Mohler has been open and honest while recounting the past and has candidly stated that biblical change doesn't just happen without the shedding of blood, sweat, and tears. Dr. Mohler has not shared these details in order to present himself as a Christian martyr. These painful stories remind men that you must be willing to pay a price if God calls you to serve in this type of ministry context. I have provided plenty of article over the years that emphasize this very point. This is especially important for pastors and lay leaders who are involved in church revitalization contexts. We must "consider the cost" before building God's tower.
In view of what God has done in Louisville many leading evangelical leaders have offered praise to God for the reformational efforts of Mohler at Southern seminary. Dr. Mohler would be the first person to tell you that ONLY GOD can rescue (or turn around) a spiritually sick seminary or church. Having said that, the Scriptures also teach that God not only ordains the end He also ordains the means. In other words, God often chooses to use faithful Christian servants in order to carry out His purposes on earth (see Titus 1:5f; Col. 1:28-29). In this manner. Dr. Mohler was the primary human instrument that the Lord used to "save" SBTS seminary.
Many of these issues are addressed in Marvin Olasky's interview. A portion of this interview is found below: "A commitment to truth and a confession of faith brought a seminary back from liberalism..."
"You become president of the flagship seminary of Southern Baptists at age 33. Were you amazed by that? I don’t think any sane person would expect that. It’s
explicable under a very narrow set of circumstances: The Southern Baptist
Convention—almost alone in the life of major denominations—was going through an
incredible period of conservative resurgence. When the conservatives did get
control, they wanted to make it count. When they asked me in the search process
what I would do, I told them what I would do. They evidently wanted that
done. ‘Nearly the entire faculty of one of the largest theological
institutions on the planet was replaced within a four- to five-year period.’
You told them you would change the faculty? I said you
cannot bring reformation and leave everything in place. You need a clear
understanding of the confessional identity of the school and you have to make
it stick. Institutions drift left. That is the Genesis 3 reality. If truth is
the principle, then you can’t accept 45 percent heresy as a way to get to 35
percent heresy. If a confession states the truth of what we expect, every
professor signs to teach in accordance with it.
So you purged the theological liberals. Do you accept that verb? That isn’t the word I would choose, but it is accurate. Nearly the
entire faculty of one of the largest theological institutions on the planet was
replaced within a four- to five-year period. That’s a rare (by you) use
of the passive. You replaced them. Yes. I replaced them. I own that as my
responsibility. That’s why I was hired. That’s what I did.
Did they have tenure? They did. It is a horrible
misconception that tenure itself is the problem. Will is the problem. The
tenure policy at Southern said that persons could be removed for teaching what
was not in accordance with the confession of faith. That required a heresy
trial, due process, all kinds of documentation, and an adversarial hearing,
like a court proceeding. It turned out that not one of the faculty members was
willing to endure that. Zero? We came right up to the threshold more than once, but those faculty
members recognized, because trustees were the majority of the jury, that they
didn’t have a chance. With the truth on your side, you’ve got a lot of
confidence. If you are teaching in accordance with and not contrary to the
confession of faith, then you’re fine. But if you’re teaching contrary to the
confession of faith, that is all that is necessary to eliminate tenure, so they
resigned."
Article by Marvin Olasky. The full article and interview can read here
"Albert Mohler is president of The Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary, the host of The Briefing (a brilliant daily podcast), and
the author of a half-dozen apologetic books."
You told them you would change the faculty? I said you cannot bring reformation and leave everything in place. You need a clear understanding of the confessional identity of the school and you have to make it stick. Institutions drift left. That is the Genesis 3 reality. If truth is the principle, then you can’t accept 45 percent heresy as a way to get to 35 percent heresy. If a confession states the truth of what we expect, every professor signs to teach in accordance with it.
So you purged the theological liberals. Do you accept that verb? That isn’t the word I would choose, but it is accurate. Nearly the entire faculty of one of the largest theological institutions on the planet was replaced within a four- to five-year period. That’s a rare (by you) use of the passive. You replaced them. Yes. I replaced them. I own that as my responsibility. That’s why I was hired. That’s what I did.
Did they have tenure? They did. It is a horrible misconception that tenure itself is the problem. Will is the problem. The tenure policy at Southern said that persons could be removed for teaching what was not in accordance with the confession of faith. That required a heresy trial, due process, all kinds of documentation, and an adversarial hearing, like a court proceeding. It turned out that not one of the faculty members was willing to endure that. Zero? We came right up to the threshold more than once, but those faculty members recognized, because trustees were the majority of the jury, that they didn’t have a chance. With the truth on your side, you’ve got a lot of confidence. If you are teaching in accordance with and not contrary to the confession of faith, then you’re fine. But if you’re teaching contrary to the confession of faith, that is all that is necessary to eliminate tenure, so they resigned."
Article by Marvin Olasky. The full article and interview can read here
