Prominent evangelical author and teacher Beth Moore has said she is no longer a Southern Baptist, a split that comes after her criticism of sexism in the church and condemnation of "Trumpism."
"I am still a Baptist, but I can no longer identify with Southern Baptists," Moore, founder of Living Proof Ministries, told Religion News Service in an interview published Tuesday.
"I love so many Southern Baptist people, so many Southern Baptist churches, but I don't identify with some of the things in our heritage that haven't remained in the past," she said.
Living Proof Ministries, which Moore founded in 1994, guides women who seek to model their lives on evangelical principles.
Moore, who is based in Houston, has spoken out against sexism and misogyny inside and outside the church. She has revealed that she is among the many women who have been sexually abused and harassed, and she has said "we're tired of it."
In 2016, after the "Access Hollywood" recording of Donald Trump was made public, Moore called on people to "wake up."
In December, she tweeted: "I have never seen anything in these United States of America I found more astonishingly seductive & dangerous to the saints of God than Trumpism. This Christian nationalism is not of God. Move back from it."
In a 2018 blog post titled "A Letter to My Brothers," Moore described her experience as a female leader in the conservative evangelical world and having to learn to show "constant pronounced deference," being disrespected and dismissed and dealing with attitudes among key Christian leaders "that smacked of misogyny, objectification and astonishing disesteem of women."
Moore, 63, has faced backlash for her comments. She told Religion News Service that she did not feel welcome at the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention, where she spoke on a panel about abuse, and that things have gotten worse since then.
Moore also told the outlet that she has ended her publishing agreement with Lifeway, although it will still distribute her books.
Lifeway, based in Nashville, Tennessee, confirmed the move but said it will continue to carry and promote her books and Bible studies, and has a cruise with Moore and her ministry planned for this year.
"Our relationship with Beth is not over, we will continue to love, pray and support Beth for years to come," Becky Loyd, director of Lifeway Women, said in an emailed statement.
"Lifeway is so thankful to the Lord for allowing us to be a small part of how God has used Beth over many years to help women engage Scripture in deep and meaningful ways and help them grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ," she said. "Beth helped lay a strong foundation for Lifeway in the women’s Bible study space that continues to be built upon by authors and teachers like Priscilla Shirer, Kelly Minter and so many others."
Southern Baptists are the largest Protestant denomination in the United States. The convention listed total membership at 14.5 million in its most recent annual report.
