The Southern Baptist Convention has spent several months searching for a replacement for Brent Leatherwood at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. Leatherwood resigned after a timultuous and tenure leading the Southern Baptist Convention’s lobbying arm where he focused on amnesty for illegal aliens, passing gun control laws in Tennessee, and opposing pro-life legislation in Louisiana. Leatherwood was fired and then unfired, only to eventually resign.
Now the search committee has announced that Evan Lenow is the candidate to run the entity. He will have to be confirmed in a subsequent meeting of the board of trustees.
Before joining Mississippi College, Lenow served at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was associate professor of ethics, director of the Land Center for Cultural Engagement, director of the Center for Biblical Stewardship, and held the Bobby L. and Janis Eklund Chair of Stewardship.
Since 2012, he has served as a research fellow in Christian Ethics for the ERLC. Dr. Lenow is the author of “Ethics as Worship: The Pursuit of Moral Discipleship” (co-authored with Mark D. Liederbach, 2021), “Biblically Sound: Embracing Doctrine for Life” (2014), and “Biblically Correct: Engaging Culture with Truth” (2013).
Dr. Lenow holds a Ph.D. in Theological Studies with a concentration in Christian Ethics from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS), an M.Div. in Advanced Biblical Studies from SEBTS, and a bachelor’s in communication from Mississippi College.
The ERLC touts the academic credentials and ties Lenow to Richard Land, who was the original head of the ERLC. Land is an open borders liberal. Evan Lenow’s social media is rather nonpolitical for an aspiring lobbyist.
Analysis
The lack of political experience is a huge red flag, as academics are generally out of touch on politics, especially those in Christian ethics. Both Russell Moore and Brent Leatherwood had at least some experience in politics. The ties to Richard Land are a huge red flag, also. The Southern Baptist Convention seems to be signaling that they want the ERLC to remain a glorified blog rather than the lobbying public ministry it was intended to be.Â
One Response
The vita looks like the template Evangelical Christian with a SAHM. So the perfect candidate for this position from the SBC PoV.
However being effective in disruption is about being creative, tackling issues with unconventional ideas, introducing plot twists. (With the NT being the biggest plot twist in human history.) Such talents usually come with an extraordinary biography, a life which hasn’t been a “generic WASP” blueprint since generations.
A custodian personality is not going to make a dent anywhere.