SBCOutpost, Part Deux…

We just received the following press release in our email from Micah Fries, the new editor of SBCOutpost.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 27, 2007

ST. JOSEPH, MO — On Monday, July 2, 2007, the online conversation concerning the future of the Southern Baptist Convention will move forward as a group of prominent bloggers merge their efforts to provide a forum for ministry ideas, missionary support, church revitalization, and denominational reform. SBCOutpost.com, previously administrated by Pastor Marty Duren of New Bethany Baptist Church in Buford, GA, will be launched as one of the premier sites for Southern Baptist news and commentary.

Little doubt exists that blogs have dominated the conversation in Southern Baptist life for the previous 18 months. At times, the conversation has engaged substantive issues of theology and ministry. At others, the dialogue has been shrill and divisive. With the launch of a newly reformatted SBCOutpost.com blog, the chance for elevating the meaningful dialogue and limiting the intensity of contention will arrive for all Southern Baptists.

Intentionally designed as a bridge for the diverse constituencies of Southern Baptist life, SBCOutpost.com will bring together denominational executives with rural pastors and church planters, missional pastors with traditional pastors, seminary theologians with Sunday School teachers, and field missionaries with their prayer partners. The day has passed for monopolies in news and information. SBCOutpost.com will seek to supplement, not replace, the excellent coverage of Southern Baptist life already offered online through Baptist Press, Associated Baptist Press, and various Baptist state papers.

SBCOutpost.com is singularly unique, however, in the chance for reader interaction and commentary, offering a forum for the discussion about the future of culturally-informed, Christ-honoring witness and ministry paradigms for the Southern Baptist Convention. In addition to this unique format, SBCOutpost.com will launch with the largest aggregate readership of any alternative news source dealing with Southern Baptist issues. The mission statement of SBCOutpost.com is “to provide interactive, substantive, and reflective dialogue for Southern Baptist churchmen and women to participate in shaping the future of the Southern Baptist Convention.”

The stated intention of SBCOutpost.com is to become the number one choice for discussion of Southern Baptist news and commentary, and the blog editors would like to encourage all Southern Baptist entities to include SBCOutpost.com as a part of their regular schedule of recipients for all press releases, news updates, and other statements as they are released to major media sources by emailing editor@sbcoutpost.com.

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