NC Baptist Changes Through Conservative Takeover: | Eastern North Carolina Now

Revolt by students and Faculty

    I was present and talking with many after Dr. Randall Lolley was fired. I was also present at the motel to the South of Wake Forest where the formal resignations were made. The V.P. of Southeastern stated it most succinctly: "The necks in which the jugular vein resides are ours. Paige Patterson and Paul Pressler promised to cut the jugular of everyone not in their camp and I join this fine President in my resignation."

    The students were up in arms to no effect. Immediately the student body---which had grown to 5 times the size it was in my tenure of 1967-70--- went to more than half of what it was. Women students knew they were no longer going to be welcome at SEBTS.

    The Faculty organized for legal protection against massive firings. The accrediting body for US Theological Schools put SEBTS on probation over Trustee activities and irregular moves. No student wanting a future in theological studies or graduation wanted to be a graduate of a non-accredited graduate school.

    The Broyhill Foundation withdrew their financial support---along with several others enlisted for support over the years of the Lolley presidency. Much of the renovation of the old Wake Forest University campus had been the result of private backing in addition to the Southern Baptist Convention funding formula based on the number of Full Time Equivalent students. NC businesses had been most positive in their growing support of the best graduate Baptist education of ministers in NC. They looked forward to excellent ministers and staff from their local school.

    Takeover of the NC Baptist State Convention and Biblical Recorder

    In the same year the NC Baptist State Convention was in turmoil. Conservative Carolina Baptists (CCB) had formed and met alongside the Pastor's Conference which was the first day of the annual meeting in Winston-Salem. Mark Corts, pastor of the Calvary Baptist Church in Winston, had started organizing for change in NC. That was the other biggest church in the same town where Dr. Lolley had pastored the First Baptist Church.

    After some 10 years of expanded attendance and political wrangling they began electing only Conservative mega church Pastors as their new presidents. Taking sides was required of NC Pastors who wanted a political future in statewide activities.

    The state-wide Baptist paper was the Biblical Recorder. Marse Grant had been the Editor who had kept Baptists informed of national and state Baptist activities. He was constantly editorializing about the danger of Conservatives running the show. Dr. Gene Puckett had become the new Editor upon Grant's retirement. He was a Moderate, as were the vast majority of NC Baptist churches---especially the biggest ones. Letter to the Editor were numerous and most were critical of national and state Baptist forced changes. He immediately came under fire and resigned before his normal age. The next Editor was Tony Cartledge who tried the "middle ground" of giving Conservatives their place and lowering the editorial criticism. He lasted only a few years. Following him was Norman Jameson who was the pick of NC Conservatives. He still marched to his own journalistic drummer and within a short time became the next target for change. I had been a lunch friend of all these men as I traveled to Raleigh on Ministers Life appointments.

    Back in Georgia---from whence I came---their editor, Jack Harwell had been the first Editor to fall over Conservative hate. He was instrumental in founding Baptists Today as an alternate news source for Baptists. It was a major step backward for him financially, but he had the guts to do it! Today that publication is a major source of general Baptist news from all over---rather than a propaganda piece pumping the Conservative Resurgence as some kind of great change.

    Spending mission money to change the President's office and home

    Next came a replacement President for SEBTS. Dr. Lewis Drummond was his name. His connection was his wife being a relative of the new Conservative Leaders of the SBC. He was what I would call "meek and mild." Rumors had it that the Resurgence leader, Dr. Paige Patterson (President of Criswell Bible College at Dallas) was to be the next President. He was a persona non grata in a Moderate Majority state. He declined the invite by the SBC Executive Committee rather than face the wrath of NC Baptists, both students and pastors.

    The President's Office had been nicely renovated after years of neglect before Dr. Lolley came as President. Part of the private foundation funds allowed for Stealey Administration Building to get a face lift from steam heat and bare walls to impressive offices in the building where new students all came first. The President's Office got a complete redo using mission money for Drummond as well as a new Presidential home update. The biggest question everyone asked was "how much was spent to put in a temperature controlled closet for Mrs. Drummond's furs. The closest I could get to that was a conversation with the contractor who said, "Mrs. Drummond could not make up her mind on anything. We had to redo several things 3-4 times!" Let me tell you from my working as a Trim Carpenter through college: "You pay for the first renovation / pay to take it out / pay again to do it as told / each "can't make up my mind" change costs 3 times what it should if you could make up your mind!

    Trusting Baptist givers were not sending their money to support missionaries as before. They were supporting the new elite leaders and their lust to show how important they were now!

    I shall address the following in my next article---based on the realities of Conservative Takeover of the Southern Baptist Convention and NC Baptist State Convention:

        •  Change from Servant Pastor training to King Pastor

        •  NC Baptist Colleges and Duke opening graduate schools for ministers

        •  Students from only Conservative schools with questions about the Church giving

        •  Faculty changes to a narrow base and background only

        •  Redaction of the history of SEBTS and the SBC

        •  Formation of a new group of Baptists honoring local church freedom

        •  Reduction in numbers of churches participating in NC SBC work