Virginia Baptists Committed

RICHMOND—Virginia Baptists Committed, an informal network of moderate Baptists in Virginia, will not nominate a slate of candidates for statewide office when the Baptist General Association of Virginia meets this November.

The decision, which VBC co-chair Timothy K. Norman said was made during the group’s semi-annual gathering in Richmond on April 14, marks the first time in almost three decades that VBC will not present a candidate for each statewide office.

Norman, pastor of Glen Allen Church in the Dover Association, recalled the success achieved by VBC.  “Every year for over 25 years we nominated the president, and most of the other officers, Virginia Baptists elected.  I do not say this to boast about our political prowess, but to celebrate the outstanding leadership we helped put in place for a generation of Virginia Baptist life.

Our purpose has been to guarantee that every November there would be at least one prepared, committed, fully-vetted candidate for every elective office. The BGAV is in a better place now than before when it comes to this process.  Others have done this in recent years and we don’t need to do it this year.”

VBC was formed in 1983 in response to growing attempts by ultra-conservative Baptists to take over the Southern Baptist Convention and the BGAV.   “We did not want to have happen in Virginia what was happening to the national body and to other state conventions,” said Norman.  “And we believed that we represented the authentic Baptist witness in Virginia when it comes to Baptist traditions and principles.”

The group worked on two fronts.  They recruited clergy and laity in each of the BGAV’s 43 district associations to encourage churches to elect messengers to attend the annual meeting of the SBC in June.  This practice ended after the 1990 SBC in New Orleans.  Next, they nominated candidates at each BGAV annual meeting for over 25 years.

Recently, however, VBC saw its membership having a diminished interest in making nominations each year.  Mike Clingenpeel, Pastor of Richmond’s River Road Church and VBC’s other co-chair said the role of VBC is not what it once was:   “We are pleased that the threat of ultra-conservatives to the BGAV is no longer significant, because people with that ideology can support Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia.  We also are pleased to see a renewed interest in BGAV work by others, as evidenced by multiple candidates at several recent annual meetings.  This participation is a good thing in Virginia, and we do not believe it is necessary for VBC to take the lead in this effort any longer.  If this changes, we reserve the right to step back in to the process.”

Clingenpeel added that VBC would not disband, and that its members would continue to be involved in the work of Virginia Baptists.   “We believe in the BGAV.  Always have.  Don’t look for our voices to go silent on the mission and ministries of Virginia Baptists. “

Also at the April 14 meeting Norman and Clingenpeel, the two pastors who have led Virginia Baptists Committed for the past 6 years, announced they are stepping down from their work with the moderate Baptist group later this year.

“I enjoy attending the meetings of VBC,” said Clingenpeel.  “These are my friends.  They care about things that matter.  They are kingdom people, not just Baptist people.  But every organization needs fresh leadership from time to time and I need to have one or two fewer things on my plate. So it’s time for me to bow out.”

Norman agreed.  “I will continue to stay involved in the BGAV, but I agree with the decision of VBC to discontinue presenting candidates for office for the time being.  My service with VBC is one of the many enjoyable ways I have served Virginia Baptists.  I will continue to do that without being co-chair of this fine group.”

Both agreed to serve until the fall meeting of VBC in October.

Virginia Baptists Committed held its open board meeting on September 16, and the body approved the following actions:

First, the members of Virginia Baptists Committed voted unanimously to endorse the nomination of Bob Bass, the current First Vice-President, to serve as the President of the BGAV.

Second, the body voted unanimously to endorse the nomination of Rev. Mark Croston, pastor of East End Baptist Church in Suffolk, VA, for BGAV First Vice-President.

Finally, Rev. Larry Coleman of Chesapeake, VA will be presented as a nominee for Second Vice-President.  A graduate of Furman University (B.A., 1974), Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div., 1977), Princeton Theological Seminary (Th.M., 1980), and having done D.Min. studies at Colgate Rochester Divinity School and Southern Seminary, Rev. Coleman is currently the Senior Minister of Churchland Baptist Church of Chesapeake, VA since July, 2000.  Prior to that, he served as the Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of Laurinburg, NC, the Pastor of Bellewood Baptist Church in N. Syracuse, NY, and the Minister of Education of Memorial Baptist Church of Arlington, VA.

Rev. Coleman served on the BGAV Committee on Nominations from 2003-2005, chairing the committee in 2004 and 2005.  He was a delegate to the Baptist World Alliance Congresses in 2005 and 2010.  He has served in the Portsmouth Baptist Association as Parliamentarian from 2004-2006, and as a co-chair of the Portsmouth Baptist Association Fellowship Committee in 2003.  He was elected as Recording Secretary in both North Carolina and New York Baptist state conventions, and has served on the General Board of those conventions. He has been actively engaged with public education throughout his ministry, and is currently the PTA President at the 2300-student Western Branch High School. Rev. Coleman is a contributing author for EthicsDaily.com since its founding.  He has also written for the “Biblical Recorder,” “Baptists Today,” and other publications.

For over two decades Virginia Baptists Committed has endorsed candidates for president and the two vice-presidents of the Baptist General Association of Virginia. Our goal has never been to gather power in the hands of a few Virginia Baptists. It has always been to ensure that one fully vetted roster of candidates committed to the BGAV is available for election at the BGAV Annual Meeting. We welcome the nomination of other candidates and respect the electoral process that leaves decisions in the hands of the elected messengers.

Virginia Baptists Committed
Open Board Meeting

September 16, 2010
11:00 a.m. to Noon

Patterson Ave. Baptist Church
4301 Patterson Avenue
Richmond, Virginia 23221
(804) 355-6890

All members are invited to attend.  Attendees are encouraged to have lunch together at a nearby restaurant afterwards.

In preparation for this meeting, the Board is seeking nominations for candidates for Baptist General Association officers at the Annual Meeting, November 9-10, 2010, in Hampton, VA.

Please submit nominations of persons you know who are willing to serve via our VBC Nominations Page before June 29.  This will give the VBC Board time to begin vetting the candidates for 1st and 2nd Vice-President.

Virginia Baptists Committed will place in nomination these two individuals for officers of the Baptist General Association at the Annual Meeting in Fredericksburg, VA, November 17-18.

Dr. Tim Madison of Mechanicsville, will be presented as a nominee for President. A graduate of Virginia Tech (BA ‘85) and Southern Seminary (MDiv ’88 and DMin ‘96), Madison is the pastor of Mechanicsville Baptist Church. He recently was the pastor of Madison Heights Baptist Church for sixteen years, and prior to that, he pastored Winn’s Creek Baptist Church in Halifax. Madison has actively served in the VBMB as a board member, as chairman of the budget and support services committees, and as member of the executive committee for six years. He has also served on the budget committee and program committee of the BGAV. Locally, he has been the moderator of the Lynchburg Baptist Association.

Rev. David Plott of Dublin will be presented as a nominee for Second Vice-President.  A graduate of the University of Tennessee, David moved to Virginia in the 1970′s, and became pastor of Belspring Baptist Church, Belspring, VA, in the Highlands Association, from 1977 to 1980. During that time, he also attended Southeastern Seminary, graduating in 1980.  From 1980 to 1988, he pastored Memorial Baptist in Bluefield, VA, in the East River Association, after which, he became the first Director of Missions of Goshen Association. In 1991, he moved back to Southwest Virginia to become the DOM for East River & Highlands Associations. David and his wife Becky have been active in Virginia Baptist work for many years, especially in partnership missions, and David was one of the advocates of the founding of the Bland Ministry Center of the East River Association.  David is a member of First Baptist Church in Radford, Va.

For over two decades Virginia Baptists Committed has endorsed candidates for president and the two vice-presidents of the Baptist General Association of Virginia. Our goal has never been to gather power in the hands of a few Virginia Baptists. It has always been to ensure that one fully vetted roster of candidates committed to the BGAV is available for election at the BGAV Annual Meeting. We welcome the nomination of other candidates and respect the electoral process that leaves decisions in the hands of the elected messengers.

The Religious Herald announced recently on its website that Mr. Bob Bass, a layman from Bon Air Baptist Church in Richmond, will be nominated for First Vice-President by his pastor. Mr. Bass is a long-standing Virginia Baptist who has held leadership positions in his church and at every level of Baptist life. His commitment to missions through Baptist organizations is significant. When Virginia Baptists Committed learned that Mr. Bass would be nominated, we saw no need to field a different candidate for First Vice-President. Virginia Baptists Committed have had Mr. Bass on its short list of potential candidates, and with this announcement from the Religious Herald, VBC supports and encourages Mr. Bass’s election next month.

Virginia Baptists Committed Spring Meeting

Thursday, April 16, 2009
10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Sandston Baptist Church

100 W. Williamsburg Road, Sandston, VA

Lunch served at a modest price.
Please call Sandston Baptist Church (804 737-2171) to RSVP.