October 2, 2026
NASHVILLE (BP) – Brent Leatherwood has resigned as president of the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, ending nearly nine years of service that begin in 2017 as director of strategic partnerships.
The ERLC Board of Trustees accepted Leatherwood’s resignation in a called meeting today, July 31, in Nashville, gratefully noting his character and achievements in the role he began in 2021 in an acting capacity before becoming president in 2022.
“Brent has led the commission well and demonstrated loving courage in the face of a divisive and increasingly polarizing culture in America,” trustee chairman Scott Foshie said in announcing the change. “While biblical values have been under attack, Brent has been a consistent and faithful missionary to the public square. We are thankful for his commitment to the Lord and to this commission.”
Leatherwood leaves the ERLC weeks after it survived an attempt by SBC messengers to disband the entity, and a year after his term as president was erroneously cut short in a misstep by then ERLC trustee chairman Kevin Smith, who then resigned.
Leatherwood thanked Southern Baptists for having had the opportunity to serve at such a time as this.
“It has been an honor to guide this Baptist organization in a way that has honored the Lord, served the churches of our Convention, and made this fallen world a little better,” Leatherwood told trustees, as noted in a July 31 press release. “I believe gratitude is at the heart of conservatism.
“That means I will always be thankful for the opportunity provided to me by our churches — for the support they have offered and the resources they have sacrificially given to this entity.”
The exiting president praised the ERLC team for its work during his tenure, saying the entity stood on Scripture in all of its work.
“In all of our advocacy work, we have sought to strike a balance of conviction and kindness, one that is rooted in Scripture and reflective of our Baptist beliefs. That has meant standing for truth, without equivocation, yet never failing to honor the God-given dignity of each person we engage,” Leatherwood said. “By conducting ourselves in accordance with what is articulated in 1 Peter 3:15-16, our ministry has helped the world clearly understand that Jesus Christ reveals a better way to live rather than the angry, self-absorbed, and cruel model that is so often served up by our modern culture.”
Leatherwood noted his greatest hope is anchored in the salvation offered by Jesus.
“That hope has powered our work these last several years, and has shaped my own conscience,” he said. “It will continue to do so as I move forward to render service where the Lord is calling me next.”
Leatherwood did not note his next professional ministerial assignment in a press release announcing his departure.
Miles Mullin, ERLC vice president and chief of staff, begins today as interim president, trustees said, leading the entity that has been navigating a changing legal landscape impacting the right to life, parental rights, gender identity, and immigration law.
“Brent’s legacy is one of fighting vigorously and victoriously for life as evidenced by the defunding of Planned Parenthood and the placement of ultrasound machines in states across the country,” trustee Mitch Kimbrell noted. “Under Brent, the ERLC made big advances in listening to and being shaped by Southern Baptists. He indeed leaves the ERLC better than he found it.”
Trustees also noted other ERLC achievements under Leatherwood’s tenure, including advocacy on Capitol Hill in support of Israel and Ukraine in wartime, highlighting ethical concerns for in vitro fertilization, resourcing state convention leaders with an ERLC State Policy agenda, and launching the Resourcing the Church Initiative that gives churches theological and practical guides for instruction, advocacy and service.
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The full article appeared in Baptist Press.
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