Texas pastor Jared Wellman, who recently stepped down as chair of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee board of trustees, has been selected as the nominee for the next EC president and CEO. The announcement was made today (April 30).
While the full EC trustee board will review the nomination during a special-called, quick fly-in meeting May 1 in Dallas to vote, a growing number of voices across the convention are speaking out against the process that led to Wellman’s selection.
Read more from Tennessee’s Baptist & Reflector here and from SBC Voices here.
Wellman is pastor of Tate Springs Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas, and became well-known among Southern Baptists during the September and October 2021 EC meetings for his motion to waive attorney-client privilege in the independent investigation of the EC’s handling of sexual abuse allegations within the denomination.
He was in his second and final term as a trustee on the EC board, having served since 2015, and was in his first year as chair. While the specifics of when Wellman stepped down as chair and gave up his seat on the board were not released until today (read report from Baptist Press here), The Alabama Baptist did confirm in late April that vice chair David Sons of South Carolina has been serving as chair for several days leading up to the search team announcement.
To learn more about Wellman, the search process and Wellman’s vision for the position, as well as hear from interim president and CEO Willie McLaurin, read an article posted today by The Baptist Paper here.
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