THREAD: Removing Paige Patterson from his post is only the first step in a long journey the Southern Baptist Convention must now embark on. Patterson is only a symptom of the problem, not the problem itself.
They need a strong resolution on domestic violence, which they haven’t addressed since the 1970s. Procedures must be put in place at SBC entities for dealing with reports of abuse and assault.
Leaders also need to address the pervasive tribalistic “boys club” mentality that has persisted for too long. The cover-ups must stop. The defenses of male colleagues’ bad behavior must stop. The coordinated efforts to run the denomination in secret male-only meetings MUST STOP.
Relatedly, substantive proposals for integrating women at the highest levels of denominational leadership. These kinds of issues occur when men are isolated and disconnected from women (and people of color).
