when your enemy becomes your friend

The rationale of the recent IMB policies has generated a great deal of comment from the blogging community. Tom Ascol, Wade Burlison, David Rogers, Marty Duren, Art Rogers, Dorcas Hawker to name just a few. In addition, I have enjoyed the critique of Tom Ascol of Malcolm Yarnell's white paper concerning the "Heart of the Baptist."

I have not intentionally left out bloggers who are in favor of the policies, I just haven't found them yet. Ben Stratton has certainly commented enough on other blogs to constitute worthy discussion on his own, if he had one. Wes Kinney has come out in favor of the majority group, but hasn't commented on the rationale yet. I think all of us would benefit if Tom Hatley and Bob Pearle had their own blogs.

In spite of their one-sidedness, I offer all of these commentaries up as examples of how great discussion of substantive issues emerges from thoughtful bloggers. Often the comments in the posts exceeds and add great substance to the points in the original blog. We all benefit from hearing each other out.

It is time for SB leaders to wake up to the possibilities of the blog. To simply discount all blogging as "gossip" is in the words of Rumsfield on Syria, "notably not helpful." Certainly the potential for gossip increases exponentially in this kind of forum, but to say it is not worth our attention would be foolish. The potential for gossip increased with the invention of the telephone, but that didn't stop us from putting them at IMB headquarters.

Jerry Corbaly is putting together his thoughts on how he can ask the IMB to embrace blogging as an effective tool. He is asking for help on this. I would encourage everyone to go to his site with suggestions. It is now public knowledge that Jerry is the one who first introduced the motion against Wade. A suggestion coming from him to the board regarding the future of blogging in a positive sense would have added impact it seems to me.

Wade is also asking for your input on how this can be accomplished.

I am reading a biography of Teddy Roosevelt, one of our countries most effective leaders and change agents. He was one who saw the necessity of good communication during a time of rapid change. He was the first governor of New York to hold press conferences and to talk openly about the operation of the government. In fact, he called the press into his office TWICE A DAY. His words:

"At that time, neither the parties nor the public had any realization that publicity was necessary for any adequate understanding of the dangers of the "invisible empire" which throve by what was done in secrecy." ("The Rise of Teddy Roosevelt" page 728).

I am sympathetic to my fellow trustees who don't know what to make of the bright light cast on the IMB in recent months. I have felt somewhat squemish about it at times myself. But I have now come to the opinion that it should not only not be avoided, but encouraged. As our convention moves into the future we must engage younger leaders and become not just tolerant of internet blogging, but REALLY GOOD at it.

It may very well be that the very thing the board has been most concerned about as destructive and dangerous, is potentially the greatest tool for involving people in our missions causes since the start of the cooperative program. Blogging is here to stay whether we like it or not. We recoil from it and reject it to our peril, or embrace it enthusiastically to our great benefit.