Note to readers on 7/28/14: Below is a re-post of my June 1, 2010 blog post entitled "Thou Shalt Not Blog" - it explains the backwards thinking of the country-bumpkin Southern Baptists in Georgia regarding criticism of their holy "Men of God", and it helps explain why Seth Dunn, a Southern Baptist, professional, highly educated young man - a CPA accountant - was harassed at Johnny Hunt's church yesterday. Seth was removed from the premises and escorted to his car by security following Ergun Caner's sermon. Johnny Hunt's security team would not allow Seth to attend his Sunday School class.Why? Seth violated the GBC 2007 resolution below by blogging and daring to criticize Johnny Hunt and Ergun Caner the past few months, and thus he was shown the door at his own church, while Ergun Caner the unrepentant liar and justice system abuser was being glad-handed and back-slapped following his sermon.
Who was elected the GBC president back in 2007 when this resolution was passed? Why none other than Bucky Kennedy, the head of the trustee board at Brewton Parker College that selected Ergun Caner as president. Surprise, surprise.
Thank God for young men like Seth Dunn, and shame on the thousands of laymen at Johnny Hunt's church who will be too cowardly to call out Johnny Hunt on this disgraceful weekend at his church.
Here is my 2010 article, with a few of my highlights in red.
------------------------------------
Here Ye, Here Ye! Thou Bloggers Shall Cease Your Criticism, and Thou Shalt Repent!!
"The [blogger] went down to Georgia, he was lookin' for a soul to steal, he was in a bind, 'cause he was way behind, and he was willin' to make a deal"...Charlie Daniels, 1979.
-------------
As the Ergun Caner scandal has unfolded over the past year, there is no question religious blogs played a pivitol role in getting the word out about the Caner deceptions. The blogs presented evidence, and allowed analysis and commentary by all on their blogs. Through video and audio clips, through parody and satire - by a Muslim in Europe, a female blogger in Oklahoma, a trespassed blogger in Jacksonville, and even a Calvinist professor and debater from California, and many others - the word got out about Caner.But you have to at least give the Baptist leaders credit for having foresight: they saw the danger blogs presented to their grasp of power and their money faucet back in 2007 - even before that with Wade Burleson's blog, and they came out with this resolution. They realized blogs would be a source of information and an avenue of public discourse and debate amongst the brethren they couldn't control.
And that has created a mammoth problem - e.g., Ergun Caner.
This weekend I re-read the resolution against blogging that the Georgia Baptist State Convention passed in November 2007. I've printed the Georgia resolution at the bottom of this post. At the time of it's passage, the resolution got only scant mention in baptist news outlets (here and here). I gather they don't like critical blogs very much in Georgia - maybe Charlie Daniels' song should be changed: "The blogger went down to Georgia, he was lookin' for a soul to steal..."
Yep, SBC leaders - in Georgia and elsewhere - don't like critical bloggers. They refer to critical blogs as slander, personal attacks, divisive, destructive, and other such adjectives. And there is no question, they would love to exercise their power and influence to shut 'em down if they could, we have hard evidence of such.
So take a look at the Georgia Baptist resolution below, now 2 1/2 years later. I'll post some analysis and commentary on this resolution later. Would love to hear your thoughts on this resolution, and other attempts over the past 5 years in dealing with this problem of recalcitrant bloggers.
This resolution was so successful in stopping blogging, maybe one like it should be introduced at the SBC Annual Meeting this year!
---------------
RESOLUTION ON BLOGGING
submitted by Wayne Bray, pastor
Beulah Baptist Church, Douglasville
and William Harrell, pastor
Abilene Baptist Church, Martinez
submitted by Wayne Bray, pastor
Beulah Baptist Church, Douglasville
and William Harrell, pastor
Abilene Baptist Church, Martinez
WHEREAS the American people have the distinct privilege of freedom of speech as provided by our United States Constitution, and this resolution is not intended to limit that freedom of speech we all value so much; and
WHEREAS responsible blogging can be a means of encouragement of our people, but certain people use this tool for divisive and destructive rhetoric at the expense of peace among the Brethren; and
WHEREAS blogging is also being used by some as a tool for personal attacks among other Christian Brothers and Sisters, and this critical and divisive use promotes a negative view of the Southern Baptist Convention in the eyes of the society we are striving to reach with the Gospel (James 3:6, 14),
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the messengers of this convention oppose blogging when it is used to cause division and disharmony among the members of our Southern Baptist Family (Proverbs 6:16-19; 1 Cor 1:10); and since personal differences should not be dealt with in public view,
BE IT ALSO RESOLVED that all personal attacks should cease immediately (Proverbs 17:27-28; John 17:21-24); and
BE IT ALSO RESOLVED that we affirm the historical method of administering our agencies and institutions through elected boards of trustees, and we call upon bloggers to cease the critical second-guessing of these elected leaders; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all Georgia Baptists respectfully request and expect that individuals that disrupt the fellowship through blogging repent and immediately cease this activity and no longer cause disharmony for the advancement of their own personal opinions and agendas; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that we set our eyes once again on the fields to which we are called to labor, refusing to dishonor God with activities that militate against harmony and good will.
WHEREAS blogging is also being used by some as a tool for personal attacks among other Christian Brothers and Sisters, and this critical and divisive use promotes a negative view of the Southern Baptist Convention in the eyes of the society we are striving to reach with the Gospel (James 3:6, 14),
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the messengers of this convention oppose blogging when it is used to cause division and disharmony among the members of our Southern Baptist Family (Proverbs 6:16-19; 1 Cor 1:10); and since personal differences should not be dealt with in public view,
BE IT ALSO RESOLVED that all personal attacks should cease immediately (Proverbs 17:27-28; John 17:21-24); and
BE IT ALSO RESOLVED that we affirm the historical method of administering our agencies and institutions through elected boards of trustees, and we call upon bloggers to cease the critical second-guessing of these elected leaders; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all Georgia Baptists respectfully request and expect that individuals that disrupt the fellowship through blogging repent and immediately cease this activity and no longer cause disharmony for the advancement of their own personal opinions and agendas; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that we set our eyes once again on the fields to which we are called to labor, refusing to dishonor God with activities that militate against harmony and good will.
It is a limit on the First Amendment.
ReplyDeleteTo me it means, we can do anything we want without any oversight. And if a blogger dare complains, or calls out or transgressions, well, we'll show 'em, we'll kick them out of church....
The old timers would say " this is communism."
Wow! Maybe I need to add that tactic to my article, "A Wolf Confesses" . Well at least the article is about "bloggers", and not against website admins. I guess I am safe for now.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thebreadoflifefellowship.com/A_Wolf_Confesses.php
Allow me to quote from the William Tyndale translation of the bloggers resolution:
ReplyDelete"We the hirelings of the 2 Corinthians 11:15 Religious System, demand that all of you stop exposing us on your blogs. It is getting hard to put on our religious show with you guys holding us to scriptural standards.
Further we demand, that you stop exposing all of our lies, our deceit, our false teaching and our false spiritual authority.
How do you expect us to fleece the flock for fun and profit if you keep this up?
We also demand that you continue to ignore the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ spent much of His earthly ministry exposing the corrupt religious leaders of His day. Don't act like Jesus.
We call that being divisive and causing disunity.
We also insist that you forget about how the religious leaders killed true Christians during the inquisition. Don't be reminded of how believers were killed by "professional clergymen" for being critical and exposing their wicked schemes. We would never burn you at the stake, we would rather burn you in the court.
We demand that you do not even read these critical bloggers. And further, we demand that you ignore the fact that we do not have the power or authority to enforce any of this silly resolution."
Authority?
ReplyDeleteLet me get this straight, once the "going for the jugular boys," Paige Patterson, Judge Pressler and their latter-day GA menions, take a bough Bucky, got where they were going, did they actually think their self proclaimed "authority" would never be challenged, questioned or in many cases laughed at?
Authority. They have none.
I can't believe this actually passed. What's with GA Baptists, anyway?
ReplyDeleteFlorence in KY
Mark Bottai here from Hilton Head, I am not afraid of these arrogant, despicable people such as Tyndale. They cannot hurt me as the truth sets me free! That and my CCP!
ReplyDeleteThis is one reason why I stay in SC. We have issues but not as bad as the ones I hear about in GA. It seems William Tyndale is the Hitler/Stalin type from what I have read and been told. Besides worrying about the USG snooping into our lives we now have people like Tyndale having operatives snoop for blogs and what else they do not like. This sounds much like the workings of the Church of Scientology here.
Keep up the good work exposing these types of people.
The only valid "Resolved" there is that "personal" attacks should stop.
ReplyDeleteAnd they can demonstrate a willingness to follow this by not personally attacking bloggers and church members who ask questions.
They have to silence, sue and attack those that disagree because what they are teaching is false. For example: A math professor does not need to attack those folks that disagree with him when he teaches 2 + 2 = 4. An electrician does not need to worry about bloggers that disagree with him about how electricity works. Doctors and lawyers don't get upset when other doctors and lawyers disagree with them, because they are practicing their professions and there is real and tangible ways to measure their results. But a preacher, snake oil salesman, seller of the magical elixir, etc all have to worry about even one voice that is telling their public they are frauds. Even one dissenter can really hurt business. Why? Because they are frauds. They know it. They know you know it. They just don't want those they are fleecing to know it. That makes you dangerous if you are a blogger.
ReplyDeleteYou have a clue what this was about?
ReplyDeleteI do and it was meant to be against the ga blogger who was blasting away at the 2nd most powerful man in Ga at the time and Chairman of the Executive Committee, Mike Everson for his shenanigans and lies being exposed about him and his deciples within the GBC and his family members who were exposed for serious lies perpetrated from the pulpit.
He then was surrounded by his GBC buddies wagons and protected by ALL his GBC buddies like Harrell, Bray, Kennedy, J. Gerald Harris, and especially J. Robert White.
There is so much more than I could post here....Google Mike Everson and Prays Mill scandal. Wartburg Watch has lots on the subject under Prays Mill. Read it and you'll understand the resolution more clearly.