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."
In 2005, Al Mohler wrote on how severe a doctrinal disagreement might be. He ended up using the terms "First-Order, Second-Order, and Third-Order Doctrines," which I find helpful.
1/14
A 1st-Order Doctrine is one that defines the basics of Christianity.
A 2nd-Order Doctrine orders church life but doesn't define the Gospel. Those who disagree probably couldn't share a congregation.
And a 3rd-Order Doctrine is relatively unimportant.
2/14
So this mindset should be an aid to Christian unity, yes?
If you disagree with me on a 2nd-order issue, we'll probably end up in different denominations, but I can affirm you as my sibling-in-Christ. If we disagree on a 3rd-order issue, we could easily still share a pew.
2yo: "Why he wants the Ring, Dada?"
Me: "It used to be *his* Ring, and he wants it back."
2yo: *processing* *thinking of where she puts things when she doesn't want her brothers touching them*
2yo: "Where he gonna put the Ring, Dada? He don't have a room!"
2yo wandered off into the kitchen for a snack. She came back just as the Riders of Rohan come circling Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas.
I don't love my ADHD. It makes me unreliable, distractable, an inconsistent friend, a screwup. Every so often it may help me be creative, or to hyperfocus on a project, but mostly it's just a weakness.
So today, after my in-laws left the barbecue they left a bag of my nephew’s old books with my wife, in case my sons were ready for any of the reading material. There was some used homeschool material in there.
This time it’s elementary-level, so there’s not quite as much misinformation as there was in the 12th-grade Government book. But there’s enough.
Check out how freedom of religion means that Americans are free to attend any… church they want. 😬😆
2/4
And pity the sad Southern land baron, who has claimed more land than he can possibly hire workers to farm. If he frees his slaves, how will he possibly make a living? 🙄 “No easy answer…” the book says. (I can think of a few.) 🙄😡
Okay. It’s later. Are you ready for some Abeka “government history” textbook?
This textbook publisher is commonly used in Christian schools and homeschooling. Speaking as a Christian school teacher: please avoid Abeka books. Here’s why:
To start, this social studies book explicitly claims that the United States is blessed by God above other nations. The reason is because we are “righteous.” 🙄 The Founders patterned their lives after the righteousness of the Bible.
Must be news to Ben Franklin and T-Jeff.
2/x
“But Josiah,” you object, “surely the real reason America is blessed over all others is due to its strong Protestant work ethic?!”
Oh don’t worry, my nationalistic friend, Abeka won’t let you down. It’ll usher your children towards being good cogs in the capitalist machine.
You know... the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy that MacArthur and Sproul and Patterson and Schaeffer signed in '78 sounds very impressive and authoritative. "The authority of Scripture is a key issue for the Christian Church in this and every age..."
Until you realize.
Until you realize that if this position on inerrancy really was held in this manner in every age of the Church, if it really was a historical position held by Jerome and Luther and Athanasius and Calvin...
...it would already be in the WCF and the LBC.
It's not. It's new.
The 1647 Westminster Confession says Scripture is authoritative, sufficient regarding salvation, faith, and life.
The 1689 London Confession says it's the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience.