I want to say it is an honor to even be considered, let alone asked, to succeed the Reverend James T. Meeks. While I do not know much about Charlie Dates, it has becoming increasingly true that the higher you rise the harder you fall.. Charlie Dates is the senior pastor of Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago and serves on the board of TCP. I dont need to be Einstein to understand that with all these jobs he is not truly doing any of them full time. My response to the above is that that kind of filling of your personal needs, i.e. You've read 0 of 5 of todays most popular posts. Return to homepage. The statementposted on the anniversary of the 13th amendment abolishing slaverycalled for collective repentance and criticized those who would downplay SBCs racial history or label others as critical race theorists for acknowledging systemic injustices. They both, in that regard, have a history of absolutely incredible pastors. The mega church concept is already troublesome. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". Warren announced his intention to retire last year after over 40 years of ministry and began the search for "the next-generation pastor.". Nationally known pastor Rev. As I am contemplating leaving my current evangelical church, Progressive is on my list of places Im considering and praying about for a new church home, and a lot of it is due to the Dates family. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Perspective by Charlie Dates. Meeks' retirement comes at a time when many longtime church leaders have been transitioning out of leadership as they contend with dwindling attendance and other ministry upheavals laid bare by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hope youll give us another try and check out some other articles. I understand both sides, but havent thought about it enough to have a strong opinion, probably because I dont use those terms. I would caution ANYONE who makes ANYONE their everytying including a spouse or child. "We believe now that the time has come for us to step aside, for us to yield to new younger leadership," Meeks said. But Pastor Dates said, I know you probably dont like me right now, I can tell from how youre reacting to what Im saying; but Im not here to get you to like me. . The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Pretty sure there were no consequences whatsoever for him over it. And while we are kind of watching this great falling away, we dont have to merely watch it. It is going to take an academic mind and a saved heart.". But you seem determined to dismiss or belittle it in some sort of attempt to insult the Dates and me. Just goes to show that even in this day and age, after all thats happened, megachurches still value butts in the seats and the almighty dollar over holding celebrity pastors accountable for their actions and character. I had to fight all of my flesh not to just walk away. Its time for a younger generation to assume leadership at one of Chicagos largest churches. Respect and admire if they are capable, yes. Im working to discern Gods direction as it relates to timing of when to conclude. Charlie Dates of the Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago, one of the pastors who have already severed ties, said the November statement was "the last straw." "When did the theological architects of American slavery develop the moral character to tell the church how it should discuss and discern racism?" He also teaches at Wheaton College and has delivered chapel sermons at various institutions, including The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. "We want to see our church be vibrant. Your tax-deductible gift helps our journalists report the truth and hold Christian leaders and organizations accountable. That is a concerning statement. "There is a young man in our midst who is an exceptional preacher," Pastor Meeks told congregants Sunday, calling Charlie Dates both "called" and "qualified." What other things do you want to highlight to your current and future congregations and the readers of CT? Neither is it a premeditated desire of mine. Who thinks a half a pastor can shepherd a full church adequately? Their seminaries have hosted outstanding guest faculty and chapel speakers outside of their norm. They are happy to have a Black chapel speaker, the occasional conservative Black professor whose classes are not taken seriously or a Black employee who never bucks against their notions of superiority. Chicago has rich Black churches throughout the South and West sides, in particular. I cant speak much about Salem Baptist Church (other than its known in the Black community here in Chicago due to its sheer size), but I do know Progressive. Both of them have produced some stalwart Christian leaders and teachers. Dubois, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, and Mary Mcloud - Bethune, Dr. Charlies orientation and early formation were significantly bent toward the theological reflection of Black people. Adoring sounds like its crossed the line into idolatrysomething a lot of these guys at bare minimum do nothing to discourage, and a few outright seek. fellowship and personal friendship, could have been met by a holy man of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, or any other world religionor by a secular counselor or self-help advocate. Charlie Dates Has Led Progressive Baptist To choose a successor Meeks says he and his wife, First Lady Jamell Meeks, prayed and fasted. There is a HUGE problem with adoring a pastorany pastor, even a truly great one. But what a blessing to the members of both congregations. Im not in the weeds at Progressive. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. Just, wow. Stephanie Martin, a freelance writer and editor in Denver, has spent her entire 30-year journalism career in Christian publishing. He is married to Kirstie Dates and is the proud father of their children, Charlie Edward Dates II & Claire Dates. View Charlie Dates' profile on LinkedIn, the world's largest professional community. He graduated with a PhD in historical theology from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. James Meeks next year as senior pastor of Salem Baptist Churchone of Chicagos biggest megachurches. Who will pay for the SBCs abuse reforms over the long term? He served three terms as an Illinois state senator, was chairman of the state board of education, and ran in Chicagos 2011 mayoral race. Charlie Dates is pastor of the Progressive Baptist Church of Chicago. I would rather not compare them, only because I wouldnt want to say the wrong thing and have someone read it and judge my intent. What challenges do you anticipate with the dynamic of pastoring two congregations? I also understand how a personal relationship strengthens that love; that is the importance of us having relationships in the body of Christ. Charlie Dates named successor to James Meeks at 10K-member Salem Baptist Church of Chicago. And how have you begun planning to deal with those challenges? I need to say that this is not an ambition of mine. Sarah Einselen is an award-winning writer and editor based in Texas. He shared a vision of revival. In a video of the announcement, Meeks said after he and his wife fasted and prayed about the succession of the ministry, they felt confident in selecting Dates. He teaches preaching at Wheaton College and serves as an Affiliate Professor of the Baylor University George W. Truett Theological Seminary and as Affiliate . Its time for a young generation to come forward with new challenges facing us.. Now we have 2 churches thinking only one particular man can lead them. Nationally known pastor Rev. In his response, current SBC president Greear asked that fellow members of the denomination consider their concerns and suggested that there are things we can learn from worldly philosophies like critical race theory., Last week, prior to West and Datess announcements, Ausberry, who serves as SBC first vice president and head of the denominations National African American Fellowship, responded to the seminary presidents statement by saying that systemic racism exists and there are theories and constructs that help us to see and discover otherwise undetected, systemic racism in institutions and in ourselves., Especially for those of us who have experienced the brunt of systemic racism in our daily lives, our seminary presidents are good men and they had good intent, Ausberry said in an interview with Baptist Press, but the optics of six Anglo brothers meeting to discuss racism and other related issues without having ethnic representation in the room in 2020, at worst it looks like paternalism, at best insensitivity. The two churches will remain separate, and he plans on preaching two sermons each Sunday. Its time for Salem to have younger leadership . Show Progressive Baptist Church Podcast, Ep Great Expectations | Joshua 14:6-15 | Pastor Bryan Carter - Jul 26, 2022 That history is enormous. Conservatism is, and has always been, the god of the SBC. In 2011, Reverend Dates became the youngest Senior Pastor to serve the historic Progressive Baptist Church of Chicago, which saw exponential growth under his leadership. You know, at one point, Progressive had the strongest and largest Christian discipleship ministry in the city. The other thing is, in terms of preaching, I plan on preaching two services on Sunday morning: one at Progressive and one at Salem. I have to lead through my leaders. In the early discussion around the seminary presidents statement, which released last month, SBC president J. D. Greear recognized some of the issues with such emphasis on critical race theory (CRT) itself. Charlie Dates Returns to the Chicago Church that Shaped Him While continuing to lead Progressive Baptist, the 41-year-old pastor was named the successor to James Meeks at Salem Baptist. Hmm. Charlie is the senior pastor a Chicago's Progressive Baptist Church. Weve already started the conversation that, at some point, the goal is to raise up leaders to do more work. He teaches preaching at Wheaton College and serves as an Affiliate Professor of the Baylor University George W. Truett Theological Seminary and as Affiliate Professor of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Charlie Dates is the Senior Pastor of Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago, IL. My acknowledgement of this is not a statement of submission, but an act of defiance. Your tax-deductible gift helps our journalists report the truth and hold Christian leaders and organizations accountable. "Charlie is called, and I believe all ministry starts with a calling," Meeks said. Theres just no way you can pastor a church that big being involved in all of the details, right? Pastor Dates challenged me in how I was handling my grief, noted my verbal and body language pointed to some unrighteous anger and unforgiveness that I needed to confront in order to move forward in a Godly manner, gave me scriptures to pray and meditate on, and concluded by praying with me and having his wife Kirstie follow up with me. The head of the SBCs National African American Fellowship, which had raised concerns about the critical race theory statement a week ago, said he was saddened by the announcements. Its evangelism, its benevolence, its disciple-making have all been very Christo-centric and rooted in the Scriptures. (Perhaps due to my rarely being on social media for my own sanity). Our city and our nation need the black church to be her best and brightest self and now is the time for churches to be strong," he said. Meeks recalls meeting Dates when Dates was in the 5th grade. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Christian Rocker Posts Stunning Response to Recent Apostasy of Christian Leaders, Chicago Radio Host & a Former Bodyguard Say James MacDonald Asked Them to Arrange Murders, James MacDonald Took Millions from Harvest & Now Demands Broadcast Ministry, Mancow Airs Shocking Comments By James MacDonald: My Response. They would not. That would just be weird. He is a contributing author to the 2014 book Letters To A Birmingham Jail, and the 2019 book, Say It: Celebrating Expository Preaching in The African American Tradition. RELATED: Southern Baptist seminary presidents nix critical race theory. Last month, Dates joined the Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast to talk about the need for solid Christian preaching during tough times. After the retirement of its founder James Meeks, fellow South Side pastor Charlie Dates will become senior pastor of one of Chicagos biggest megachurches, Salem Baptist Church, returning to the ministry that shaped him as a kid and succeeding one of his greatest mentors in the faith. What is liberalism to the conservative Southern Baptists? Ill be here every Sunday and through the week as I normally am, Dates said. None of that is contingent upon Biblical Christianity (indeed, you say its not because of a sermon or book, meaning theology I assume). Blessed to serve in the city in which he was born, Reverend Dr. Charlie E. Dates is Chicago through and through. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Progressive Baptist Church, a century-old historically Black congregation, was briefly part of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). At the emergence of the pandemic, the SBC donated to our emergency effort to provide online food delivery services for Chicagoans with SNAP benefits. So he is going to pastor two large churches in addition to teaching at several colleges. My approach at Salem will be similar once I have learned again the way of the land. James Meeks announced Sunday that Pastor Charlie Dates of Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago will succeed him as leader of the 10,000-member Salem Baptist Church of Chicago when he steps out of the role in January 2023. I took President Adam Greenways invitation to return as a statement of good faith, that the seminary wanted to welcome me and many other Black ministers to contribute to its legacy, he wrote. They are selectively conservative. Their stand against racism rings hollow when in their next breath they reject theories that have been helpful in framing the problem of racism, he wrote, disappointed that the presidents would come together to speak out against it rather than turning their criticism toward other ills such a racism itself. Dates called him an Uncle Ruckus on twitter, which is a derogatory slur used to describe a black man that embraces the whiteness of society instead of resisting it. "And God has blessed us with our own son who has agreed starting January 15th, 2023, to be the next pastor of the Salem Baptist Church of Chicago.". Dr. Charlie Dates . I dont idolize Pastor Dates, nor is he my everything. Ill become senior pastor of both the Salem Baptist Church of Chicago and remain that at Progressive.. Meeks, 65, founded Salem in 1985 and grew it from 200 to 10,000 members. (RNS) In 2018, something happened at the MLK50 Conference in Memphis, an event co-hosted by the Southern Baptist Conventions policy arm and The Gospel Coalition. Calling him "the greatest young preacher in our nation today," Rev. I adore Charlie Dates BECAUSE of how he and his wife PERSONALLY ministered to me when I needed it. Dates new role will mean others will take on some of what Dates does now at Progressive, he said. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. The 65-year-old has been a pastor for 42 years and said he feels like hes got 42 more years in me. But Meeks added hes learned from King Davids life when its time to come off the battlefield.. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. . However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. They are ready to see their young adopt the very vestiges of hate that enslaved us in the name of Gods authoritative word. How do Salem Baptist and Progressive Baptist compare, and what makes you a fit for both congregations at this moment? That was the last straw for Dates, he wrote in a column for Religion News Service. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. Progressive is a church of five generations. Theres a danger when the person idolized has a position of power and authority, particularly in a religious sense. Legal Clinic The Social Justice Ministry is here to help through our Gospel Justice Center Legal Clinic. The Rev. Rev. And if you think it feels good, warm and fuzzy to be confronted about your sin when youre in the middle of grief, you are VERY mistaken. You sure seem ready to defend Trump and do the we dont know whats in his heart, only God knows if hes saved song and dance when it comes to explaining away Trumps lack of repentance or remorse for such language. . Charlie Dates is set to succeed Rev. We haveI thinka very Paul and Timothy kind of relationship. Image courtesy of Baptist Press. We are not merging the two churches and Salem is not absorbing Progressive, Dates said. Salem has its own kind of DNA, Progressive her own . In all that, he can never be criticized within his ranks. Charlie has also led Progressive in being a very put faith into action church here in the Chicago Black community. He has a bachelor of arts degree in speech communication and rhetoric from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; a master of divinity degree and a Ph.D. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. 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