Truett Presence in Greensboro

The following was originally posted on the official blog of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.  You can access it here. 

 

Seven years ago I enrolled in George W. Truett Theolgoical Seminary.  It was a risky decision for me.  I knew little about Christianity as a whole, much less Baptist Christianity.  I was turned on to the seminary by professors at East Texas Baptist University.  Until then, I was not aware the institution existed, or what it stood for and how it differed from other institutions.

This decision set me on a course to be a pastor within the Baptist tradition.  A tradition, that I would soon learn, has a complicated and nuanced history.  Some have claimed Truett is merely a reactionary institution, emerging from the Southern Baptist wars that are barely a memory in the thoughts of people my age.  To that I would say that every movement is a reaction to something.  The key element that has made me grateful to be associated with Truett is not what it is against, but rather what it encourages and affirms.

Greensboro, North Carolina is a long way from Central Texas.  As a CBF Fellow, I've learned just how different life and culture is outside of my home state.  As a "Texas Baptist," the brand many of us prefer these days, I admit to feeling awkward in highly liturgical settings, where worship feels a little too scripted and formal.  However, if I learned anything from my seminary days, it is that just because something is different, that does not mean it is inherently bad or wrong.

Herein lies the great ethos I've come to appreciate about my alma-mater: it's extremely difficult to "pigeonhole." When struggling with making the decision to attend, I remember hearing things from various sources regarding the school: "it's too liberal;" "it's too conservative;" "it's too young;" "it's too small;" "it's not Baptist." Yet, as I met up with friends at the alumni reception, I was reminded of just how broad and encompassing our presence is.  I was reminded that I prefer to define Truett not by WHAT it is, but by WHO it is.

It is the "Texas Baptist" pastor that seeks to minister to a rural community in a small church; it is the church starter in the middle of a poverty-sticken urban metropolis; it is people serving in remote places you will never hear about, and award winners in the center of denominational life; it is men and women living out the call God has placed on their life.

And in the midst of its vast representation, it is a family that seeks to continually support and encourage its alumni.  As former and current students caught up with one another, associate dean Dr. Dennis Tucker quieted the room for a few moments to share an invitation with us to an alumni retreat and to unveil the "Office of Church Services."  The retreat will be led by beloved professor, Dr. Hulitt Gloer, whose very presence exudes one of solace and refreshment, and the new office is an attempt to create a more efficient and effective way to connect both students and alumni to places of service.

As the night's events came to a close, I found myself thankful to be affiliated with such a supportive institution, and challenged to fulfill the call that I and so many others have discovered at Truett.