The Rev. Brett Younger, the embattled pastor of the Fort Worth, Texas, church that debated how to picture gay members in its photo directory, has accepted a new job. Younger, pastor of Broadway Baptist Church, will join the faculty of Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology in Atlanta as an associate professor of preaching.

While “delighted” to join that faculty, Younger said in a statement: “I’m also sad at leaving Broadway. The church has taught me so much about following Christ, and it is one of my hopes in this new ministry I can teach young people to lead their congregations to be as faithful as Broadway has been.”

The church opted not to feature gay members in any family photos but also took a vote about whether Younger should remain pastor. The March vote to retain him was 499 to 237, but The Dallas Morning News reported that opponents issued a statement after the vote that declared, “300 members have or want to leave because of the turmoil.”