We have been giving annually to the Baptist Joint Committee for at least the last 15 years. Our awareness of the BJC came even before that giving pattern began.
What James Dunn and so many others before him did to build awareness of the need to preserve religious liberty in our country seemed to us to be integral to why we were Baptists. Our freedom from establishment of religion and the protection of our free exercise, enshrined by our forefathers in the Bill of Rights, have always seemed a natural outgrowth of what we Baptists believe about our God and the free choice with which he endowed each of us.
Having a unique institution like the BJC there to defend those twin rights was critical to us. So, when the Southern Baptist Convention chose to discontinue its historical support of the BJC, it seemed only logical that individuals and individual churches needed to step forward to fill that financial void. We have been a part of that movement.
While we might not totally agree on every position the BJC thoughtfully takes, such occasional disagreements themselves reflect the very freedoms that the BJC seeks so actively to preserve. Having a non-partisan approach to preserving religious liberty is not only well-respected in our nation’s capital but well-considered by those who seek to govern and to adjudicate.
We are impressed with what the BJC does with its resources, and we are committed to continuing to enable its mission. It is, therefore, entirely appropriate that we might leave some level of legacy after we are gone to support the continuing work of the BJC. Including the BJC in our estate planning is our next level of support of its ongoing endeavors, and we believe considering a place for the BJC in a will or other estate planning makes sense for lots of other Baptist folk.
If you have included the BJC in your estate plans or would like more information about naming us as beneficiary of a will or retirement plan, go to BJConline.org/planned-giving and fill out the simple form. You may also contact Development Director Taryn Deaton at 202-544-4226 or by sending an email to [email protected].
From the September/October 2015 Report from the Capital. Click here to return to the cover story.
