Whistleblower: ‘Dangerous’ theology taught at Al Mohler’s SBTS seminary

Dr. Russell Fuller said that “Dangerous” theological liberalism is taught at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS). The revelations were made by the former SBTS Old Testament Professor in a video interview with Jon Harris for Conversations That Matter. The first of a three-part interview with Dr. Russell Fuller released moments ago.

In the first part of the three-part conversation, Dr. Fuller said the seminary hired Dr. Dominick Hernandez over his objections. Dr. Fuller cited Dr. Hernandez’s apparent use of Higher Criticism to undermine the reliability of the Bible as his point of alarm.

Dr. Fuller said this is not a personal issue with Dr. Hernandez. “All I did was read his dissertation and say, ‘Hey, there are problems here.’ I have nothing against him personally. I didn’t even know him before he walked in the room. What I was concerned about is that what he is teaching is Dangerous.”

The “Dangerous” ideas include teachings that the Book of Job includes and mythology—not only that the speakers believed it but specifically the author of Job intended to promote mythology.

“This comes from like a Higher Criticism,” Dr. Fuller said. “And in Higher Criticism the assumptions are not that the Bible is inerrant, infallible, the very Word of God. The assumption is just the opposite. That you treat it like any other book.”

Also, Dr. Fuller said it appears in selected passages that Dr. Hernandez teaches that the Book of Job “goes against other parts of Scripture.”

“In other words, what the Bible considers wise in other places, the Book of Job is teaching contrary that—teaching against that,” Dr. Fuller said. This includes area like Job’s view of eschatology. “He’s really saying the Bible is contradicting the Bible.

The technical discussion is fascinating and if interested you should examine the supporting works and the extended interview. However, what is news to the average Southern Baptist is how SBTS responded to warnings raised by Dr. Fuller.

There are documents supporting Dr. Fuller’s criticism. You can read those here. Dr. Fuller said in his extended discussion of the issue, “The conclusion of the paper confirms that the author of Job (not Bildad), and therefore the Scriptures, accepted mythological beings as actual and genuine. Notice again the capitalizing of ‘Firstborn of Death’ and ‘King of Terrors.’”

Also, Dr. Fuller warned the writings taught the non-historicity of Job. He said, “These passages imply that Job and his friends are simply literary characters through whom the author speaks. Hernandez’s writings, therefore, cast doubt on their historicity. We would never say, “Matthew speaking through Jesus says.” Jesus’s words are his words, not Matthew’s. They are Jesus’s words found in the book of Matthew. The Bible affirms the historicity of Job in the book of Job itself (see the whole book) and Ezekiel 14:14, 20; James 5:11. Claiming, implying, or just poorly communicating that Job and his friends are nonhistorical compromise the integrity of Scripture.”

SBTS Leadership Ignored Warnings

Dr. Fuller raised the alarm but SBTS faculty and leadership refused to listen. The story is stunning about how faculty members who had not even read Dr. Hernandez’s work insisted Dr. Fuller misunderstood it.

“Later on, one of the deans at Southern Seminary Herschael York the Dean of the School of Theology said the same thing to me,” Dr. Fuller said. “He says, ‘You misread Hernandez’s work,’ and I said, ‘Well, Hershael have you read his dissertation?’ ‘Not yet, but I’m going to.’ Somehow he knew I misread the work but yet he himself hadn’t read it yet. You see again this shows a bias of mind. That no matter what evidence I show him he’s not going to believe it.”

And Dr. Fuller said his objections were certainly known by SBTS President Albert Mohler.

“There was no way Al Mohler did not know the truth about Dominique Hernandez when we hired him,” Dr. Fuller said.

Fired for Standing against SBC’s Leftward Drift

Fuller says he was fired after years of standing against the SBC’s Leftward Drift

“Nobody likes to be fired,” Dr. Fuller said. “But I have a clear conscience about the stuff I did there. I stood up against Critical Race Theory that is being taught there and Social Justice. And not only that. There are other things being taught there like postmodernism. I stood up against that and I think there was a price to be paid for that.”

Dr. Fuller said he felt he “did his duty” by standing up against these problems happening at Southern. However, the Seminary leadership “threatened him many times.”

And why was he threatened by SBTS?

“For bringing up that the direction of the school is problematic we’ve got some teachers who are teaching things that are a real problem theologically and clearly not consistent with the abstract of principles,” Dr. Fuller said.

Hiding behind Statements

Of course, the disputed faculty member was hired over Dr. Fuller’s objections and then signed the Abstract of Principles.

Which no doubt has conservative Southern Baptists asking how can someone who believes these types of things sign our statements?

“In my opinion, we want to hide behind that,” Dr. Fuller said. “Even if you have the most perfect confession, even if you have the most perfect Abstract of Principles it is not going to prevent somebody who wants a job from signing it. I’ve never had a cross word with him. But, when I look at his teaching, even after he has been on our faculty now for a year or so and see what he is teaching—it is very dangerous. He even believes you can get more information about the fate of the wicked from Ancient Near Eastern material than you can from the Bible. He even says things like that in his dissertation.”

Social Justice?

The 22-year veteran Old Testament professor was the only (SBTS) professor who signed the Dallas Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel. Mohler remedied that when the eminent professor was fired. Fuller wrote the book used by many other Hebrew professors at SBTS. Yet, his experience and respect among peers was not enough to save him from Mohler’s axe—even when lesser teachers and scholars were retained.

This weekend video footage of Dr. Fuller sitting for an interview with the film Enemies Within the Church leaked. In that interview, Dr. Fuller stated clearly that on the campus of SBTS and under Mohler’s nose that Critical Race Theory is promoted by professors.

“We are living a lie when we say Critical Race Theory—Social Justice—has never been taught on this campus,” Dr. Fuller said. “We are living a lie.”

Now everyone waits on the next installment of Dr. Fuller’s long conversation with Jon Harris about what is happening at SBTS.

Whose name is named next?

What other revelation about Dr. Mohler’s leadership explodes upon the Southern Baptist Convention?

Last week was a rough one for Dr. Mohler.

This one looks to be even worse.