Oklahoma Wesleyan University withdrew its membership from the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU), after two of the council's member schools permitted same-sex marriage for staff and professors.
OKWU becomes the second university to terminate affiliation with the council, after Union University in Jackson, Tennessee.
"Oklahoma Wesleyan has determined it is not in the university's best interest to continue to affiliate with the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities," said university president Dr. Everett Piper, in a press release.
"CCCU's ambivalence in deciding the status of two member institutions that have advised CCCU they will permit same-sex couples to be employed as faculty members indicates to us that it is time for our university to move in a different direction."
"We believe in missional clarity and view the defense of the Biblical definition of marriage as an issue of critical importance to Christian colleges," Piper continued. "The CCCU's reluctance to make a swift decision sends a message of confusion rather than conviction."
Piper said in the statement that wants to consult with other colleges, such as Union, on how to chart a different course from CCCU, which has over 120 member schools from around the country.
"We have been affiliated with CCCU for many years and it was a difficult decision to sever that relationship." he said. "But we have the support of our faculty, staff and trustees and we're confident that this is a step we need to take. Some issues are too important to be ambivalent about."
About two months ago, Eastern Mennonite University and Goshen University declared changing their policies to hire same-sex couples as faculty and staff members. EMU is one of the founding members of the CCCU, while its president, Loren Swartzendruber, is a board member.
CCCU had started a consultation process with members to "prayerfully determine" the next steps to be taken in dealing with the two universities' membership, which will be announced on September 21.
The CCCU board wrote in a statement that "the process has allowed the CCCU board to consider how to balance the needs of its diverse membership ... In the last 30 days, the board has been fervently working to have personal conversations with each member president."
The statement informed that CCCU's board is already in touch with 90 percent of its member presidents, and will take up the talks with the rest of the members in the first two weeks of September.
"We understand they must act in their [schools such as OKWU] institutions' best interest and respect that decision," the CCCU stated. "It is our prayer this issue will not further divide the CCCU, but rather result in clarifying our identity as an association and fostering supportive unity of each other in our respective missions and calling from the Lord."
