Wanted: dog exorcist

I've never put too much stock in talk of demon possession and exorcisms and such, but a new dog we acquired about a month ago is causing me to reconsider.

My wife and son call the dog "Banjo."

I call him der Teufelhund.
Le chien de diable.
Il cane di diavolo.
El perro de diablo.

The devil dog.

He's a puppy we got from the pound, a melange of so many canine ethnicities that he was labeled only as "mixed breed." His shape is reminiscent of a tall terrier, and he has the coloring of a holstein cow. His head seems a size or two too small for his body.

He has the needs of a government and the behavior of a passive-aggressive pig.

He's possessed, I tell you.

The idea was for the dog to spend time both inside and outside. We went to work early trying to get him housebroken, but he resists all efforts. He'll urinate outside when I let him out of the crate in the morning, because he probably has little other choice. At other times, he seems determined to leave his mark in every corner of the house.

You can take him for a half-hour walk and he never lifts a leg or stops to squat. You can leave him outside for hours, figuring he's had every opportunity to do his business in the appropriate place. Let him in the house, however, and he'll collapse on the floor like he's so glad to be inside where it's cool. Turn your back, and he's not only watered the carpet but left a pile of fertilizer.

He's so determined to use the house for his private bathroom that I've taken to putting him on a retractable leash, with the handle in my pocket, even when inside.

Leave him outside longer, and he digs up the flowers, bedevils the cat (who fights back) with persistent yammering, or he whines and cries to get back in, which makes our neighbors unhappy. If he's not already asleep when I put him in the crate at night, he howls and makes everybody unhappy.

Try to play with him, and the dog goes bananas. He runs laps from room to room, gaining enough speed to leap on unsuspecting victims. He bites like a piranha in a feeding frenzy, and the vet's advice to pull away and ignore him doesn't work, because he pursues you. None of the tricks we've learned from watching "The Dog Whisperer" have been effective, either.

Jan and Samuel sometimes call him "psycho dog," but I remain convinced that he's a devil sent to try my soul and make me cuss.

I remain of the old school, and firmly believe that constant cussing or vulgar language reveals a lack of basic manners, creativity, and vocabulary. But this dog brings words to mind that I rarely think, much less speak.

As you might guess, getting a dog was never my idea: I have a limited amount of emotional energy, and more than enough relationships and work to use it up. Trying to accomplish anything productive while also keeping a watchful eye on a dog and still failing to protect the carpet from potty pup is draining.

But, our son wanted a dog. Pleaded for a dog. Offered his allowance "forever" for a dog. Promised to take care of a dog. Complained that he felt left out among his friends because they all talked about their dogs.

I don't love owning a dog, but I love our son, so we have a dog -- a dog with innocent puppy eyes and a mischievous demonic heart.

Veterinarians can prescribe a single pill to take care of heartworms, roundworms, whipworms, and fleas.

Anyone know where I can get a prescription for doggie-demons?

Does one Baptist speak for another?

A decade ago, I was leaving the pastorate to become editor of the Biblical Recorder, and giving up my seat on the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina's (BSC) General Board (now Board of Directors) in order to do so.

A highlight of my truncated term on the General Board had been an assignment to serve on the Council on Christian Life and Public Affairs (CCLPA), admirably led by Doug Cole. I was delighted to learn that the BR editor was considered an ex officio member of the CCLPA, so I continued to participate in some measure for the next nine years.

One of the things I quickly learned -- and appreciated -- was the ground rule understanding that the CCLPA did not presume to speak for North Carolina Baptists. Instead, the council's role was to investigate matters of ethical, social, church-state, and environmental concern, and speak to the Convention as a voice of conscience.

CCLPA leaders were assigned the task of relating to the legislature, working with other Christian groups and focusing mainly on social and humanitarian issues affecting the poor and disenfranchised. Representatives opposed easy access to alcohol, for example, and worked against government-sponsored gambling through the lottery, which adversely targets the poor. Long before environmentalism was widespread, the council urged N.C. Baptists to be good stewards of the earth: I often bag my own groceries in an "Earth Stewards" bag distributed years ago by the CCLPA.

The CCLPA also served as a clearinghouse for hunger funds contributed through the BSC, processing applications from Baptist-related soup kitchens or food pantries and distributing available money to them.

In the years I spent on the CCLPA, a number of changes took place. Cole's position was "downsized" in a restructuring of the BSC staff. He was replaced by fellow-staffer Steve Sumerel, who continued the work in the same spirit as before.

As council members became increasingly more conservative, however, meetings sometimes became fractious. It was evident that some members wanted the council to shift directions and become a moral watchdog rather than a social conscience. Sumerel eventually resigned from BSC work, in part because of the competing visions and the clear direction in which council membership was going. There is no longer a full-time staff person assigned to the work of the council.

The CCLPA page on the BSC Website still says (as of today) "The Convention stipulates that the Council will always speak to our people rather than for them," but that is apparently changing in a big way.

According to informative reporting by Norman Jameson of the Biblical Recorder, the CCLPA has engineered a complete about face in its approach. Roy Varner, pastor of Falling Creek Baptist Church in Goldsboro, recently spoke to the Board of Directors about the council's work, and said “it's just starting to get good.”

“We’re talking about a shift from just talking ‘to’ North Carolina Baptists, to talking ‘for’ North Carolina Baptists in the public forum,” Varner reported.

For example, the committee had discussed the issue of global warming, Varner said, and “the council wants the world to know that we never stop worshipping the creator and start worshipping mother earth.”

Next up, according to the Recorder's report, the council plans to publish a public statement that “will define and defend marriage according to scripture.” Beyond that, it plans to address racism in the Southern Baptist Convention, what British pastor Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) could teach 21st century Baptists about politics, and stem cell research.

Of all the transformative shifts in BSC life, this is one of the most troubling, because it is the least Baptist.

One Baptist does not speak for another. We may speak to each other, and even about each other, but it is not in the nature of authentic Baptists to speak for each other or instruct each other on matters of conscience.

There’s a reason why Baptists are numbered among the Protestants.

Ministry -- seriously?

Any Christian with a conscience has to ask the question every now and then: am I really serious about serving Christ by serving others? Am I afraid even to "talk the talk," for fear I'll be reminded that I'm not walking the walk?

I was reminded of that perennial question on Sunday when I read an article about how South Africa -- whose Minister of Health has been known to recommend garlic for AIDS -- is finally getting serious about dealing with its worst-in-the-world problem with HIV/AIDS.

The article mentioned my old friend Julius Bonani, a pastor who planted a church in the notorious Barcelona shantytown outside of Cape Town. I first met Julius in 2000, when he was working to plant a church in an area called Yanga. The church met in a school: I had the privilege of preaching while Julius translated in Xhosa, a fascinating language that features lots of clicks, pops, and gutterals.

In 2005, I met Julius again, this time in Barcelona, where he and his faithful wife Irene had successfully started another church. It had not been easy, but they had brought hope and found acceptance in a dangerous, poverty-ridden place. With help from two more established churches, they had converted five old shipping containers into a church building, using the containers as outside walls and rooms, then stretching steel girders between the metal containers and putting a roof on the top.

At the time, Julius and Irene were caring for two grandchildren and five other children who had been orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Three years later, according to article I read Sunday, they are caring for 18 children who suffer from HIV/AIDS.

They do this with very little in the way of financial resources, but much in the way of love and a great willingness to obey Jesus' call to love "the least of these my brethren."

Seriously.

[Above: Julius Bonani stands in the door of a "windy house" used by his family in 2005. Bottom: Irene Bonani (left) leads a choir of young people, practicing inside a shipping container.]

New women's ministry gets a name

A new women's ministry in North Carolina will be called "Embrace," according to a report in the Biblical Recorder. Leaders of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (BSCNC) moved to create the new women-focused ministry arm in response to Woman's Missionary Union of North Carolina (WMU-NC) decision to leave the Baptist Building -- though not the BSCNC -- in order to preserve the historic organization's autonomy.

Phyllis Foy, chair of the committee appointed to design a new women's ministry, told members of the BSCNC's Board of Directors that "Embrace" will be about "embracing women for Christ," focusing on evangelism, discipleship, and missions.

BSCNC leaders and Foy both insist that the new ministry is not intended to compete with WMU-NC. Supporters of WMU-NC generally remain skeptical. In action that has yet to make it to the Recorder's Website, the WMU-NC Executive Board recently approved a resolution specifically asking the BSCNC's Executive Committee to affirm that WMU-NC remains a partner with the BSCNC, that the WMU-NC president will continue as a member of the Executive Committee, and that WMU-NC will retain its opportunity to give an annual report to the Convention.

Instead of affirming the request outright, Executive Committee members voted to refer it to the Articles and Bylaws Committee, which is currently revamping various aspects of the BSCNC's governing documents. And, when Hollifield unveiled a new organizational chart reflecting a proposed restructuring of BSCNC ministries, WMU-NC was not on it -- even via a dotted line.

The new ministry's name could prove to be problematic. A moniker that implies "embracing women for Christ" could be seen as sending a mixed message in a convention largely dominated by men who think women should remain in their place and be submissive.

And, though I'm not a lawyer, I wonder if there might be issues of trademark infringement. As one alert reader pointed out in an e-mail, "Embrace" is already the name of a popular perfume and line of products by Vera Wang, and there's an "Embrace Women" brand by Mark Cross. "Embrace" is also the name of a nationally advertised brand of veterinary medical insurance, and the name of the annual National Black Arts Festival (for artists of Afro American heritage). There's even a British rock band named "Embrace," or was.

Whether N.C. Baptist women will embrace "Embrace" is, for now, an open question.

A salute to hard work(ers)

Even my aches have aches.

It was a great relief to finish the academic year at Campbell University Divinity School, with the major downside being all the homework -- as in work on our home -- that awaited me when classes ended.

One of several overdue projects has been the replacement of all the flexible ductwork connecting our heating and air conditioning systems to those nifty little vents in the floor (downstairs) or ceiling (upstairs). The construction grade stuff the contractor used when our house was built 20 years ago has been falling apart, hence the need for an upgrade.

Last week I thanked God for a spell of cooler weather and spent a good part of two days crawling around the attic with the help of one of our students. Unfortunately, he could not follow me under the house, where fallen insulation hangs like Spanish moss and gives the cramped space the look of a pink swamp.

I spent eight hours under there yesterday, most of it crawling on my belly or twisted into some unnatural position while straining to reach through drain lines to cut an old pipe away or tape and tie a new one into its place. Samuel helped me some. While he was under the house a major thunderstorm blew through and left two inches of water under one corner of the house: to complete one duct, I had to lie in it.

Did I mention that I really prefer being clean to being caked with mud, dust, and insulation?

Now aware of the drainage problem, I have another project to complete, but before I can get to it, there remains at least another day of labor to finish replacing the duct work. The insulation needs to be replaced or shored up, too, and every water pipe in the house needs to be replaced. I'm leaving those jobs to the professionals.

For one summer during my high school years, I worked a swing-shift in the spinning mill where my father and several other family members spent the majority of their working years, and that was more than enough incentive for me to get a college education.

I don't mind getting nasty and doing hard work every now and then -- some things just have to be done. I salute those do the dirty work that makes life better for the rest of us, and I think I'll stop complaining about Campbell's expectation that divinity school professors dress in a coat and tie.

Acknowledging racism

I was delighted to see a nice spread in the Sunday News & Observer highlighting the work of author/professor/quiet crusader Tim Tyson.

I first became aware of Tyson's work when I read his powerful Blood Done Sign My Name, a book that combined history with autobiography in telling the story of a young black man's murder and its riotous aftermath in Oxford, N.C.

I posted a more detailed review/editorial about the book shortly afterward (which I could not longer locate online at first posting, but a friend found it here). I marveled that I had moved to the same town less than a decade later and lived there for five years without hearing a word about what had happened. The town, it seems, had almost completely expunged the murder, the torchings, and the unjust verdict from its collective consciousness.

We don't like to admit our racism, but it's very much alive. Consider, for example, the plethora of news polls and interviews showing that a substantial number of people state that they would not vote for Barack Obama for president, simply because they can't bring themselves to vote for a "black" candidate.

Which begs the question of why Obama is considered "black" when he's actually biracial: his father has black African heritage, his mother is white. That, however, is another rabbit to chase on another day.

I have no quarrel with people who vote their conscience because of someone's political record or proposed policies. The attitude that rules someone out because of his or her racial heritage, however, is the sign of a mind ruled more by prejudice than perceptiveness.

In this country, we ought to be past that.

Myanmar finally admitting Baptist aid (update)

The military regime that runs Myanmar has finally granted visas to members of Baptist World Aid Rescue24, according to a press release from the Baptist World Alliance. Baptist World Aid (BWAid) is the relief and development arm of the Baptist World Alliance. Rescue24 is a search, rescue and relief team that will be led by members of Hungarian Baptist Aid.

A late report from BWA says the team (of unspecified size) has arrived and begun distributing aid to refugee camps in the hardest hit areas of Yangon, the country's major city. Team members are being assisted by local Baptists. The photo below includes Béla Szilágyi of Hungarian Baptist World Aid Rescue24, at left, as food is distributed in Yangon.

The grudging admission of Baptist aid workers comes after nearly two weeks of stalling by Myanmar's ruling junta, which apparently would prefer to let thousands die rather than have anyone else get credit for helping them.

Other volunteers working with BWAid Rescue24 stand ready to respond to needs if permission is granted. Volunteers from North Carolina and Virginia in the United States, Singapore, Australia, and Hungary have made themselves available to go to China and Myanmar. Seven members of Texas Baptist Men from the United States are also on standby.

Two volunteers from North Carolina have been in Bangkok since May 10, waiting for permission to enter the country and offer assistance. As of Friday, May 16, however, they remained in limbo at the Bangkok airport, where Myanmar officials have refused to either allow them into the country or to return their passports.

Reportedly, a BWAid team has also been granted visas to enter China and assist in aiding victims of the May 12 earthquake that brought ruin to the northwest section of the Sichuan province May 12, The Chinese have also been hesitant to allow foreign aid workers, but have begun to open the door as they realize the needs are far beyond even their considerable capacity for relief efforts.

Hungarian Baptist Aid (HBA) has become a world leader among non-profit relief efforts. Previously, the organization led relief efforts following serious earthquakes in Turkey and the 2004 tsunami that devastated parts of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and southern Thailand.

Laszlo Pavelcze, Rescue Commander of BWAid Rescue24 and HBAid, and a frequent visitor to the annual missions conference sponsored by N.C. Baptist Men, is coordinating relief efforts with disaster management authorities in China. Along with another HBAid colleague, he plans to deliver and distribute a donation of tents, blankets, medicines and food on behalf of BWAid.

The need for clean water is crucial following natural disasters, and HBAid also has a special water purification unit waiting in the wings -- one that can purify and package 100,000 water bags per day.

It can't help anyone, however, while sitting in a baggage terminal in Bangkok.

In hopes of providing longer-term aid, BWAid director Paul Montacute has slated a meeting of Baptist convention and relief and aid leaders to be held in Bangkok on May 24. Baptist leaders are expected from Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Australia, Hungary, Sweden and the United States. The meeting will be organized by the Asia Pacific Baptist Federation, one of six continental unions of the BWA.

Estimated deaths in Myanmar range from 68,000 to almost 130,000, and thousands more will die if relief supplies don't arrive. More than two million people face extreme difficulty in the wake of the storm.

Estimates of deaths in China are in the 20,000 range, but many more remain missing and the death toll is certain to rise.

It's a crying shame when governmental leaders care more about preserving their power or bolstering their reputations than about the welfare of the people they rule.

It suggests a crying need for prayer.

Donations to the BWAid Emergency Response Fund can be made at www.bwanet.org/bwaid or sent to:
Emergency Response Fund
Baptist World Aid
405 North Washington Street
Falls Church, VA 22046

Donations can also be made through N.C. Baptist Men at
NC Baptist Men
PO Box 1107
Cary, NC 27512 (designate check for Myanmar Disaster Relief).

[Photo posted on Flikr by partitoradicale.]

They're "mad," and they're proud

A friend pointed me to a new phenomenon that's gotten little publicity before now: growing numbers of people with mental illnesses -- or "extreme mental states," as some prefer to call them -- have chosen to become more open about their conditions in hopes of gaining greater understanding. The movement has gotten enough traction to garner a feature article in the New York Times.

The bandwagon is barely rolling as yet, but there are plenty people who are qualified to jump on: the National Institute of Mental Health estimates that 5.7 million Americans over 18 suffer from bipolar disorder, which mainly affects moods, and 1.8 deal with schizophrenia, described as a thought disorder. Other mental illnesses, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, also affect an increasing portion of the population.

Rather than suffer in the shadows, some who deal with mental illnesses have taken their concerns beyond therapy groups, chat rooms, and blogs. They seek to fight the stigma of mental illness more openly by embracing the term "mad" and bringing attention to the issues of prejudice that persons with mental diseases often face. While mental illness is no laughing matter, some (like popular blogger Liz Spikol) find it helpful to take their conditions in stride and use humor as a means of helping others understand.

Mental health activists see the issue as a matter of human rights, and argue that being "mad" due to mental illness does not prevent persons from being a positive and contributing members of society. To draw attention to the issue, loosely connected groups in at least seven countries have sponsored "Mad Pride" events that reportedly drew thousands of participants.

Mindfreedom International, a non-profit mental health advocacy group, promotes such events in support of its vision to "Unite in a spirit of mutual cooperation for a nonviolent revolution of mental health human rights and choice."

If you think it sounds strange to hear someone embrace the term "mad" as a positive rather than pejorative adjective, folks in London have taken ownership of the term "bonkers," sponsoring a "Bonkersfest" in 2007 and planning others, including one at the original Bedlam asylum, in 2008.

The Icarus Project, whose motto is "Navigating the space between brilliance and madness," maintains a Website that provides information and facilitates contacts between Mad Pride groups, including one in Asheville, N.C.

Supporters hope that "pride" events and more open discussion will help sufferers of mental illness to have more confidence in themselves while encouraging others to be more accepting of them and their illness.

I have known many people who face various mental or emotional challenges with courage and grace, often living high-functioning lives despite having to devote extra energy to fighting off inner demons that most of us don't have to confront.

"Mad" or not, they've already earned my respect.

Pomp and personhood

After three straight days of graduation-related exercises, I've about had my fill of both pomp and circumstance.

In the academic world, we dress up for formal occasions -- and everyone has to wear a dress. I know they're technically "robes" and we do get to keep our britches on beneath, but that doesn't make it feel normal.

For hooding, for baccalaureate, and for graduation itself, we don our robes and colorful hoods (some much more colorful than others) for long processions that involve more standing, waiting, and sitting than processing. We wear funny hats with tassels and points and for all the world, it feels for a day like I'm teaching at the Hogwarts School of Wizardry, without the benefits of magical feasts and quick exits by broom or floo powder.

Academic regalia, so I have read, has its roots in the monastic habits of monks who used to be primary educators of the western world. After early Americans designed all sorts of zany and eccentric outfits, a committee got together and tried to bring some order to the pedagogical zoo, deciding on standardized colors for specific major fields of study.

So, my hood features dark blue for philosophy, while others wear purple for law, white for arts and letters, brown for business administration, pink for music, and a rainbow of other colors for other degrees, combined with added colors for our respective alma maters, often in combinations that don't ordinarily match.

I should be a better sport about playing dress up, and perhaps a few more years in the academic world will make it feel like second nature. At the moment, however, it still feels a bit phony, sort of like dressing up for church and pretending you're a different person on Sunday than the other six days of the week.

But, I wouldn't want to get personal ...

What's manifest in the "Evangelical Manifesto"?

A group of mainly conservative Evangelicals has recently promoted an "Evangelical Manifesto" that appears to be designed as a voice of moderation calling on Evangelicals to avoid getting sucked into becoming toadies for a political ideology.

Like the "Baptist Manifesto" of 1997, which promoted a more communitarian and less individualistic approach to being Baptist, I think the document suffers from a poorly chosen name. Anyone old enough or well-read enough to remember the impact of Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto is bound to deal with some mental confusion. Marx's work was so influential that it's hard to separate the word "Manifesto" from "Communist," which makes it difficult for many people to give anyone else's "manifesto" an unbiased hearing.

I suspect that most people will not care enough about the subject to read the Evangelical Manifesto, and some who do care will rely on media summaries for their judgment, rather than slogging through the entire 19-page document, which is replete with seven-point statements that are sometimes repetitive.

In general, the paper appears to be a good thing, as it calls upon Evangelicals to realize that equally devoted followers of Christ may see things differently on the political front -- there's no one way for true believers to vote, no one issue that drives our votes, or one party to whom Evangelicals must pledge allegiance. In the light of the past 20 years' marriage between the most conservative Evangelicals and the Republican Party (some think of the GOP as "God's Only Party"), that word is welcome.

Even so, the statement gives much more attention to the dangers of "liberal revisionist tendencies" (eight paragraphs including five specific condemnations) than the errors of Christian fundamentalism (two paragraphs of general observations).

Some of those who champion the Evangelical Manifesto have been involved in precisely the same sort of political approach they now condemn, according to an analysis by Bob Allen at EthicsDaily.com, leading one to wonder how much they have changed and what their motives might be.

Given the falling stature of the Christian Right and it's unflagging support for the debacles of the current administration -- and the reality that Democrats now seem to be talking much more openly about their faith -- more cynical folk might see the statement as more tactical than confessional, though the authors to confess to a number of past missteps.

I couldn't help but note that the statement took pains to define "Evangelical" by laying out seven characteristic beliefs, essentially: 1) Christ is fully human and fully divine; 2) salvation is only through Christ; 3) a truly regenerate life must be empowered by the resurrection of Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit; 4) the scriptures are inspired by God, exhibit "total truthfulness," and are the final word for faith and practice; 5) true disciples serve Christ in deeds as well as words, including ministry to the poor and oppressed; 6) hope and strength come from a belief in the Second Coming of Christ; and 7) all followers of Christ are called to grow through worship, fellowship, discipleship and ministry, and to share their faith with others.

Most Evangelicals would find little fault with the list as given. If "total truthfulness" of Scripture is a more palatable code term for the fundamentalist "inerrancy" doctrine, however, it narrows the field considerably. My guess is that the writers intended to leave the door open for interpretation there.

Despite the underlying questions, the document's call for a less radicalized approach to political involvement that does not see "the Christian position" as monolithic is welcome.

Whether it has any discernible impact on current practices -- such as the distribution of one-sided "Christian voter guides" -- remains to be seen.

We just don't know

While most of us have been giving our primary attention to primary election results, hundreds of thousands of people along the coast of Burma (aka Myanmar) have focused on survival -- and on trying to find the bodies of their loved ones among the estimated 22,500 people who died from the ravages of Cyclone Nargis, a powerful storm that ripped through their low-lying land this week.

Cyclones and hurricanes are basically the same type of storm, though both could be called "cyclonic." In the northern hemisphere, the storms rotate counterclockwise and we call them hurricanes. In the southern hemisphere, they rotate clockwise and we call them cyclones.

The poor people who raise rice by hand in the vast, flat Irrawaddi Delta and the teeming inhabitants of Yangon, the nation's major city, are struggling to come to terms with staggering statistics of the dead and missing: according to one report, not only were 22,500 estimated to be dead, but 41,000 people were unaccounted for.

I visited Honduras after Hurricane Mitch devastated that country in 1998, and Sri Lanka after the Christmas tsunami of 2004, and the Gulf Coast after Katrina and Rita barreled through in 2005, each time in the company of North Carolina Baptist Men.

The devastation caused by disasters like these are beyond ordinary comprehension: they leave one stunned at the thought that so many could die, so much damage could be done, in so short a time.

Relief efforts in Burma/Myanmar (the name one uses generally reflects a desire to reject or grant legitimacy to the military junta that usurped power in Burma and changed the name to Myanmar) are hampered by the governing junta's isolationist policy. I have heard reports that they asked for international aid, and other reports that aid workers had not yet been allowed in the country.

When they are allowed, you can bet your booties that Baptists will be in the forefront. Workers with Baptist World Aid are already making preparations, Baptist World Alliance has announced a donation of $50,000, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has pledged $5,000, and the Southern Baptist Convention says it is assessing the need. If I know North Carolina Baptists, many thousands of dollars will soon pour in for relief efforts, and volunteers form N.C. Baptist Men will be in the forefront of those bringing hope and healing to those who have survived the storm.

In the meantime, I hope we'll give some extra thought to prayer for those who are suffering, quit whining about the price of gasoline, and be thankful to God that getting through the day alive is not our primary concern.

[Photo from The Daily Green]

Professors in arms?

The the Los Angeles Times reported May 2 that a lecturer at California State University at Fullerton got the ax because she refused to sign a loyalty oath to defend the U.S. and California Constitutions “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”

That sounds like an oath that members of the military would take, or public officials like governors or presidents -- not university professors.

The latest victim of the misbegotten requirement is Wendy Gonaver, a Quaker from Pennsylvania and a lifelong pacifist, who was to teach American studies this year. Given her subject matter, Gonaver is very familiar with the anti-Communist fervor that spurred California voters to approve the loyalty oath in 1952, but also with Constitutional protections.

Gonaver told the Times that she had offered to sign the oath if she could attach a short statement expressing her views, but Fullerton wouldn’t allow that.

There's hope for her, though. Earlier this year, news-media attention led to the rehiring of another faculty member who had been fired for inserting the word "nonviolently" before signing the oath.

One would think, at the very least, that a professor could substitute the word "support" in place of "defend," which sounds like a commitment to join the Army if called upon. Or that one could refuse to sign an oath on religious grounds.

Respondents to a news blog at the online Chronicle of Higher Education berated school administrators for their strict interpretation of the McCarthy-esque policy. While some simply spoke of the entire situation as "idiotic" or "absurd," others focused more on the issue of respect for Quaker beliefs, which are characteristically non-violent and see no need for oaths.

I couldn't help but remember all the Southern Baptist missionaries who were recalled from the field or forced into early retirement because they refused to sign an equally misguided "Baptist Faith and Message" statement.

While defending the Constitution, it appears that Cal-State Fullerton administrators could benefit from a lesson on the Bill of Rights, which has something to say about respecting religious freedom.

An honorable dream

As noted previously, LifeWay Resources' annual statistical study of the Southern Baptist Convention demonstrated in rather clear fashion that the SBC, which had long defied the trends of mainline denominations by continuing to grow, appears to have peaked and begun a gradual decline. Baptisms continue a steep slide despite fervent efforts to prop them up, and even the amorphous "membership" category showed a dip in 2007.

LifeWay missiologist Ed Stetzer analyzed the statistics, pronounced the Convention to be "in decline," and suggested some reasons for the fall-off.

A new financial report from the SBC's Executive Committee adds yet another weakening statistic: Cooperative Program giving is down -- just barely, at -0.30 percent -- but still down from the previous year at this time.

The significance of this is that, through the past several years, despite a struggling economy and falling revenues in many state conventions, the SBC Cooperative Program continued to post 2-3 percent gains on a regular basis. The April report, however, just over halfway through the SBC's fiscal year, shows CP to be $360,255 behind the $120,638,766 received at the same point in 2007. The monthly report was even more striking: April receipts of $15,765,017 were 15.07 percent, or $2,797,103, behind the $18,562,121 received in April 2007.

Has the nation's financial flop finally come home to the SBC, or does the drop reflect other indications of decline? Time will tell, I suppose, assisted by a whole bunch of commentators who are very certain of their opinions.

Trevin Wax, minister of education at First Baptist Church in Shelbyville, Tenn., noted in a first-person post on Baptist Press that there's likely to be a great deal of finger pointing as various factions within the SBC fault their opponents for the denomination's apparent slide. Calling on Europe's "Thirty Years' War" in the mid-17th century as an example of the damage religious factionalism can do, Wax notes appropriately that Southern Baptists' own infighting has now raged openly for nearly 30 years.

Wax calls on Southern Baptists to "end the fighting, reunite around the Gospel, love those with whom we disagree and continue to cooperate."

What a concept.

Many called for a similar response in the early days of the conservative insurgence, but appeals to love could not compete with the appeal of power.

There is nothing more divisive than absolute certainty, especially when manifested as the belief that one position is right, all others are wrong, and the "right" way must triumph.

Absent a miraculous inrush of humility, I suspect Wax's timely challenge will remain an honorable dream.


[For interested N.C. readers: the Baptist State Convention's April report shows contributions through the first third of the fiscal year ($11,233,701) moved 1.46 percent ahead of 2007 giving, but remain 9.18 percent below current budget needs of $12,369,103.]