Posted on 05/30/2007 10:46:28 AM PDT by Between the Lines
A Baptist megachurch in Decatur, Ga., is preparing to take the rare step of calling a female pastor to lead its congregation.
First Baptist Church Decatur and its 2,696 members have been without a pastor for about a year. The search committee sought out to find a pastor young enough and mature enough to appeal to both young and old congregants, a dynamic speaker, and passionate and warm leader with a vision for the future of the church. On Sunday, the committee presented the Rev. Julie Pennington-Russell to the church.
The Decatur congregation reportedly reacted positively to the announcement of Pennington-Russell, who is scheduled to preach on June 17 when congregants plan to officially issue a call for her to become senior pastor of the church.
If Pennington-Russell is elected, FBC Decatur would be the largest woman-led Southern Baptist church, reported Pam Durso, a Baptist historian who serves as an officer with Baptist Women in Ministry, according to Associated Baptist Press. First Baptist is affiliated with Cooperative Baptist Fellowship – a moderate splinter group of the Southern Baptist Convention – but still maintains ties with the SBC.
"Calling Julie was definitely not about 'making a statement,'" one church leader told ABP. "Our committee and the deacon council really felt the leadership of the Holy Spirit as we navigated this decision-making process. And to have our entire congregation – minus five or six folks who are not happy about this – stand at the close of the service yesterday (Sunday) and applaud our committee was overwhelming to us."
The SBC's current confession of faith – The Baptist Faith and Message – limits the role of women from the pastorate. It states: "While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture."
Pennington-Russell has led Nineteenth Avenue Baptist Church in San Francisco in 1984-1992 and Calvary Baptist Church in Waco, Texas, since 1998 as pastor. She was faced by some protests during her leadership at the two churches, but accounts at Calvary have testified of growth while she was pastor, according to ABP.
"She is a good role model for any minister, male or female," stated one comment from an outside six-person panel knowledgeable in Baptist life today, according to First Baptist Church.
"This is a significant moment in the life of FBC Decatur. Julie is a perfect fit," said another comment by the panel.
The search committee studied some 64 candidates and devoted nearly 800 hours to find a successor to former head pastor Gary Parker. At the end of the process, the committee's selection was unanimous and it was "pleased" and "excited" to present Pennington-Russell to the congregation.
***”Our committee and the deacon council really felt the leadership of the Holy Spirit as we navigated this decision-making process. ***
How can they make that claim when it is contrary to scripture?
“As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.” — I Corinthians 14:32-35
Aren’t Baptists supposed to believe the Bible is the inerrant word of God? Yet another congregation bowing to the ways of the world.
What’s with the two last names? Kinda makes me think Rodham Clinton.
At first I thought it was a feminist thing, but she dropped her maiden name to take on her husband's hyphenated name.
Translation
Our committee and the deacon council really felt she would bring in more money.
if the Holy Spirit was leading them then no women preachers. for being lead by the Spirit is to follow the Scriptures
2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 2Ti 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
That's a megachurch? So I guess now everybody is a "megachurch."
Most definitions of megachurch include churches with more than 2,000 attending. It sounds like it qualifies.
BTW, I believe in the inerrancy of scripture and because of that I am supportive of women who have been called into the pastorate. Flame away.
Here is what the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship say on the subject
We take Galatians as a clue to the way the Church should be ordered. We interpret the reference to women the same way we interpret the reference to slaves. If we have submissive roles for women, we must also have a place for the slaves in the Church.
In Galatians Paul follows the spirit of Jesus who courageously challenged the conventional wisdom of his day. It was a wisdom with rigid boundaries between men and women in religion and in public life. Jesus deliberately broke those barriers. He called women to follow him; he treated women as equally capable of dealing with sacred issues. Our model for the role of women in matters of faith is the Lord Jesus.
IMHO, this is twisting the meaning of Scripture to match a pre-existing belief about how things should be.
Twisted or guided by the Spirit? It is a hard call. So much easier to just do what the Bible says. : )
My Catholic parish has 1,200 households on the rolls, and we're considered "smallish" for the metropolitan area. The "mega-church" has 7,200 households.
Regarding this church's having a lady pastor, well, I have to admit the hyphenated name seems kind of not-Southern-Baptist. On the other hand, my mother's Presbyterian church has a lady as assistant pastor, and Mom thinks she does a good job.
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