On today’s program, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission—the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention—fired its president Brent Leatherwood this week…then less than 12 hours later reversed course and said he was NOT fired. We’ll have details.
Also, Life Surge wealth conferences draw big audiences with its celebrity speaker lineup and wealth-building tools…we’re taking a closer look to see if it’s delivering on its promises. And, New York Theological Seminary closed its doors earlier this month—famous alumni include religious broadcaster Pat Robertson and author of the Message, Eugene Peterson.
But first, the historic sanctuary of First Baptist Dallas, was engulfed in flames last week.
The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get database and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, and Casey Sudduth. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Bob Smietana, John Stonestreet, Timothy Padgett, Kim Roberts, Aaron Earls, Brittany Smith, and Christina Darnell.
A special thanks to Breakpoint and Lifeway Research for contributing material for this week’s podcast.
Until next time, may God bless you.
COMPLETE MANUSCRIPT BELOW:
FIRST SEGMENT
Warren
Hello everybody. I’m Warren Smith, coming to you from Charlotte, North Carolina.
Natasha
And I’m Natasha Cowden, coming to you from Denver, Colorado. And we’d like to welcome you to the MinistryWatch podcast.
Warren
On today’s program, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission—the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention—fired its president Brent Leatherwood this week…then less than 12 hours later reversed course and said he was NOT fired. We’ll have details.
Also, Life Surge wealth conferences draw big audiences with its celebrity speaker lineup and wealth-building tools…we’re taking a closer look to see if it’s delivering on its promises.
And, New York Theological Seminary closed its doors earlier this month—famous alumni include religious broadcaster Pat Robertson and author of the Message, Eugene Peterson.
Natasha
But first, the historic sanctuary of First Baptist Dallas, was engulfed in flames last week.
Warren:
A fire all but destroyed the historic church sanctuary at First Baptist Dallas, thankfully there were no deaths or injuries.
The fire in the Texas Historic Landmark, church built in 1890, was reported about 6:30 p.m. Friday, and contained about three hours later.
Natasha:
Do we know what started the fire?
Warren:
Interim Fire Chief Justin Ball said the fire started in the basement, but until they do an investigation we won’t know.
Senior Pastor Robert Jeffress said, “We are grateful that no one was injured…We just had 2,000 children and volunteers on campus for Vacation Bible School earlier in the day.”
“We thank the Dallas Fire Department and Dallas Police Department for their quick action, courage, and ongoing aid,” Jeffress added.
Natasha:
Next, the SBC reverses course.
Warren:
In a head-scratching turn of events, the executive board of the Southern Baptist Convention’s public policy arm now says its leader has not been fired.
On Monday evening (July 22), the SBC Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission announced Brent Leatherwood, the group’s president, had been fired — a day after he praised President Joe Biden for ending his reelection bid.
Less than 12 hours later, the ERLC’s executive committee issued a new statement on Tuesday, saying Leatherwood would remain in leadership.
Natasha:
What happened?
Warren:
The committee said ERLC board chair Kevin Smith had acted on his own in announcing that Leatherwood was fired. Smith, a former seminary professor and denominational administrator who currently pastors a church in Florida, has resigned as ERLC chair, according to the statement.
“There was not an authorized meeting, vote, or action taken by the Executive Committee,” the executive committee’s statement said.
Smith, who has served on the ERLC board since 2018, was elected chair last fall.
Natasha:
Do we know any why this happened?
Warren:
Not specifically.
Leatherwood has been criticized for opposing legislation backed by Ascol and other members of the abortion abolition movement that would have jailed women who have abortions. More recently, Leatherwood criticized the GOP for dropping pro-life language from its 2024 platform.
Leatherwood also called for gun law reforms after a shooting in March 2023 at a Nashville Christian school where his children were students.
He did not respond to requests for comment. Leatherwood did post his thanks on social media.
“I deeply appreciate everyone who has reached out, especially our trustees who were absolutely bewildered at what took place yesterday and jumped in to set the record straight,” Leatherwood wrote Tuesday morning on X.
Natasha
Let’s move on to our next story.
Warren:
A major American denomination could soon make “affirming” LGBTQ ideology mandatory for clergy.
The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA) voted nearly two to one to effectively require candidates for ministry to endorse homosexuality and related practices if they wish to be ordained. Though the motion still must be approved by the various presbyteries around the nation, given the strong showing at the national level and the denomination’s high marks from pro-LGBTQ groups, it will likely be made official.
Natasha:
This story has some really interesting background we can’t get into here, but can you briefly explain how we got here?
Warren:
To paraphrase Archbishop Charles Chaput, progressivism preaches tolerance until it is dominant, then it tries to silence orthodoxy. Lacking fixed standards by which to judge truth, other than an ill-defined sense of relevance and progress, the rootless ideologies of postmodernism inevitably lock in on suppressing dissent.
Natasha
Warren, let’s take a quick break. When we return, Life Surge wealth conferences promise tools to build wealth for kingdom impact…but is it delivering on those promises?
I’m Natasha Cowden, along with my co-host Warren Smith, and we’ll have that story and much more, after this short break.
BREAK
SECOND SEGMENT
Natasha
Welcome back. I’m Natasha Cowden, along with my co-host Warren Smith, and you’re listening to the MinistryWatch podcast.
Next, the story we promised before the break, thousands of Christians are attending Life Surge events across the country, drawn in by its featured Christian speakers and musical artists, such as Priscilla Shirer, Tim Tebow, and Chris Tomlin.
Warren:
Besides faith leaders, attendees may be drawn by a well-known lineup of TV personalities, including Robert Herjavec from Shark Tank and Marcus Lemonis from The Profit.
Life Surge is a Christian wealth conference headquartered in Palmetto, Fla. It is not a ministry, but a for-profit limited liability company.
It advertises itself as an event where attendees can “learn why and how to create and multiply financial resources for kingdom impact.”
Natasha:
Is it doing that successfully?
Warren:
About the conference he attended at Church on the Rock in St. Peters, Missouri, in August 2023, Adam S. said he did not “believe the intent of the conference was [to] teach financial principles” but instead to draw attendees in as a “sales funnel” for other classes and products related to stock options trading and real estate investing.
The classes were offered for an extra price of $97, according to Adam.
Natasha:
Why does Life Surge do what they do?
Warren:
Life Surge was founded by Joe Johnson, who calls himself a serial entrepreneur. He told Startup Magazine that “there’s the biblical commandment to be fruitful and multiply, fill the Earth, but we use that in a business setting that we want to be fruitful as individuals.
Life Surge did not respond to multiple emails requesting more information about the purpose of the conferences, its growth, and its benefits to those who attend. Nor did it reply to a phone message before time of publication.
Natasha:
Our next story involves a small Christian College in South Carolina.
Warren:
Erskine College is associated with the Associate Reformed Presbyterian denomination. It’s faced financial challenges in recent years, and has filed a lawsuit in a South Carolina state court against Icelaven Development Group for failing to repay a $1 million loan.
According to reporting by The Herald, Icelaven is the parent company of Reason and Republic, a for-profit charter school management company in South Carolina founded in 2017.
Icelaven defaulted on payments it should have made on the promissory note, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit did not state the purpose of the loan.
Natasha:
What’s the history behind this?
Warren:
In 2017, Erskine College founded the Charter Institute at Erskine to authorize charter schools.
According to the Charter Institute’s website, it has authorized 25 schools. Until recently, Reason and Republic operated three of those charter schools
Since 2022, Erskine has faced accreditation issues due to financial concerns. According to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), Erskine College is still accredited but was denied reaffirmation of its accreditation and placed on warning due to issues with financial resources and financial responsibility.
Natasha:
What did the school have to say about that?
Warren:
About the accreditation warning, Erskine told MinistryWatch it “has demonstrated improvement in fiscal oversight, financial management, and availability of financial resources.”
In an open letter, Erskine President Steven Adamson said the school projected finishing the 2023-24 school year with the “most robust combined financial results in over 25 years....
