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HOUSTON–“There are times when you simply have to speak out.” For Houston Baptist University President Robert B. Sloan Jr., that time is now.
He welcomed the opportunity to participate in a discussion last fall that brought together evangelical, Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian leaders to lay the groundwork for the recently released Manhattan Declaration addressing the sanctity of human life, the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife, and the rights of conscience and religious liberty.
Sloan was one of a small group of religious leaders who met in Manhattan long into the night of Sept. 28 to review the earliest draft crafted by two Southern Baptists–Chuck Colson, founder of Prison Fellowship Ministries and a member of First Baptist Church in Naples, Fla., and Timothy George, dean of Beeson Divinity School at Samford University in Birmingham, along with Princeton law professor Robert P. George, a Roman Catholic.
Among the eighteen Southern Baptists who signed the final document released last month after its completion Oct. 20 were James T. Draper of Southlake, a member of First Baptist Church of Euless, and Jack Graham of Plano, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church, as well as Sloan.
Other notable Southern Baptist signers included Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission President Richard Land, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Albert Mohler, Southern theology dean Russell Moore, Kairos Journal managing editor and Illinois pastor Mark Coppenger, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary President Daniel Akin, Beeson Divinity School President Timothy George, and Kay Arthur of Precept Ministries.
The 168 original signatories stated, “We are Christians who have joined together across historic lines of ecclesial differences to affirm our right–and, more importantly, to embrace our obligation–to speak and act in defense of these truths. We pledge to each other, and to our fellow believers, that no power on earth, be it cultural or political, will intimidate us into silence or acquiescence. It is our duty to proclaim the gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in its fullness, both in season and out of season. May God help us not to fail in that duty.”
In an interview with the TEXAN, Sloan said, “Those rights and those blessings are being eroded culturally. While public opinion seems to be moving somewhat more toward the side of life and traditional marriage, the Obama Administration and both houses of Congress are eliminating laws that protect life and making abortion far more accessible. I think it’s a critical time.”
Draper, a former Southern Baptist Convention president and president emeritus of LifeWay Christian Resources, had expressed similar frustration to some of his peers and was told about the effort initiated by Colson. “I was not present for any meetings, but had reached a point of feeling I had to do something to express my frustration with the lack of a unified voice among evangelicals in particular and patriotic Americans in general,” Draper related.
Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, said he rarely responds to the petitions or declarations that he is often asked to sign. “But the Manhattan Declaration was one that hits so squarely on the foundational beliefs that I hold so dear, that I couldn’t not sign it,” Graham stated.
To have such broad ecumenical participation in producing the document is very significant, Sloan said. Calling the statement “theologically very rich,” Sloan disagreed with the handful of critics such as California pastor and author John MacArthur, who said it lacks a clear presentation of the gospel and “muddles the lines of demarcation between authentic biblical Christianity and various apostate traditions.”
“I would challenge anyone to find a single statement in the document that is untrue or inaccurate,” Sloan responded. While participants differ in their ecclesiology and how the mystery of the atonement takes place through Christ, Sloan said, “It clearly makes reference to the fact that we treasure the gospel and it refers to the crucified and risen Lord.”
Draper noted that the Manhattan Statement is not primarily addressing doctrinal issues, a factor that made it possible for him to join the ecumenical effort. “I would not sign such a document with some of those who signed this document if it dealt with the essentials of our faith as it relates to sin, salvation, grace, eternity, etc. But I have for years stood with those with whom I had strong doctrinal disagreement to fight pornography, abortion and defend the family and the biblical view of marriage,” he reiterated.
“We cannot stand by and do nothing as religious organizations are asked to do what goes completely against their foundational beliefs and convictions,” Graham wrote in a Nov. 23 blog post.
He cited the section of the statement in which signatories refuse to comply with any edict that compels institutions to participate in abortions, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide and euthanasia, or any other anti-life act; bend to rules that force them to bless immoral sexual partnerships, treat them as marriages or the equivalent, or refrain from proclaiming the truth about morality and immorality and marriage and the family.
Draper added, “We are seeing every vestige of our freedom to preach the gospel being slowly stripped from us and our only hope to change that, in my judgment, is to speak with a unified voice.” Concerned that “there is no recognized leader” within the faith community, Draper said, “We have to stake out some ground and take our stand on it to begin to rebuild a cohesive movement of believers.”
Now retired from his 14-year tenure as LifeWay president, Draper enjoyed celebrating 25 years of ministry through a crisis pregnancy center begun by First Baptist Church of Euless, a congregation he led as pastor to establish a practical response to the needs of women contemplating abortion.
That effort rescued 19,000 babies and led thousands of women to profess faith in Christ. “This is a crucial issue in our day,” Draper reminded. “If a baby is not safe in its mother’s womb, then none of us is safe,” he added, recalling that over 50 million babies have been aborted since Roe v. Wade legalized abortion nearly 36 years ago.
“Media and entertainment industries have carefully crafted their presentations to make those of us who are pro-life appear to be mean-spirited and violent,” Draper said. “This statement gave us the opportunity to state a clear position and do it without any hint of violence or meanness. I believe we have to build a consensus among believers on this issue.”
The convictions expressed in regard to religious liberty and unjust laws offer “no threat of violence or destructive behavior,” Draper added, “just a firm resolve that these are issues that we cannot compromise on. We are slowly being pushed to the place where we will have to suffer incarceration or engage in civil disobedience.”
He said the Manhattan Declaration offered him an opportunity to “embrace the spirit of Christ with biblical consistency to take my own personal stand in a day of compromise and political correctness.”
Sloan is further encouraged, he said, that the document opens the door to dialogue and discussion on “philosophical questions about the nature of the human person, whether sexual experience is merely instrumental or involves the total person, the nature of marriage and life, sources of authority, Scripture and reason, human nature, creation and so on.”
With much of the support of Obama’s presidential bid coming from college students and young people across the nation, the HBU president said the document “enables them to have a substantive view with which to question the administration’s policies on very specific issues.” Back home on the Houston campus, he found many faculty and students encouraged by the stand he took in addressing the sanctity of life, biblical marriage and religious liberty.
Draper asked, “Who else will fight for the nuclear family if we don’t? These are issues that are clearly biblical issues and cultural/political issues. We have to take a stand.”
By Dec. 4, the Manhattan Declaration had gained the support of 252,766 individuals. To read the list of original signatories, review answers to frequently asked questions and sign the declaration, visit manhattandeclaration.org. Instructions are given for linking to the document via Facebook and Twitter.
