We’ve got to wonder what Herb Reynolds would think of the predicament Baylor University finds itself in today.
Reynolds was the visionary university president who foresaw the dangers of fundamentalism in the Southern Baptist Convention encroaching on Baptist colleges and universities. He did everything in his power to keep those fundamentalists from taking control of Baylor — which made them mad as hell.
For decades, Baylor had been the target of Southern Baptist fundamentalists because of its size and influence. They wanted to stifle its influence toward science and modernity and wrest control of how young Baptist kids were educated.
Sound familiar? All that’s missing is the modern-day book bans.
The problem is Reynolds saved Baylor from one iteration of fundamentalism while unwittingly setting it up to be held captive by another form. To his credit, it’s unlikely in 1990 he could have foreseen the massive cultural and theological shift that would tilt America to embrace same-sex marriage and bless same-sex relationships. Those were the days when Baptist preachers were declaring HIV/AIDS to be God’s judgment on America.
To ask today what Herb Reynolds would have thought about LGBTQ inclusion doesn’t matter. That’s the wrong question. It’s like asking what Leonard Bernstein would have thought about Spotify.
Reynolds saved Baylor from the fundamentalist threat of his day but not from the Baptist General Convention of Texas— because in his day, the BGCT was considered “liberal” by the fundamentalists.
“Reynolds saved Baylor from the fundamentalist threat of his day but not from the Baptist General Convention of Texas.”
He removed the BGCT’s firm grip on the selection of university trustees but left the back door open for the BGCT to exert its influence on matters of sexuality even with a minority of appointees to the board of regents.
The case Baylor officials continue to make against inclusion is a religious argument, not a business argument or an academic argument. Even their request for a Title IX exemption with the U.S. Department of Education claims the board of regents is a religious body with moral convictions against same-sex relations and marriage.
We doubt that is the conviction of the entire board of regents — in fact we know it is not. But it is the passionate conviction of some of the regents serving by nomination through the BGCT. And of a group of influential Texas Baptist pastors who are on a continual campaign against acknowledging the reality of gay people.
Lest we be accused of painting Reynolds as a green-and-gold saint, let’s acknowledge that not only was he a man of his time, he — like all of us — had strengths and weaknesses.
One of his own challenges was following another legend in the president’s office, Abner McCall. As one Baylor alum friend explained it: “Abner McCall would have been tough for anyone to follow, but Reynolds made his own way. His vision was global where McCall's, a man of a different time, was more focused on the state. Reynolds shaped Baylor and had the university destined for great mission on a global scale.”
Baylor’s current advance into the elite air of Tier One Research universities likely would not have been possible without the groundwork Reynolds laid 30 years ago.
Here’s an irony: In his time, some Baylor donors were concerned Reynolds didn’t care enough about the football team. Yet it was during his tenure that Baylor joined the Big 12.
Reynolds was a man of science. He earned a doctor of philosophy degree in neuroscience and clinical psychology and he actually was a rocket scientist. His ability to understand the fundamentalist mindset was unmatched. He just didn't know the future.
Reynolds wanted Baylor to be known for its academics. He worked to prevent Baylor from becoming a narrow-minded school driven by religious dogma that ignores science. Doing that required unhitching the school’s governance from a cabal of pastors.
Yet today, some Baylor regents are using the freedom Reynolds secured for them to retreat back into religious dogma. They are holding fast to a religious viewpoint that defies the modern scientific consensus that same-sex attraction is biological and not a “choice” people make to be “immoral.”
It’s hard to see how that’s much different than teaching creationism or miscegenation or the Curse of Ham. How can gay students at Baylor go to biology classes where they are taught scientific truths that fade away for them as soon as they walk out of the classroom door?
What went wrong here?
One thing that went wrong was replacing Reynolds with a pastor/theologian with a more conservative theological bent. That would take an entirely separate column to explain.
A second thing that went wrong is the faulty assumption that regents — given the power to name their successors — always would choose new regents who share their passion for independence and academic freedom over religious dogma.
A third thing that went wrong, which we’ve already alluded to, is the BGCT’s return to a more conservative stance. To be clear, it’s not just the BGCT-appointed regents who are anti-inclusion but also a few overly influential Texas pastors who have made themselves authorities on biblical sexuality and gender.
“It’s just enough to scare off the true fundamentalists but not enough to attract the true progressives.”
A fourth thing that went wrong is the university-based seminary Reynolds launched turned out to be just what its founders intended three decades ago: A close approximation in smaller form of the old Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The pro-women, anti-gay stance of Truett Seminary is not much different than what I knew as a student at Southwestern in the 1980s. It’s just enough to scare off the true fundamentalists but not enough to attract the true progressives.
Thus, Baylor University continues to imagine it can keep walking the line that made sense in 1990: Celebrate rigorous academics, promote gender equity, highlight a faith-based perspective — but don’t go so far as to be deemed “liberal” by Texas Baptist pastors who see themselves as centrists.
The problem is this isn’t 1990.
And now, this week we were presented with perhaps the biggest flub-up in the history of Baylor’s tempestuous quandary about inclusion. The university rescinded a $634,000 grant from the Baugh Foundation to study LGBTQ exclusion and loneliness in churches. Do not miss the irony of this. The university is excluding research on church exclusion of some people.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand this is the most blatant, ill-informed decision Baylor has made to date on the issue of human sexuality. The Diana Garland School of Social Work already was engaged in this research, which is the kind of research a real R1 university would welcome.
But because some conservative pastors and outside agitators got their panties in a wad over this, President Linda Livingstone backed down. And not only that, it appears she misrepresented the situation in her email to alumni and donors about giving back the money. She said it was the decision of Dean Jon Singletary and faculty member Gaynor Yancey.
I know both Jon and Gaynor, and although I have not discussed this with them yet, I’m beyond certain this “decision” was not at their initiative. That is not a plausible explanation. This was likely their decision only in the way it is a child’s decision to go to bed on time.
I like President Livingstone. I think she’s done a decent job in navigating the shark-infested waters of the Brazos River. But in this decision, she has capitulated to the same kind of fundamentalists Herb Reynolds fought to keep from controlling the university.
These conservatives are celebrating their victory — I’ve already heard from some of them — but the university has split its britches with the moderate to progressive group of its alumni and supporters.
And for what? To prevent a research study that might document how churches exclude and marginalize gay people? We already know that, but there are conservative pastors in our midst who don’t want it documented. In that sense, they are bullies. And President Livingstone let herself — and her faculty — be bullied.
“President Livingstone let herself — and her faculty — be bullied.”
For one example of an alumnus reaction, read Paula Garrett’s excellent opinion piece.
I’m not a Baylor alumnus, but I — and you — have a dog in this hunt because what happens at Baylor is indicative of what happens in the larger world of Baptist life and higher education. It is now clear that despite Livingstone’s protestations of loving and welcoming all students Baylor has taken its stand toward the outdated don’t-ask-don’t-tell attitude. They are about as up to date as the Clinton administration.
What happens next?
Here are some possibilities:
Someone takes the fall. Either Livingstone herself or the provost or the dean. All of these are tragic options, but they are real options.
The reputation of the School of Social Work is damaged beyond repair. We cannot overstate how this news is being received in the larger academic community. Both the university’s and the school’s reputation is tarnished. This is national news.
Some regents give up and quit. The battle for the soul of Baylor is centered in the board of regents, and some of those who have been fighting the good fight for inclusion may abandon all hope now.
The Garland School of Social Work packs up and moves to another university. That may sound crazy, but remember how this school got started under founding Dean Diana Garland, who was expelled from a Southern Baptist seminary. Practically, Baylor’s school of social work is the reincarnation of the Carver School of Church Social Work at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. History could repeat itself.
I can’t say Herb Reynolds would be in favor of LGBTQ inclusion were he alive today, but I am darn sure he would not be in favor of a Baylor president kowtowing to a pack of conservative bullies who oppose academic research.
For the sake of all, Baylor needs to make explicitly clear where it draws the line on LGBTQ issues and stop saying it believes one thing while actually doing another.
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In other news this week:
Black Americans more frequently engage in religious practices than white Americans, according to Pew Research.
A federal judge in New Hampshire has granted class-action status to a lawsuit against President Donald Trump’sefforts to end birthright citizenship and also blocked the administration from implementing the plan nationwide.
Florida cannot enforce a new law making it a crime for undocumented immigrants to enter or remain in the state, the U.S. Supreme Court said July 9.
Family Policy Alliance is celebrating recent Supreme Court victories for state laws it promoted that halt transgender medical treatments for minors.
Nearly 20 groups affiliated with Christians Against Christian Nationalism have been formed in more than a dozen states to advocate for religious freedom and to resist the religious hatred and violence sweeping the nation.
It’s been an intense year so far for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Advocacy ministry, Director Jennifer Hawkssaid.
It’s the 100th anniversary of the Scopes Trial.
The Internal Revenue Service said July 7 it no longer will enforce the Johnson Amendment that prevents churches and other nonprofits from endorsing political candidates.
More than 100 Florida faith leaders signed a letter pleading with Gov. Ron DeSantis to pause the fast pace of executionsin the state this year.
Six years after taking leadership of Lifeway Christian Resources, Ben Mandrell is leaving for a prominent Tennessee pastorate.
Andrew Wommack is finding it’s harder to “take over” a Colorado city than he originally believed, following the failure of his recent efforts to recall members of the Woodland Park City Council.
The June Supreme Court ruling upholding Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors is a signal that more anti-LGBTQ legislation is on the way, according to Orion Rummler, reporter for The 19th, an independent nonprofit news organization.
A 72-year-old retired seminary professor is the latest person defrocked in the Church of the Nazarene as the denomination seeks to tighten control over beliefs on human sexuality.
Forty-two members of the U.S. House of Representatives have joined the Congressional Family Caucus, a group formed in 2023 to defend the interests of families and oppose “the radical Left,” which allegedly seeks to “replace the natural family with the federal government.”
The U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld a Texas law that limits online access to “sexually explicit” materials.
Stripping some naturalized Americans of citizenship is now a top priority of the U.S. Justice Department, according to a memorandum recently made public.
The Texas Supreme Court says the South Central Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church has legal standing to sue Southern Methodist University over changed bylaws that deprived the regional body of its right to govern the church-owned university located in the heart of Dallas.
Kate Hanch has been named director of the Baptist House of Studies at SMU’s Perkins School of Theology.
While Speaker of the House Mike Johnson gave glory to God for final passage of the “big beautiful bill,” other religious leaders decried the legislation as un-Christian, un-American, evil and dangerous.
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In other analysis this week:
Mara Richards Bim explains how the Trump administration is using the arts to rewrite history.
Ken Sehested offers a critical assessment of the president’s “big beautiful bill.”
Rodney Kennedy mourns the death of Bill Moyers, a “fearless speaker of truth.”
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In other opinion this week:
Justin Cox finds Alligator Alcatraz tourism looks a lot like Dachau tourism.
Sometimes it’s “inclusive” churches that can do lasting damage to the cause of LGBTQ inclusion, says Ryan Self.
Savannah Green says churches and Christians need to focus more on living out the story of God.
Nathaniel Manderson says when he reflects on the people who have hurt him the most, he realizes the Christian commandment of forgiveness seems beyond his strength.
Stan Hastey writes about how the Episcopal Church has become a engine of resistance in America today.
Tyler Tankersley makes a case for why state and national parks matter.
Brandon Flanery tells us about the second season of Shiny Happy People.
Attacks on Zohran Mamdani defy religious liberty, according to Renee Bergstrom.
A final word
While we publish content that is news, analysis and opinion, this has been a week heavy on news. We are, after all, first and foremost a news service. This is odd for the middle of the summer to be such a peak time for breaking news, which seems to just keep coming every day.
We’ve got a lot more analysis and opinion to get out next week, so keep watching for more of our change-making conversations.
Speaking of conversations, Ben Cole and I have a new episode of “Stuck in the Middle with You” out today. It’s an interview with Carl Kell, who is writing his fifth book about rhetoric in the Southern Baptist Convention.
Rick Pidcock also has two new episodes of “Highest Power: Church + State.” Check out his epidose on the “big beautiful bill” and a fascinating roundtable conversation with me and other BNG writers recorded when we were all together recently in St. Louis.
Happy Friday to all. See you next week.
Mark Wingfield
Executive Director and Publisher
Baptist News Global
Great piece, Mark
Fantastic. Thank you so much for this.