Several Christian leaders expressed mixed emotions and opinions after photos of renowned minister Beth Moore serving Eucharist at an Anglican church appeared on the internet.
Pictures of Moore giving the Eucharist at an Anglican church in Texas, where she now lives after leaving the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), went viral this week, Christian Headlines reported.
Moore is seen wearing an ornate clerical robe, holding a candle in the procession, serving the Eucharist, holding the cup of wine, and partaking in the Eucharist during the liturgy in the photographs.
Church Leaders said the images were captured at St. Timothy's Church in Spring, Texas, during a recent Sunday service.
Some of the SBC's top brass reacted negatively to the photos of Moore.
Gabriel Hughes, associate pastor of First Baptist Church in Lindale, TX, claimed that when the SBC was no longer earning her money, Moore quit.
"No, conservative Southern Baptists aren't 'mad' Beth Moore went Anglican," Hughes said. "We're saying we were right all along. She's an egalitarian mystic who never liked the Baptist statement of faith and rejects [the] sufficiency of Scripture. When the SBC was no longer making her money, she left."
"They say there is no drift; however, we will never know fully the impact Beth Moore has had on the majority of the women in our churches. Unfortunately, many credit her for their 'strong' faith," said Conservative Baptist Network steering committee member and SBC pastor Timothy Pigg of Fellowship Church.
He also expressed his concern that Moore's Bible studies are still being sold by Lifeway and that Moore is still deemed as a "trusted source."
Steve Benzer, a pastor and professor at Baylor University, supported Moore and Lifeway over Pigg, stating, "Not sure I follow your reasoning here. If Anglicans are not welcome to be sold at Lifeway, then you can clear JI Packer from the shelves, as well.
He added that Moore is just engaging within the limits of a complementarian-leaning evangelical congregation.
Rev. Dr. Glenn Packiam, a pastor and author, also spoke up for Beth Moore, stating, "People, leave @BethMooreLPM alone."
He pointed out that Moore left the only denomination she's ever known and found light and beauty in the sacraments' and the liturgy's historicity and simplicity, but now, people go after her there too.
There was, however, no "bad mouthing" from Moore, the former SBC member. When she decided to quit the SBC, she said that she felt a tremendous sense of loss and regret.
In March of this year, Moore, the founder of the Living Proof Ministries, left the SBC. Her tweets in October reportedly revealed that she and her husband Keith were prompted by God to attend a modest liturgical chapel in June.
She then encouraged individuals who had entirely abandoned the church by adding, "My simple point is, consider a different way of doing the same thing: of worshipping Jesus, of hearing the gospel, of coming under the Scriptures even if just for a while. But don't give up on church. The communion of saints is essential to the believer's joy and growth and expression of spiritual gifts."
