Thread by @DrSampler

A 🧵about the SBC, @GuidepostGlobal, the #SATF, and the upcoming #sbc22.

I am amazed at how ignorant many in the SBC are. I don't mean that pejoratively. I didn't say stupid; I said ignorant. We are so insulated that we don't know how the world operates. What do I mean?

Well, for starters, we have at least one Provost of our 6 seminaries that was ignorant of federal law that he is required to follow. And it wasn't some obscure, arcane law. Its a basic and fundamental law of higher education called FERPA. I caught a provost breaking FERPA.

I DM'd him and told him he was breaking FERPA and his response was "What's FERPA?". So then I had explain fundamental privacy laws because he didn't know. How could he not know? Because he spent his entire life in an SBC bubble. How does this relate to the SATF?

Its bc the SBC (and many other religious bodies) have a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means for a company/corporation/entity to support Pride Month or to affirm LGBTQ+. We have (rightly) stood for a sexuality and a sexual ethic that rejects such a lifestyle.

And I am grateful that the SBC (and other religious bodies) continue to do so. But in our efforts to remain true to God's teachings on sexuality, we (often) presume those who disagree with us are acting in ways that they actually are not acting.

So, what does it mean for a national or international company to affirm Pride Month? Well, at its core, its an HR and business decision. They are affirming that they will not discriminate, ostracize, or persecute LGBTQ+ identifying individuals in the professional setting.

This doesnt mean they have a dedicated room somewhere on site where employees can have gay sex on their lunch break. It doesn't mean they promote chemical castration of transgendered persons. It doesn't mean they've partnered with a local sex toy shop for employees to get 20% off

It means theyre a company that will not discriminate against their employees for their sexual choices/actions. If you are the best accountant AND you are bi-sexual, then come work for them. If you are skilled in software engineering AND you're lesbian, they've got a spot for you.

They're not going to have a company picnic and divide up into teams for tug of war with straights on one side and gays on the other side to see who wins. They're just going to throw a company party and say "We're thankful for your hard work."

So, in the case of Guidepost, they are an international company that specializes in investigating sexual abuse. @BlalockMarshall has already outlined that when the #SATF sent out a call to solicit companies to bid on our investigation, Guidepost was the ONLY company who answered.

And while they are not a Christian organization, they work with many Christian organizations, including the investigation of @RZIMhq. Additionally, they intentionally deferred to our Christian beliefs by assigning believers to our investigation.

When men like Johnny Hunt were investigated, it wasn't by a group of pro-LGBTQ+ investigators, it was by fellow brothers & sisters in Christ. When the report was provided to the #SATF, it wasn't signed off at the highest level by a cabel of homosexuals looking to defame the SBC.

So when you see folks who want to discredit GP findings, know that their arguments are weak & easily disproven. They have fallen into the trap of a genetic fallacy, which means they are discounting something bc of its origin. "We dont like GP, therefore we don't like its report"

But that's not how Jesus calls us to live. We are to pursue truth. And its untrue to discredit the GP report bc we don’t like that they’re pro-LGBTQ+. Like every US company, they affirm the right of US citizens to live their lives they way they want.

Its not truthful to say GP is trying to change our ecclesiology. They were tasked to investigate and report back on how we could do better, to keep this from happening again. And that’s what they did. They’re not our bishops, they’re not reshaping us. We choose our own changes.

We're not acquiescing to a pro-gay agenda. We've hired a multi-national company to flesh out our own sins & they have done an excellent job. It is shameful that some are now trying to throw them under the bus in lieu of a ridiculous notion that 4-5 pastors could have done this.

The audacity of some to think pastors have the skill set to lead an investigation is laughable. Some want to look to 1 Cor 6 for guidance, but there is no language in that passage that says "pastors" are to judge. It is a call that believers settle issues, which is what we did.

We hired a company that employed, and assigned, fellow believers to uncover our misdeeds. GP deferred to our preferences, and some simply aren't satisfied. And the call to terminate them because of their affiliations is asinine.

How many churches pay for iPhones for staff? How many state conventions lease Fords (or pick any other car manufacturer) to some employees. How many churches buy their domains from GoDaddy? Its innumerable. I guarantee those companies aren't assigning believers to your accounts.

But heaven forbid that the VERY BEST and ONLY company that was able to investigate our abuse, who assigned believers to the job, also shares pro-LBGTQ+ affirmation like Apple, Ford, GoDaddy, etc., companies that also receive our $$.

When we meet next week for #sbc22, let's keep focused on what's important. Various members of the @SBCExecComm intentionally covered up sexual abuse in our churches & deflected in order to save the brand. And these actions caused incredible harm to men and women, boys and girls.

What are we going to do about it? Are we going to bemoan @GuidepostGlobal and keep deflecting? Or are we going to take actions that actively work to care for survivors and prevent future abuse? /end