Today we were saddened to learn that Dr. Charles Page, pastor of First Baptist Church, Nashville from 1985-1990, has died of cancer in Charlotte, NC. He was 66.

I thought it would be good to call attention to Dr. Page's legacy because of the way that he handled the first election and ordination of women as deacons at First Baptist Church. "Neither a moderate nor a fundamentalist," but "a Christian," he told the pastor selection committee that "he personally did not favor women deacons, but he approved the church's plan to study the matter provided the issue did not divide the church hurtfully." (Herring: Valleys, Plateaus, Peaks: A 170 Year History of First Baptist Church, Nashville, Tennessee, p. 71) First Baptist did indeed elect a slate of deacons that included women, a practice that has continued until the present.

How many of us could learn from Dr. Page's example, and choose to abide by the decisions of the church, the people of God, whether or not we happen to agree? Our temptation, whether we be fundamentalist, conservative, moderate, or liberal, is always to enforce conformity with our own views. Dr. Page, however, did the Baptist thing, and allowed the people to speak. That's the kind of minister that I want to be.

"It is more difficult to maintain a middle-of-the-road stance than to be aligned with any faction," he said. It's true! Those who "pursue peace with everyone," as the author of Hebrews suggests we should, often find themselves with no ground left to stand on... an issue I hope to trace further in the coming weeks.