The Bloggers Revolt

Denominational politics is never pretty. This has been seen clearly in the recent actions of my denomination, the Presbyterian Church USA. The political maneuvers of some Presbyterians have led us to the brink of schism. Sigh!

I was fascinated to learn recently that the Southern Baptists have been having their fair share of problems. They aren't debating such weighty matters as the definition of the Trinity or whether to follow biblical guidance with respect to homosexual behavior, however. Rather, the Southern Baptists have been getting worked up about . . . blogging. That's right. Blogging has been stirring things up in the Southern Baptist Convention. (Would that we Presbyterians could be so settled on the majors that we could argue about the minors, like blogging!)

Time Magazine published a story on the rise of the bloggers among the Southern Baptists. Apparently, a bunch of young pastors, feeling excluded from the denominational hierarchy, began to use blogging as a way to express their frustration and rally the troops. This ended up in a most surprising way, with the election of dark horse candidate for president of the convention. Dr. Frank S. Page defeated the heir apparent, Dr. Ronnie Floyd, in part because of the support of blogging Southern Baptist pastors.

Time quotes a veteran Baptist journalist, "Without the bloggers Page wouldn't have been elected. He was a relative unknown, and the bloggers really have created the whole conversation. It's very much a generation shift." Yep. A generation shift. A new way of doing business, with bloggers leading the charge.

This doesn't surprise me, really. Blogging is simply a way for people to communicate effectively with a wide number of people. Communication influences people, including Southern Baptists, it seems. It changes minds and affects how people vote. Blogging is just one tool in the communication arsenal.

I do find it ironic, however, that in yet another sphere bloggers are upsetting the apple cart and making the apple cart owners angry. We've seen this again and again in the mainstream media. Now the power of blogging is influencing denominational structures. What's common in both instances is that the institutional gatekeepers (major media outlets, Southern Baptist hierarchy) are losing power, and aren't very happy about it. It's common these days for mainstream media commentators to bash the bloggers, suggesting that they are a trivial annoyance.

Well, as it turns out, the Southern Baptist hierarchy also took a swipe at the bloggers. I'll examine this in my next post.