Mark wrote:As Norm said, Wade ain't there yet. But for sure I don't think he's the same person he was back when he wrote those 95 Theses.
Mark, I honestly believe that Wade has moderated his views as expressed in the
95 Theses. I believe his views today are almost 180 degrees from where they were 16 years ago. A lot of water has gone under the bridge since then. In '92, Wade was strongly opposed to dissenting views existing within the BGCO.
If you'll read the points of Wade's theses individually, it appears that he opposed
any dissent from
any Oklahoma Baptist. He detested the existence of dissenting Oklahoma Baptists, i.e. the CBFO. He expected total unity among Oklahoma Baptists on all issues. In other words, in 1992 there was no room in Wade's world for any dissenting views among Oklahoma Baptists. By contrast, today he is fighting for the right of Baptists to have dissenting views and remain part of the body. That, my friend, is 180 degrees from where he was in '92.
Public dissenters are not allowed among fundamentalist Southern Baptists. They will always, and without fail, be excluded and/or pushed aside. Dissenters in the fundamentalist SBC system are never allowed to be part of the decision making process. Here in Oklahoma, there have been numerous prominent Baptist pastors with dissenting views who have been excluded and denied the privilege of participating in decision making processes. There are many, but for the sake of space, I will cite but three examples:
- Dr. Gene Garrison and First Baptist Church of Oklahoma City: In the 1970's Dr. Garrison was a respected member of SBC and BGCO boards. He was a frequent conference speaker. In the mid-1980's he, like other moderate Oklahoma Baptists, was blacklisted by the fundamentalists. He pastored First Baptist in Oklahoma City 1973-96. In 1983 Bailey Smith, then pastor of Del City (Oklahoma) First Southern Baptist Church, condemned Oklahoma City FBC for ordaining women deacons. This set off a controversy that led Capital Association to refuse to seat messengers from the church. Dr. Garrison never again had the opportunity to so much as lead a BGCO meeting in silent prayer. After he was blacklisted, he never again appeared on the platform at a BGCO meeting or function.
- Dr. Lavonn Brown and First Baptist Church of Norman: Dr. Brown pastored First Baptist in Norman 1970-99. He also was a respected member of SBC and BGCO boards and was a frequent conference speaker. In the mid-1980's he, like Dr. Garrison, was blacklisted by the Fundamentalists. Norman FBC had also ordained women deacons. In 1980 Dr. Brown joined 17 Baptist pastors at Gatlinburg, Tennessee, to discuss the takeover and to help counter the conservative direction of the convention. That group, known subsequently as the "Gatlinburg Gang," formed the nucleus of what became the "Moderate Movement" in the Southern Baptist Convention. From that experience, the Oklahoma Baptist leaders branded him as being a "liberal." In 1989, when First Norman celebrated its 100th anniversary, Dr. Brown petitioned the BGCO leaders to allow the church to host the convention's annual meeting in the church's centennial year. The convention leadership refused to allow the church to host the Convention's annual meeting simply because Dr. Brown was friendly to the CBF.
- Dr. Gary Cook First Baptist church of Lawton: Dr. Cook was a former Vice President for Church Programs and Services at the Sunday School Board. He accepted pastorate of First Baptist Church in Lawton shortly after trustees removed Lloyd Elder as President and replaced him with Jimmy Draper. He was elected to the Board of Directors of the BGCO and subsequently became chairman of BGCO Strategic Planning Committee. In 1993 Fundamentalists had Cook removed from BGCO's Strategic Planning Committee because he had moderated a CBF discussion group and had introduced a CBF Cecil Sherman at a luncheon. Dr. Cook was blacklisted and never again had a voice in Oklahoma Baptist life.
Based on Wade's 95 Theses statements, he would have agreed with the actions taken against these three dissenters. I can't pretend to speak for him, but I believe he would strongly oppose those actions today. Nevertheless, Wade is now experiencing the wrath of those with whom he agreed 16 years ago. Now the shoe is on the other foot. His dissent led to his being excluded from decision making processes of the IMB and in reality, although he resigned before it occurred, he would have been kicked off the IMB BoT. While he will remain in the SBC system as a dissenter, he will always be ignored by the SBC leadership and will have no voice as an insider. His voice now will have to come from outside the system.
