Frank Page

[Jon Estes]

For the folks suffering a severe case of denial, though one supposes enough time has been wasted on poor, dear Frank:

News source: Baptist News Global
Page resignation date: 27 March
Article date: 28 March
Interim date: full months of February, March
last sermon date, presumably: 25 March
Interim firing date: 27 March, effective 25 March

Question: Should the interim church pay Frank for two days?

You stated earlier...

Page stepped away from ministry because he was about to be exposed but had the gall to keep preaching anyway and made a laughing stock of his interim congregation.

Where do you find that he was about to be exposed? Everything I read is that he is the one who told on himself. I may have missed it= but I cannot find anything to support your accusation that he was about to be exposed. From what has been reported, he chose to come clean. If you cannot produce support that he was about to be exposed... your continuation of "he preached anyway" is a lie.

[Jim]

For the folks suffering a severe case of denial, though one supposes enough time has been wasted on poor, dear Frank:

News source: Baptist News Global
Page resignation date: 27 March
Article date: 28 March
Interim date: full months of February, March
last sermon date, presumably: 25 March
Interim firing date: 27 March, effective 25 March

Question: Should the interim church pay Frank for two days?

You stated earlier...

Page stepped away from ministry because he was about to be exposed but had the gall to keep preaching anyway and made a laughing stock of his interim congregation.

Where do you find that he was about to be exposed? Everything I read is that he is the one who told on himself. I may have missed it= but I cannot find anything to support your accusation that he was about to be exposed. From what has been reported, he chose to come clean. If you cannot produce support that he was about to be exposed... your continuation of "he preached anyway" is a lie.

This is precisely what I said in the post above: “In other words, he [Page] was fired [by the interim] retroactively after his peccadilloes became known, his last appearance while he still had the gall to take to the pulpit under the seamy circumstances.” (check it out) The seamy circumstances referenced his guilt—infidelity—not just the time of his resignation from the exec position, although, according to Rummage's account, his infidelity was known, thus Page's knowledge that the axe was about to fall and that he'd do well to outrun it...but unsuccessfully, unfortunately, since knowledge of his guilt had outrun him. As Hillary would say, what difference does it make anyway? Actually, one wonders about how many other such "affairs" (Elmer Gantry redux) he might have had along the way.

[Haruo]

Do we even know *infidelity* is involved. Last I looked the charge was *inappropriate behavior*, which covers a lot of potential terrain, some of which might not even preclude preaching.

[Tim Bonney]

Do we even know *infidelity* is involved. Last I looked the charge was *inappropriate behavior*, which covers a lot of potential terrain, some of which might not even preclude preaching.

So far “inappropriate behavior” is all I’ve read as well. Guessing what that might be doesn’t make it so.

[Rvaughn]

Do we even know *infidelity* is involved. Last I looked the charge was *inappropriate behavior*, which covers a lot of potential terrain, some of which might not even preclude preaching.

The combined terms used by Page and others close to this issue -- such as “morally inappropriate relationship,” “personal failing,” “personal indiscretion,” “rebuild the fabric of trust with my wife and daughters” -- makes it extremely unlikely that this involves something like preaching.

[Sandy]

There's no report that the church fired him, just a report that his last day at the church was the 25th. Anything else is speculation, and gossip. Likewise, there's no detail provided about the way events transpired from the time he originally announced retirement, to the time he determined to give a more detailed reason. There's nothing there to indicate that the decision to disclose the reason wasn't made by Page, or anything else about it.

[Jim]

From the article starting this thread:

Page has been serving on weekends since Feb. 4 as interim lead pastor at Hebron Baptist Church in Dacula, Ga. On Tuesday [27 March] church leaders announced March 25 was Page’s last day.

Page announced his resignation from the SBC position but not from his interim pastorate as would be expected simultaneously. The church leaders announced his last day after the fact. Thus, he was fired. His inappropriate behavior, of course, was probably putting a check for $100 in the offering and then taking $99.00 in change, an old trick for completing the charitable deduction in preparation for the ides of April. This was far more serious than adultery, pedophilia, or homosexual delights.

[Haruo]

Maybe he didn't tell them he was leaving town till the day after his last sermon. Jim, you're jumping to way too many foregone conclusions in this matter.

[Sandy]

Page announced his resignation from the SBC position but not from his interim pastorate as would be expected simultaneously.

That is not a reasonable expectation at all. A weekend interim pastorate in no way compares with the permanent position as executive director of the SBC, and there is no information, or indication, that Page didn't tell the church that the 25th was his last day well in advance of the date. Since he hadn't, at that point, made any statement about stepping down at the SBC, it would have been premature to make that kind of announcement to a church where he wasn't really employed, but was on a week to week basis as an interim. The term "fired" wasn't used, and the church leadership avoided making any kind of comment on the issue at all, whether he'd told them or not, and whether they knew or not. To speculate like this is gossip.

The church leaders announced his last day after the fact. Thus, he was fired. His inappropriate behavior, of course, was probably putting a check for $100 in the offering and then taking $99.00 in change, an old trick for completing the charitable deduction in preparation for the ides of April. This was far more serious than adultery, pedophilia, or homosexual delights.

The church leaders basically made no comment. Had it not been Frank Page, the media sources wouldn't have even contacted them. "Last day" could simply mean that he was paid for his services through that time, but didn't necessarily preach that Sunday. There's no mention of being "fired," which would also be speculative, since it was an interim arrangement which could be ended by either party at any time without obligation. The rest of the comments regarding what he "probably" did, and the conclusion are nothing but gossip, and is thus sinful, which has been repeatedly called out here, and which the moderators now need to deal with.

[Jon Estes]

From the article starting this thread:

Page has been serving on weekends since Feb. 4 as interim lead pastor at Hebron Baptist Church in Dacula, Ga. On Tuesday [27 March] church leaders announced March 25 was Page’s last day.

Page announced his resignation from the SBC position but not from his interim pastorate as would be expected simultaneously. The church leaders announced his last day after the fact. Thus, he was fired. His inappropriate behavior, of course, was probably putting a check for $100 in the offering and then taking $99.00 in change, an old trick for completing the charitable deduction in preparation for the ides of April. This was far more serious than adultery, pedophilia, or homosexual delights.

From Frank Page's resignation...

It is with deep regret that I tender my resignation from the SBC Executive Committee and announce my retirement from active ministry, effective immediately.

This would include the interim. I see no reason for him to have to list any ministry he was involved with just to prick your interest. I think the church he was interim at would be fine not having their church named in the letter.