NASHVILLE, Tenn.—When traveling to church, most people have company, but a significant number say they make the trip alone.

A new study by LifeWay Research found one in five Protestant churchgoers (19 percent) say they typically travel to church alone.

Most travel to church with their spouse (54 percent), while close to a third say their child or children ride with them (31 percent).

Fewer say they typically travel to church with another family member besides their parent or grandparent (18 percent) or a friend or acquaintance (11 percent).

A small percentage say they travel with a grandchild (4 percent) or someone from their church who lacks transportation (3 percent).

“Many weeks, it’s hard enough for attendees to get themselves to church, so it’s not surprising few are stopping to pick up a neighbor,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research.

“The reality is, if every Christian driving or riding to church this week used the extra vehicle seats around them to bring other people, churches would likely not be able to contain the crowds.”

Men (64 percent) are more likely than women (46 percent) to say they travel to church with their spouse, which indicates wives are more likely to go to church without their husbands than vice versa.

Women (36 percent) are also more likely than men (24 percent) to say their children travel with them to church.

African American churchgoers are the least likely to say they travel to church with their spouse (31 percent) but are more likely than white churchgoers to say they go to church with their children (40 percent to 24 percent).

African Americans (16 percent) are also twice as likely as white churchgoers (8 percent) to say they travel to church with a friend.

Younger churchgoers (22 percent) are the most likely to say they typically go to church with a friend.

Protestant churchgoers 50 and older (23 percent) are more likely than those 18 to 34 (13 percent) to say they attend church alone.

Childhood church trips

For three-fourths of current Protestant churchgoers (76 percent), a parent typically took them to church as a child.

One in five (20 percent) say they went with a grandparent, while 1 in 10 (10 percent) say it was another family member.

Few churchgoers say they went alone (6 percent), with a family friend their age (5 percent), rode a church bus (5 percent), or went with someone they knew primarily from church (4 percent).

Among those regular church attenders today, 6 percent say they did not typically attend church as a child.

“The legacy of grandparents taking their grandkids to church has been impressive,” said McConnell. “Yet today far fewer churchgoers are taking grandkids with them—even when looking only at older attendees.”

African Americans are more likely to say they were taken to church as a child by a grandparent (32 percent) or another family member (20 percent).

Regular Protestant church attenders in the West (11 percent) are more likely to say they typically did not attend church as a child than those in the South (4 percent).

The online survey of 1,002 American Protestant churchgoers was conducted September 20-27, 2019, using a national pre-recruited panel. Respondents were screened to include those who identified as Protestant/non-denominational and attend religious services at least once a month.

Analysts used quotas and slight weights to balance gender, age, region, ethnicity and education to reflect the population more accurately. The completed sample is 1,002 surveys, providing 95 percent confidence the sampling error from the panel does not exceed plus or minus 3.2 percent. Margins of error are higher in sub-groups.

CARY, N.C. (RNS)—There has been no sustained community transmission of the coronavirus in the United States so far, and many Chinese churches such as the Raleigh Chinese Christian Church are doing their best to keep it that way.

Taped to the entrance of the church’s glass doors is a yellow notice with the word “ATTENTION” in capital letters. It warns parents not to bring their children to church if they’ve traveled to Asia in the past 14 days.

Churches such as this one, a nondenominational congregation with services in Mandarin, Cantonese and English, have taken it upon themselves to self-quarantine, in keeping with Centers for Disease Control guidance.

Many others have taken additional precautionary measures, such as canceling small group gatherings, Sunday lunches and other communal events.

“I think there’s caution,” said Jerry Miller, the youth pastor at Raleigh Chinese Christian Church. “There may be a little bit of fear mixed in with that too, which is understandable.”

The outbreak of the virus, which began in Wuhan, China, has sickened thousands and has killed more than 2,700 people. At least 35 people in the United States are infected with the so-called COVID-19 virus—all linked to overseas travel, including 18 people evacuated from the Diamond Princess, a cruise ship docked in Yokohama, Japan.

No Americans have died from the coronavirus thus far, and those infected have not spread it to the wider community.

Chinese Americans implement safety precautions

Still, it is the Chinese American community that has borne the brunt of the health scare and it has also been the one to implement wide-ranging safety precautions.

The virus stanched communal celebrations of the Chinese New Year, which fell on Jan. 25. The New Year is typically a time when hundreds of millions of people travel to China to reunite with family.

Stateside, parties, get-togethers and other holiday celebrations were nearly all called off.

Attendance at U.S. Chinese churches dropped as much as 50 percent beginning in late January. It is slowly beginning to pick up, according to half a dozen pastors interviewed for this story.

“We’ve all been impacted in very similar ways,” said Carter Tan, English ministries pastor at Grace Chinese Baptist Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in Richmond, Va.

Tan said many U.S. Chinese churches have members grieving the loss of family or friends who have died in Wuhan, a city of 11 million people in central China.

“We have one woman whose father passed away because of the coronavirus last week,” Tan said, adding that this isn’t just affecting those in China. “It has hit home pretty personally.”

Major airlines—Delta, American Airlines and United—suspended service to mainland China on Jan. 31. So, any Chinese Americans headed to China for work, school—or the funeral of a loved one—are unable to go. Chinese nationals who were visiting the United States before the air travel restrictions were put in place cannot return home; so too, Americans who happened to be visiting China before the epidemic started.

More than 200 SBC Chinese American churches

Chinese Americans are mostly secular. More than half (52 percent) do not affiliate with a particular religion. But 31 percent consider themselves Christians, and 15 percent are Buddhist, according to a Pew Research Center survey.

Most Christian Chinese Americans are Protestant and describe themselves as evangelical. Nondenominational and Baptist churches dominate.

There are between 200 and 250 Chinese churches affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, said Amos Lee, executive director of the Chinese Baptist Fellowship of USA and Canada. Most are small with about 100 members, but there are larger ones, especially in the big cities such as San Francisco, Los Angeles and Dallas.

To avoid contagion, Lee said Southern Baptist Chinese churches have been advised to use individualized pre-filled and sealed Communion cups containing grape juice and a wafer.

Many churches are used to pre-filled Communion elements and have been using them since the global SARS epidemic in 2003, Lee said.

One Chinese Baptist Church in Raleigh set out a basket with face masks at the door, though Pastor Jane Pan said few have taken advantage of them.

“We did have some that wore face masks in the beginning, but not anymore,” Pan said.

The church, located a few blocks from North Carolina State University, canceled its Chinese student fellowship meetings for February. The fellowship, which includes about 40 students, may resume meeting in March, but no decision has been made.

Likewise, the church has called off Sunday’s communal lunch after services.

‘On alert’

Charlotte’s Chinese Baptist Church changed the way it serves Sunday lunch. Instead of having people line up buffet style, it now arranges plates heaped with food on a table and servers wearing face masks and gloves hand them to church members.

“Our church is on alert,” said Kevin Fu, a lay leader. “That’s not just our church. It’s the whole Chinese community.”

Chinese restaurants and grocery stores in the U.S. and across the world have reported sharp sales declines.

In response, Chinese American churches and nonprofits have also been fundraising for the people of Wuhan. Chinese Americans from across the Carolinas donated toward an effort to buy boxes of face masks.

Other organizations have offered help, as well. Samaritan’s Purse, for example, donated 78 pallets of medical supplies and personal protective equipment through the U.S. State Department, said Kaitlyn Lahm, a spokesperson for the North Carolina-based ministry.

World Vision distributed masks to 50,000 people in the impacted province.

The New York Times reported that several donations from overseas faith-based groups have not been well received. Local officials have rejected some donations because they fear trouble for cooperating with what the centralized government considers to be illegal organizations. The government in China recognizes five faiths, but at the same time it co-opts state-sanctioned religious organizations.

Cathy Kimball, a resident of Cary who attends Raleigh’s Chinese Baptist Church, said despite the difficulties, church members are not isolated. Social media has allowed Chinese Americans to stay in touch with friends and family in China, primarily through WeChat, the Chinese messaging and social media app.

“Everybody is involved discussing the topic,” said Kimball, a 56-year-old permanent resident who has lived in the United States since 2003 and manages a local Chinese news site. “We don’t feel alone.”

Just when things will return to normal is hard to say.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty as to what to expect,” said Lee. “We really don’t know what the whole picture is like. So people are taking it cautiously.”

DALLAS (BP)—Market moves and minute-by-minute headlines on cable news and social media can be alarming, but David Spika, chief strategic investment officer of GuideStone, indicated volatility in the market at this point of the economic cycle would be expected.

“Stocks rallied in 2019 based on several factors, with Federal Reserve rate cuts being most prominent,” Spika said. “Corporate earnings growth and an improved global economy are the most important factors that would be necessary to continue this long-running market rally. While not impossible, the likelihood for that is diminished for several reasons. The age of the economic cycle, 11 years, is several years longer than the historical average.

“Additionally, the fears of coronavirus further slowing economic growth, and putting additional pressure on corporate earnings, means stock volatility will likely increase, and we may see more days with significant swings in the market.

“Finally, note that on average the market suffers a 10 percent decline during presidential election years, and this election cycle is likely to be more disruptive than most. As a result, investors should be cautious as they face many uncertainties during 2020.”

Coronavirus creates market uncertainty

In the United States, the Dow Jones industrial average dropped more than 1,000 points Feb. 24, wiping out all the gains the market had made so far in 2020. The S&P 500 Index, a broader measure of the market, fell more than 100 points, or a little over 3.35 percent.

On Feb. 25, markets continued the sell-off. The lower markets were largely prompted by fears that the coronavirus will slow economic output, especially in Asia.

Fears surrounding the coronavirus, known officially as COVID-19, helped drive stocks lower. South Korean officials are racing to contain the largest outbreak outside of China, and a Spanish resort was locked down after an Italian doctor in the Canary Islands tested positive for the virus. Worldwide, the World Health Organization reported Feb. 24 about 80,000 confirmed cases of the virus with more than 2,600 deaths. Almost all of the deaths thus far have occurred in China.

Spika noted that GuideStone’s managers have taken some gains in the mutual funds following these powerful market advances, which is prudent to do given the age of the cycle.

“Retirement plan investors, especially, need to stay focused on their long-term plan and asset allocation for their retirement needs,” Spika said. “Market fluctuations always occur, but a long-term focus and a diversified investment approach have historically been rewarded by the markets.”

Retirement plan investors concerned by the market’s moves should look at their portfolios and ensure they are not overweight in certain categories and underweight in others, which could exacerbate the effects of a market decline.

GuideStone participants can receive help with their long-term investment allocations by accessing the resources on the Retirement Planning and Guidance page, which include GuideStone’s Investment Recommendation tool.

“We never encourage anyone to try to time the market,” GuideStone President O.S. Hawkins said. “If you are prompted to make allocation changes, only do so after considering your diversification, time horizon and risk tolerance. Once those are reviewed, then you can consider making strategic, focused changes, if needed. It’s important, though, that changes be driven by a careful consideration of the facts and not the emotions of the moment.”

Basic principles for retirement planning

GuideStone experts recommend four basic principles for retirement plan investors:

• Always focus on long-term objectives, not emotions. Specifically regarding retirement participants, these assets are to serve needs for a long period of time. Make sure objectives and actions are consistent with the time horizon.
• Avoid making impulsive decisions. Making changes based on short-term market moves is almost a guarantee for failure, as it promotes buying high and selling low. The performance of an account moving forward will be determined based on results of the financial markets in the future, not the past. Investors cannot sell yesterday’s losses or buy yesterday’s gains.
• Don’t count losses—or gains. Consistent contributions to a retirement plan afford investors a systematic way of taking advantage of investment opportunities as markets ebb and flow.
• Maintain realistic expectations about market behavior. Financial markets in the short term tend to fluctuate in response to social, political and economic events. However, historically, the markets stabilize and return to profitability over the long term, focusing on the underlying fundamentals.

WACO—Baylor University regents at their February meeting approved the final phase and total project budget of $21.2 million for the restoration of Tidwell Bible Building.

The renovation will preserve the limestone carvings depicting scenes from the Old and New Testaments and the stained glass windows in Miller Chapel. It also adds a prayer chapel that will provide a view of campus from the top floors of Tidwell, accessible by elevator for the first time in the building’s history.

Construction on the 57,000-square-foot facility is expected to begin in late 2020, with a reopening anticipated in 2022.

“Nearly every student takes a core course in religion and history in Tidwell Bible Building, so its much-needed restoration has been one of our top capital priorities,” said Board Chair Jerry K. Clements. “The project includes critical renovations to improve infrastructure while expanding and modernizing the learning environment. But just as important to all of us at Baylor is the careful preservation of the architectural significance of this truly historic and sacred building for future generations.”

President makes quarterly report to regents

President Linda Livingstone presented her quarterly report to the board, including updates on Baylor’s Illuminate strategic plan and the Give Light fund-raising campaign. She reported that the Give Light campaign has raised $841.3 million to date. Additionally, seven new endowed chairs have been created as part of the Baylor Academic Challenge, established as part of the university’s $100 million gift from last year.

Livingstone discussed Baylor 175, the university’s year-long celebration of its 175th anniversary. The observance began Feb. 1, the date of Baylor’s founding by the Republic of Texas in 1845, with activities continuing for the rest of the year.

“We are humbled to be the caretakers of such a remarkable legacy at Baylor,” Livingstone said. “The vision of our founders to establish a university that is ‘fully susceptible of enlargement and development to meet the needs of all ages to come’ calls us to build on our 175-year history and pursue even higher goals for the university’s impact on Texas and the world.”

Livingstone updated the board on the results of a research partnership between Baylor University and the Texas Business Journals that provide insights from nearly 600 Texas business leaders on the state’s business landscape and the role of higher education in preparing the workforce and partnering to find solutions to industry challenges.

Among the findings President Livingstone shared: More than seven in 10 respondents believe that it is important to the state’s future competitiveness to have more research universities, while eight in 10 either agree or strongly agree that a university research experience better prepares students for the workforce.

“Education is the backbone of our economy. As the business landscape grows and adapts to changing technologies, resource availability, regulations and worldwide competition, higher education must be nimble in the ways it prepares graduates to contribute to the future of a wide range of industries,” Livingstone said.

“As Baylor invests in a growing research enterprise and the pursuit of the highest level of research excellence through designation as a Research 1 university, and particularly in our role as a Christian research university, it is vital that we ask important questions about innovation, future challenges and the ways research partnerships address tomorrow’s needs.”

The president also discussed the overall climate for Baylor faculty, staff and students and the university’s ongoing work to provide a “safe, loving and caring community” for all members of the campus community.

Board approves new regents

The board approved new student, faculty and Baptist General Convention of Texas regents for the upcoming academic year, with terms beginning June 1.

Sher Isada, a junior University Scholar from Euless, will serve a two-year term on the board. She will serve her first year as a non-voting student regent, while current student regent Cassidy Parshall, a senior Baylor Business Fellow and finance major from Colleyville, will serve her second year as a voting member of the board.

Regents also approved Sara L. Dolan, associate professor of psychology and neuroscience and director of the graduate program in clinical psychology at Baylor, to serve a three-year term as faculty regent.

Michael Evans, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Mansfield and president of the BGCT, was approved by the board to serve a three-year term as a BGCT-elected Regent. Additionally, Dennis R. Wiles, pastor of First Baptist Church of Arlington, was re-appointed to the board to another three-year term as a BGCT-elected regent.

NASHVILLE (BP)—Officers of the board of trustees of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission strongly objected to the formation of a task force to study the ERLC’s effectiveness and instructed the entity and its leadership “not to comply” with the inquiry.

In an open letter to SBC Executive Committee Chairman Mike Stone and Executive Committee members, the ERLC trustee officers called the task force, which was formed by the EC earlier this week, “unwarranted, divisive, and disrespectful.”

Signed by David Prince, chair of the ERLC board of trustees, and the board’s other officers, the letter suggested the Executive Committee was attempting to usurp the role delegated to the ERLC’s trustees and included a statement of support for ERLC president Russell Moore.

“We find the action of the Executive Committee … disappointing, unnecessary and harmful to our cooperative work in the SBC,” the ERLC trustee officers wrote, adding: “At a time where a unified voice is needed for our cooperative Gospel work, the Executive Committee is sowing needless division, treating trustees with disrespect, and spreading suspicion with this unnecessary task force.”

Executive Committee members voted Feb. 18 to form the seven-member task force, which will be headed by Stone.

It is designed to address concerns that “have been expressed both publicly and privately to various members of the Executive Committee and other Southern Baptists regarding how the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s actions in relation to its ministry statements are affecting the convention and its relationships with local churches, local associations, and state conventions.”

Executive Committee officers respond

In a written response to the ERLC trustee officers’ letter, the officers of the SBC Executive Committee noted that the action “passed unanimously among the (Executive Committee) officers, unanimously in subcommittee, and by an overwhelming majority” of the full committee.

“We respect the right of the ERLC trustees and chairman Prince to respond to the SBC Executive Committee’s formation of a study task force,” the Executive Committee officers wrote in the response. “It was never our intention to communicate disrespect or seek to divide. This is not an attempt to remove Dr. Moore or to direct his staff.

“We believe in the trustee system and understand clearly that Dr. Moore’s presidency and the work of his team are matters for the ERLC board of trustees.”

But the response also noted the Executive Committee has a responsibility to “present and recommend the SBC Cooperative Program Allocation” to messengers at the SBC annual meeting, and “to promote the entire Cooperative Program.”

In 2017, the Executive Committee created a similar task force. A 13-member ad hoc committee was tasked with monitoring the activities of Southern Baptist entities in relation to how their activities might adversely affect the Cooperative Program and churches.

It received reports then from executive directors of state Baptist conventions that 75 churches across the SBC “were withholding, designating or escrowing Cooperative Program funds.” While only 14 churches were confirmed by the committee, those 14 were estimated to have diverted a total of about $1.5 million away from the Cooperative Program.

The most recent action to form a task force specifically stated three bylaw responsibilities, beginning with its responsibility to recommend the Cooperative Program Allocation Budget annually to the SBC, as required by SBC Bylaw 18.E(6).

The Executive Committee also is tasked with studying or making recommendations to entities, and the convention when advisable, concerning adjustments required by ministry statements or by established convention policies and practices, as described in SBC Bylaw 18.E(9).

Finally, the Executive Committee is directed by the SBC to present to the convention recommendations required to clarify the responsibilities of the entities for ministries and other functions, as provided in SBC Bylaw 18.E(13).

Shortly after the Executive Committee vote to create the task force, Stone noted the prevalence of “fake news” about the ERLC, and said the task force would be “looking for the facts.”

“We are hearing from state leadership and other pastors across the country,” he said then. “We are making a statement about effectiveness.”

‘A vote of no confidence’

But among several objections, the ERLC trustee officers said the action “inappropriately seizes the responsibility and work of the ERLC trustees,” that “evaluating the effectiveness of Dr. Moore and the ERLC team is uniquely the work of the trustees of the ERLC, and that formation of the task force was “a vote of no confidence” in ERLC trustees, “which is both insulting and … inappropriate and out of step with Southern Baptist cooperation.”

In response, the Executive Committee officers said: “When we continue to hear a growing number of reports that churches are either planning to decrease or withhold Cooperative Program gifts and are given specific reasons that relate to a Southern Baptist entity, we have a responsibility that we are granted under the bylaws of the SBC to consider those reports.”

Citing Bylaw 18.E(9), the ERLC trustee officers said the EC had failed to “maintain open channels of communication” with ERLC trustees as required. The letter also said the task force was “inappropriately formed” in executive session and suggested the task force “overrules the will” of SBC messengers.

Other than Stone, the task force’s membership, which will be drawn from the Executive Committee’s 83 current members, has not been announced. The task force is required to report its findings to the EC “on or before its September 2020 meeting.”

Stone said the action created “a formal process by which we can receive information and determine the level that this issue is affecting the Cooperative Program.”

Stone added: “I’m fully aware that we may find, as we did in 2017, that what we are hearing is not as significant in fact as it is in perception.”

The letter from the ERLC trustee officers cited Stone’s comments on the 2017 study as evidence that another review is unnecessary. And citing a motion to defund the ERLC during the 2018 SBC Annual Meeting, which was rejected by an overwhelming margin, the letter stated:

“The question of the messengers’ support for the ERLC has been asked and answered. If the job of the Executive Committee is to carry on the work and represent the will of the business carried out at the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, this task force is doing the very opposite.”

The ERLC trustee officers also issued a strong statement of confidence in Moore, whose tenure has been polarizing in Southern Baptist circles for several reasons, including his position and commentary during the 2016 presidential election. They wrote:

“We grieve this task force in part because of the suspicion that it inevitably casts over Dr. Moore’s character. And we are firm in our belief that Dr. Moore’s character, convictions and theology are both biblical and unimpeachable.”

FORT WORTH—Michael Evans, president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, exhorted students at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary to “move forward with victory in mind.”

Evans, senior pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Mansfield, spoke in a Feb. 20 seminary chapel service, preaching from Deuteronomy 20:1-4.

In that passage, God assured the Israelites of their future victory in the Promised Land, Evans noted. He encouraged his listeners to face the world today with the same assurance.

Evans recalled a recent conversation he had with a student at another seminary who asked him, “In this time of chaos and confusion and division, what would you say to us seminarians who are in such despair as it concerns spreading the gospel?”

Evans smiled and replied: “Are you kidding me? This is our time. We are uniquely placed to boldly go before men and women and to proclaim the gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Perk up. Get ready. Put your armor on. Because it is time to go and fight the good fight of faith.”

Evans told the seminary chapel audience, “Those of us who have been called to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, you need to get your armor ready, because we are going out to war.”

‘Compassionately confront the world’

Christians today are called to “compassionately confront the world,” he asserted.

“If we keep silent in the face of injustice, we then become complacent,” he said. “If we keep silent in the midst of immoral behavior, we then lose our moral direction. If we keep silent and fail to establish rules in our families, our relationships will rot, our communities will crumble, our churches will become meaningless meeting places and mere museums. … We dare confront the world.”

Such confrontation, Evans explained, means first and foremost seeing all human beings as “prospects for salvation.” He further encouraged the chapel audience to live by faith, not by sight, which he termed as living with a “sanctified mind.”

“A sanctified mind is a transformed mind,” he said. “You rebuke negative opinions of yourself when you have a sanctified mind. Self-criticism is not what defines you. Failure does not defeat you.

“… There ought to be people in here who can say, ‘Because of the experience that I’ve had with God myself when I found myself in impossible situations and in impossible places, all I know is that my God can make a way.’”

Evans concluded that God “goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you the victory.”

“He’s not there just to hold your hand,” Evans said. “He’s not there just to be your big buddy. He is there to help you to conquer whatever it is you’re dealing with in your daily lives. … Whatever it is that you need God to do on your behalf, if he’s assigned you to it, it may look tough, but it’s already done.”

“How do you know?” Evans asked.

“(Christ) fixed it on a hill called Calvary on an old, rugged cross, when they put nails in his hands and rivets in his feet. He died for us,” he said. “There’s mighty good news in that, because when he died for us, in that was our salvation. And then early Sunday morning, when he got up with all power of heaven and earth in his hands, we were able to inherit that power—overcoming power, making-it-through power, salvific power, deliverance power.”

“Ladies and gentlemen, move forward with victory on your mind.”

DALLAS—The Texas Baptist Men board of directors voted to extend the missions organization’s partnership with the Emergency Volunteers Project in Israel for another two years.

The board also heard reports from varied ministries that described how TBM volunteers offered “help, hope and healing to a hurting world” in 2019 and learned about additional projects scheduled this year.

“What the world needs now is hope,” keynote speaker Albert Reyes, president and chief executive officer of Buckner International, told the board and other guests at a Feb. 21 banquet.

Ministries that meet human need and ministries that focus on evangelism and discipleship are two sides of the same coin, Reyes said.

God’s people bring the hope of Christ to hopeless people when they show love, offer peace to those who are troubled and demonstrate God’s concern for justice by seeking to set right what is wrong, he stressed.

‘Let’s go to work’

Several TBM ministry leaders echoed the same theme when they made project recommendations and presented reports: “Changing the world is hard. Let’s get to work.”

Two years ago, TBM entered an initial partnership with EVP, a nonprofit organization that offers assistance in Israel during natural or manmade disasters, to provide cross-training in large-scale emergency food service and other facets of disaster relief.

TBM built and outfitted a mobile food-service unit in Israel, and then trained Israel-based personnel to use it. Based on that model, the Israelis built additional units.

All the equipment will be housed in a disaster relief center TBM will help construct in Israel, along with bunkhouses to provide lodging for volunteers.

Dee Dee Wint, vice president for TBM water ministry, reported more than 12,000 people gained access to clean drinking water and heard the gospel in 2019, thanks to TBM.

In early March, a TBM water team will journey to Uganda, to work in a camp where 2.2 million refugees from South Sudan and Congo are housed. Currently, wells rated for 500 people are expected to serve 2,000 people. TBM volunteers will train locals how to drill and maintain wells.

Dwain Carter, state disaster relief director, reported TBM workers contributed more than 50,000 volunteer hours in times of disaster, served 47,000 meals, distributed more than 7,500 boxes and recorded 52 professions of faith in Christ.

In other reports, the board learned:

• TBM exceeded its $4.22 million budget in 2019 by 13.76 percent. The 2020 budget is $4,519,010.
• More than 4,500 men and boys were involved in Royal Ambassadors ministries last year. At RA summer camps, which drew 3,669 campers, 311 boys made spiritual commitments, including 168 who made professions of faith in Christ.

Ralph Rogers of Amarillo and Gary Smith of McKinney received the Robert E. Dixon Service Award for longtime service to TBM.

TBM honored two employees—Janice Clary for 10 years of service and Alicia Enriquez for five years of service. TBM also recognized Joe Detterman, who had been named a national Joel W. Phillips Outstanding Achievement Award in Disaster Relief recipient by the Southern Baptist Convention’s North American Mission Board, and Tim Smith, who was named to the RA Legion of Honor.

ABILENE—Two former deans of the Logsdon School of Theology and Logsdon Seminary and a former chief academic officer at Hardin-Simmons University took the administration and trustees to task for approving a plan to close the seminary and scale back the remaining undergraduate religion program.

Both Vernon Davis, dean from 1998 to 2003, and Don Williford, dean from 2011 to 2017, insisted the trustee actions appear contrary to the original intent of the donors who established Logsdon School of Theology and Logsdon Seminary.

Current leaders of the university have “been derelict in their stewardship of the resources provided to sustain the School of Theology” and have “betrayed the trust” of donors, Davis said.

Williford asserted the plan to relocate the Logsdon School of Theology under the Cynthia Ann Parker College of Liberal Arts represents a reversal of actions taken by a previous administration and board that “could be interpreted as an inappropriate use of the Logsdon Endowment and borders on a violation of official trust.”

Ron Smith, former executive vice president and provost at HSU, asserted recent actions “may just be the first step in a series of moves that will sacrifice the integrity of the university on the altar of expediency, or perhaps as more recent news seems to indicate, the altar of moral, spiritual and intellectual malfeasance.”

The Baptist Standard attempted to contact HSU President Eric Bruntmyer for a response and for answers to several additional questions.

A Feb. 20 email from Jacob Brandt, director for university marketing at HSU, stated: “We have received your questions. At this time, we are not doing any additional responses. However, HSU plans to send out some additional information this week.”

Williford, who served 23 years on the Logsdon School of Theology faculty, released a Feb. 17 letter to the HSU trustees and administration in which he disputed some assertions Bruntmyer made to alumni and others.

Established ‘to train young ministers’

The 14-page letter detailed the historical development of the Logsdon School of Theology and the desire of the original donors to fund a program to train ministers.

Williford described how Coreen Logsdon made a $3 million gift in 1982 to HSU in honor of her late husband Charles to build the Logsdon School of Theology facility and Logsdon Chapel. A $50,000 per year gift from the Logsdon family also provided for graduate assistants for the Logsdon faculty, he noted. A final gift from the Logsdon estate established the Charles W. and Koreen Logsdon Endowment Fund.

Net income from the endowment fund “was intended to help train young ministers,” Williford insisted.

“The closing of Logsdon Seminary and moving of Logsdon School of Theology under the College of Liberal Arts with only a BA or BBS degree in but one disciplinary focus strike at the heart of the central task of preparing young ministers,” he wrote.

“Although the university administrations have interpreted this statement, ‘to train young ministers’ in different ways—to use the Logsdon Endowment funds for student scholarships, in support of the salaries and benefits of Logsdon faculty, or support of other costs directly tied to Logsdon programs—the funds were always dedicated to that essential effort.”

Williford refutes president’s assertions

Williford asserted Bruntmyer’s public announcement “indicated an inaccurate separation between the Logsdon School of Theology and Logsdon Seminary.” The Logsdon School of Theology has served as the “parent structure” under which all non-seminary religion programs and the seminary degree programs resided, with the same dean serving over both.

“The Logsdon Endowment Funds were, from the outset and continuing to the present time, devoted to the ‘parent’ Logsdon School of Theology,” Williford stated.

“Therefore, the claim that Logsdon School of Theology funds were ‘being redirected’ to Logsdon Seminary is patently untrue. The Logsdon Endowment Funds have from the outset belonged to the parent Logsdon School of Theology under which Logsdon Seminary and the non-seminary Logsdon School of Theology programs were housed.

“Likewise, the claim that Logsdon Seminary ‘lacked appropriate funding from the very beginning’ is not true. Hardin-Simmons was not using funds designated only for the Logsdon School of Theology as denoting the non-seminary programs to cover $600,000 of the annual cost of funding the seminary. Both Logsdon Seminary and the non-seminary (Logsdon School of Theology) were and are entitled to share the Logsdon Endowment Funds. Since the Logsdon Endowment was provided ‘to help train young ministers,’ consideration of allotment of the endowment funds should be based on the number of students enrolled in non-seminary programs compared to the number of students enrolled in the seminary programs.”

Second dean corroborates donor intent

When the Baptist Standard contacted Davis, the second dean of the Logsdon School of Theology, he corroborated Williford’s account, based on his conversations with Coreen Logsdon and her second husband, Lee Hemphill, as well as conversations with former HSU President Jesse Fletcher and with H.K. Neely, the first dean of the Logsdon School of Theology.

“I have grieved and been deeply troubled by the decision of the university leadership to close Logsdon School of Theology and Seminary,” Davis said. “It was my privilege to work to bring to birth the program of graduate studies in ministry preparation. Building a faculty of gifted scholars who were committed to providing excellence in education for ministry was the highlight of my own ministry.

“To see the dismantling of the vision of the Logsdons and those who have given their lives to bring it to reality is painful. To think of the loss to Hardin-Simmons and the cause of Baptists in Texas and far beyond is shocking.

“In my opinion, the current leadership of the university has been derelict in their stewardship of the resources provided to sustain the school of theology and has betrayed the trust of the Logsdons and countless people who have given themselves to bring their dream to fruition.”

Former provost critiques ‘margin by major’

Likewise, Smith referred to Williford’s letter as a “thorough, factually accurate and carefully considered assessment of the principal issues raised by the recent actions” of the university’s president and board of trustees.

Smith questioned “the extent to which the claimed ‘financial crisis’ may be the result of mismanagement by the current administration, along with an attempt by the administration and certain trustees to justify the shifting of funds away from the Logsdon endowment to meet other needs rather than honor the intent of the donor.”

“In my former role as executive vice president and provost of the university, and later during two terms as president of the faculty, I could confidently declare that the integrity of the university was not for sale, not to anybody and not for any price. But now it appears that I may no longer be able to make such a statement,” he said.

Smith took issue with the “margin by major” Bruntmyer told the Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board his administration used to assess the financial sustainability of university programs.

That approach can be useful in operations where both costs and the product prices are variable, Smith said. However, it is “entirely unsuited” to a university setting where across-the-board tuition is fixed for all majors, but the cost of instruction varies widely from one discipline to another, he asserted.

Furthermore, if all nonprofitable majors were eliminated, a school could lose its university status, he noted. So, most universities recognize their “profit centers”—including majors that generate revenue—enable them to continue to operate “cost centers” that don’t generate a profit but are “essential to the enterprise” of the university, he said.

“Given the distinctive history and purpose of this university, and the endowment resources available, it seems clear to me that both the Logsdon School of Theology and Logsdon Seminary more than satisfy the criteria for status as an essential component and must be allowed to continue,” Smith said.

‘Inconceivable’ that seminary could create financial crisis

Williford blamed Logsdon Seminary’s declining enrollment in part on the university administration’s decision to eliminate the seminary’s director of recruitment and student services position and partly on the closing of off-campus sites in Lubbock, Dallas-Fort Worth, Corpus Christi and McAllen.

He also noted several university administrations prohibited deans of the Logsdon School of Theology from initiating development efforts on behalf of the seminary, saying it could conflict with university development efforts.

Pointing out Logsdon Seminary already had reduced the size of its faculty through retirements and required cutbacks, Williford insisted the seminary should require “far less financial support than it did five to 10 years ago.”

He also pointed to “several significant endowments which were and should continue to be available to the seminary and non-seminary programs alike” in the Logsdon School of Theology.

“Considering the faculty reductions, which have primarily impacted Logsdon Seminary and endowment incomes which rightfully provide funding to both seminary and non-seminary programs, along with income from tuition income generated by both entities, it seems inconceivable that Logsdon Seminary should be creating such a financial crisis for Hardin-Simmons University,” Williford wrote.

He also questioned whether an “extremely generic” Christian Studies major could adequately replace existing undergraduate degree programs in Biblical Studies, Ministry, Theological Studies and Worship Ministry.

‘Theological/political reasons’ cited

Williford also asserted there is “strong evidence to indicate that theological/political reasons played a much larger part in the decision” than Bruntmyer indicated.

He insisted Bruntmyer accused the Logsdon faculty of being “liberal” and addressed that in a meeting of the entire HSU faculty and in other settings. Williford also asserted Bruntmyer mentioned a meeting he and several trustees attended with BGCT Executive Director David Hardage and three West Texas pastors, whom Williford mentioned by name.

Bruntmyer did not respond to requests to confirm or deny the meeting. Two of the three pastors declined comment, and the other never replied to email inquiries.

Hardage acknowledged some Texas Baptist church leaders had voiced concerns about certain theological positions held by some on the Logsdon faculty, but closing the seminary was not the expressed desire of anyone in any conversation he heard.

“For several years, numerous church leaders from all over the state began expressing concerns about some theological positions at Logsdon, and those concerns were shared with leaders of both the seminary and the university privately and in small group settings. Certainly, others from Texas and beyond did not share those concerns,” Hardage said.

“However, as I understand it, a full theological discussion regarding Logsdon was not a part of the HSU board of trustees decision to close the seminary. Apparently, the stark, negative financial realities facing the seminary negated the need for such a discussion.

“Personally, I was never a part of any conversation with anyone who wanted Logsdon to close and was surprised when I heard the news. I continue to pray for all those whose lives and families have been impacted by the decision to close the seminary. I also continue to pray for and believe in university leadership and hope for a very bright future for HSU.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS)—The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee will launch a task force to examine the activities of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the convention’s public policy organization headed by theologian Russell Moore.

Some SBC leaders fear controversy over Moore could lead to a drop in donations.

Moore, 48, who has been president of the ERLC since 2013, was an outspoken critic of Donald Trump when the future president began campaigning for the White House. In 2016, Moore called Trump “an arrogant huckster” and wrote an essay for the National Review citing “Trump’s vitriolic—and often racist and sexist—language about immigrants, women, the disabled and others.”

In response, Trump attacked Moore on Twitter, calling him “a terrible representative of Evangelicals and all of the good they stand for.” The same tweet called Moore a “nasty guy with no heart!”

The request for an inquiry came from the Cooperative Program Committee, which deals with giving from churches to the convention’s national and international ministries.

Churches holding back gifts?

Mike Stone, chair of the Executive Committee, said in a Feb. 18 news conference that committee members have heard anecdotal accounts of churches withholding money or reducing giving because of concerns about the ERLC.

Stone said local church leaders and state Baptist leaders have expressed concerns in private but not on the record. The task force will give them a place to officially lodge their concerns.

Stone added the Executive Committee does not know if concerns about the ERLC have indeed caused giving to drop. He also said that there is a lot of “fake news” about the convention and about the ERLC and that the task force will try to find the truth.

In early February, Baptist Press, the official news and information service of the SBC, reported giving to the Cooperative Program was up about 3 percent from last year. In 2019, Southern Baptists had given $64.5 million by the end of January. This year, giving totaled just under $66.5 million by the same point in the year.

Moore sparked complaints earlier

Similar complaints were raised against ERLC in 2017 over Moore’s anti-Trump comments. At that time, Moore met with Frank Page, former president of the Executive Committee, and the two agreed to work together for the good of the convention.

Stone said the task force is not an attempt to remove Moore from office.

“I am fully aware that we may find, as we did in 2017, that what we’re hearing is not as significant, in fact as it is in perception,” Stone said. “And what we want to find is just where the facts would lead us.”

He added, “Southern Baptists can joyfully and in a unified manner resolve this question so that it does not continue to be a potential source of discussion that distracts us from our mission, which is to take the gospel of Christ to the ends of the earth.”

Moore does not report directly to the committee. However, the committee does oversee funds from the denomination’s Cooperative Program, which in turn awards funding to the ERLC. While ERLC’s trustees govern the commission’s activities, the Executive Committee has a responsibility to act when giving is affected, Stone said.

Moore is the second ERLC president in a row to face controversy. Longtime ERLC President Richard Land was censured in 2012 by the commission’s trustees for plagiarism and insensitive comments about race on his radio show. He retired the following year.

Is the future of the ERLC in jeopardy?

Given the controversy the organization has generated, Stone was asked if the ERLC had outlived its usefulness and whether funding the commission was still a good use of Cooperative Program funds.

He said he expects the task force will look into that question.

The task force will “review the past and present activities” of the ERLC and “assess whether the actions of the commission and its leadership are affecting Cooperative Program giving or the further advancement of the Cooperative Program,” Stone said.

Elizabeth Bristow, ERLC press secretary, told RNS in a statement that the commission relies on the “sacrificial giving of churches.”

“We hear from our churches every single day with questions about some of the most complicated issues imaginable,” she said.  “In every case, we work to serve our churches with gospel-focused answers.”

The statement added that the ERLC occasionally gets questions about its work from churches.

“Thankfully those questions are easier to answer,” Bristow said in the statement. “That’s because, every day the men and women serving at the ERLC stand for the unborn, advocate for religious liberty, work to address the crisis of sexual abuse, and labor to equip men and women to answer ever-changing questions in light of the everlasting promises of our Lord.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)—The Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee voted to “disfellowship” a Midland church whose pastor is a registered sex offender.

Controversy surrounding the 2020 Pastors’ Conference program and questions regarding the work of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission also drew action from the SBC Executive Committee at its Feb. 17-18 meeting in Nashville.

As recommended by the SBC Credentials Committee, the Executive Committee voted to disfellowship Ranchland Heights Baptist Church in Midland, whose senior pastor Phillip Rutledge is a registered sex offender.

Neither the Baptist General Convention of Texas nor the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention identify Ranchland Heights Baptist Church on their websites as an affiliated congregation.

Rutledge, who became pastor of the church in June 2016, was convicted in 2003 of aggravated sexual assault against two girls, ages 11 and 12, respectively.

In February 2019, a comprehensive investigative report by the Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News revealed about 380 ministers and volunteers in SBC churches sexually abused more than 700 people. The Chronicle created an “Abuse of Faith” database of convicted sex offenders in churches, and Rutledge appears on it.

The Midland church is the first disfellowshipped since messengers to the 2019 SBC annual meeting revised the function of the Credentials Committee. The committee now is authorized to receive reports of a church’s suspected departure from Southern Baptist polity, doctrine or practice and to make recommendations to the SBC Executive Committee regarding the possible disfellowship of churches from the SBC.

Ranchland Heights last reported 75 members and an average church attendance of 60 in 2017, but reported no Cooperative Program giving to the SBC.

Controversy surrounds SBC Pastors’ Conference

The SBC Executive Committee voted to allocate meeting space for the 2020 SBC Pastors’ Conference provided President David Uth amends the program by Feb. 24.

The recommendation, which originated in the Executive Committee’s Business and Finance Committee, did not note specific program changes needed, but the speaker lineup has generated controversy among some Southern Baptists.

Some raised concerns about a woman on the program, Hosanna Wong, who is both a “spoken word artist” and a teaching pastor at her church, which is not affiliated with the SBC. Others criticized scheduled speaker David Hughes, senior pastor of Church by the Glades in Coral Springs, Fla., who has based sermon series on themes some considered sexually provocative.

First Baptist Church of Orlando, where Uth is pastor, pledged Feb. 17 to cover the full cost of the 2020 Pastors˙ Conference. However, the Executive Committee voted to continue the arrangement where the conference reimburses the SBC Executive Committee a portion of the cost.

SBC Executive Committee Chair Mike Stone said his desire is for changes to be made to the program, “so we can proceed in keeping with who we are as Southern Baptists.”

Is the ERLC hurting the CP?

Upon the recommendation of the Cooperative Program Committee, the Executive Committee also voted to create a study task force to examine the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.  (See related article here.)

The task force will “review the past and present activities of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission in the fulfillment of its convention-approved ministry assignments and … assess whether the actions of the commission and its leadership are affecting Cooperative Program giving or the further advancement of the Cooperative Program.”

The study group is charged with fact-finding, Stone said, and was not formed with the intention of recommending ERLC personnel changes.

The task force was instructed to submit its findings at or before the Executive Committee’s September 2020 meeting.

Endorsed Vision 2015, heard reports

The Executive Committee endorsed and voted to forward to messengers at the 2020 SBC annual meeting Vision 2025, an evangelism, missions and stewardship initiative initiated by SBC Executive Committee President Ronnie Floyd and supported by various SBC entity leaders.

Under Vision 2025, Southern Baptists would work to add 500 fulltime International Mission Board missionaries by 2025, add 6,000 new Southern Baptist churches, encourage those called to ministry to engage in their calling; reverse a decline in baptism and discipleship among 12- to 17-year-olds, and surpass $500 million in Cooperative Program giving.

In reports to the Executive Committee, North American Mission Board president Kevin Ezell and International Mission Board president Paul Chitwood announced the combining of national and international compassionate causes through Send Relief, currently a ministry of NAMB.

“Both entities working together will make it easier for Southern Baptists to get involved in meeting needs so that lives can be changed through the power of the Gospel,” Ezell said.

“I’m excited about how this will multiply Southern Baptist compassion ministry efforts and build a simple on-ramp for pastors and churches who want to be involved in the great work Southern Baptists are doing in North America and around the world.”

Add prayer assignment, day to SBC calendar

Also, the Executive Committee voted unanimously to forward to messengers amendments to the committee’s mission and ministry statements as Floyd requested, updating the language and adding a seventh ministry assignment on prayer.

As approved, the Executive Committee would “assist churches through elevating the ministry of prayer,” with an express goal of providing “strategic leadership to lift up and promote coordinated prayer for spiritual awakening, ministry effectiveness, and the completion of the Great Commission.”

The Executive Committee also voted to recommend to messengers to the SBC annual meeting the addition of a George Liele Church Planting, Evangelism and Missions Day to the SBC Calendar. It would be observed annually on the first Sunday in February beginning in 2021, approving a request initiated in 2019 by the SBC National African American Fellowship honoring Liele as the first Baptist missionary abroad.

NAAF President Marshal Ausberry, who also is SBC first vice president, affirmed the move in comments to BP.

“If I use a basketball term, he was a triple threat, an evangelist, a missionary, and church planter. All done under extremely difficult circumstances,” Ausberry said. “If George Liele had a basketball jersey I think we would all be wearing it. He rightfully stands along with the missionary giants (Adonirum) Judson and (William) Carey.”

Robert Anderson, who made the motion at the 2019 SBC Annual Meeting in Birmingham to add the calendar date, also affirmed the Executive Committee vote.

“The Bible tells us to give honor to whom honor is due (Romans 12:7), and thus, recognizing the Rev. George Liele, is very compelling historically because it corrects the popular notion that Adoniram Judson or William Carey were the first international missionaries from America,” Anderson said. “Rev. Liele preceded both of them to the foreign field to preach the Gospel, help the hurting, and start new churches.”

 In other business, the Executive Committee:

• Approved a 2020-2021 SBC Cooperative Program Allocation Budget of $196.7 million, including $143,838,000 for world mission ministries; $43,544,400 for theological education ministries; $5,875,350 for SBC Executive Committee and SBC operations, and $3,242,250 for ERLC. The budget includes a new allocation of $200,000 for Vision 2025.
• Recommended amending the SBC Bylaws and Constitution regarding the process of elections and timing of business at the annual meeting, and
• Recognized Roger S. “Sing” Oldham, retired Executive Committee vice president for communications and convention relations, and Ken Weathersby, retired Executive Committee vice president for convention advancement.

With additional reporting by Managing Editor Ken Camp

Buckner International and Howard Payne University launched a collaboration to provide volunteer and missions opportunities, humanitarian aid drives and enhanced experiential learning opportunities for HPU students. Albert Reyes, president and CEO of Buckner International, and HPU President Cory Hines signed a memorandum of understanding Feb. 12. “This collaboration with Howard Payne University allows students to experience true servant leadership while on mission,” said Dr. Reyes. “Encouraging students to give back to those in need will support HPU’s ongoing goal of building an inspired, caring and Christ-like community within the university.” Hines called the collaboration “a perfect fit between two Christ-centered institutions with distinguished histories and ongoing vitality.” HPU will provide Buckner with student volunteers, mission volunteers and humanitarian aid drives. The broad categories of service include shoe drives and mission trips. HPU also will create credit and non-credit opportunities for students to intern and train at Buckner ministry locations in Texas and internationally. Buckner will work with HPU students in campus mission organizations to serve Buckner clients and assist Buckner personnel. Buckner will also provide support and orientation, working within international and domestic leadership to find opportunities for HPU students to serve vulnerable children, families and senior adults.

Texas Baptists will accept nominations beginning April 1 for recipients of the inaugural BEST (Baptist Educators Serving Texans) Award. To be eligible for a BEST Award, a candidate must be a teacher, coach, counselor or administrator serving in an accredited Texas public school system who is a graduate of a university related to the Baptist General Convention of Texas and a member of a BGCT-affiliated church. Organizers said the awards are intended to “celebrate exceptional educators who live out their faith to the students they serve” and to recognize Texas Baptist universities for developing “educator-missionaries.” The award also is designed to remind affiliated churches their Cooperative Program giving that helps support the universities has an impact on generations to come by producing about 800 new public school educators annually. Nominations will be accepted from April 1 to June 1 at txb.org/best. Finalists will be notified in August. Awards will be presented at various venues in September and October, and winners will be announced at the 2020 BGCT annual meeting in November.

Four Howard Payne University students were named Currie-Strickland Scholars in Christian Ethics and Theology at the university’s annual Currie-Strickland Distinguished Lectures in Christian Ethics event recently. They are Paul Chandler, a Christian Education major from Mount Pleasant; Conner Faught, a Bible, jurisprudence and Guy D. Newman Honors Academy major from Brownfield; Landon James, a youth ministry major from Bangs; and Xavier Haines, a Christian education and history major from Belton. Each year, students are selected as Currie-Strickland Scholars based on an evaluation of achievement in their classes and on the ways they have excelled in their thinking in the fields of Christian ethics and theology.

DALLAS—Texas Baptists’ chaplaincy relations program, in partnership with the Baptist General Association of Virginia, passed the 1,000 mark in chaplain endorsement during a Feb. 16 endorsement ceremony.

Texas Baptist leaders celebrated the achievement the next day at the Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board meeting.

“This is a milestone for us, and we’re looking to continue to grow,” said Jim Brown, associate endorser of chaplaincy relations. “We have endorsed 1,000 chaplains to serve in a variety of areas. It’s an exciting time to be a part of this and it’s a wonderful ministry.”

To date, Texas Baptists and Virginia Baptists have endorsed 1,011 chaplains, including 51 last year.

Texas Baptists’ chaplaincy relations program began in 2002, under the leadership of Bobby Smith. In 2017, Texas Baptists’ partnered with Virginia Baptists to offer additional training and networking opportunities for chaplains in both states.

‘Pastors without walls’

Currently, there are more than 675 active Texas Baptists chaplains. Brown noted 38 percent of the chaplains work in healthcare, and military chaplaincy accounts for an additional 32 percent.

Texas Baptists are the fifth largest endorser of the United States military chaplaincy, Brown reported. Endorsed chaplains also work in prisons, crisis response, lifestyle, marketplace and public safety spheres.

In addition to serving in Texas, the chaplains also work in 41 other states and six foreign countries. The chaplaincy relations team also works with Baptist entities in other countries to establish training programs and provide support.

Brown described the valuable work the chaplains are doing around the world.

“Our chaplains are out there serving the world. They are around the world, serving our soldiers. Many of them are in your communities, right here in Texas, serving in your hospitals, your correctional facilities, even some businesses,” Brown said. “They are literally pastors without walls.”