I’m still seeing a lot of activity on Twitter about Bethlehem Baptist Church and Seminary, especially after the article by Kate Shellnut, Bethlehem Baptist Leaders Clash over “Coddling” and “Cancel Culture.”
I’m thrilled that Twitter has become a place where survivors can connect with other survivors and are willing to share their stories. But . . . Twitter is not always the easiest place to maneuver. I’ve been using Twitter since 2012 and sometimes I still miss tweets in a thread because of all the rabbit trails.
So, in an effort to consolidate some of the personal stories, especially for those who would rather not wade through Twitter, I’ve compiled some important tweets here. If there’s an important one that I missed, please feel free to copy the Twitter link and post in the comments.
For Twitter newbies:
The following tweets are embedded. If you want to get to the exact tweet thread posted below, click on the time/date stamp hyperlink in the tweet. If you want to read more of what that person has tweeted, click on their twitter handle (starts with @).
Keep in mind, I’ve only copied the first tweet in the “thread,” so when you click on the date/time stamp, it will take you to the top of the thread. You will then need to scroll down to read the rest of the thread.
Edited to add another tweet:
Added a new tweet thread 9/3/21:
Thank you so much for all the work you did collecting these, Julie Anne! You found all the ones I read over the weekend, and several more that I had missed.
Another thing I’ve found helpful is the “Thread Reader App”. It’s a website (Google to find it) which lets you “unroll” a thread of multiple tweets into a single web page. Then you can print it or share it with someone.
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Yes, bendeni, that’s a great app. Thanks for mentioning it.
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Thanks so much for compiling, Julie Anne. And thank you for your work more broadly.
I would like to highlight another thread I wrote. It addresses some aspects of the CT article that I find misleading: https://twitter.com/NirmalMekala/status/1428868889438564365?s=20
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Thank you, Nirmal.
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Thanks for compiling all this. I just read Sahr Brima’s tweet thread. My jaw hit the floor. If what Brima is saying is true, and I’m inclined to believe him but would want to hear Rigney’s recollection as well, that has got to be one of the top 3 craziest and most racist things I’ve ever read contributed to a modern, evangelical pastor.
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Paul: Rigney’s reply is here: https://twitter.com/joe_rigney/status/1430186888208474119
But that is not how Brima recollects it: https://twitter.com/sahr_brima/status/1430216453823807489
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Nirmal: Thank you SO much for that thread, and for your work on the task force. I think nothing has upset me more in all of this, than the undisputed facts that (a) the elders sat on that report for over a year without releasing it, and (b) the co-chairs of the task force, and (I now find out thanks to you) a total of 7/17 of the task force, ended up leaving the church. Those facts speak loud and clear, and they do not bode well for BBC and BCS pursuing meaningful and lasting change in this area. It breaks my heart.
Perhaps I can ask you, since you’re here: I have read conflicting reports about whether the task force’s report is still unavailable. Some say the members voted to have it released, some say that portions or a redacted version was released, but I’ve been unable to find it. Do you know if it’s available anywhere? I’m eager to see the final result of all the work you put in, or as much as has been made public.
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Thank you, Bendeni for the additional tweets. I appreciate it.
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Thanks for starting this, Julie Anne. It’s been interesting to read through these. And, it’s not hard to notice that Piper’s tweets are directed at all that’s going on.
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Hey, Kathi . . . it’s feeling like old times. 🙂
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I added a new tweet by Eric Hedstrom at the bottom of the post.
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