Where the Southern Baptist Convention stands in 2024
The Southern Baptist Convention
We all need to give a big, rousing “hurrah” to Al Mohler, the president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, for his recent induction into a distinguished group that includes a former president, a Supreme Court justice, congressmen, religious leaders and other reprobates.
Of course, I’m talking about Faithful America’s False Prophet Hall of Fame, which each year honors people who have cloaked themselves in religiosity while doing lasting harm to our country and to true Christian values.
According to the Hall of Fame’s website, Mohler has suggested God saved the un-Christlike Donald Trump in the assassination attempt earlier this summer because he had a divine purpose for him, blamed Joe Biden for the attempt on Trump’s life and defended Trump after he was convicted in the New York hush money trial.
Faithful America is a Christian group that believes we should strive to be the people Jesus wanted us to be when he said that we should love our neighbors. It favors liberal policies and positions supported by those who believe in social justice.
The group accused Mohler of “dabbling in transphobia,” telling people they’re not faithful if they don’t vote for Republicans, and in 2000, he engaged in anti-Catholic bigotry, saying “As an evangelical, I believe the Roman church is a false church and it teaches a false gospel. I believe the pope himself holds a false and unbiblical office.”
It’s surprising Mohler wasn’t included in the group’s first class in 2022.
I emailed my congratulations for Mohler’s induction to his spokesman and asked if Mohler wished to comment. I’ve not heard back.
Mohler’s Hall of Fame class is a regular rogue’s gallery.
Donald Trump and Samuel Alito also named false profits
It includes Donald Trump, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and Pat Robertson protégé Ralph Reed, among others.
Among the Hall of Fame’s past inductees are Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, U.S. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Green, Lauren Boebert and Jim Jordan, excommunicated and disgraced former Cardinal Carlo Vigano, broadcaster Laura Ingraham and Trump’s running mate, JD Vance.
Among other things he has done, Mohler led the way in destroying the seminary’s respected school of social work in 1997. The school’s trustees voted to discontinue the Carver School of Church Social Work after deciding that social work and theological studies are incompatible.
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The National Association of Social Workers’ ethical guidelines prohibit evangelizing in professional settings and discriminating based on sex and sexual orientation. Since then, the Carver School has been Housed at Campbellsville University.
Mohler has a long history of using his religious beliefs to exclude and punish.
He once fired the Carver School’s dean because she wanted to hire a professor who favored the ordination of women, which he opposes. According to Faithful America, he once said he wanted to criminally prosecute women who obtained abortions and pushed for a Southern Baptist Convention resolution that opposed in vitro fertilization.
Faithful America says Mohler spews pro-Trump rhetoric
Faithful America says Mohler uses podcasts to spew “partisan pro-Trump rhetoric and a Christian nationalist perspective.”
The organization doesn’t even mention that Mohler has refused to remove the names of the four founders of Southern Baptist who were slaveholders from buildings at the the seminary and called them “titans of their faith.” He instead promised a “major marker” on campus to acknowledge the sin of slavery.
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He placed the marker — a brass plaque that measures about 20 by 30 inches — inside a building named after one of the slave owners.
The Hall of Fame’s website notes the Gospel of Matthew quotes Jesus’ warning about false prophets, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheeps’ clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”
It goes on to say that many Christians have grown weary of people twisting God’s words to fit their own un-Christian agenda.
“Christian nationalism poses a grave threat to democracy, the church, and the common good — and grassroots Christians are sick of seeing its False Prophets distort the Gospel for their political agenda of power and division,” it says.
Moehler should be proud.
Joseph Gerth can be reached at 502-582-4702 or by email at [email protected].
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Publish date : 2024-09-02 22:04:00
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