Jesus is popping up in all kinds of unusual places this weekend:

• At the movies. ['Call him, Jesus Christ Superman']
• In Democrats’ political rallies
• In GQ
  
• At porn conventions [link goes to Reformissionary]

The GQ link goes to an interview with the author of a very long piece on two Christians’ peaceful response to racial & religious persecution in Zimbabwe.  The interview is an attmempt to separate the article’s Jesus from George Bush’s Christianity, which seems like an internet mea culpa for pushing religion in pages where it is seldom treated as rational.  But if you can find a copy of the full article to read, it’s worth your 20 minutes or so — it’s a remarkably frank and respectful work on the power of the spirit-filled life, tucked at the end of 200 pages dedicated to self-determined happiness.  “The Other Side of Hate” makes everything on the pages before it seem very unimportant…

Marty Duren has a thought provoking post on what the SBC might look like in the future. It’s meant to provoke and cajole a little bit, especially if you’re just getting used to calling the Home Mission Board ‘NAMB’ – only to see Marty suggest carving it into little bits and mailing them north of the Mason Dixon.

Marty’s got it right, I think, that the SBC 50 years from now must look different, if it is serious about being one of the best missions organizations. And right now, there is a widespread belief among younger folks that there’s no incentive in the SBC to invest in methods that are necessary to meet our future potential.

But I’m not sure the majority elected Frank Page because they thought current SBC leaders had ‘old’ ideas. As I recall, Paige Patterson has wanted a NAMB/missions presence outside the South for awhile (Vegas, wasn’t it?). Nor do Messengers doubt the leaders’ theology; they’ve been open enough about that. I think the messengers were driven by a question: “Who do we trust to tell us what’s going on?”

In the past year, messengers heard story after story: travel to London for movie premiers, inside deals for friends and relatives, squelching of dissent, late-night gossipy phone trees, secret and barely secret vendettas, million-dollar radio studios given over to contractors — and that’s one agency.

Throw in the Wade Burleson story, and the situation was a little like the old joke where the parents walk in, and the cat is tied by its tail to the ceiling fan, the cookie jar is empty and broken on the floor, and little Bobby is terrorizing his sibilings with a chainsaw. “What in the name of Lottie Moon is going on here?” the adults ask.

” Nothin’ ” the children respond in unison.

In the joke and at the Convention,  ” nothin’ ” strikes the hearer as, let’s say, detail deprived. Perhaps there’s a good reason for all of this mess, and no one is pointing a finger, but before we take another step, more than half of us would like to be told what’s going on in the house we pay for.

And here’s where I think the interests of bloggers and elders coincide: our most pressing need is for openness and accountability that builds trust in the efficiency of the CP. Most “older” SBCers aren’t all that old — they’ve lived in a time when government, business, and charity have all been required to be more open. There are good reasons for exempting churches from the rules, but when the costs to providing information are low, it starts to look suspicious that you’re holding out. If I can find out that Billy Graham got $199,951 with an expense account and other allowances of $181,842 in 2004 [guidestar, reg. required], why is it so hard to find out how the salary scheme for agency heads? And why was the IMB so intent on keeping Wade Burleson quiet, as if a Trustee’s first job is PR consultant? And why on earth does the presidential candidate that knows our leaders the best refuse to give them more than two or three percent of his church’s budget?

Younger SBCers win on two fronts: first, we’re familiar with cheap accountability and information tools. Blogs aren’t a philosophy, they’re a tool — they make lots of information available, fast. Why shouldn’t board meetings be netcast live? And why shouldn’t board members attend two or three a year via teleconference? And why shouldn’t board members be able to blog about their positions on issues? And how hard would it be to have the auditors run the same compensation report used by every 501(c)(3) charity in the country? ‘Young Leaders’ know about tools that can increase trust in the SBC without snarling agencies in endless TPS reports.

Secondly, proper ‘accountability’ gives younger leaders a level playing field for new ideas and improvements. If you or I are wrong about where God’s headed with missions, it doesn’t make any sense to cement our wrong view. But if our decisionmaking processes are clear, and our accountability is firm, we can try new methods, and gather support for the ones that work. Granted, this calls for decision-makers who have a Holy Ghost understanding of God’s timing and a theology that isn’t driven by numbers. I understand that this change is slower than many would like, but I think it’s the best way to reach the future without alienating the past. Young leaders aren’t wild-eyed, beer-swilling, candle-lighting hippies storming the gates; they’re Baptists confident that they have ideas the SBC (and the Kingdom) will find beneficial.

There’s a lot to mine here, but here’s the nut: if Frank Page can make one strategic decision this year, he should invest time and power in making sure that messengers don’t ever come to another Convention asking “Who will tell us what’s going on in here?” In the short run, that’s the question to which most Southern Baptists want the answer.

Well, this certainly strikes too close to home.

It appears that Messengers won’t dictate a percentage to local churches — but 12% is a good number to start with, if you want to win votes. Congrats to Frank Page, who wins without a run-off — barely.

I understand that approximately 44 ballots were judged invalid, an amount greater than the number of votes by which Page avoided the run-off. Who knows how those ballots were intended to be cast, but this-was-a-squeaker. All of these men were well-respected and well-supported.

My correspondent with a shaky camera writes that the Calvinsim debate is over, and that Mohler has surrenderd. Shofars are blowing near and far…

* GA Pastor fires Deacons

* Kazahk Baptists fined, persecuted for refusing to register with State

* Ohio pastor loses job after sex charge

* “Lady Dorothy now Baptist Archbishop” (Dinner-table advantage now to Dr. Mrs.?)

And then, there’s the flip-side of the Los Lomas question: how non-baptist can you be and still be Baptist? KTEN TV reports that an Oklahoma baptist church is considering doing away with Baptism as a requirement of membership.

Henderson Hills BC’s website has more.

The North Carolina Biblical Recorder reports an interesting dispute: how baptist must you be to be baptist? A California congregation’s property depends on the answer.

FBC Las Lomas, Ca, has dwindled to 10 attenders or so, but sits on $3million in property. A clause in the Church constitution required “the congregation remain a member of the SBC, state convention and local association,” or else the property would revert to the local association.

Because the Congregation appeared to be disbanding, the local Association had plans to put in a Spanish-speaking mission. It charges that a local non-denominational pastor is pretending to be Southern Baptist, just to take over the property and frustrate the Association’s plans. The association and the state convention have refused to grant membership to the ‘new’ congregation, but Nashville is treating them as fully Southern Baptist. A judge has ruled in favor of the association, but the property remains in the hands of the newly-aligned church, pending appeal.
My quick take: if the reverter clause truly requires membership in all three organizations, I’m not sure why this dispute continues. The new church is clearly not a member of the state convention, or the local association — triggering the reverter clause. But if they are simply required to be Southern Baptist, it’s a close call.

Sam Shaw has resigned as pastor of Germantown Baptist Church — an outcome I am sorry to hear about, for the same reasons I was sorry to hear that Bob Reccord decided to leave NAMB.  I don’t know that his departure makes it any easier for a church the size of Germantown to heal; in fact, it may make it harder for his ’supporters’ to remain.

Brad Berfalk’s church, however, is taking the very uncommon approach of acknowledging pastor-church conflict, and working to resolve it.  Kudos to them for facing up to the hard work of living and working together in the Kingdom.  My prayers will be with all involved, that they will approach the issues honestly and sincerely.

The Cinci Enquirer has a new report on Cold Spring (KY) Baptist Church’s ongoing saga: the Church is “getting past” the Senior Pastor’s embezzlement and credit scam.  As you may recall, Larry Davis, the pastor, had taken out scads of loans to hid a gambling problem.  I certainly hope someone will consider (or has made) a formal apology to those deacons who were ousted by the Congregation for challenging the Pastor…