Virginia Baptist group, university sever ties over gay issues
RICHMOND, Va. — The Baptist General Association of Virginia has ended its 145-year relationship with Averett University following disagreements over the issue of homosexuality that boiled over with a campus gay pride week in February.
The Virginia Baptist Mission Board, the association’s operating body, made the decision this week following recommendations agreed upon by leaders of the 2,800-student school and the Baptists at a meeting last month.
“We part with respect for one another’s missions, recognizing that we serve different purposes,” Averett President Richard Pfau said Thursday.
While disputes over the Danville school’s stance toward homosexuality have been brewing for years, association executive director John Upton said the decision to sever ties was largely prompted by a student group’s celebration of gay pride week.
Averett’s Gay-Straight Alliance, an official student organization, hosted events on the campus during gay pride week, Feb. 21-26. The events were sponsored by the alliance and not the school, Pfau said.
In 1993, the mission board adopted a resolution saying that the Bible teaches that homosexual behavior is a sin and unacceptable for Christians.
“We’re clear on our position regarding (homosexuality), and the university evidently isn’t able to share that core value,” Upton said.
In 2003, the association voted to withhold more than $300,000 in funding after Averett religion professor John C.H. Laughlin wrote a column supporting the appointment of openly gay New Hampshire Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson. The association finally released the funds last December.
The association also severed ties with the University of Richmond several years ago after the school decided to grant benefits to same-sex partners of faculty members.
During a March 17 meeting, both Averett and the Baptists agreed that the association would no longer select trustees for the university’s board. They also agreed that the Baptists would no longer provide the university with funding, though the association will continue to pay for the director of Averett’s Baptist Student Union.
“We’re each working off a different set of core values,” Pfau said. “In church, we come together with people who think the same way we do. The university’s core value is to disagree, discuss, have dialogue, even about the fundamental principles that guide us.”
Upton said the split, though amicable, was difficult. The school had been affiliated with the Baptists since it was founded in 1859.
“It’s a very sad thing for me … and I think for all Virginia Baptists,” Upton said. “I’m personally an Averett grad, so I have a very deep appreciation for my Averett heritage.”
Pfau and Upton both said they are hopeful the two parties will someday reach common ground and re-establish their relationship.
“None of us know where this issue will be in a decade or two,” Pfau said.
———
On the Net:
Averett University: http://www2.averett.edu/index.php
Baptist General Association of Virginia: http://www.vbmb.org/