Bishop Steven Arnold, who just resigned from his position at St. Mark Baptist Church over an affair he had with a female parishioner, is back at the pulpit at First Baptist Church.
Three to five hundred people are attending the three-day revival at the North Little Rock church where Steven Arnold is serving as the guest preacher. The senior pastor at First Baptist said that Arnold agreed to be part of the revival before his resignation from St. Mark.
Meanwhile, leaders at St. Mark are working on a plan to move forward in search of a new pastor.
Below is the official statement from St. Mark Baptist Church regarding the resignation of Senior Pastor Arnold.On October 3, 2010, the Board of Elders at St. Mark Baptist Church accepted the resignation of Bishop Steven Arnold, its Senior Pastor of 21 years. Bishop Arnold announced his resignation to the church during all three worship services on Sunday, October 3rd. Leaders of the church are preparing for a closed meeting with St. Mark’s members to discuss the situation and its plans to move forward.
Bishop Arnold tendered his resignation to the Board of Elders after admitting to an inappropriate relationship with a female parishioner.
“It is with a heavy heard that we accept the resignation of our pastor. Under his leadership, we have experienced tremendous growth, both spiritually and numerically. We love and deeply appreciate all that he has done for us through God’s enablement these past 21 years. In our efforts to curtail speculation and gossip, the Board of Elders made the decision to be more specific about what led to Bishop Arnold’s resignation. But out of respect and sensitivity to the families and all that are involved, we will not release any more information other than this. We prayerfully hope that the public will show the same respect and be considerate of the feelings of family members and our church during this difficult time,” Elder Lamarr Bailey said.
Church leaders are working on a plan to move forward in search of a new Senior Pastor in accordance with the Constitution and By-Laws of the church. By the grace of God, St. Mark Baptist Church will continue the work of the ministry as they reach and impact lives for Christ.
