chapter Two.) Experience is the first hand interaction with things or people (Chapter Three.) Exegesis is the breaking down of the complexity of the biblical text into a “relational” understanding (Chapter Four.) Reflection (Chapter Five) is the “interplay between experience and exegesis” (91).
            Application (Chapter Six) and Leadership (Chapter Seven) are the final tools that are presented.  And in true Hendrix style, he challenges traditional thoughts about these. “Almost everything about experiential Bible study is slow. Learning is a process – sometimes a long and tedious one” (132). No one has ever  been more honest about learning or about leading others to learn. Many educators still hope for the magic pill or silver bullet!
            The final chapters relate directly to the praxis of experiential learning: Preaching, Cross-cultural Bible Study, and Curriculum (Chapters 8-10). Hendrix draws his framework of tools into the practical realm of the local church. “…when you begin to see something where there was nothing and the brain wakes up…we sleep at the gate of heaven” (160).
            Each chapter includes practical experiences that bring immediate meaning to the subject. The notes that guide his writing are very rich. The book concludes with a wonderful bibliography that signals to the reader that learning has not ended but that it has only just begun.
            John D. Hendrix is pastor, teacher, author, colleague, and friend. This work is truly a must read for those of us who would dare to teach. “This brings us to the simplest but perhaps most profound of all learning theories: we learn what we already know” (17). Well done!

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The Story of Primitive Baptists: John G. Crowley, a life-long Primitive Baptist with a Ph.D. in history from Florida State, is Professor of History at Valdosta State University and author of Primitive Baptists of the Wiregrass South, 1815 to Present.

"Washing the Saints' Feet"

By John G. Crowley

            Continental Anabaptists began to practice ritual feetwashing as part of their effort to restore the primitive church. Some General Baptists adopted the practice in England. The Particular Baptists mulled over the subject from time to time without actually doing it. The Separate Baptists of North Carolina took up feetwashing along with the holy kiss, devoting infants, anointing with oil, laying hands on all the baptized, and love feasts. Of these customs, only feetwashing survived and spread among the Baptists of the South. By the 1820s, Baptists of the Gulf South widely observed "washing the saints' feet" as an adjunct to communion, with occasional observance among the Baptists of the Carolinas.

           With the Missions division, "footwashing" became yet another field of combat for the two factions. With a few exceptions, Missionary Baptists discarded footwashing as an overly literal observance with no deep roots in the Particular Baptist tradition. The Primitive Baptists of the Deep South responded by elevating footwashing to the level of an ordinance of the church, on a par with baptism and communion. Footwashing became an integral part of the communion service in these churches, and many associations altered their articles of faith to include washing the saints' feet as a perpetual ordinance.

            There the matter rested until the early twentieth century, when Ford and Macadam brought Primitive Baptists together from across the United States. The brethren of the Deep South discovered to their horror that their co-religionists from the upcountry either did not wash feet at all, or did so only occasionally. This issue became engrafted on several other controversies swirling through the denomination in the 1920s and 1930s, with a major rupture taking place in Georgia and Alabama in 1936. Until the 1990s, those states contained a galaxy of rather large Primitive Baptist associations who refused to have anything to do with the other Primitives because they endorsed "optional footwashing."         

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Dates to

Note

Dates to Note

September 23-25, 2004, "God, Democracy and U.S. Power: Believers Church Perspectives," hosted by Eastern Mennonite University and Bridgewater College, Virginia. For more information, go to http://www.emu.edu/churchandpolitics/ or call Cindy Smoker at (540) 432-4597.

September 26-28, 2004, The Mercer Preaching Consultation, The King and Prince Hotel, St. Simons Island, GA. For details go to www.mercer.edu/baptiststudies and click "Conferences."

November 14-15, 2004, CBF of GA Fall Convocation at Christian Fellowship Baptist Church, College Park, GA.

July 27-31, 2005, Centennial Congress of the Baptist World Alliance, Birmingham, England. To register email Congress@bwanet.org , phone 703.790.8980, or fax 703.893.5160.
 

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Baptist Myths: A New Pamphlet Series

A series of eleven pamphlets that address negative perceptions held towards Baptists in popular American culture. These pamphlets are suitable for individual study, church classes, and academic courses. They are jointly published by the Baptist History and Heritage Society, The Center for Baptist Studies of Mercer University, and the Whitsitt Baptist Heritage Society. Editor: Doug Weaver; Associate Editors: Charles W. Deweese & Walter B. Shurden.

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