L. Paige Patterson (born October 19, 1942) served as the fifth president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C., from 1992 to 2003, as president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) from 1998 to 2000, and as the eighth president of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, from 2003 until his firing in 2018. He played a major role in the Southern Baptist "conservative resurgence", called "Fundamentalist Takeover" by opponents. He has been alternately described as a fundamentalist and a conservative evangelical.
Education
B.A. – Hardin-Simmons University, Abilene, Texas
Th.M. – New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Th.D. – New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Career
Patterson started preaching while still in his teens. He held several pastorates before becoming president of the Criswell Center for Biblical Studies (now Criswell College) in Dallas, Texas, a position from which he was eventually fired. Patterson formed a strong connection with W.A. Criswell of the First Baptist Church of Dallas while in this position. After 17 years he became president of the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina (1992–2003). Patterson was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) in both 1998 and 1999. He has lectured and preached extensively and authored and edited many books and journals. In 2003, he became the 8th president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. He was removed as president in May 2018 over his past advice to women concerning marital abuse and rape, then stripped of his positions of emeritus president and theologian-in-residence for his handling of several rape investigations. He served on the board of trustees of Cedarville University until he resigned on May 31, 2018.
Proponent of expository preaching
Patterson began preaching as a teenager, and continues to preach in churches and seminaries around the world. He is a strong proponent of expository preaching, once saying, "There is no genuinely good preaching except exposition". He has written on the topic of preaching, including the introduction to the 2010 publication Text-Driven Preaching: God’s Word at the Heart of Every Sermon.
Role in the SBC conservative resurgence
Patterson is best known for his prominent role in the Southern Baptist Convention conservative resurgence starting in 1979 with the election of Adrian Rogers as Convention President. Believing SBC seminaries and other SBC institutions had drifted away from their conservative Biblical roots, Patterson joined with Judge Paul Pressler of Houston, TX to carry out a plan that included exposing the theology taught and practiced by the leadership in SBC institutions, which Patterson and Pressler described as liberal theology. The main issue that divided the SBC was the nature of scripture, particularly, whether or not it is inerrant. Patterson, Pressler, and a host of self-described conservative pastors and laymen began to spread the word that the teaching of SBC leadership was not reflective of their constituents, who were paying their salaries. Patterson and the conservatives won the support of hundreds of like-minded churches, and as many as 40,000 messengers (church members willing to travel to the annual Southern Baptist Convention to vote) by using the inerrancy argument as the issue to gather support.
In 1998, Patterson was elected as president of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Patterson's influence has been felt at all levels of Southern Baptist life. The seminaries have for the most part become conservative institutions. Local churches have been hiring pastors educated at schools led by conservatives. Missionaries have also been influenced by Patterson's leadership. By the time Patterson was appointed president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, in 2003, the conservative leadership required that all faculty sign documents stating their allegiance to Southern Baptist doctrine, most notably, the Baptist Faith and Message.
Patterson has been associated with the Council for National Policy, an umbrella organization and networking group for social conservative activists in the United States.
Seminary president
Patterson served as the president of Criswell College in Dallas, Texas from 1975 to 1992.
Following his time at Criswell College, Patterson became president of two prominent Southern Baptist seminaries: first Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS) in Wake Forest, N.C., from 1992 to 2003, and then Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) from 2003 to 2018.