NASHVILLE — Members of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s executive committee acknowledge the events of the last 24 hours have brought confusion and frustration as conflicting press releases have tried to clarify that Brent Leatherwood is still at the helm of the SBC entity.

“We know that these events have shaken trust in the executive committee, the trustee board, and the organization especially. It is imperative that we commit ourselves as trustees to ensuring that trust is rebuilt,” they said in statement released late Tuesday evening.

A statement in the early evening hours of July 22 from the ERLC executive committee announced it had removed ERLC President Brent Leatherwood.

A second release followed early the next morning saying Leatherwood had not been removed because then-ERLC trustee chairman Kevin Smith acted without the approval of the full executive committee — a move that is not allowed by the ERLC’s bylaws.

The later statement on Tuesday attempted to give more detail.

“Then-board chair Kevin Smith acted without the approval of the executive committee of the trustees,” the late-afternoon release said. “There was no vote taken. His decision to unilaterally act was outside of his authority as board chair.

“As such, the termination was illegitimate, and thus there was not, as has been reported, a ‘reinstatement’ of Brent Leatherwood as president. He was never terminated.”

In a separate release Tuesday morning, Smith resigned from the ERLC trustee board and apologized, claiming he believed he was following the wishes of the full executive committee.Tuesday evening, the group reiterated they had not approved Leatherwood’s termination.

“While the executive committee recognizes a wide range of opinions on the work of the ERLC, most visible in a recent attempt to abolish the organization at the 2024 SBC annual meeting, the executive committee does not believe that this discontent rises to the level of a dismissable [sic] offense,” the late evening July 23 statement said.

“Further, any insinuations that the events of the previous days are the result of a moral failing on Brent’s part are wholly false. We find Brent Leatherwood to be a man of utmost moral and ethical integrity,” the statement said.

The group said they would work with the staff to address “the real concerns of Southern Baptists.”

Baptist Press reached out to Leatherwood for comment by email but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

“As the executive committee of the trustees of the ERLC, we take seriously the obligation given to us to ensure the execution of the ministry assignment of this institution that’s over 100 years old,” the statement said. 

“In recent days, we have failed to fulfill that trust in ways that ensure the stability of this organization. Over the past 24 hours, we have experienced a flurry of activity which has been destabilizing.”

Stories about the controversy have been reported by The The Associated Press, the New York Post, USA Today and CNN among other news outlets.

Many of those stories insinuated a political reason for Leatherwood’s apparent removal, referencing a statement Leatherwood made Sunday afternoon July 21 praising President Joe Biden’s decision to bow out of the 2024 presidential race and calling it “a selfless act.”

“We know that the task of rebuilding trust will be great,” the executive committee’s statement said Tuesday evening. “We know that it will require listening to Southern Baptists about their concerns. And we know that we are accountable to Southern Baptists, and ultimately God, for how we carry out our work. To that end, we seek your prayers as we faithfully discern the next best steps for us as a board and for this organization.”

This article has been republished with permission from Baptist Press.

Brandon Porter serves as Associate Vice President for Convention News at the SBC Executive Committee.