not qualified for baptist missions

Ok - I have to admit, I am not qualified to be a Baptist missionary.

Trustee: Porn Viewing, Charismatic Prayer Treated Equally in Baptist Missionary Screening

The Christian Post reports that half of males who apply to serve as a missionary for the Southern Baptist Convention's international mission agency are turned down. That's according to a Baptist pastor, who cited the primary reason as use of internet porn.

A recent regional summit of the International Mission Board noted that female missionaries outnumber male ones two to one, according to Enid, OK pastor Wade Burleson. The summit also mentioned the problem of internet porn among men, with as many as 50 percent of lay men and clergy having viewed pornography in the past year. Even so, porn is not the primary reason men are turned down for a missionary position, said Randy Rains, IMB's associate vice president of the office of Mission Personnel. Rains indicated some 50 reasons ranging from porn and sexual immorality to depression that can prevent an applicant from becoming an approved missionary. The same policy applies to the use of "private prayer language."

According to Burleson, the controversial issue and its ban in the IMB cause the use of private prayer language to be treated the same as viewing pornography in the screening process for missionaries.

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