By J. Brent Walker, BJC Executive Director
Greetings from the Baptist Joint Committee in exile!
In exile?
No, there has not been a coup. And, no, we have not left town for a foreign country. We are still on Capitol Hill, but we have recently left our familiar digs on the third floor of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Building — where we have been for nearly 50 years — and moved to temporary quarters one floor down, where we will be for the next three to four months.
Why? We are making way for our expanded, improved and altogether welcomed new quarters, a Center for Religious Liberty on Capitol Hill. Our time in exile is part of a journey that many of you began with us five years ago as the BJC marked its 70th anniversary. In 2007 we launched a capital campaign for the Center with an eye toward securing religious liberty for the future — continuing and expanding our work together. During the past five years, thanks to the determination of our donors and staff, we have continued to move closer to that goal.
Here’s where things stand now.
We have negotiated a long-term lease, taking over the entire third floor (from 3,500 sq. ft. to 5,400 sq. ft.). The floor — including the 1950s vintage gypsum walls, linoleum floors and antiquated fixtures — will be gutted and the space completely rebuilt in accordance with plans for a carefully designed and efficiently laid out office space with room for expansion.
The BJC’s strategic location has long been a major asset for the agency and our coalition efforts. The redesigned floor plan will take advantage of our impressive view of Capitol Hill. The new conference room will double our meeting space capacity and present a southwest corner view of the U.S. Supreme Court building and the U.S. Capitol dome two blocks away. The office design — with use of wood and glass, a smart layout and advanced interactive technology — will balance the needs of staff with the goal of providing visitors with meaningful exposure to the work of the organization. The new Center will contain cutting-edge technology, including a 70 inch interactive video screen and Skype conferencing.
All of this is integral to our commitment to keep the BJC at the leading edge of the fight for religious liberty and the separation of church and state in the nation’s capital. The new Center will improve the office environment and capacity for our work as we continue to file briefs in the U.S. Supreme Court, work with Congress and give advice to the administration. It also will result in a quantum leap forward in our ability to accommodate additional staff and visitors as we expand our education efforts. We will be able to host larger and more frequent groups of students, church members and clergy who visit our nation’s capital for programs concerning the BJC’s ministry. With an enhanced focus on education, we will continue to produce new and improved resources, curriculum and literature — in printed form and online. We invite the opportunity to host you and your group at the Center for Religious Liberty when you visit Washington. We cherish the part of our work that allows us to describe to our supporters what we do in the most powerful city on the planet to protect religious freedom for the next generation.
As we work from our temporary offices and look forward to the culmination of the campaign, we are thankful for the more than 500 donors who contributed, bringing us closer to our vision. Each of those gifts, along with the gifts of our donors that sustain our budget, supports the BJC’s mission to defend and extend religious liberty for all and inspires the staff daily.
We are not there yet, and we will continue to need and solicit help with this ambitious project — not just from those who have already given, but all of our supporters who have been kind enough to make gifts to the BJC’s work to advance religious freedom for all.
In fact, later this summer you will have the opportunity to learn more about plans for the Center and become a part of this important effort. I hope you will respond with a glad heart and a generous check.
We anticipate returning from “exile” at the end of the summer and look forward to many more years of much-needed advocacy for religious liberty and the separation of church and state, providing a strong Baptist witness to those values and principles.
