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"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Trust, the SBC, the MBC and the Cooperative Program

By Don Hinkle EDITOR’S NOTE: Read a news article related to this editorial at the following link: https://mbcpathway.com/2022/04/12/churches-now-able-to-withhold-funds-from-sbc-entities-in-mbcs-new-plan-b-giving-option/. “Trust is like a vase. Once it’s broken, though you can fix it, the vase will never be the same again.” – Walter Anderson JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - One of the greatest unified giving efforts in American Christianity has been the Cooperative Program of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). Every Southern Baptist – whether in a small church or a large one – gives cooperatively to support the advancement of the gospel. Through the Cooperative Program generosity of Southern Baptists, one of the world’s largest missionary-sending efforts is being achieved at home and abroad. World-class theological education is a reality and lives are touched in innumerable ways through Southern Baptist Disaster Relief operations and other ministries. In 2021 Southern Baptists gave nearly $200 million to the Cooperative Program – all based on trust. Southern Baptists trust that their Cooperative Program dollars will be spent to support the ministries intended. Violate that trust and expect repercussions. When Missouri Southern … [Read more...]

MBC offers ‘Plan B’ to bypass SBC entities

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Baptist Convention Executive Board has authorized a new method of cooperative giving for its churches. “Plan B” allows churches to withhold funds from selected Southern Baptist Convention entities without withdrawing from Cooperative Program support altogether, according to The Pathway, the news service of Missouri Baptists. The MBC Executive Board overwhelmingly voted to approve “Plan B” during a special-called Zoom meeting, April 7. During the meeting, MBC leaders described “Plan B” as an attempt to acknowledge Missouri Baptists’ concerns with some SBC entities – for example, the SBC Executive Committee’s hasty decision to hire a law firm that promotes LGBTQ+ causes. “Plan A” is the MBC’s traditional form of CP giving through which churches send undesignated gifts to the SBC Executive Committee for distribution according to the allocation plan approved each year by Southern Baptist messengers at the SBC annual meeting. If churches opt for “Plan B,” they can select which SBC entities to withhold their funds from, and the MBC will forward their gifts only to those SBC entities that are not explicitly excluded by the church. “The MBC Executive Board continues to forward 38 percent of all … [Read more...]