Ep. 349: Mark Driscoll, Calvin University, Chuck Swindoll

FIRST SEGMENT Warren Hello everybody.  I’m Warren Smith, coming to you from Charlotte, North Carolina. Natasha  I’m Natasha Cowden in Denver, Colorado. We’d like to welcome you to the MinistryWatch podcast. Warren On today’s program, General Episcopal Theological Seminary thought it had found a solution to its financial woes—until 7 bishops intervened, saying they didn’t want to be in partnership with a conservative. We’ll have details. Also, controversial pastor Mark Driscoll got booted off the stage at last weekend’s Stronger Men’s Conference after calling out the conference host for his choice of entertainment opening night. And, Chuck Swindoll steps down as senior pastor of his church—but insists he’s not retiring. He’ll continue to preach the majority of the sermons. We’ll take a look. Natasha But first, Calvin University finds itself at the center of a lawsuit with its former president. Warren When Calvin University hired Wiebe Boer as its new president in May 2022, the school signed the former business executive to a lucrative five-year deal. The hope was that Boer, a Calvin alum and son of missionaries, could turn the prominent evangelical school around after years of budget cuts and enrollment decline while easing tensions with the denomination that owns the school. Natasha: What happened? Warren: For a while, it seemed things were working. Enrollment went up, and in January, Boer announced an ambitious plan for Calvin’s future. Less than two months later, however, everything fell apart. In mid-February, Boer resigned after the school’s board received complaints that he’d sent “unwelcome and inappropriate” messages to the employee of a vendor who worked on campus. When confronted by the board, Boer agreed to step down — leaving the campus in turmoil, with anger and confusion over how things went so wrong so fast. Natasha That anger has led to Boer being locked out of the school’s presidential residence and a lawsuit Warren: On Friday (April 12), Boer and his wife, Joanna, filed suit against the school in federal court, alleging that Calvin violated his employment agreement and defamed him — and that the school failed to pay him $400,000 in severance or to prove that he’d engaged in significant misconduct. Under the terms of his employee agreement, Boer was considered an at-will employee and could leave the school or be fired at any time. However, unless the board ruled that Boer was guilty of “serious misconduct,” he would receive his $400,000 salary for a year after leaving. Natasha: Remind us what Boer is accused of? Warren: In the complaint, Boer’s attorney stated that he exchanged texts with an employee of a college vendor for several weeks in January but denied the texts were inappropriate. They also claim he was given little time to defend himself and agreed to resign rather than be fired — if he could get severance and help shape the messaging around his resignation. Neither happened, according to the complaint. Instead, negotiations broke down, and Boer and his family were locked out of the presidential home — even though his kids were still in school in the Grand Rapids area. The complaint asks for lost wages and bonuses, compensatory damages for mental anguish and emotional distress as well as punitive damages. Natasha: Next up – an Episcopal Seminary nearly found a solution to its financial woes but there’s a catch. Warren: General Episcopal Seminary in New York could be saved, but it would require the school to accept help from a conservative donor. Seven progressive bishops in the church are calling the donor’s beliefs a deal-breaker. The deal would offer a long-term lease of the seminary to a nonprofit group, the School of Sacred Music. But a major donor to the school is a conservative Catholic donor who holds the Catholic Church’s historic positions on gender and sexuality. Earlier this year, local bishops — who have no direct authority over the school — and local government officials learned that the School of Sacred Music hoped to sign a long-term lease. The bishops, who lead Episcopal dioceses in New York and Long Island, issued a statement that said, “We are concerned by the lack of full acceptance of the LGBTQ stance of its founders and the lack of transparency in its funding,” Natasha: Tell us more about why they don’t want to lease the school Warren: The seven bishops who oppose the lease said they understand that the seminary is facing financial challenges but said that issues of inclusion are more important. Natasha But conservative church watchers say the seven bishops are more concerned about making an ideological point than doing good for the church and the community. Warren: Jeff Walton is the Anglican Director for the Institute for Religion and Democracy. He told MinistryWatch, “This lease arrangement with General Seminary would seem to be a win/win for tenants and the landlords who can continue to see their property appreciate in value. [The] bishops’ objections to the arrangement are further evidence that Episcopal Church progressives are their own worst enemy. Natasha: Our next story involves murder accusations against 4 Members of Religious Anti-Government Group ‘God's Misfits’. Warren: On April 16, the Office of the Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner confirmed that the two deceased victims they recovered in a rural Texas field were 27-year-old Veronica Butler and 39-year-old Jilian Kelley. An affidavit from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) says Kelley and Butler went missing on March 30 while on their way to Eva, Oklahoma to pick up Butler’s two children. Police later discovered Butler's abandoned car in rural Texas County, Oklahoma with signs of violent struggle in and near the car. Kelley was the wife of Pastor Heath Kelley of Hugoton First Christian Church in Hugoton, Kansas, and the mother of four. Natasha: Do we know who killed them? Warren: On April 13, police arrested Tifany Machel Adams, along with Adams' romantic partner, Tad Cullum, and friends Cole and Cora Twombly. The group was all charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, and one count of conspiracy to commit murder in the first degree. Investigators say the two women were victims of a conspiracy to murder them over a custody battle involving Butler's two children. Natasha: How were the suspects linked together? Warren: According to the Associated Press, all four were part of an anti-government group called "God's Misfits," The religious group is said to have regularly met at the home of Cole and Cora Twombly. OSBI officers spoke to Cora Twombly's teen daughter, who said she overheard the four suspects plotting to murder Butler and Kelley. Twombly's daughter described God's Misfits as an "anti-government group that has a religious affiliation". Natasha Warren, let’s take a quick break. When we return, megachurch pastors John Lindell and Mark Driscoll get into a public altercation at last weekend’s Stronger Men’s Conference. I’m Natasha Cowden, along with my co-host Warren Smith, and we’ll have that story and much more, after this short break. BREAK SECOND SEGMENT Natasha Welcome back.  I’m Natasha Cowden, along with my co-host Warren Smith, and you’re listening to the MinistryWatch podcast. Our next story, Megachurch Pastor Mark Driscoll gets booted off the stage of the Stronger Men’s Conference after publicly criticizing the entertainment opening night. Warren: Pastor John Lindell’s James River Assembly of God church in Springfield, Missouri hosted the Stronger Men’s conference which was founded to “empower men to rise up, bold and courageous, standing strong and determined to live out God’s purpose for their lives.” This, however, is not your dad’s Promise Keeper rally. The annual gathering features plenty of biblical exhortation, but the opening night’s light-hearted entertainment has been a smorgasbord of bull riding, motocross/BMX racing, boxing, tanks crushing cars and, last Friday, a man rips off his shirt, swallows a sword and swings on a pole. Natasha:   That is a little different… Warren:   When featured speaker Mark Driscoll took to the stage Saturday, he wasted no time speaking out against that last act. It turns out, he wasn’t alone in feeling unsettled by Alex Magala’s performance and left many wondering what place such a display had in a Christian men’s conference.   Natasha:   Conference did not stream the event but the scene with Mark went viral on social media due to videos taken on people’s phones.   Warren:   Driscoll said he spent many late hours grieving over Magala’s performance and praying for the attendees’ mental and spiritual protection from what he called a “spirit of Jezebel” that kicked off the weekend.   That prompted conference host Lindell to shout from the floor,. “Mark you’re out of line! You’re done.”   Driscoll responded, “Pastor John, I’ll receive that” and exited the stage.   Lindell walked on the platform to a mixture of shouts and boos, denouncing Driscoll for failing to notify him directly and privately of his grievance, referencing Jesus’ teaching on conflict resolution in Matthew 18. Natasha:   What happened next?   Warren:   After a 30-minute break to talk privately, the two men resumed the stage together, with Lindell affirming his affection for Driscoll and Driscoll apologizing.   By the way, I’ve had a lot of people ask me what I think about this situation, so I’ve decided to devote this week’s Editor’s Notebook to this situation. So you can read more by going to the MinistryWatch website and looking for that column, which will be on the front page on Friday morning.   Natasha:   Warren,...