Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, October 15, 1994                   TAG: 9412160010
SECTION: RELIGION                    PAGE: B9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

BRIEFS

Wayne Garst, manager of Camp Bethel Conference Center in Botetourt County since early 1992, will leave the position at the end of this year. Garst, 55, is retiring for health reasons. He came to the Church of the Brethren facility after retiring from a career of agricultural extension work which included direction of programs at the 4-H Center at Smith Mountain Lake. A staff member of the Virlina District of the Church of the Brethren said Garst's replacement is being sought

Bishop to visit

The Anglican Bishop of Bradford in England, David James Smith, will visit three Episcopal churches in the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia on Oct. 23. Smith will participate in worship at 7:30 a.m. at St. Paul's Church in Salem, at 11 a.m. at Christ Church in Martinsville and at 5:p.m. at R.E. Lee Memorial Church in Lexington. Smith, who recently assumed his office, is in Western Virginia for a 75th Anniversary of the diocese service Oct. 22 at 1 p.m. at St. Andrew's Catholic Church in Roanoke.

Boydton Day Festival

A Boydton Day Festival Oct. 29 in the Mecklenburg County town of Boydton will commemorate the beginning of the oldest Methodist college in continuous operation in America. Randolph-Macon College, located at Ashland since 1868, began at Boydton 125 years ago. A parade will begin the festivities at 11 a.m. Other activities will include a Heritage Day convocation at 2 p.m. Call 804-738-6180 for more information.

Secession plans

AUSTIN, Texas - Southern Baptist conservatives reportedly have made contingency plans for secession from the Texas Baptist Convention if they lose a statewide vote next month over how church funds are used.

The new association would not be activated unless delegates to the Baptist General Convention of Texas approve a plan favored by the Southern Baptist moderates, church conservative Walt Carpenter said.

``Hopefully, it will sit dormant forever,'' the Houston attorney said.

But ``all bets are off'' if the delegates approve the plan at the two-day annual meeting, which begins Oct. 31 in Amarillo.

If approved, the plan would change the way church contributions are split between the moderate-dominated state convention and the Southern Baptist Convention, the conservative-dominated national denominational body.

Currently, one-third of the contributions are automatically sent to the national convention, while the rest stays in Texas.

Delegates to the Amarillo meeting will vote on a plan to force congregations to choose where their money goes.

The Texas convention is the biggest in the Southern Baptist Convention with 5,500 congregations and 2.6 million members.