Last year, the Southern Baptist Convention had a trilogy of scandals leading up to Bart Barber’s nomination and eventual election as president of the Southern Baptist Convention. It began with Ed Litton’s Sermongate scandal in which he was caught serially plagiarizing sermons from the outgoing SBC president JD Greear. Litton would choose to not seek reelection, causing Willy Rice to be the platform’s candidate. But Willy Rice would last about a week before deacongate scandal immerged discrediting Rice’s candidacy. With no one else to turn to, Bart Barber was chosen to lead the liberal bloc of the SBC.
In the fallout of Deacongate, in which Tom Buck intervened to help Willy Rice save face prior to information he was aware of leaking, Tom Buck was ultimately blackmailed with an unpublished manuscript written by his wife, Jennifer, which if taken out of context would malign Tom’s character. Nevertheless, parts leaked and attacks on Tom began, which led to a lengthy investigation over who leaked it and how. The central figure in this story is Karen Swallow Prior, a liberal SEBTS professor. Being the only person to have received the unfinished manuscript and having no permission to share it, she was and remains the logical culprit despite Danny Akin’s attempts to protect her reputation. The scandal we called Karengate, after the leading suspect who leaked the manuscript without permission.
Tom Buck has been recently searching for answers on this, but on January 31, he got something perhaps more meaningful and that is reconciliation. Willy Rice released a public statement stating that he had previously viewed Buck as an adversary and had no intensions of defaming him or his family. Willy Rice explains that he had not participated in the retaliatory attempt to smear Buck’s name through releasing the manuscript.
As I think Tom will also attest, he knows now that I never participated, either actively or passively, in any retaliatory attempt. To this day, I have never even read that which was released surreptitiously to defame the Bucks and I have no knowledge of who did release it. It was wrong and should never have been done and the harm they have suffered was unfair and uncalled for. Those who may have accused or insinuated that I participated in that in some way were, I pray, speaking out of ignorance and not malice, but regardless I bear no ill will.
He concludes it by stating
I’m not sure if Tom and I represent a path forward toward some healing and reconciliation that needs to take place within our fractured fellowship. Others will decide that. But at least you won’t be quite so shocked if you walk by at some upcoming meeting and find Tom and I laughing together and sharing a story, or if he tweets something of mine or I commend something of his. Don’t be so surprised; it’s not the sort of thing that enemies do, but it is just the sort of thing brothers do. I’m not sure everyone will be pleased with that: but I know of at least one who is and for me, that is enough.
Tom Buck applauded the announcement and offered his own.
Since I hadn’t spoken to anyone, I wrongly assumed Willy was intentionally driving this accusation. After Willy and I recently shared our individual experiences and perspectives from everything that transpired, I’m convinced that individuals in the SBC who had their own political agendas were feeding us both information that gave us reason to distrust one another.
I have asked Willy to forgive me for the assumptions I made and anything I said publicly that was an assault upon his character. And I’m thankful he made it clear to me that he had nothing to do with those who used my wife to retaliate against me. I fully believe him. Since this began, he is the first person who has truly sought to make right what happened. Jennifer and I are still praying that justice will be done and those responsible will be held accountable.
Buck repents of having made any wrong assumptions publicly or privately about Rice’s character and involvement in Karengate. Buck states that they both were receiving false information about the other by people with their own agendas. Buck then states that Willy Rice is the only man to make the situation right with the Bucks.
