Volume 70, Number 5
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Campus Newspaper of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary • Fort Worth, Texas A LOOK INSIDE »
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Patterson answers questions in 140 characters or less pg 4 »
Engage24 emphasis yields 9 professions of faith By Alex Sibley | SWBTS In early October, a discouraged former graduate of Southwestern Seminary wrote on Twitter that, due to a perceived lack of evangelistic focus among Southern Baptists, he would no longer identify himself with the denomination. Tommy Kiker, assistant professor of pastoral theology at Southwestern, discovered this tweet and reached out to its disheartened author. Kiker encouraged him to reconnect with Southwestern, informing him that groups of students and faculty go out into the community every day, Monday through Friday, in an effort to evangelize every home within a two-mile radius of the campus through an initiative called “Going the Second Mile.” On Oct. 14, in response to Ronnie Floyd’s call to all Southern Baptists to share their faith with at least one person in a ministry effort titled “Engage24,” Southwestern students and faculty committed to devote the day to evangelism. Although the seminary had already scheduled teams to evangelize that day (as they do every day), additional slots were opened to allow more people to participate in the Going the Second Mile effort. At the end of the day, Kiker reached out again to the discouraged former graduate and informed him that Southwestern’s evangelism efforts that day yielded
By Alex Sibley | SWBTS
nine professions of faith. The former graduate responded that he was inspired by such zeal for evangelism, which he said he never sees anywhere else. He added that, next time he is in Fort Worth, he will join one of Southwestern’s evangelism teams. Matt Queen, Southwestern’s L.R. Scarborough Chair of Evangelism (“Chair of Fire”), says that evangelism is the spirit of who Southwestern Seminary is. “Evangelism as an academic discipline
was birthed at this school,” he says. “Southwestern has been known for professors, staff and students evangelizing consistently throughout its history, and so we, today, are just part of a story that's gone on since 1908.” As a result of the Going the Second Mile initiative, since January of 2014, 121 people have professed faith in Christ for the first time. Since fall 2013, at least one person has been saved every week. Engage24 pg 2 »
Southwestern receives $12 million lead gift for construction project By Alex Sibley | SWBTS Harold Mathena announced in chapel, Oct. 16, that he is bestowing to Southwestern Seminary a gift of $12 million for the construction of a new building for the College at Southwestern and the Roy Fish School of Evangelism and Missions. Other gifts are already in hand for this project. This lead gift will cover roughly half the cost of construction. “There are living in this world seven billion unsaved men and women, boys and girls,” said Mathena, a bi-vocational evangelist. “I also know that, from the beginning, Southwestern Seminary’s mission has been to prepare men and women to take the Gospel to the ends of the world. To enhance this mission of taking the good news of Jesus Christ to every man and woman, we [the Mathena family] believe that the Lord wants a home for the proclamation of the Gospel on this campus. We want to be a part of that. “After much prayer, [my wife] Patricia and I want to give you today this pledge of $12 million as our testimony and our personal stewardship commitment to
ENROLLMENT INCREASE, NEW SCHOLARSHIP ANNOUNCED AT FALL TRUSTEE MEETING
the College at Southwestern and to the Roy Fish School of Evangelism and Missions—for the building of a complex to hold their strategic ministries.” Mathena was relatively poor in his early years, working as a roughneck in the oil industry and later serving in the
pastorate. After working as both a fulltime and bi-vocational pastor at various churches, Mathena became a full-time evangelist. Using his experience from the oil field, he founded a manufacturing company for the oil industry as an effort Construction pg 3 »
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary trustees elected new faculty members; appointed faculty to six new academic chairs; approved new degrees for the college and seminary; and conducted other business during their fall meeting, Oct. 22. Additionally, trustees received reports of double-digit increases in enrollment for the fall semester and learned of a “game-changing” scholarship opportunity. Trustees pg 3 »
BUSINESS OPENS DOORS FOR SHARING THE GOSPEL By Alex Sibley | SWBTS Dean Sieberhagen, assistant professor of missions and Islamic studies at Southwestern Seminary, says that, in many countries around the world, if one goes to an embassy and requests a visa to live in that particular country, the embassy will ask why. “And if you say, ‘Because I’ve graduated from seminary and I want to come here [to do missions],’ you won’t get it,” Sieberhagen says. “But if you’re there to go and help develop the economy and do business, they’ll consider giving you that visa.” With this in mind, Sieberhagen explains that business is “a way in which God can use the talents and training [people] already have to creatively enter a situation that they otherwise couldn’t.” Sieberhagen can speak authoritatively on this subject because this is what he did in order to enter the mission field of Central Asia, where he served for 13 years. Knowing he was called to be a missionary to an unreached people group, Sieberhagen enrolled in the 2+2 program at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. There, Sieberhagen met IMB personnel from Central Asia who told him what kind of people they needed to join them in the field. Specifically, they wanted Sieberhagen pg 2 »
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Engage24 » Continued from page 1 One of the nine professions that occurred on Oct. 14 resulted from the efforts of Southwestern Ph.D. students Brandon Kiesling and Allen Davidson as they participated in the Going the Second Mile effort. They met a young man named Christian who knew the facts of Scripture concerning Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection and yet was attempting to reach God through good works. Recalling the experience in chapel the following day, Kiesling said he and Davidson opened up the scriptures and showed Christian that salvation is by faith alone. At that point, Christian decided to put his faith in Christ. “Lord, I know I’m a sinner,” he prayed. “I’ve known that for a while. I’ve been trying to get to you, but I’m going to stop that, and I’m going to allow you to come to me today.” Steven Polino, a Bachelor of Science student, was part of another evangelism team. Engaging three young people whom they met on the street, Polino and his team led all three of them to Christ. Following this, the team engaged another
man, and he, too, placed his faith in Jesus. Of these four, two were Hispanic, one was African-American, and the other, Caucasian. Reflecting on the experience, Polino said, “It was so good to see God save and accept all sorts of shapes, sizes and skin colors today.” Master of Divinity student Luke Romans, along with two of his friends, had a fruitful evangelistic encounter on their first try, meeting a young woman at the first house they visited. Romans says the woman knew Jesus was God but had never accepted him as her Savior, a fact that her sister-in-law “kept bugging her about.” “We were able to show her in the Bible what Scripture says about the need for salvation,” Romans says. “She accepted Christ! [One of my teammates] had never seen someone come to salvation via doorto-door witnessing, and I think I’ve got him hooked!”
Sieberhagen » Continued from page 1
someone with a business background who could come to Central Asia to start a small-business development program. “I had run my own businesses, and I had taught business and accounting at a university,” Sieberhagen recalls. “So I said, ‘OK. That’s my background; I can do this.’” Sieberhagen’s work for this company allowed him not only to make connections with business people who needed to hear the Gospel but also to help local churches become self-supporting. An example from this latter category is a cattle business that Sieberhagen helped develop. A local pastor wished to purchase a house in order to use it as a church building, but he lacked the necessary funds. After Sieberhagen educated him on developing a small business, the pastor started a cattle business. “He’d buy the calves when they were small,” Sieberhagen explains, “take them to the pasture, and from spring all the way to the fall, [he] fed them up, fattened them up, and then sold them. Eventually he made enough money to buy the house, which he then converted into a church.” Another business with which Sieberhagen involved himself was an English editing business, which assisted hotels, restaurants, airline companies, etc. in their use of English for such things as brochures, menus and web pages. Although it was a self-sustaining, forprofit business, it was established with the intention of sharing the Gospel with those in the business segment of society.
“We started this business as a way to connect with them,” Sieberhagen says, “because we knew if we did this, we were going to talk to the marketing director for a hotel or the marketing manager for an airline company or a restaurant, and these were people who otherwise wouldn’t give us their time. But because we were there to present them our service, we had opportunity for relationships with them.” Sieberhagen says this is a primary reason that business as missions is an effective ministry model. “Business people are busy,” he explains. “They don’t have time to just sit and talk with you about deep or serious things if you are not one of them. So a lot of times, these busy business people need to connect with other business people.”
In this way, business is a means for opening doors to share the Gospel. In foreign countries that do not allow Christian missionaries, it may, in fact, be the only means for doing so. Testimonies like Sieberhagen’s will be the principle feature of the Kingdom Professionals Conference, which will take place at Southwestern Seminary, Nov. 15. In Sieberhagen’s
words, the conference, sponsored by the International Mission Board (IMB) and Southwestern’s Richard Land Center for Cultural Engagement, will provide both education and inspiration— education because attendees will learn how international businessmen are using their businesses to do missions; inspiration because attendees will be able to see that it truly is possible to be missional in the context of business. Evan Lenow, director of the Richard Land Center, says that while past Kingdom Professionals conferences were broad and mostly theoretical, this year’s
conference, the third to be hosted by the Land Center, will be more practical. “This year we’re focusing specifically on people who are actually doing [business as missions],” Lenow says, “giving ideas of how to use your talents, your gifts, perhaps your business experience that you have and trying to empower people to figure out ways to start businesses overseas that would get them in the door in these various countries.” To learn more about the upcoming Kingdom Professionals conference, visit swbts.edu/kingdomprofessionals.
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Trustees » Continued from page 1
ENROLLMENT INCREASE
• The Bachelor of Music in Worship Leadership is a 123-hour degree comprising 44 hours of general and theological studies, 55 hours in music and performance, and 24 hours in worship leadership studies. Both degrees require that students take a major ensemble during each semester of full-time enrollment through their junior year of study, meaning participation in either chapel choir or chapel orchestra. In addition, trustees also approved a new flexible access Ph.D.
Steven Smith, vice president for student services and communications, delivered a report indicating a 12 percent increase in total enrollment for fall 2014 over fall 2013. In addition, new student enrollment increased by 10 percent.
FACULTY ELECTIONS Candi Finch was elected as assistant professor of theology in Women’s Studies in the School of Theology, effective Jan. 1, 2015. Finch has been serving under presidential appointment since 2012. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate in systematic theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. She earned her M.Div. at Southwestern in 2005 and her B.A. at the University of South Florida in 2001. Finch also serves as executive assistant to the first lady at Southwestern. Kelly King was elected as assistant professor of childhood education in the Terry School of Church and Family Ministries, effective immediately. King has been serving under presidential appointment since 2011. She earned both her Ph.D. and M.A. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary—in 2009 and 1992, respectively. In addition to teaching, King also serves as executive assistant to the president at Southwestern. Sarah Spring was elected as assistant professor of English in the College at Southwestern, effective immediately. Spring has been serving under presidential appointment since August. She earned her Ph.D. and M.A. from Texas A&M University in 2010 and 2004, respectively,
ROAD TO MINISTRY SCHOLARSHIP and her B.A. from the University of Central Arkansas in 2002. Before coming to Southwestern, Spring served as assistant professor of English at Winthrop University in South Carolina.
ACADEMIC CHAIRS Trustees approved faculty to occupy six academic chairs, effective Jan. 1, 2015. • Karen Kennemur, assistant professor of children’s ministry, will occupy the Bessie Fleming Chair of Childhood Education. • Steven Smith, vice president for student services and communications, will occupy the E. Hermond Westmorland Chair of Preaching. • Michael Wilson, associate professor of pastoral ministry, will occupy the Fred M. and Edith M. Hale Chair of Prayer and Spiritual Formation.
• Mike Morris, associate professor of missions, will occupy the Ida M. Bottoms Chair of Missions. • Frank Catanzaro, professor of adult education and counseling, will occupy the Hope for the Heart Chair of Biblical Counseling. • Chris Shirley, assistant professor of adult ministry, will occupy the Jack D. and Barbara Terry Chair of Religious Education.
NEW DEGREES Trustees approved two new degree programs for the College at Southwestern: • The Bachelor of Music in Performance is a 127-hour degree comprising 44 hours in general and theological studies, 41 hours in music performance studies, and 42 hours of a selected concentration (vocal, piano, organ or instrumental performance).
Steven Smith delivered a report from the Office of Financial Aid concerning the Road to Ministry Scholarship, of which there are two types. The first is available to incoming freshmen to the College at Southwestern. The scholarship will cover the cost of one full year of a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree (spread out over the course of that degree). The other type of scholarship is available to incoming Master of Divinity students and will pay for one year of those students’ education. The scholarship will be available beginning the fall 2015 semester. These scholarships are the result of a generous donation to Southwestern. Given the large amount of these financial awards and their potential impact for ministry, Smith collectively referred to them as a “game-changer.”
Construction » Continued from page 1
to support his family during his evangelistic ministry. In 2012, Mathena sold his business for more than $200 million. The following Sunday, his church, Quail Springs Baptist Church of Oklahoma City, received Mathena’s tithe: a check for more than $20 million. For Mathena, this was consistent with the stewardship principles he practiced all his life. These principles continue to motivate him, in his words,
“to put his money where his mouth is,” investing in ministry efforts to further the kingdom of God. Concerning Mathena’s generous contribution to Southwestern for its new building, Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Seminary, says, “Harold Mathena knows that evangelism and missions are not accomplished through a building. My pledge to Harold Mathena has been that this building will be
used to train men and women for the glory of God to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. I promised him that, and that’s what he’s interested in. Bricks and mortar, he knows you have to have them, but in the end, what he’s interested in is the taking of the Gospel to the ends of the earth.” The new building will be located on the immediate west side of Pecan Manor. In addition to housing the college and the
school of evangelism and missions, Patterson says the building will contain up-todate classroom facilities and a memorial to Lottie Moon, a Southern Baptist missionary who spent nearly 40 years teaching and evangelizing in China. The memorial will contain some of Moon’s belongings as well as her Chinese home. Patterson says ground could be broken on the new building as early as the spring of 2015. Mike Hughes, vice president for Institutional Advancement, says this new building is important because, although Southwestern has realized many notable accomplishments, “the gap between aspirations and means has widened. Specifically, ‘people and program’ growth has outpaced the seminary’s current facilities.” Hughes says the new building will ameliorate critical facility limitations as well as accommodate future growth and sustainability. He adds that it will be “an outward expression of Southwestern’s abiding commitment to the spiritual formation of all who come to Southwestern to prepare for ministry and to the mandate to reach the world for Christ.” To view a rendering of the new building, as well as information about Southwestern’s college and school of evangelism and missions, visit swbts.edu/mathenahall.
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PATTERSON ANSWERS QUESTIONS IN 140 CHARACTERS OR LESS By Alex Sibley | SWBTS In chapel, Oct. 16, while promoting that afternoon’s session of “Twitter Den,” a variation of his occasional Lion’s Den Q&A sessions, Southwestern Seminary President Paige Patterson noted that, on Twitter, he is required to respond to every question in 140 characters or less. “It is easily the most difficult thing I have ever done in my whole life,” Patterson joked. This session of Twitter Den, held in conjunction with Southwestern’s Fall Preview Conference, allowed Patterson to answer dozens of questions via Twitter and to a live audience in the seminary’s student center. Using the hashtag #AskDrP, the audience and anyone from around the world could submit a question. Questions ranged from serious to humorous, covering aspects of theology, ministry and Patterson’s personal history. Patterson maintained a sense of humor throughout, but he provided serious answers when questions required them. To read a full transcript from the event, visit swbts.edu/askdrp.
B#AskDrP
CONTINUE READING AT
swbts.us/103MPCe
Alex Vinzant @GodEnthusiast
Mike D @m_debusk
Allen Davidson
B 1. How old are you? 2. If you were coming
B @_PPatterson_ If you were marooned on
B You require your faculty to be always
to seminary, where would you focus your attention to best prepare for it? #AskDrP
a desert island with a Christian theologian, who do you hope it would be? (Other than Dorothy) #AskDrP
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@GodEnthusiast 1. I am 118 and counting. 2. I think that the best focus you can have is reading church history and biographies. #AskDrP
@allendavidson
working on a writing project, what is your current project? #AskDrP
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_ Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@m_debusk Martin Luther. Luther was vociferous and had a sense of humor. #AskDrP
B .@allendavidson A bio of W.A. Criswell, w/ his son. And a book on lessons from hunting, w/ my son. #AskDrP
Michael Cooper, Jr. Waylan Owens @WaylanOwens
Sharayah Colter
B What's the most interesting place you ever
B .@_PPatterson_ What 1 thing has @_
led someone to Christ? #AskDrP
DKPatterson_ done that makes the most difference in making your home a respite to you? #AskDrP
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@WaylanOwens Probably the most
interesting place was a restroom in New Orleans, in fact, a stall. #AskDrP
@SharayahColter
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B
Meagan Lacey @MeaganLacey13
.@SharayahColter @_DKPatterson_ Probably the fact that she is always praying for me. It makes a very big difference. #AskDrP
B What are some practical ways to encourage women in Biblical submission w/ the rise of famous feminists such as Beyoncé & Emma Watson? #AskDrP
@mrcjr24
B @_PPatterson_ What are some tips/advice that you would give to young preachers/ pastors? #AskDrP
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@mrcjr24 You must keep your personal
walk with God and keep your witness every day. #AskDrP
James K. Forbis, Jr. @mrcjr24
B @_PPatterson_ How important do you feel SW Seminary
@swbts
B [#AskDrP Audience]: Who do you think
it is to regularly teach on eschatological issues/theology from the pulpit/ in small group? #AskDrP
Melchizedek was?
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@MeaganLacey13 Submission in a woman
is largely dependent on godliness in a man. #AskDrP
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_ Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@swbts The lesson of Melchizedek was
the argument of lesser to greater. He was king of righteousness and peace. A Christophony. #AskDrP
Bethany Elliff Thomas @bethanyrthomas
B What's the best book you've ever read - with exception to the Bible, of course? #AskDrP
SW Seminary
B Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@bethanyrthomas To Golden Shore by Adoniram Judson. #AskDrP
@swbts
[#AskDrP Audience]: What is your take on recent books on heaven and hell?
B .@jforbis The hope of the church is in the return of Christ. It is critically important. #AskDrP
Will Byars
@willbyars8
B @_PPatterson_ What role, if any, does
speaking in tongues play in the church today? #AskDrP
Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_ Paige Patterson @_PPatterson_
B .@swbts It shows u that there is not as much agnosticism in the world. In reality, these books are often convoluted, not biblical. #AskDrP
B .@willbyars8 only time tongues would play a role is exactly as in Acts: if there were 2 need to comm. the Gospel in that tongue. #AskDrP
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CAMPUS NEWS » » FROM THE BLOGS
WOULD YOU PICK THE APOSTLE PAUL FOR YOUR TEAM?
Read more articles at
BIBLICALWOMAN.COM
By Candi Finch | Biblicalwoman.com Do you remember recess back in elementary school when the time came to engage in some sort of team sport? Imagine the scene with me: two young children stand as captains picking from a crowd of their peers in order assemble the best team possible. The star athletes go quickly; those choices are always the easy ones! However, the captains are less than enthusiastic when they have to pick from among the awkward, uncoordinated, “two-left-feet” kinds of kids. The captains begrudgingly make their final choices, and then a game begins. I always felt kind of sorry for the last kids to get picked. Everyone knew that no one really wanted them on their team. Unfortunately, this scenario is not too different from the way some people treat Paul and some of his writings. Paul is the last guy they want on their team! In fact, in a “U.S. News & World Report” story several years ago called “Ten Biblical Teachings Women Love to Hate: A Feminist Hit List,” four of the 10 teachings on the “hit list” were from Paul’s writings. My second year in seminary I attended a conference about women in church history that a Christian college in a neighboring state hosted. It was one of the strangest experiences of my life! I think I was a little naïve at that point and still assumed most Christians believed the Bible or at least those that would take time to attend a conference about women in church history.
I walked into the school’s chapel for the first session and was surrounded by men and women who appeared to be at least 30 years my senior. I also naïvely assumed at that point in my life that people of older generations believed the Bible and that it was people in my generation and younger who were beginning to question it. How wrong I was! The first speaker concluded his session by shouting excitedly: “It doesn’t matter what Genesis says or what Paul said or even what some of Church Fathers said about women in ministry! It only matters what Jesus said!” At that point, it was as if I was at a Friday night football game in Texas because the attendees all stood up and wildly applauded his statement. Was this a joke? I remained in my seat and was mystified that close to 200 adults were cheering about his statement that essentially dismissed major portions of Scripture as irrelevant. I wish I could tell you that the man just misspoke or that I misunderstood him. However, I caught up to him later, and he told me that he did mean that only what Jesus said about women was authoritative today. Yikes! That incident more than 12 years ago still unsettles me when I think about it. I know now that there are a lot more Christians that choose to approach the Bible in the same manner as he did, rejecting certain parts of Scripture as “oppressive” or contradictory. Dr. Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, a feminist theologian and professor at
Harvard Divinity School (and the scholar I have spent the last two years studying for my dissertation), contends that Paul bowed to the pressure of his day to placate the elite and powerful of the male-dominated society when he wrote certain parts of his letters (see her book In Memory of Her, p. 334). Dr. Rosemary Radford Ruether in her book Women-Church calls for an “exorcism” of certain biblical texts like 1 Timothy 2:11-15 from the Bible and encourages women to proclaim: “These texts and all oppressive texts have lost their power over our lives. We no longer need to apologize for them or try to interpret them as words of truth, but we cast out their oppressive message as expressions of evil and justifications of evil” (pp. 137-38). Such statements from Schüssler Fiorenza, Ruether, and the man at the conference reveal several critical misunderstandings about Paul, his letters, and how to approach Scripture in general. First, to think Paul hated women or buckled under societal pressure is to misunderstand what Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, was really saying. Those passages that were on the “Feminist Hit List” noted above do not contradict anything Jesus directly taught or modelled in His ministry. Plus, when you look at Paul’s ministry, he actually commended and encouraged women in ministry within biblical boundaries. Just take a gander
over at Romans 16 and see how many women he greeted and commended for their work in the church at Rome! Second, we don’t get to pick and choose the portions of the Bible we want to obey. If we believe that the Bible is God’s Word, then we don’t get to say: “I really dig everything Jesus said, so He’s on my team, but Paul has to sit on the bench.” When you approach Scripture that way, what you are saying is that not all of the Bible is really God’s Word, and somehow you can discern what God really said and what He didn’t. As I have mentioned in a previous blog, we are not authorities over Scripture; it is an authority over us. OK, I should confess something to you. The question at the start of this blog really wasn’t a fair one because if you believe the Bible is God’s inerrant Word, then you must conclude that God chose Paul for His team. And, the truth is, God is the captain, and we are not. We don’t have the authority to decide which “passages” we want in our starting lineups and which passages ride the pine because “all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). The thing I have to ask myself (often!) is that since I believe that all of the Bible is God’s Word, do I live in a way that affirms that? I may not blatantly say I reject portions of Scripture as do Schüssler Fiorenza and Ruether, but does the way I live tell a different story?
A CONVERSATION WITH PAIGE PATTERSON & AL MOHLER
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 12 | 6:30-8:00 P.M. SNACK CENTER WEST, NAYLOR STUDENT CENTER DR. PAIGE PATTERSON DR. AL MOHLER PRESIDENT, SOUTHWESTERN SEMINARY PRESIDENT, SOUTHERN SEMINARY
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CAMPUS PRESS NEWS »» BAPTIST
FORMER HOMOSEXUALS: GOSPEL APPROACH NEEDED By Tom Strode | Baptist Press NASHVILLE (BP) -- Evangelical Christians need to change their approach to the hot-button issues of homosexuality and marriage, thinking with a Gospel focus and practicing Gospel community, participants in a national conference were told Tuesday, Oct. 28. Southern Baptist leaders, former practicing homosexuals and others provided guidance to a crowd of about 1,300 registrants on the second day of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s first national conference, “The Gospel, Homosexuality and the Future of Marriage.” The event at Opryland Retreat and Conference Center concluded Wednesday, Oct. 29. Evangelicals cannot repeat the “same old mistakes” in which they “slowly adapted to a sexual revolution that is now ravaging our churches and our culture,” said Russell D. Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Instead, “we contend for marriage and we contend for family and we contend for holiness, but we do this in the context of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” he said. If evangelicals make the same mistakes, Moore told attendees, “we won’t just lose a marriage culture; we will lose the Gospel itself.” Poet Jackie Hill-Perry, who came to Christ out of a lesbian lifestyle, said a church that “is Gospel-centered with Gospel-centered people” is what has helped her the most in following Jesus. “My greatest growth has been in being connected to a community,” she said. Rosaria Butterfield, a former lesbian and now a pastor’s wife and homeschooling mother, said, “One of the first things that we can commit ourselves to doing is being a community of believers who share the gift of repentance unto life in a way that other people can see.” “Wouldn't it be amazing if just this week all of your unsaved neighbors actually knew that church membership was a vital, life-giving gift to you,” she said. David Platt, new president of the Southern Baptist International Mission Board, pointed attendees to the missiological implications of marriage and singleness. Both portray the Gospel, he said. “The purpose of marriage is for the display of the Gospel and a demonstration of the glory of our God,” Platt said. “Today’s cultural climate provides a huge opportunity for gospel witness.” Jim Daly, president of Focus on the Family, urged the audience to follow the New Testament directives for Christians to love and act kindly toward those who oppose them on the marriage issue. “If you want to fight the culture, you’re not going to win the culture. You’ve got to persuade the culture,” he said. “We are soaked in an ocean of His grace, and we don’t want to give a cup to anybody.” Moore said, “If we are responding to those who disagree with us with vented outrage and shock and horror and condemnation, what we are revealing is a lack of confidence in the Gospel, in our mission, in our Christ.” The Oct. 28 addresses and panel discussions continued a recurring theme in the three-day event of calling Christians to preach and live out faithfulness to the Bible’s teaching on sexuality and marriage while also reaching out graciously
to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, as well as advocates for same-sex marriage. Evangelicals did not fare well in the last battle over marriage, which resulted in a divorce culture, Moore said. He pointed to four reasons that happened: • “We unintentionally accepted the view of marriage of the culture without ever even knowing that we were doing so. • “We were often cowardly and fearful. • “The divorce culture happened because it became normal to us. • “The reason we adapted to this is because the preaching on this issue was often so genuinely condemnable,” not calling for repentance and not offering reconciliation through Christ. Of the church’s cowardice, Moore said, “If we are simply standing up and editing the Word of God when it comes to our own sins, if we are willing to preach the Gospel except for the very thing that is ravaging our churches at that moment, we are not preaching the Gospel at all; we are simply selling indulgences.” The family values evangelicals assumed the rest of culture shared with them “are no longer there,” Moore told attendees, adding in a reference to John 3. “We cannot go back to the Nicodemus culture of superficial religion. “Baptizing lost people and teaching them how to vote Republican is not a revival.” The current upheaval in culture may mean some churches will become unfaithful, while “there are many other
congregations that will become authentically counter-cultural communities that stand with the Gospel no matter what,” Moore said. “That will mean that we will be uncomfortable with American culture, and we always should have been uncomfortable in American culture.” Platt drew four missiological conclusions from foundational truths found in Genesis 1-3: • “We must flee sexual immorality for the sake of God’s glory in the world. • “We must defend and display sexual complementarity in marriage for the spread of God’s Gospel in the world. • “We must work for justice in the world in order to exalt the judge of the world. • “We must spend our singleness and our marriages pursuing peoples still unreached by God’s redeeming love.” Platt said, “Our bodies have been created not just by God. Our bodies have been created for God.” This culture “screams at every turn, ‘Please your body.’ The Bible shouts at every turn, ‘Please God.’” In a question-and-answer session with Moore, Butterfield told about God’s salvation of her out of “serially monogamous lesbian relationships“ over 10 years. She said of the pastor who, along with his wife, patiently cared for and shared the Gospel with her, “I never felt like a project, because Ken Smith always realized that the big sin in my life was unbelief, and everything else would get worked out in the wash.” The author of the book Secret
Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert said “People are not different. Original sin is the great leveling playing field. It democratizes everything.” In addition to the ministry of other Christians, Hill-Perry, who was married earlier this year, cited two other truths that can help Christians struggling with same-sex attraction: (1) Christians are new creations, and (2) Jesus is “not only Savior from sin but in temptation.” British pastor Sam Allberry, who has acknowledged he deals with same-sex attraction, commented on the charge that Christians who teach the biblical message on homosexuality harm same-sex-attracted young people: “We’re not the ones saying that sex is everything. And my concern is that a culture that says, ‘You are your sexuality; sexual fulfillment is the key to human fulfillment,’ I want to turn around and say, ‘Actually, I think that is putting more pressure on young minds and lives than anything we’re saying.’” Christopher Yuan, a former practicing homosexual who now teaches at Moody Bible Institute, counseled parents to love their LGBT children, which is what his father and mother did. “I think the last thing is to kick them out of the home,” Yuan said. “There’s a total war going on,” he said. “And if we push or let go, you’re just pushing them into the world, into the arms of an embracing world. We’ve got to show them what real love is like.”
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AROUND CAMPUS »
HOURS OF OPER ATION A. WEBB ROBERTS LIBRARY
SOUTHWESTERN OUTFITTERS
Mon., Tues., Thurs., 8 a.m. – 10 p.m. Wed., Fri., 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sat., 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Closed on Sundays.
Mon.– Fri., 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Closed on weekends.
SOUTHWESTERN GRILL Breakfast (Mon.–Fri.): 7 a.m. – 10 a.m. Lunch (Mon.–Fri.): 11 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Closed on weekends.
BOWLD MUSIC LIBRARY Mon., 8 a.m. – 9 p.m. Tues., Thurs., 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. Wed., 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Fri., 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sat., 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. Closed on Sundays.
THE CAFÉ Breakfast (Mon.–Fri.): 7 a.m. – 10 a.m. Lunch/Dinner (Mon.–Fri.): 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Sat., 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. Closed on Sundays.
RAC
CAMPUS CLINIC
Mon.– Fri., 6 a.m. – 10 p.m. Sat., 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. RAC pool closes one hour early. Call for lifeguard hours. Closed on Sundays.
Call ext. 8880 to schedule appointment. Weekdays: First appointment at 8:30 a.m. Last appointment at 4:30 p.m. Closed during lunch. Closed on weekends.
CHURCH - MINIS TER REL ATIONS
CHAPEL SCHEDULE
God has called you to local church ministry, and Southwestern’s Office of ChurchMinister Relations exists to connect you with the churches where God may lead you.
November 11
On the Church-Minister Relations website, you can post your resume or apply for ministry positions at Southern Baptist churches through the SBC Church Connection. Through the Non-SBC Job Board, you can also look for non-church employment that will provide for you and your family while attending seminary.
ONLINE EXTRA» Scan this QR Code with your smartphone or visit swbts.edu/cmr.
ANNOUNCEMENTS Winter and Spring 2015 Early Registration Check your student e-mail for your day and time to register. Course schedules are available online. For more information, e-mail registrar@swbts.edu or call ext. 2000. NOV 6
NOV 14
NOV 17
Man Night: ESPN 30 for 30 Documentary – “Broke”
NOV 7
NOV 8
NOV 8
NOV 10
NOV 12
One Magnificent Obsession 6 p.m. | WMC. Evenings of praise and prayer for the nations. Nov. 7: Cambodia; Nov. 14: India; Nov. 21: Ecuador.
NOV 18
DEC 31
FALL
E.D. Head Block Party 5-7 p.m. | Come out and enjoy a block party in your neighborhood. Enjoy free hot dogs, bounce houses and fun as you connect with your neighbors in E.D. Head housing.
FALL
FALL
Grindstone 6:30-8:00 p.m. | NSC. A discussion between Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and Southwestern Seminary President Paige Patterson. Light refreshments will be provided. Admission is free.
7:30 p.m. | MC. Author of the New York Times #1 bestseller Bonhoeffer, Eric Metaxas will be discussing his new book, Miracles. Sponsored by the College at Southwestern. Tickets are $15 at the door or $10 in advance. Visit swbts.edu/metaxas.
College Potluck Thanksgiving Feast
Certification of Church Membership
Second Mile For weekly evangelism opportunities with professors, visit swbts.edu/ secondmile.
Riley Center Student Discount
PH RA RAC RC RL SBR
SPRING 2015
FALL
MAR 6-15
MAR 6-16
MAY 21JUNE 7
Hours of Operation: Mon.-Fri. 6 a.m. – 10 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Closed for Chapel Tues.-Thurs, Sun. Swim Lessons (for kids) | Personal Training | Cross Training Fitness | Zumba | Fall 2014 Intramurals – Basketball, Ultimate Frisbee, Ping Pong Tournaments. For information about these programs, contact ext. 3900.
Homeschool Classes NCC. Sewing: Tuesdays, 9:30-11:00 a.m. You do not need a sewing machine to take the class. Spanish 1: Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. – noon. Art 1: Wednesdays, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Art 2: Wednesdays, 2:30-4:00 p.m. Art History and Application daily. Cost: $30/month. For registration form, visit swbts.edu/homeschoolprogram. Contact: Cheryl Bell at ext. 2970 or cbell@swbts.edu.
Pastor First Baptist Church Fort Smith, Ark. November 13
Albert Mohler President Southern Seminary November 18
Samuel Thomas
JULY 1-21
JULY 6-23
Brent Ray Associate Director of Global Theological Innovation Southwestern Seminary November 20
Mike Morris Associate Professior of Missions Southwestern Seminary
May 2015 Graduates Submit your application for graduation to the Registrar’s Office via WebAdvisor. If received by November 14, you will receive results of a degree evaluation by January 23. Final Application Deadline: January 31. For more information, e-mail registrar@swbts.edu or call ext. 2000.
2015 Biblical Tour of Israel Spend your Spring Break on a tour of Israel. Up to 3 credit hours available. For information, contact Dr. Aaron Son at ext. 4535 or ason@swbts.edu.
Haiti Mission Trip Spend your Spring Break on mission in Haiti. For information, contact msanders@swbts.edu.
Spring Madagascar Mission Trip Up to six credit hours available. Only nine spots available. For more information, contact wmc@swbts.edu or ext. 7500.
RAC Programming
Thailand Mission Trip Up to six credit hours available. For more information, contact wmc@ swbts.edu or ext. 7500.
Oxford Study Tour Up to six credit hours available. For information, contact David Norman at oxford@swbts.edu or call ext. 4488.
B
FOLLOW ON TWITTER @swbts @swbtslife
Advertising Information The Scroll offers paid advertising opportunities for individuals, businesses, and ministries who want to reach Southwestern’s nearly 3,500 students, faculty, staff, and families. All advertising requires a contract prior to publication. Frequency discounts apply for ads in multiple issues. The Scroll reserves the right to refuse ads as well as void ad agreements. Rates and deadlines for ads available at swbts.edu/Scroll. Contact Scroll@swbts.edu or ext. 4848 for more information.
RAC Childcare T/Th 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. | NCC. The RAC now offers childcare at the NCC for parents wishing to work out or attend chapel Tuesdays and Thursdays. Rates for 1.5 hour sessions: Walk-in: $3.50/ child. Monthly: $16/child with $40/ month cap per family. Contact the NCC at ext. 2970 for more information.
*For all phone extensions, call the main line at 817-923-1921. SCM School of Church Music NCC Naylor Children’s Center Key: BH Barnard Hall CH Cowden Hall CMR Church Minister Relations F Fleming Hall FW Fort Worth Hall HHH Horner Homemaking House MC MacGorman Chapel NSC Naylor Student Center
FALL
An Evening with Eric Metaxas
Students, their parents, grandparents and siblings can use the student discount for 20 percent off of guest rooms at the Riley Center. For guest room reservations, contact ext. 8800.
Coffee and Conversation 8-10 p.m. | NSC. As a part of the SBTC annual meeting, Southwestern’s Church-Minister Relations office and Student Life will provide students the opportunity to engage with leading Texas pastors and staff members. In addition to networking, this will allow students to glean wisdom from key church leaders. A pastoral panel will also be available for Q&A.
6-9 p.m. | Think your chili has what it takes to defeat former SWBTS Chili Champions? Join us for a night of chili tasting, hot dog eating, and family fun.
Certification Forms are due Dec. 31 to the Registrar’s Office. Submission verifies SBC status for all semesters in 2015. Check student e-mail for more info.
Garrett Manor Block Party 12-2 p.m. | Come out and enjoy a block party in your neighborhood. Enjoy free hot dogs, bounce houses and fun as you connect with your neighbors in Garrett Manor.
Chili Cook-Off
6:30-8:30 p.m. | Take some time to share a college-wide “family” thanksgiving. Join us for a full meal and lots of holiday fun.
Parents’ Night Out 6:30-9 p.m. | NCC. For information, contact Cheryl Bell at cbell@swbts.edu or call ext. 2970. The cost is $7/child with a $20 maximum for families with three or more children. Future date: December 5.
Dale Thompson
November 19
7-9 p.m. | TA. A showing of the ESPN documentary “Broke,” with pizza and wings provided by the Land Center. NOV 7
November 12
President and CEO Hopegivers International Columbus, Ga.
*All campus services are closed during chapel, Tues., Wed. and Thurs.
NOV 3-14
SBTC Annual Meeting
Price Hall Reynolds Auditorium Recreation/Aerobics Center Riley Center Roberts Library Seelig Banquet Room in NSC
S TA TCR WBR
Scarborough Hall Truett Auditorium Truett Conference Room Williamsburg Banquet Room in NSC MC World Missions Center W
PA I D C L A S S I F I E D S Paid classifieds can be placed at 25 cents per word. Contact ext. 4848 or Scroll@swbts.edu for more information.
The Scroll is a publication of the Communications Group at Southwestern Seminary.
2001 W. Seminary Drive Fort Worth, TX, 76122 1-800-SWBTS-01 (toll free) (817) 923-1921 | swbts.edu
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Thursday, November 6, 2014
CAMPUS NEWS »
Fall Festival highlights campus camaraderie By Alex Sibley | SWBTS Free Chick-Fil-A, bounce houses and games for kids, and the opportunity to engage fellow students, faculty, and prospective students characterized Southwestern Seminary’s first-ever Fall Festival, Oct. 16. The event, which took place on the lawn of Pecan Manor, was put on by Student Life in conjunction with the Fall Preview Conference. “Our goal in Student Life is that at our events students would develop friendships and relationships that lead to long-term kingdom impact,” says Garrison Griffith, Student Life coordinator. “The more time we allow students to create relationships in these environments, the more, we hope, we are encouraging their future partnership with one another in ministry and missions.” In addition to affording students these potential ministry connections, Griffith says the festival gave prospective students participating in the Preview Conference a taste of campus camaraderie. “Our hope was that allowing prospective students to see the vibrant community on our campus would encourage them to be a part of not only Southwestern but of our campus community in the future,” Griffith says. “What better way to encourage prospects to be a part of what God is doing in the lives of our students than for them to see it firsthand?” All the booths at the festival—offering fair style games, candy, and even a cake
walk—were provided by campus organizations. Griffith says that seeing these campus groups offer services for students and their families was not only encouraging but also indicative of the heart that they have for the student body. “Without the support of many different departments and employees, we could not hold a successful event,” Griffith says. “Our department is so grateful to them for their hard work and the excellence that they put forward not only for this event, but in what they do for our student body every day.” Counting students and families, roughly 1,000 people attended the festival. Griffith says that although numbers do not always indicate success, they do indicate interest, and this number leads him to believe that the festival was beneficial and interesting to the student body. He adds that, though it will be improved in the coming years, the success of this year’s Fall Festival has assured that it will become an annual tradition.
Students and families were afforded the opportunity for fellowship, food and fun at Southwestern's first-ever Fall Festival.
SOUTHERN BAPTISTS OF TEXAS CONVENTION
BIBLE CONFERENCE + ANNUAL MEETING
November 9-11 SWBTS, Ft. Worth STUDENT RECEPTION Tuesday, November 11
J. W. MacGorman Chapel • 9 - 10 pm On the lawn following the closing session of the SBTC Annual Meeting
for more info visit
WHITE BOARD
sbtexas.com/am14
MONDAY, NOV. 10
TUESDAY, NOV. 11
Leadership Conversations
8:30am Prayer
8:30am Family Engaged Ministry
Ted Elmore
Lance Crowell + Emily Smith
Dottie Riley Prayer Tower
4:05pm All Things to All People:
8:55am Church Revitalization Panel
Questions to answer when starting a cross-cultural ministry, congregation or alternate campus David Alexander + Terry Coy
Hosted by Kenneth Priest with Ryan Fontenot, John Herring, Josh King, Randal Lyle
5:55pm In The Fish Bowl: Minister’s Children and the Lives they Lead Steve Maltempi
Contact the SBTC with questions (817)-552-2500 or sbtexas@sbtexas.com Free childcare available by pre-registration only. Visit sbtexas.com/am14childcare
Made possible through your Cooperative Program giving