By Bob Allen
A member of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty board of directors died Oct. 8 from complications related to injuries he suffered from a fall as he left his hotel for the recent BJC board meeting.
Steven Case, 64, retired pastor of First Baptist Church in Mansfield, Pa., served on the BJC board representing the American Baptist Churches USA for a decade, and as chairman from 2007 through 2009.
The day before his accident, Case was recognized for meritorious contributions to the religious-liberty watchdog group with induction into the James Dunn Legacy Circle, beaming with pride as BJC Executive Director Brent Walker helped him tie the legacy’s signature bowtie.
“Steve Case understood the importance of religious liberty and spent most of his ministerial career fighting for it,” Walker said after his death. “He was a strong advocate for the BJC,” Walker said, “but mostly he was a wonderful person.”
“His untimely death was just tragic,” Walker said. “Steve will be missed as a colleague and valued friend.”
CBF Executive Coordinator Suzii Paynter, a fellow member of the BJC board, described Case as “a trusted colleague and ABC friend.”
“I especially appreciate his energetic work on behalf of religious liberty as we have served on the BJC board, each from a cooperating Baptist family,” Paynter said. “Steve’s voice for us was strong and Christlike. We will miss such a genial and capable leader.”
Other members of the American Baptist delegation on the BJC board said Case talked about his happiness to see American Baptists coalesce around issues of religious liberty and the separation of church and state during a celebratory dinner at one of his favorite D.C. restaurants.
“Steve Case was a champion for religious liberty,” said Aidsand Wright-Riggins, executive director of American Baptist Home Mission Societies. “He was incredibly enthusiastic about the work of the Baptist Joint Committee.”
“As we broke bread together the evening before his passing, he shared deeply about his passion for the work and his gratitude that ABHMS had commissioned him to it,” Wright-Riggins said.
Jeffrey Haggray, ABHMS executive director-elect, said he had a “most delightful time” listening to Case tell stories about his early days as a pastor in New Jersey. “Steve was so committed to serving his American Baptist family, and was a proud past chair of the Baptist Joint Committee,” Haggray said. “I was moved by Steve’s profound sense of justice, truth and by his loving personality. It is surreal to me that Steve has left us.”
Roy Medley, general secretary of American Baptist Churches USA, said he knew Case since early in both of their ministries.
“There was a joy in Steve that filled all he did,” Medley said. “His commitment to Christ’s gospel led him to be a strong public voice for justice. In his own community, Steve was a constant presence in service to the rights of the poor. At the national level, Steve was a constant reminder to those in power of their responsibility to the marginalized.”
Prior to his pastorate in Pennsylvania, Case served as pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Westmont, N.J., for 25 years. He held numerous leadership roles in the American Baptist Churches of New Jersey, including president.
Lee Spitzer, executive minister of the American Baptist Churches of New Jersey, expressed condolences on behalf of the region’s churches.
“Even after leaving our region, he was a member of our Facebook community and regularly expressed support for Camp Lebanon and other ministries we have,” Spitzer said. “We will surely miss him.”
Ordained in 1978 following graduation from the Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Case was a board member of American Baptist Home Mission Societies. He chaired the Standing Rules Committee of the ABCUSA Board of General Ministries, the major policy-making body for the 1.3 million member denomination.
Case is survived by his wife, Diane. Funeral arrangements are incomplete but are being handled through Buckheit Funeral Chapel and Crematory in Mansfield, Pa. Details about a memorial service in November will be announced when available.
— With reporting by American Baptist News Service.