Lon Solomon made one statement in opposition to the Social Justice heresy. And then even within the Southern Baptist Convention more broadly, there is a group called the Conservative Baptist Network that has charged some convention leaders with advocating critical race theory and downplaying the Bible's sufficiency. While the church is slashing spending on a variety of things including missions, discipleship, outreach, and church plants, one area of increased spending in 2021 is in the Senior Management salaries. (RNS) David Platt had a dream for the future of McLean Bible Church. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. And so I think I simply put into words what many people were already sensing.. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. Read More FILE - Stacie Wood and her husband, Andy Wood, stand for a portrait on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2022, at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif. Stacie Wood, the woman pastor at the center of . 'At the end . The church has now grown to a weekly attendance over 27,000 (as of 2019). The course lasted about 15 hours of direct discipleship teaching. As Solomon transitioned from leadership following a 37-year pastorate, McLean made major budget changes, scaling back the percentage of income spent on personnel and incentivizing staff departures. INSKEEP: Given that, what makes this story feel like it has a larger significance in your mind? Yes, the typical political ploy used by Democrats in every election cycle has now entered Evangelical megachurches. People who were actively serving at other churches.. In response, Platt has claimed that the church is trying to fight off a hostile takeover and that Satan is trying to divide the church. The total was either just above or just below 75 percent, depending on whether provisional ballots were counted, so a second vote was held July 18, at which all three nominees received at least 78 percent of the vote. AD FREE! (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin). ROACH: You can pick out churches across the country where there has been this conflict between people that are sort of an old guard type of evangelical and then a younger type of evangelical that wants to reach a broader, more diverse audience with the Gospel. Copyright 2020, Religion News Service. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. We urge you to sign upto receive our FREE need to read articles. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The truth is that in June Mike Kelsey, his newly appointed Lead Pastor for Preaching and Culture, posted a picture on Facebook of himself at a BLM rally in DC, holding a BLM sign. Doing that in a large church is difficult, Barber said, as McLean is discovering. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. David Joseph Platt is an American evangelical Baptist pastor. RELATED: At Founders event, Southern Baptists urged to choose the Bible over CRT. A dispute over critical race theory which describes how systemic racism affects society was one of the major topics of discussion at the recent SBC annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee. You've read 0 of 5 of todays most popular posts. The election came amid simmering unrest at the church, where political polarization in the wider culture seeped into the congregation the larger woke war in the evangelical world. This is a lie. In the course, Platt fuses Christian teachings with the worldview assumptions of Critical Race Theory. We're glad you're here! With many active members participating in services online, especially those, like Frazer, who are not vaccinated, there is no way to tell who is attending. RELATED: Southern Baptist mission board to cut 800 positions, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Platt said during the prayer, quoting the biblical Book of Proverbs with his arm around Trumps back. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. At a June 30 meeting, nominees Chuck Hollingsworth, Jim Burris, and Ken Tucker had failed to receive a clear 75 percent majority, the margin required for elder election. Chuck Hannaford, a Memphis clinical psychologist who has helped churches mediate conflicts for 30 years, said McLeans troubles are the latest iteration of a broader conflict between younger Reformed Christians and older generations of white evangelicals. CBN-backed candidate Mike Stone received 48 percent of the vote in last months SBC presidential election, finishing second to Alabama pastor Ed Litton. Lon Solomon Ministries 8116 Arlington Blvd. It must be an unprecedented group of divisive liars and racists! Frazer also believes church leaders disqualified people who they thought would vote the wrong way. Since the ballots included church member names, he said, leaders would know how church staff and other members voted, opening them up to retaliation. And so the church had never before failed to elect elder nominees that were recommended. Strange events are afoot at McLean Bible Church, a multisite megachurch in Washington D.C. pastored by David Platt. We have to address conflict intentionally and face to face, Hannaford said. McLean Bible which is seen as a conservative evangelical congregation and once had more than 16,000 attendees has long been an important church in Washington with four locations near the city. Platt plans to hold a called special business meeting to affirm the elders on July 18 during morning worship services, he told the church. It does not store any personal data. Video screengrab via MBC. ROACH: Yes, that's exactly right. (The Roys Report) McLean Bible Church, the multisite megachurch in McLean, Virginia near Washington, D.C. where David Platt pastors, confirmed three new elders Sunday in a revote where members labeled their ballots with their names. He became a teaching pastor in 2017 and left the presidency of the SBCs International Mission Board to dedicate his ministry to McLean the following year. When qualified elders do not oversee the hiring of pastoral staff, we endanger the flock to the possibility of those who bring wrong assumptions/beliefs on critical issues to our congregation and pulpit, the five leaders warned. And even though people who take the Bible seriously and as the inherent word of God should think certain things about certain issues, then they might prioritize those differently when they go into the voting booth. . Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. Hannaford advises pastors not to make changes too quickly and recommends cooperation from both sides, allowing believers to differ on secondary doctrinal and ethical issues. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. degree in chemistry (1971) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a Th.M. Also, there are close ties to the SBC since the NAMB . According to course documents provided to the Capstone Report, Injustice like we see in Scripture is evident in and around us today. However, Platts course provides no proof of this assertion but launches into the typical CRT-inspired list of supposed American wrongs including things like discrimination, persecution, prejudicial creation and execution of laws, crises of excessive crime and incarceration, corruption in leaders, suppression of the marginalized, and oppression of the poor.. The dispute at McLean may now end up in court. Because of the mass exodus McLean cut spending. Even before Dr. Bauchams book, other Christians were critiquing the David Platts Social Justice sermon. The Evangelical Church Is Breaking Apart. And as we walk faithfully with God during these days, keeping our eyes fixed on him, I trust that he will work all these things together for our good and ultimately his glory.. Why is David Platt undermining elections? David Platt, pastor of McLean Bible Church near Washington, D.C., and founder of Radical, a resource ministry that serves churches, preaches during the second session of the two-day 2019 Pastors' Conference held June 9-10 at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex. David Platt asked the remaining Elders to approve the GCJR course curriculum as the main theological underpinning of all other teaching and worship activities at McLean Bible Church. McClean Bible Church Pastor David Platt addresses his congregation on July 4, 2021. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our. James MacDonald founded Harvest Bible Chapel in 1988. Often times with disgraced megachurch pastors, there were several warning signs. And the candidate backed by the Conservative Baptist Network at the most recent SBC annual meeting got 48% percent of the vote. But he argued that Virginia law does require churches to follow rules outlined in their constitutions. He was senior pastor at the Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama, from 2006 to 2014. The letter describes McLean as a partner with the SBC but not affiliated denominationally with the SBC.. Steven Furtick is the lead pastor of Elevation Church, based near Charlotte, North Carolina. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. He also warned against letting tensions swell. Current McLean leaders have denied that the church is a member of the SBC and posted a letter from the SBCs Executive Committee to support that claim. Failed to subscribe, please contact admin. The largely conservative northern Virginia church across the Potomac from Washington had . in our church) who have criticized him for acknowledging the hurt his decision caused, and who have even had the calloused audacity to malign those who are hurt, your brash insensitivity is the reason why so many minority and marginalized people struggle to be a part of Evangelical churches. Why does church leadership refuse to answer question. That church in the past has been called a hub for Republican senators and Bush aides. All rights reserved. Pastor David Platt of McLean Bible Church said many of those within his congregation were 'hurt' with his decision to pray for President Donald Trump on stage during Sunday's service. Critics say the churchs leadership has become woke and has substituted critical race theory and social justice for biblical teaching. Some say it is now a running joke that McLean refugees are showing up in other area churches looking for the truth and the Gospel instead of racial identity politics. It's little outside of Washington, D.C., in Virginia. One of the churchs pastors expressed outrage over it. Platt was forced to defend himself in 2019, when then-President Donald Trump showed up on a Sunday morning at McLean Bible with little notice and asked Platt to pray for him. 2-minute video satire of the present McLean Bible leadership through animating the graph above. Last Updated: February 2023. If youre the church of Jesus Christ, thats really problematic.. Former President Trump even . He - I've heard him preach on abortion and religious liberty and traditional marriage. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Instead of defending President Trumps visit, Platt seemed to apologize for publicly praying with Donald Trump. David Platts dreams for McLean Bible Church sour as members file lawsuit over elder vote, Woke war: How social justice and CRT became heresy for evangelicals. Platt asserts in the course that the Bible teaches both individual and corporate responsibility and that present systems are discriminatory. But at the same time, he wants to say that there is not one voting requirement for being a follower of Jesus Christ. NO VIDEOS! Over the last several years, weve watched David take the churchthe church we built, the church we love, the church weve poured are hearts and souls and lives intoand turned it into a political, stripped-down version of what it used to be, wrote former elder Mark Gottlieb, who is encouraging members of a group called Save McLean Bible Church to admit defeat and walk away after the July 18 vote. At that time, the vote was too close to confirm the new elders because the Church's constitution states it must have at least a 75-percent . Some older evangelicals see it as sort of a coup.. Things began to change. Critics say the Virginia church's leadership has . Platt mishandled the aftermath of the prayer. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Wade Burnett, a pastor on McLeans leadership team, said the congregation decided to move forward together in a difficult time. But a spokesman for the SBC, while saying "McLean Bible Church, like all Southern Baptist churches, is an independent and autonomous local church," confirmed that McLean is considered an SBC church. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. That comes with attendance issues and budget cuts. ROACH: Thank you, Steve. He presently works as a pastor-teacher at McLean Bible Church. Bob Smietana. The church was rocked by controversy in 2019 when President Donald Trump stopped by the service for prayer. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. According to sources close to McLean Bible Church, Platt was told about this many times and seemed unconcerned about it, but finally complied with the demand to remove the divisive political photograph. Platt has angered other members for maintaining the churchs reputed ties with the Southern Baptist Convention. INSKEEP: David Roach is pastor of the Shiloh Baptist Church in Saraland, Ala., and also writes for Christianity Today. He also wrote an article equating support for President Trump and support for BLM as equally acceptable for a Christian.. [Picture was posted on Facebook, but was removed after a couple months]. Elevation Church was founded by Furtick in 2006 with just fourteen members. Attendance is down about 40-percent year-over-year. Facebook; Twitter; visit the YouTube Channel. with Max McLean: C.S. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Following the first failed election, a second election was held in early July 2021, this one where members had to sign their ballots which critics said violated the church practice of using secret ballots. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Almost all of the questions we have heard are less about Gods Word and more about what this blog or that Facebook post says, Platt said. The conflict at McLean Bible Church is significant not only because of the congregations size and influencewith several thousand attendees and a prominent place in the DC church landscapebut also because the incident marks the latest salvo in an ongoing clash within American evangelicalism. Until a chance encounter with my moms old Bible opened my eyes. McLean Bible Church is one of the largest and most influential churches in the nation. All rights reserved. THE EARLY YEARS McLean Bible Church was founded in 1961 by five families in Northern Virginia. One former Mclean member said, He (Platt) gave a sermon that essentially said, If you cant unite with us find a new church. So, people did., SBC Elites cite distinguished lawyer and Southern Baptist Matthew Martens; however, Martens has written persuasively, Supporters of a constitutional amendment to ban women pastors in the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), New intel points to Covid origin in a lab leak, remember when this was a, NAMB PR VP Mike Ebert emerges as key witness in McRaney v. NAMB What will, David Platt is harming McLean Bible Church with Woke Social Justice Theology, David Platt turned a blind eye to his staff marching in a Black Lives Matter (BLM) event in Washington, DC, Platt seemed to apologize for publicly praying with Donald Trump, One of the churchs pastors expressed outrage over it, Platts own book legitimizing Christians who vote for Pro-Abortion Democrats, Dr. James White dissected David Platts errors in a podcast examining that T4G sermon, Solomon signed the Dallas Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel, ERLC, Russell Moore raise questions about trusting the trustees, ANOTHER: Georgia Baptist chief says Russell Moore lied, SBC Elites defend credibly accused standard to ruin lives, Bart Barber flipflops on pledge to bring vote to ban Women Pastors in SBC, Evangelical Elites lied you to about the origins of Covid, Woke SBC Elites Delete History To Hide Their Schemes. espaol. The church in question is a prominent one, McLean Bible Church, where many Washington Republicans worship. Last weekend a sermon by Evangelical pastor Francis Chan went viral, as in the sermon Chan shared about Communion and his discovery of the scriptural and historical basis for transubstantiation - that the bread and the wine become the literal Body and Blood of Christ. McLean Bible Church, originally nondenominational, is a recent member of the Southern Baptist Convention. So those are some of the manifestations that show this is a larger discussion among evangelicals. I hesitated to share it because I know it is so ugly and painful to hear but I want to point out the approach being used by people giving leadership to this group in these meetings.. And it would appear that the vast majority of the church sided with Platt and the other leaders by their support of those elders. They have several campuses. In response, Platt accused his critics in a sermon of spreading disinformation and stuffing the ballot box with votes from former members and inactive church members. The churchs constitution requires that new elders receive 75% approval and for the first time in McLeans history, a new group of elders failed to reach that margin. Dr. James White dissected David Platts errors in a podcast examining that T4G sermon. Get all latest content delivered to your email a few times a month. A beloved Bible teacher and speaker, Platt inspired younger Christians to pursue missions work or other ministries. RELATED: David Platt interview: A summons to lose your life. To some observers, McLeans conflict seems like a replay of other recent episodes from American evangelicalism, where leaders who appeal to Scripture to address social issues are accused of theological liberalism or secular influence even if they continue to hold traditional Christian views. Rumors had begun to circulate around the church that Platt and other leaders planned to sell a church building to a local Muslim congregation for a mosque. But to others, Platts message represented a fault line. According to the letter sent to Platt in February, t the congregational meeting on 12/9/20, in response to a question, David strongly disavowed Black Lives Matter. A drop of 39%. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. When you dont follow the rules and it has an effect on a consequential vote, you have now created a huge distraction from your mission, Merkle said. From 2014 to 2017, Platt was president of the International Mission Board. The Washington-area megachurch led by best-selling author David Platt has affirmed three new eldersbut only after a public tussle over politics, race, and alleged liberal drift, plus a lawsuit filed by dissenters. Less than 25 percent of members were part of the vote Wednesday night, Platt said. Frazer said the confusion over McLean's relationship with the SBC and the election controversy reflect a bigger problem with the church. The church teachings were theologically conservative under its previous leadership, the legendary Lon Solomon. God give him wisdom.. McLean Bible Church is one of the most influential churches in the United States. June 27, 2022. But then you have some of the younger evangelicals who say, look. Thats led to accusations that Platt and others have become woke and liberal. (RNS) A yearlong legal battle over a contested election at a prominent Washington, D.C.-area church appears to be over for now. By. College Park Church in Indianapolis was accused in a blog post this spring of caving to ever-increasing social justice infiltration. Dallas pastor Matt Chandler and former SBC president J. D. Greear both have been accused of being woke, and the SBCs emerging Conservative Baptist Network (CBN) has charged some convention leaders with advocating critical race theory and downplaying the Bibles sufficiency. Any church member on McLeans inactive list was given a provisional ballot. David Platt, pastor at McLean Bible Church in Virginia, speaks at the Pastor's Conference at the Southern Baptist Convention on Monday in Birmingham.
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