Voddie Baucham Is Dead at 56 — Here Is What We Know About the Pastor's Cause of Death

Beloved pastor Voddie Baucham unexpectedly died on Sept. 25, 2025, at the age of 56. The theologian and author was known for his often controversial views on things like critical race theory. Dr. Baucham was raised in the United States and went on to become dean of Theology at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia. Despite this, he still had much to say about what was going on in American schools.

"Social justice is not about the outworking of Biblical justice," said Dr. Baucham to Fox News in May 2021. The conservative pastor went on to say that critical race theory has roots in the neo-Marxist movement that began in the 1930s. Here's what we know about his sudden cause of death.

News of Dr. Baucham's death was shared in a post to X from Founders Ministries, the organization he helped build. "We are saddened to inform friends that our dear brother, Voddie Baucham, Jr., has left the land of the dying and entered the land of the living," they wrote. He died after suffering an emergency medical incident. An exact cause of death has yet to be revealed.

In less than 24 hours, the post to X earned nearly three million views. The replies were filled with people whose lives were touched by Dr. Baucham's teachings. An individual who goes by Lloyd Legalist on X said that Dr. Baucham was his favorite living preacher. Another individual responded by saying they were just looking for a particular sermon from Dr. Baucham. "I thought we needed him more than ever, but the Lord knows best," they wrote. "Praying for Founders, his family, and friends."

Dr. Baucham is survived by his wife, Bridget, their children, and grandchildren. He frequently preached about the sanctity of marriage, telling men that they need to love their wives. "The Bible commands you to," he said in a sermon from May 2010. "It is absolutely inexcusable for a man who follows Christ to stop loving his wife," said Dr. Baucham, who went on to chastise men who claimed they couldn't lead with their emotions.

Back in February 2021, Dr. Baucham shared on Facebook that he was experiencing heart failure. "I had first noticed the symptoms at the end of December when Bridget and I returned to Dallas to bury her mother," he said. "I experienced fatigue and shortness of breath, among other things." He attributed his exhaustion to "heavy bags and restrictive masks," ignoring his hereditary heart defect, a previous bout of pneumonia, and untreated sleep apnea.

After an intense round of touring, Dr. Baucham couldn't ignore the signs any longer, so he contacted his family doctor. "The next morning, I was at a medical center doing a series of labs and tests that revealed the worst," explained Dr. Baucham. "I was experiencing full-blown heart failure." As of this writing, it's unclear if this diagnosis had anything to do with Dr. Baucham's cause of death, but it's hard to ignore.