(RNS) — A authorized battle between a former Southern Baptist ethicist and considered one of his chief critics is over for now.
Attorneys for Georgia Baptist pastor Mike Stone filed paperwork Thursday (Dec. 9) to voluntarily withdraw a criticism filed in federal courtroom in opposition to Russell Moore, the previous head of the Southern Baptist Conference’s Ethics and Non secular Liberty Fee. The criticism was dismissed with out prejudice Friday by U.S. District Courtroom Decide William Campbell.
That dismissal got here per week earlier than the deadline for Moore to file a response to Stone’s preliminary criticism, filed this fall in U.S. District Courtroom for the Center District of Tennessee, which accused Moore of defamation, false mild invasion of privateness and intentional infliction of emotional misery. Stone claimed two letters written by Moore — and leaked anonymously to media — painted him in a detrimental mild and broken his bid to turn out to be SBC president.
In these letters, Moore claimed the SBC’s Government Committee — of which Stone is a former chairman — had coated up sexual abuse and that he was pressured to silence an abuse survivor who spoke at an ERLC convention on sexual abuse.
Stone has denied these claims.
“Plaintiff’s enterprise operations have already been negatively impacted by Defendant’s untruthful statements resulting from a decreased belief and confidence in Plaintiff within the non secular group, and the Plaintiff’s pastoral efforts will undoubtedly endure decreased church attendance and a discount in donations and honorariums due to Defendant’s statements that are untruthful and have solid Plaintiff in a false mild,” the criticism filed by Stone’s attorneys alleged.
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The 2 had lengthy been at odds.
As chair of the SBC’s Government Committee, Stone had spearheaded an investigation into Moore’s tenure on the ERLC, which concluded the company was a distraction from the SBC’s broader mission. It was the second time Moore had been investigated — prompted largely resulting from his criticism of Donald Trump and his push for the nation’s largest Protestant denomination to handle problems with racism and sexual abuse.
Moore resigned as president of the ERLC a couple of month earlier than the SBC’s annual assembly to turn out to be a public theologian for the evangelical journal Christianity At present. He additionally left his Southern Baptist residence church to affix a nondenominational congregation.
Stone’s bid for presidency was backed by the Conservative Baptist Community and Founder’s Ministries, two conservative teams that declare the SBC turned liberal due to leaders like Moore and former SBC president J.D. Greear. Stone narrowly misplaced the presidency on the annual assembly in June to Ed Litton, a comparatively unknown senior pastor of Redemption Church in Saraland, Alabama, who has made racial reconciliation an indicator of his ministry.
Throughout a public taping of his podcast in September, Moore stated he might have remained on the ERLC however the price of doing so was not value it.
“I might have gained the battle that wanted to be fought,” he stated in September. “However I spotted I must have a battle. And I didn’t wish to be the form of particular person I might be on the opposite aspect of that.”
Neither Moore, Stone nor their attorneys could possibly be reached for remark.
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