BJC elects new board leadership

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Media contact: Karlee Marshall | [email protected] | 580-224-1817

WASHINGTON – The board of directors of BJC (Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty) elected new officers this week, naming representatives from the North American Baptist Conference and the Alliance of Baptists to its list of leaders. 

During its annual meeting in Washington, D.C., the board elected its four officers, who will serve a one-year term. The BJC Board is composed of representatives of the various member bodies who support BJC, and the individuals come from a variety of careers, Baptist denominations, and faith traditions. 

The Rev. Dr. Philip Thompson was elected chairman of the board. Representing the North American Baptist Conference, the Rev. Dr. Thompson serves as Professor of Systematic Theology and Church History at Kairos University/Sioux Falls Seminary in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The son of a Baptist pastor, he has published in a number of academic journals and has contributed to and edited several books of essays in the U.S. and Great Britain. The North American Baptist Conference consists of more than 400 churches across the United States and Canada, and its roots can be traced back to the German Baptist Conference in the United States in the 19th century.

“In such a challenging time, it is a weighty honor to be chosen to serve in a leadership role on the BJC Board,” said the Rev. Dr. Thompson. “I look forward to working with the staff and board alike as we live our shared mission of defending religious liberty for all, and cultivating a culture of faith freedom in local communities across the nation.”

The Rev. Dr. Elijah R. Zehyoue was elected secretary of the board. Representing the Alliance of Baptists, the Rev. Dr. Zehyoue serves as the co-director of the organization. A graduate of Morehouse College and the University of Chicago, he earned his Ph.D. in African history from Howard University, where his dissertation focused on White Supremacy and its impact on the Origins of the Conflict in Liberia. Additionally, the Rev. Dr. Zehyoue teaches African and African American Studies at the university level. Founded in 1987, the Alliance of Baptists is a group of progressive Baptists and Christians committed to enacting God’s love and justice in the world.

“BJC has a history of leading the fight for religious freedom, and in this political moment it is important for us to all join together and advocate for our freedoms even more broadly,” said the Rev. Dr. Zehyoue. “I look forward to joining the board and doing my part to carry this work forward and standing in the tradition of all of those great Baptists who had the conscience to stand for what is right even in the most difficult moments.”

The Rev. Dr. Christopher The was elected vice chair. Previously serving as board secretary, the Rev. Dr. The is a representative of the Religious Liberty Council on the board. He serves as the Director of Student Research and Initiative Management for The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS). A former youth pastor serving immigrant congregations of Reformed, Pentecostal, and Baptist affiliation in Southern California, he was a member of the 2016 class of BJC Fellows. The Religious Liberty Council is comprised of individuals who have financially supported BJC, and they have representation on the BJC Board of Directors.

Sofi Hersher Andorsky was elected treasurer. Previously serving as vice chair of the board, Andorsky made history as the first Jewish person and the first non-Bapist leader to be elected to that position in 2023. Andorsky is the Founder and Chief Strategist at Grand View Strategies, a consulting agency working at the intersection of religion, technology, and civic life, and she is also the current Vice President of Communications and Education at A More Perfect Union: The Jewish Partnership for Democracy, where she is building a trans-partisan, community-wide coalition to strengthen democratic norms, institutions, and rights.

Amanda Tyler, executive director at BJC, welcomed the new leadership. “I am grateful to Philip, Elijah, Christopher, and Sofi for their willingness to serve, and I look forward to all that we will accomplish together,” said Tyler. “These talented and committed leaders bring a diverse set of experiences, perspectives, and gifts to our collective work.”

“It has been a true blessing to serve as chair of the BJC Board during such a pivotal time for our nation and our faith communities,” said the Rev. Anyra Cano, immediate past chair of the BJC board. “I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have served alongside such a dedicated board and staff, and I look forward to seeing how this new leadership will build on BJC’s strong foundation.”

In a time of deep uncertainty and division, BJC continues to move forward with clarity of purpose: defending faith freedom for all people and combating significant threats to democracy, such as Christian nationalism. We are grateful for this new board leadership to help guide and strengthen this vital work.

Photos of Thompson, Zehyoue, Andorsky, The, Cano, and Tyler are available here, along with a photo of the entire BJC Board of Directors with Tyler and officers of the Religious Liberty Council. See all members of the board on our website at BJConline.org/BJCboard.

BJC (Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty) is an 89-year-old religiously based organization working to defend faith freedom for all and protect the institutional separation of church and state in the historic Baptist tradition. BJC is the home of the Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign.