2018: Tom is disappointed he couldn't publicly ask Russell Moore a "gotcha" about if the SBC should host conferences named after abusers. (This was a reference to the SBC-hosted MLK Jr. conference.)
Also: Doug Wilson quote?
1/
2019 : Tom Ascol is VERY upset about Resolution 9 b/c it cautiously says CRT can be a useful tool.
Also 2019: Tom Ascol records Kyle J Howard w/o his knowledge, through a lapel mic, under false pretenses, for a documentary filmed by Marcus Pittman & Jared Longshore.
2/
2020: In the months previous, Tom quotes his own documentary regarding the SBC, urging his followers to "take the ship," a phrase that would be endlessly re-echoed by his CBN "pirate" allies a year later.
He also critiqued SEBTS for talking about racial injustice.
3/
2021: Before and during the conference Ascol was focused on a resolution denouncing CRT, and a resolution on total abortion abolition.
If Ascol was your news source for #SBC21 you'd have no clue about the presence of abuse survivors or the abuse-related resolutions.
4/
Immediately after 2021: SermonGate. Ascol launches an all-out Tweet war on JD Greear and Ed Litton almost before the ink on the ballots was dry.
5/
I think it's a fair prediction that Ascol's presidency would
--Continue Resurgence purity wars, with "sufficiency" instead of inerrancy
--Step up attacks on female leaders in Baptist churches
--Fight racial reconciliation
--Ignore survivors and the SATF recommendations
6/6
Addendum: I'm sure because I said this, someone will accuse me of being divisive, unChristian, something.
Some things are worth dividing from.
And Tom Ascol's track record isn't of a person who could #changethedirection of the SBC. It's "more of the same."
"When we govern in ways that limit or crush 'agency,' we are limiting and crushing the image of God... The Kingdom of God flourishes as the Image of God flourishes in all." --LSH
(Quotes may be slightly paraphrased, I'm typing as fast as I can, but she's *preaching*)
2/24
"We need our next President to move us in the direction of the vision of the hungry being fed, the thirsty being given something to drink... I and my house will cast our vote for the candidate that will move us closest to that Kingdom vision." --LSH
They tell us that Christian Nationalism is not about white supremacy, that what Wolfe and Wilson and Rigney and Sauve are promoting is just wanting to follow God's laws and live in a "Christian Nation."
But shall we peek under the "hood" and see for ourselves? A 🧵
1/12
"But we the unhyphenated, who trace our ancestry to Western Europe... We, the White Anglo-Saxon Protestants who founded, built, died for and led this country for most of its history, we are not permitted in this New America to have a... place that is distinctly ours."
(😬)
2/12
"There's no distant place that we call home. We have nowhere else to go. But THIS is our home. THIS is our native land. *WE* are Native Americans, born of those who didn't immigrate, but who SETTLED here."
1) Eternal Conscious Torment (Dante style). Hell is God's *retribution* for your sins. The fire is literal. Level of punishment is scaled to fit your sins, but the worst part is the separation from God forever. Held by: Augustine.
2) Eternal Conscious Torment (Evangelical style). As above, but more emphasis on spiritual/psychological torment of God's Absence, less sense of physical punishment. The fire is a metaphor. Held by: Alphonsus Liguori
3) Eternal Conscious Torment ("The Great Divorce" style). Hell is self-exclusion from God's presence, in which we make ourselves eternally miserable without God. The doors to Hell are "locked from the inside." Held by: C.S. Lewis, some Catholics
Theories of Atonement as GIFs from The Office -- a thread.
1: Ransom Theory (Origen) -- Jesus's death was a ransom given to the devil in exchange for humanity's freedom
2. Moral Example Theory (Socinius) -- Both Jesus's life of self-sacrifice, and his martyrdom, were examples for his followers to emulate.
3. Moral Transformation Theory (Abelard) -- Jesus's death is the demonstration of God's love for us, a demonstration so powerful it can change our hearts and turn us back towards God.
1 - The SBC had a "Resurgence" where one theological faction seized power from by cultivating an "US vs. THEM" mentality. The "Resurgence" was led by two men. One was an abuser, and the other was later fired for covering up abuse.
2 - The SBC's now-dominant faction grew up seeing those two men as heroes who won a victory against "THEM."
And perhaps because their faction engaged in dirty tactics, they believe "THEY" would do the same if given the chance. (As though any of THEM are even left?)
3 - Thus a big portion of that faction still believes those two men did nothing wrong. They think credible charges against them must be baseless allegations as part of a power grab by "THEM."
And so this became their default setting when hearing of credible charges of abuse.
Re: people faking credentials to claim authority in evangelical circles:
The "Satanic Panic" of the 80s was driven by the testimonies of alleged former witches, who were later proven be frauds (Mike Warnke, Rebecca Brown, Michelle Smith).
Laurel Rose Wilson was one.
1/5
Under the name Lauren Stratford, she wrote an book describing her past as a baby breeder (for human sacrifices) in a satanic cult.
She spoke on Oprah. Her books were carried in church libraries.
But a 1990 investigation by Cornerstone Magazine revealed it to be fabrication.
2/
Less than ten years later she tried again.
In 1999, she called herself Laura Grabowski, pretended to be Jewish, and claimed to be a Holocaust survivor. She gave lectures, speeches, and collected thousands of dollars in donations intended for Holocaust survivors.