SBCOutpost

And for a glimpse at the picture captured by our Pecan Manor secret cameras when the Klouda judgment was issued, click here.

Now that the Klouda lawsuit has moved to the inactive files in the federal courts, two accreditation societies have been notified that an investigation by those agencies may proceed.

Outpost contributor and the Southern Baptist responsible for filing two formal complaints against SWBTS, Benjamin Cole, was asked to provide a statement regarding recent developments in the Klouda matter. Cole provided the following statement:

“Those who celebrate this pyrrhic victory have forgotten that more than one egg is nesting under the seminary hen. It ain’t over ’til the hat lady sings.”

United States District Judge John McBryde ruled Monday in favor of a city ordinance banning the ritual sacrifice of animals. The Dallas Morning News is carrying the story.

Is anybody else wondering if Jose Merced, the Santeria priest who lost the case, went to court assured that his “ecclesiastic opinion” about slaughtering animals provided him with constitutional protection from interference by the government when he wanted to perform the ritual. I will find it interesting if the court forbids Jose Merced to cut the head off a chicken, but allows Defendant Patterson to do the same to Sheri Klouda.

Figuratively speaking, of course.

Once I saw this guy on a bridge about to jump. I said, “Don’t do it!” He said, “Nobody loves me.” I said, “God loves you. Do you believe in God?”

He said, “Yes.” I said, “Are you a Christian or a Jew?” He said, “A Christian.” I said, “Me, too! Protestant or Catholic?” He said, “Protestant.” I said, “Me, too! What franchise?” He said, “Baptist.” I said, “Me, too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?” He said, “Southern Baptist.” I said, “Me, too! Southern Conservative Baptist or Southern Liberal Baptist?”

He said, “Southern Conservative Baptist.” I said, “Me, too! Southern Baptists of Texas Convention or Baptist General Convention of Texas?” He said, “Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.” I said, “Me, too!”

Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Baptist Faith & Message 1963 or Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Baptist Faith & Message 2000?” He said, “Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Baptist Faith & Message 1963.” I said, “Die, heretic!” And I pushed him over.

Upon my return to Oklahoma this morning, I was excited to receive a certified letter from Mr. J. Shelby Sharpe, attorney for Defendant Paige Patterson, and a man who apparently reads SBCOutpost. An electronic reproduction of Mr. Sharpe’s letter to me can be accessed below:

Defendant Patterson Attorney’s Letter to Benjamin Cole — February 27, 2008

And here is my drafted response, which will be sent today via certified mail:

March 5, 2008

Sent Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested

Mr. J. Shelby Sharpe
6100 Western Place Suite 1000
Fort Worth, TX 76107

Dear Mr. Sharpe:

Please be advised that I have received your letter, dated February 27, 2008, which concerns your opinion that a post entitled “Breaking News: Patterson won’t take oath . . . ” constitutes defamation of Paige Patterson. I am not familiar with what constitutes your particular area of legal expertise, except to say that I have followed your representation of various Baptist interests in Texas since you filed articles of incorporation on behalf of the Southern Baptist of Texas Convention in 1995. I have also listened attentively to an audio recording of your chapel message delivered to the students of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary on September 5, 2006. It is clear from that message that you have a sincere love for the Word of God and for its faithful exposition.

I applaud your efforts to represent your client faithfully and aggressively. It is clear that you have distinguished yourself as an honorable and resourceful advocate. Whether or not you will receive the commendation of heaven for your efforts (”Well done, good and faithful servant”) is not a matter for my judgment. Nevertheless, I will consider the best way to allow my readers a full opportunity to hear “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” If you will please provide me with a full and complete transcript of Paige Patterson’s deposition from February 25, 2008, I will be happy to reproduce it in full.

Please do not interpret this response as any fear on my part regarding the potential for a lawsuit brought against me by your client. I have the firm conviction that the Court would be most disinterested in hearing it anyway. Furthermore, I will not interpret your letter to me as a “threat,” though I can not help but interpret your letter to me as another example of hysterical paranoia on the part of your client. I know of no other Southern Baptist leader who would retain counsel to read blogs and correspond with their authors. I do hope you find a great sense of career satisfaction in the noble height to which your professional expertise has lifted you.

For the record, I am merely expressing my ecclesiastic opinion that your client struggles to tell the “whole truth,” as my biblical understanding of “whole” and “truth” guides me. Now is not the time, however, for me to encumber your immense responsibility in the Klouda lawsuit with numerous examples to support this claim. You may read my book when it is published.

Finally, I have written many things about your client during the course of the Klouda lawsuit. This is the first occasion that you have taken occasion to refute anything I have written. I must, therefore, accept your letter as tacit admission that all other posts are accurate and truthful.

May God add his blessing to your every effort that honors his Son.

Sincerely,

Benjamin S. Cole

cc: Defendant Paige Patterson
Gary Richardson

Can you locate at least 5 differences between the picture sets below?

The Honorable Charles Grassley
United States Senate
135 Hart Senate Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-1501

Dear Senator Grassley:

Thank you for the many years of leadership that you have provided to the United States Senate and the nation. I have become especially grateful for your service on the Senate Finance Committee, and I have watched with considerable interest as you seek information about the compliance of certain religious non-profits with the United States Tax Code. I applaud your efforts to assure that non-profit corporations and their leaders respect the limitations that come with accepting a tax-exempt status.

Enclosed with this letter you will find a dossier that contains numerous receipts, ledgers, and accounting documents associated with Leighton Paige Patterson, current president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. For your convenience, I have provided a table of contents that will serve to highlight what has caused concern among some leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention — which is the sole member of the seminary corporation — regarding Rev. Patterson’s spending pattern.

In your effort to determine the propriety and compliance of certain evangelical ministries with the Tax Code, it may become helpful to see how lesser-known and lower-profile non-profits and their leaders have played loose with the tax guidelines.

The separation of church and state in America can in no way serve as a protection from governmental scrutiny when the law has been violated. In truth, that sacred article of our Constitutional trajectory recognizes that the state may, in fact, enforce its laws against the church. If that enforcement is unjustified or excessive, then the church has been called to suffer injustice for the sake of conscience. Be not dissuaded from your investigation because of religious leaders who would use either Scripture or the Constitution as a shield for vice.

Sincerely,

Benjamin S. Cole

In the spirit of Christmas cheer the editors of SBCOutpost have gathered various SBC luminaries to perform for you a Christmas song wishing you blessings for the holiday season. We hope you enjoy this and will play it to family and friends as you celebrate the joy of the season.

12 Days of Christmas

Editor’s Note: Today we reveal part two of our three part Thanksgiving, Southwestern-style. With appreciation for the new homemaking laboratory at SWBTS, we offer you an easy-t0-follow instructional guide for stuffing and roasting your very own Turkey.