I’ve kept quiet amid the several years of very public clamoring for more financial transparency at the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board because I no longer have a dog in that hunt. However, the Ritz-Carlton Hotel is a…
Behind the numbers: How Southwestern Seminary’s enrollment came to be the lowest it has been since World War II
When news broke last month about the sudden resignation of Adam Greenway as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, many Southern Baptist Convention observers and alumni of the Fort Worth, Texas, seminary were surprised to learn how small the school…
Southwestern Seminary lists 24-acre parcel for sale
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has listed for sale a student housing village that encompasses nearly 24 acres of prime multi-housing real estate currently appraised at more than $11 million. Carroll Park apartments encompasses 184 one- and two-bedroom units arrayed in…
What happened at Southwestern and why does it matter?
There is no joy in reporting that Southwestern Seminary has forced out its fourth president in 28 years. But there is a need to give some interpretation to what this means and why it likely happened. Even though I haven’t…
2021 was a very good year for growth in assets for SBC’s largest agencies
The Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board nearly tripled its investment income in 2021 compared to 2020, according to the latest financial reports published in the SBC Annual 2022. NAMB booked $44.93 million in investment income for 2021, compared…
Still no external review of North American Mission Board finances
For at least two years, critics of the current leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention North American Mission Board have been seeking some way to crack open the mission board’s books, where they believe fraud is being hidden. This week,…
Against the odds, the SBC is experiencing a double-digit increase in giving
On the heels of a global pandemic and amid its own multi-faceted schism, the Southern Baptist Convention is experiencing something few could have predicted: Financial gifts to the SBC for the 2021-2022 fiscal year are up — way up. The…
Acts 29 ups the ante by offering church planters $50,000 apiece
In yet another sign of how church networks are replacing denominational identity, the Acts 29 network announced Jan. 11 that it will provide up to $50,000 apiece for new churches started through its sponsorship. Leaders of Acts 29 insist it…
Cancel student loan debt for everyone
It’s not ideal or lifegiving for anyone to be forced to choose between buying groceries for their family or paying toward a student loan. As many prepare for 2022, we will again be faced with this predicament, because we have…