Oral Arguments Heard In Missouri Baptist Dispute

The Associated Baptist Press yesterday reported on arguments presented on Nov. 25 to a Missouri state appellate court in the latest installment in a dispute between the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) and five institutions that amended their charters to break away from MBC in 2000 and 2001. The institutions apparently disagreed with the fundamentalist stance of new leaders of MBC. (Background.) One of those institutions, Windermere Baptist Conference Center, was the focus of this appeal from a trial court decision that had upheld the change in the Windermere's articles of incorporation. At issue are questions under Missouri's non-profit corporation law as to who could properly vote on the article amendments. Windermere argues that it has no members, so its directors are the proper parties to vote. MBC on the other hand argued that it was the sole member of Windermere and that it controls amendments. The website missouribaptists.org says that MBC has spent $3.7 million in its lawsuits attempting to reassert control over the five break away institution. (See prior related posting.)