Thomas Kennedy Ascol is an evangelical Christian pastor, author, and president of Founders Ministries. He is currently the senior pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral, Florida, where he has served for 37 years as of June 2023.[1]
Thomas Ascol | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Thomas Kennedy Ascol Beaumont, Texas, United States |
| Pen name | Tom Ascol |
| Occupation | pastor, author, theologian |
| Genre | Theology, Culture |
| Spouse | Donna |
| Children | 6 |
| Website | |
| www | |
Biography
editTom Ascol has served as a pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral, Florida since 1986. Prior to moving to Florida he served as a pastor and associate pastor of churches in Texas. He has a B.S. from Texas A&M University (1979), a M.Div and Ph.D from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, Texas. He has served as an adjunct professor of theology for various colleges and seminaries, including Reformed Theological Seminary, the Covenant Baptist Theological Seminary, African Christian University, Copperbelt Ministerial College, and Reformed Baptist Seminary. He has also served as a visiting professor at the Nicole Institute for Baptist Studies at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida.
Ascol is the president of Founders Ministries and the Institute of Public Theology. He has edited the Founders Journal, and has been a regular contributor to TableTalk, the monthly magazine of Ligonier Ministries. Ascol regularly preaches and lectures at various conferences throughout the United States and other countries, and hosts a weekly podcast called The Sword & The Trowel.
Involvement in public theology
editPosition on abortion
editAscol believes that abortion is murder, and is in favor of equal protection under the law for unborn children.[2][3][4]
Resolutions at the Southern Baptist Convention
editIn June 2008, Ascol was successful in spearheading Resolution No. 6 "On Regenerate Church Membership and Church Member Restoration" and an accompanying amendment that encouraged Southern Baptist Convention churches to repent for failing to maintain biblical standards in the membership of their churches and obey Jesus Christ in the practice of lovingly correcting wayward church members.[5][6]
In 2019, Ascol offered an amendment to Resolution No. 9 “On Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality” arguing that the amendment would strengthen the resolution by acknowledging the roots of these ideologies and making it more explicitly theological.[7] The amendment failed in a split vote and the controversial resolution was adopted.[8]
In 2021, Ascol joined with others in submitting a new resolution, “On CRT/I Being Incompatible with the Baptist Faith and Message;” however, the committee on resolutions declined to bring the new resolution to the convention floor despite its being signed and submitted by more than 1300 Southern Baptists.[9] After the resolutions committee declined to bring the new resolution, Ascol led an attempt to rescind Resolution 9, adopted in the 2019 convention. That motion was ruled out of order by President J. D. Greear and the convention did not get to vote on it.[10]
National involvement
editAscol was a primary drafter of the 2018 Dallas Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel, a statement of 14 resolutions and denials on topics like the church, sexuality and marriage, and racism.[11] The statement was publicly released on September 4, 2018 and has garnered more than 17,000 signers worldwide.[12]
In 2019, Ascol was asked to speak at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held in Oxon Hill, Maryland where he spoke on the "progressive ideological challenges" to Biblical Christianity.[13][14]
Founders ministries
editBegun in 1982, Founders Ministries exists for the recovery of the Gospel and the reformation of local churches.[15] Ascol serves as president of the organization and is a regular contributor both in the quarterly academic publication, The Founders Journal and the Founders Ministry Blog.[16] Ascol also co-hosts a weekly podcast, The Sword & The Trowel, which currently has over 200 episodes and 4.8 stars out of over 600 ratings.[17] The podcast regularly engages with issues at the intersection of culture, politics, and theology.
Institute of public theology
editIn 2021, Founders Ministries opened the Institute of Public Theology, with Ascol as the founding president. Ascol taught the inaugural course, “The Pastor in the Public Square,” in the Fall 2021 semester.[18]
Personal life
editAscol and his wife Donna have six children, four sons-in-law, one daughter-in-law, and eighteen grandchildren.[19]
Publications
edit- Founders Journal (Editor)
- Amazing Grace: The History and Theology of Calvinism (Documentary | Contributor)
- Sword and Trowel (Podcast)
- By What Standard? God’s World… God’s Rules (Cinedoc | Producer)
- Wield the Sword (Docuseries | Producer)
- Ministry By His Grace and For His Glory (Editor)
- Reclaiming the Gospel and Reforming Churches (Editor)
- Truth and Grace Memory Book 1 (Author)
- Truth and Grace Memory Book 2 (Author)
- Truth and Grace Memory Book 3 (Author)
- From the Protestant Reformation to the SBC (Author)
- Dear Timothy: Letters on Pastoral Ministry (Editor)
- Traditional Theology and the SBC (Author)
- Strong and Courageous: Following Jesus Amid the Rise of America's New Religion (Author)
References
edit- ^ "Faith of Our Founders: An Interview with Tom Ascol". TableTalk magazine. Ligonier Ministries. 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ^ Ascol, Tom (17 May 2022). "Toward a Principled Pro-Life Ethic in Post-Roe America". Founders Ministries. Retrieved 2023-06-05.
- ^ Service, Bob Smietana-Religion News (19 May 2022). "Evangelical Pro-Lifers Clash Over Criminalizing Abortion". News & Reporting. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
- ^ Dias, Elizabeth (2022-07-01). "Inside the Extreme Effort to Punish Women for Abortion". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
- ^ "Resolution on 'regenerate church membership' adopted by SBC messengers | Baptist Press". 11 June 2008.
- ^ "2008 Resolution on Integrity in Church Membership". 30 April 2008.
- ^ "Resolution 9 and the Southern Baptist Convention 2019". 15 June 2019.
- ^ "SBC Resolution 9: Statement on Critical Race Theory & Intersectionality Point of Controversy and Disagreement". 27 June 2019.
- ^ "Southern Baptists call for abolition of abortion, adopt diluted resolution against unnamed theories, worldviews". 22 June 2021.
- ^ "Southern Baptists take on critical race theory but not by name. Here's why".
- ^ "The Statement on Social Justice & the Gospel | for the Sake of Christ & His Church".
- ^ "Signers | the Statement on Social Justice & the Gospel".
- ^ "Progressive Ideological Challenges to Biblical Christianity | Tom Ascol". YouTube.
- ^ "Yes, the Social Justice Movement is a Threat to Evangelicals". 4 September 2019.
- ^ "Home". instituteofpublictheology.org.
- ^ "Founders Ministries".
- ^ "The Sword & the Trowel on Apple Podcasts". 5 July 2023.
- ^ "Home". instituteofpublictheology.org.
- ^ "Leadership | Grace Baptist Church | Cape Coral".