Southern Baptists are arguing about the extent of male authority

As the pastor of a small church in a small city, Jennifer Brown is warm and solicitous. But at the mention of Mother’s Day she turns exasperated: she hates it. For years, in the Southern Baptist churches in which she was raised, it was the only time that she was permitted to take the pulpit. Even then it was called a “reflection”, not a sermon, and a male pastor would introduce her, signalling that he authorised her presence there.