FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Monday, February 17, 2020
An Open Letter to All Baptists in Texas,
As representatives of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Texas, we stand in support of Logsdon Seminary and offer our love and prayers to the faculty, students, graduates, and families of this much beloved seminary. The events of the past few days have given rise to much speculation as to the motives and incentives for the Hardin-Simmons Board of Trustees’ abrupt decision to close the seminary, and the days to come will hopefully bring to light answers to the questions raised by the seminaries’ faithful supporters; however, at this point in time, we wish simply to express our grief for the loss of this Christ-led institution and our prayerful support for the individuals and families most immediately affected.
CBF of Texas was formed as a voice for those Baptists who opposed fundamentalism in our state and, together with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, stood in opposition to the takeover tactics demonstrated by the Southern Baptist Convention in other parts of the country in the 1980s and 1990s. We have withstood the test of time together to this point, unified in the intent to allow religious freedom and Baptist principles of the sacredness of scripture, the priesthood of the believer, and the autonomy of the local church to serve as our guiding light as we worked together to bring Christ’s love and mission to our state, our campuses, and our communities. Now, it seems an ultra-conservative spirit is again moving among some of our fellow Baptists in Texas, employing questionable political tactics to limit the religious freedoms we fought so hard to protect.
We resonate with the words of Paul Baxley, Executive Coordinator for CBF Global, and stand in solidarity with our historic Baptist principles and calling:
In the days ahead, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship will offer its full support to current students, faculty and alumni in this time of transition. We will also continue our pursuit of a new and still more faithful covenant between congregations, theological schools and our Fellowship for the calling and preparing of new generations of women and men whom God is calling to the ministry. We do so in full recognition of the challenges facing theological education and congregations. But we also believe that the ministry of congregations and the calling to congregational leadership has never been more important than it is today.
May Christ’s loving Spirit rule our hearts and minds as we continue to seek to equip and empower the leaders, congregations, communities, and ministries of Christ in Texas, our nation, and the world.
Sincerely,
Rev. Stephanie Nash
CBF of Texas Moderator
Rick McClatchy
CBF of Texas Coordinator
Rev. Kelly Burkhart
CBF of Texas Past Moderator
Rev. Garrett Vickery
CBF of Texas Moderator-Elect