The expulsion of 8 Fellowship Baptist churches in BC
Above: is a painting of West Highland Baptist Church, a Fellowship Baptist Church, my home church—the painting is by Javan Wellum, the son of Rev. Kirk Wellum and the nephew of Dr. Stephen Wellum
Yesterday, the BC Fellowship region expelled eight Fellowship Baptist churches ostensibly for their divisiveness. Having read a good portion of the documentation surrounding this action, I believe the real issue has to do with the complementarianism of these churches and their questioning of how that term is understood by many of the BC churches.
Despite the fact that some 50-60 Fellowship Baptist churches here in the East pled with the BC churches not to move in this direction, the BC region went ahead with their expulsion.
Much more could be said, but I wish to go on record that I think this action to be quite unwise and out of sync with where the rest of our denomination stands on this issue. Ironically, it may well be that the BC region is acting divisively in this matter!
Years ago before regionalization, when the Fellowship offices were located on Bayview Ave. in Toronto, I listened as two BC Fellowship pastors discussed the role of women in ministry. One of the pastors spoke of a young woman in his church who planned to earn an M.Div. at Northwest Baptist Theological College & Seminary. He told his pastoral colleague that he longed for the day when he would see her ordained to pastoral ministry and leading a church. When asked if a woman serving as a pastor was proper, he laughed it off as being out of touch with the times.
The expulsion of churches calling for the Fellowship to follow its own stated standards has been a long time coming, and I expect we will see more departures - whether by expulsion or choice.
It is a sad day when those asking for a denomination to live by its stated convictions are labeled as divisive.
Some churches get around this issue by calling women in leadership "director" rather than "pastor". Same role, different name!