A Los Angeles-area Southern Baptist church that some media reports said adopted a "third way" position regarding homosexuality in reality never voted to adopt any position on the issue and split into two groups in early June amid unresolvable deadlock, an elder at the church has told Baptist Press.
A vice president with the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee said EC staff members gathered information on New Heart Community Church in La Mirada, Calif., during the week leading up to the SBC annual meeting in Baltimore and were prepared to provide that information to President Fred Luter and the Credentials Committee if any motion was presented concerning the church. However, the one motion presented regarding New Heart was ruled out of order because it directed SBC officers to take action prohibited by Article IV of the SBC Constitution.
"Given the high profile of the story, SBC Executive Committee staff and many SBC messengers fully expected one or more motions at the SBC annual meeting requesting the convention to withdraw fellowship from the church," Roger S. Oldham, EC vice president for convention communications and relations, said. "A motion to withdraw fellowship from the church would have been in order, we believe, and could have been acted upon during the annual meeting or referred to the Executive Committee for consideration at its next meeting.
"... The fact that there was no motion made by a messenger to withdraw fellowship from New Heart Community Church during the SBC annual meeting does not preclude the SBC Executive Committee from addressing this matter, something that could happen at its next meeting, depending on what takes place with the church between now and then. EC staff continues to gather information to prepare a background for its officers and members in preparation for the September meeting," Oldham said. Keep reading
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