Steve Gaines (pastor)
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Dr. John Steven "Steve" Gaines (born December 31, 1957, in Corinth, Mississippi) is a Southern Baptist pastor. He is currently serving at Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova (a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee), one of the largest congregations in the Southern Baptist Convention. He took over the pulpit on September 11, 2005, from longtime pastor and former SBC President Adrian Rogers.
Before arriving at Bellevue Baptist, Gaines pastored for 14 years at the First Baptist Church of Gardendale, Alabama, an 8,500-member church in suburban Birmingham. There he became one of the leading voices in the conservative wing of the SBC. In 2004, Gaines was elected president of the Southern Baptist Pastors' Conference, and was the keynote speaker at the SBC annual meeting in Nashville.
Gaines' theology is best described as conservative and evangelical.
In 2000, Gaines was diagnosed with the muscle disease myasthenia gravis, and had a tumorous thymus gland removed through surgery. The illness forced Gaines to suspend for a time his ministerial duties and made walking difficult. He has regained his strength through medication.
Gaines' wife, Donna Dodds Gaines, grew up in Memphis, and her parents were members of Bellevue before Gaines assumed the pulpit. The couple met while attending Union University in Jackson, Tennessee. They have four children: Darrell Grant, Lindsey Carol, Allison Kirby, and Bethany Elise.
Dr. Gaines has published two books: Morning Manna, which has 365 daily devotional readings, and When God Comes to Church: Experiencing the Fullness of His Presence in Worship.
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[edit] Controversy
[edit] Website
In September 2006, The Commercial Appeal, Memphis' predominant newspaper, reported that recent changes at Bellevue have led to protests by some members.[1] A website contains allegations by some church members that the church is, under the leadership of Gaines, moving toward becoming part of the "church growth movement", moving toward an elder-led (as opposed to congregation-led) form of governance, mismanaging its finances, paying its leadership too much, intimidating members that want the church's leadership to be more open, and otherwise "moving away from its traditional roots."[1] [2] According to Bellevue's leadership, information on the website has appeared and disappeared repeatedly, and quotes and information about church leadership decisions have been taken out of context.[3] In response to the site's accusations, Gaines said that the church is not leaving its traditional roots, is not a part of the church growth movement, and that the website is creating confusion.[1]
[edit] Handling of minister misconduct
On December 18, 2006, the church announced that Paul Williams, a minister and staffer at the church for thirty-four years, had been placed on leave with an investigation pending regarding a "moral failure," identified by Gaines and others as alleged child molestation in the 1980s.[4] The next day, December 19, Gaines released a statement that acknowledged that he had been aware of the allegation since June 2006 but that he did not address it for several months because Williams had been attending professional counseling and also because of confidentiality concerns and compassion for the staffer.[4] The same day, Michael Spradlin, who is president of Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary (located across the street from Bellevue's campus), told the Commercial Appeal that "[i]f a minister has first hand knowledge of child molesting and does nothing about it then that minister should resign."[4] Spradlin later noted that James Dobson supported his statement, with Dobson reportedly telling him, "[w]hen prominent leaders have no accountability and make these kinds of decisions, other prominent leaders must stand up and hold them accountable."[5] Conservative radio talk-show host Michael Reagan discussed the situation on his show, noting that he thought that it was comparable to the Roman Catholic sex abuse scandal and that he believed churches should deal with these types of allegations immediately.[5]
On December 20, 2006, Gaines addressed several hundred members of his congregation, saying he would like to remain pastor at Bellevue.[6]
On January 28, 2007, a church committee released a report on its investigation of Williams' conduct and the staff's handling of Williams. The report alleged that Williams had sexually molested his son in the 1980s, that Williams and his wife had informed Jamie Fish, the church's minister of biblical guidance, of Williams'past actions in May 2006, that Steve Gaines met with Mr. and Mrs. Williams in June 2006 to discuss the issue, a meeting that was kept confidential, and that Williams was retained on staff thereafter. In early December 2006, Williams' son, the target of the alleged abuse, met with Gaines to discuss why Williams was allowed to remain on staff. The report found that no other children were molested by Williams. The report criticized both Gaines and Fish for not immediately coming forward with the information related to the abuse, either to the church or to authorities as possibly required by Tennessee law.[7]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Is Bellevue changing?, James Dowd, The Commercial Appeal, September 20, 2006.
- ^ Savingbellevue.com, website critical of the church's leadership
- ^ Bellevue Leadership Report from September 24, 2006
- ^ a b c 'People losing trust' in Bellevue pastor, seminary leader says, by James Dowd, The Commercial Appeal, December 20, 2006. Accessed December 21, 2006.
- ^ a b Seminary head hears Gaines reaction, by Yolanda Jones, The Commercial Appeal, December 23, 2006. Accessed December 23, 2006.
- ^ Gaines wants to remain at Bellevue, by Jody Callahan, The Commercial Appeal, December 21, 2006. Accessed December 21, 2006.
- ^ Bellevue details 'moral failure', by James Dowd, The Commercial Appeal, January 29, 2007. Accessed January 29, 2007.
