Southern Baptist Bigots: 'Gospel Today' Gets Backlash For Featuring Female Pastors

National Christian magazine 'Gospel Today' is facing its first major controversy over featuring female pastors on its latest cover story, 'Female Pastors: Breaking the Glass Ceiling.'

The September/October cover of 'Gospel Today' showcases five female pastors including Pastor Sheryl Brady of The River in Durham, N.C.; Bishop Millicent Hunter of The Baptist Worship Center in Philadelphia, Pa.; Pastor Claudette Copeland of New Creation Christian Fellowship in San Antonio, Texas; Pastor Tamara Bennett of This Is Pentecost Ministries in Sacramento, Calif.; and Pastor Kimberly Ray of Church on the Rock in Matteson, Ill.

News broke last week that the Fayetteville, Ga.-published glossy had been removed from its regular position on magazine shelves at more than 100 Lifeway Christian Bookstores in the United States and "placed behind the counter like it was pornography," according to the magazine's owner Teresa Hairston.

Since its inception in 1989, this is the only time that the publication that has featured the likes of Star Jones, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Michelle Williams of Destiny's Child, Denzel Washington and Rev. Run on its covers has ever received such recoil, Hairston told me.

"It's the first time," she explained. "It's really kind of sad when you have people like Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton providing encouragement and being role models for women around the world that we have such a divergent opinion about women who are able to be leaders in the church. I was pretty shocked!"

Lifeway Christian Bookstores are owned by the Southern Baptist Convention, who openly endorses the Republican party.

Hairston believes that the organization contradicts itself in approving a political party that is promoting a woman for the vice presidency, while condemning a publication f

or endorsing women in ministry.

"I think that if a conservative republican organization like Southern Baptist Convention can endorse the republican ticket, they are going to be hard-pressed to try to put a woman in the White House and keep her out of the church house," she offered.

Chris Turner, a spokesman for Lifeway Resources, which runs the stores for the Southern Baptist Convention told the 'Atlanta Journal Constitution' that the magazine's cover subject goes against their doctrine.

"It is contrary to what we believe," Turner told the paper.

Southern Baptist Convention bases those beliefs on their interpretation of New Testament Scriptures in the Bible.

Southern Baptist representatives at national meetings have adopted statements saying women should not be pastors, but each church is independent.

Southern Baptists are not the only ones to reject the idea of women preachers.

The Catholic faith does not believe in women priests and the Presbyterian Church in America does not ordain women.

Hairston remains in disbelief that her cover story on a growing trend in ministry received such a push-back from the organization.

When asked whether she thought the topic would be this controversial, she replied: "Absolutely not!"

"We weren't trying to pick a fight," Hairston reminded. "We just did a story on an emerging trend in a lot of churches."

The magazine mogul, who also founded The Gospel Heritage Foundation, appeared during CNN correspondent Roland Martin's debut segment on the nationally syndicated 'Tom Joyner Morning Show' today to address the matter.

When Martin challenged the 10 million radio listeners in Joyner's 120 markets to "give Lifeway Christian Bookstores hell" over the matter, Hairston countered with: "I'd rather give them heaven!"

Gender discrimination on behalf of Southern Baptist Convention and Lifeway Christian Bookstores struck a person chord for Martin, whose wife; Reverend Jackie Martin was once a Lifeway teacher.

Rev. Martin, as the political pundit put it, "was given her papers" after they discovered on her website that she had become an ordained minister.

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CeCe Winans
The eighth of 10 siblings in the gospel-singing Winans family, CeCe recorded music with brother BeBe. The dynamic duo scored two No. 1 R&B singles, 'Addictive Love' and 'I'll Take You There.' As a soloist, CeCe has won six Grammys and her collection of R&B hits includes 'Count on Me,' her duet with Whitney Houston from the 'Waiting to Exhale' soundtrack.

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BeBe Winans
After years as a duet with sister CeCe, BeBe Winans went solo and released a self-titled album in 1997. Featuring singles 'In Harms' Way,' 'Thank You,' and 'I Wanna Be The Only One,' the album did well on gospel and secular charts. BeBe is a two-time Grammy winner, one as co-producer of the 'Bodyguard' soundtrack.

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Kierra "KiKi" Sheard
KiKi Sheard is a third-generation gospel artist. Her mother is Karen Clark Sheard of the famed Clark Sisters and her grandmother is gospel pioneer Dr. Mattie Moss Clark. Shortly after graduating high school, Sheard released her second album 'This Is Me,' which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Gospel charts in 2006.

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Mahalia Jackson
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James Cleveland
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Kirk Franklin
Kirk Franklin came up in the church, but often reworks his church messages into a hip-hop mix. Franklin's 1998 hit 'Stomp' propelled him to the best-selling gospel artist of the modern era. Moving beyond music, Franklin has hosted 'Sunday Best,' a music competition on BET, in addition to working the speaker circuit.

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The Winans
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Yolanda Adams
Though initially criticized in the Christian community for embracing R&B and jazz rhythms and "immodest" fashion to accompany her holy music, Adams scored quickly with gospel audiences. Her 1999 album, 'Mountain High...Valley Low' earned Adams her first Grammy for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel.

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Mary Mary
Sisters Erica and Tina Atkins formed gospel duo Mary Mary, named after biblical Mary Magdalene and Mary, mother of Jesus. Their debut album, 'Thankful,' boasting smash single 'Shackles (Praise You),' was a crossover hit earning the duo Grammy and American Music Awards. The single received rotation on mainstream radio and MTV.

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Andraé Crouch
After founding the Disciples in 1965, André Crouch garnered mainstream success, appearing on 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson' and at Carnegie Hall. The Disciples contemporary gospel sound, complete with soothing melodies of pop rather than traditional hymns, helped the group develop a racially diverse audience.

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