For the week of March 18, 2004
Missouri Baptist lawsuit
A Missouri judge effectively has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Missouri Baptist
Convention leaders against five institutions that removed themselves from convention
control. Convention messengers voted in 2002 to sue the Word & Way newspaper,
Missouri Baptist University, Windermere Baptist Conference Center, the Missouri
Baptist Foundation and the Baptist Home retirement home system. In 2000 and
2001, trustees of all five agencies changed their institutions charters
to make the boards self-perpetuating. Previously, the institutions trustees
had been elected by the Missouri Baptist Convention. The lawsuit demanded the
agencies trustee boards be returned to convention control. Because the
Missouri Baptist Convention itself is an unincorporated association, leaders
decided to name the state Executive Board and six convention-affiliated churches
as the plaintiffs. However, a circuit judge said the conventions constitution
and bylaws are clear that its “members” are individuals called “messengers.”
He said the churches and Executive Board do not count as “members.”
Thus, the churches and Executive Board lack the right to sue under Missouri
law, the judge said. At press time, it was not certain if the ruling would be
appealed or if a second lawsuit could be filed. The Baptist Message will report
developments.
Louisiana proposal
A measure has been proposed in the Louisiana Legislature that would require
all public high students in the state to take parenting classes. House Bill
74 has been pre-filed in advance of the upcoming general session of the state
legislature. It would require parenting education as part of a home economics,
civics or free enterprise course. Current law requires all schools now offering
home economics courses to include parenting education and allows such instruction
to be offered in schools that do not teach home economics. The proposed measure
would require all schools to offer the parenting instruction. It is similar
to a measure that was proposed last year but failed to gain passage last year.
Texas decision
The Baptist General Convention of Texas will end its exclusive marketing agreement
with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. For years,
the agreement gave Southern Baptist materials a priority position among the
states 5,600 churches. However, after Sept. 30, the Texas convention will
continue to promote materials from Lifeway but also will promote materials from
other publishers, including the state denomination itself. The annually renewable
agreement has been used by LifeWay to sell its various materials in states.
In return, state conventions have received financial support from Lifeway. However,
Texas Baptist leaders said many of their churches no longer use LifeWay materials
exclusively. By canceling the agreement, the Baptist General Convention of Texas
now will better be able to serve its churches, the spokesperson said. A LifeWay
official said he was surprised and saddened by the action but respected the
states right to make it. Purchases of LifeWay materials by Baptist General
Convention of Texas churches have declined from $13 million in 2001 to $9.8
million in 2003. Meanwhile, sales to the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention
are up from $2.5 million in 2001 to almost $3 million in 2003.
Stem-cell research
University of Harvard scientists have offered colleagues free access to 17
new human embryonic stem cell lines developed without government funding. The
scientists said they took the action in an effort to boost the stem-cell research
that the President George Bush administration has sought to limit. In 2001,
Bush limited research using federal funds to only 15 stem-cell lines then in
existence. The issue is a controversial one with pro-life advocates because
stem-cell lines are developed from days-old human embryos which are destroyed
in the process. Since Bushs action, some researchers have said those approved
stem-cell lines are expensive and hard to get and use. The Harvard lines are
more user-friendly, researchers suggest. But they were developed with private
funding and cannot be used for research funding by government money.