Evangelical Pastor Proudly Defends Welcoming LGTBQ Members: We’re ‘Guilty As Charged’

A Georgia pastor who has been expelled from America’s largest Protestant denomination for welcoming a queer couple into his congregation insists he doesn’t regret the decision he made.

Pastor Jim Conrad, of Kennesaw’s Towne View Baptist Church, got in trouble with the Southern Baptist Convention after welcoming a gay couple with three adopted children as members of his church in October 2019.

“We decided that ‘all means all,’” Conrad told HuffPost in an email. “We will share His Good News with everyone and welcome anyone who calls Jesus Lord.”

“We are guilty as charged,” the pastor said.

Conrad, a longtime Southern Baptist, said he felt some personal grief over being expelled from a denomination that has been part of his spiritual life for decades. But the SBC has moved farther to the right in recent years than the pastor is comfortable with, he said.

Conrad also pointed out that conservative theology on sexual orientation and gender is “at least complicit” in the “alarmingly” high rate of suicide attempts among LGBTQ adolescents.

“Telling teens that the God who created them in his image hates them because they aren’t straight or cisgender is a dangerous message,” he said.

Conrad said his church doesn’t plan to appeal the executive committee’s decision. Asked if he would make the same decision again, knowing the outcome, Conrad wrote, “YES!”