The end of talks about tighter bonds between Baylor University and the Baylor College of Medicine may be for the best, considering the silly misconceptions that some of the College of Medicine faculty obviously fell prey to, but we do see a silver lining in what could have been a beautiful friendship.

The fact that the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston even considered strengthening those ties suggests its leadership shrewdly views Baylor University as an academic force to be reckoned with, a fast-growing university determined to secure a spot among the finest research-oriented universities in the land, capitalizing on such anchors as the Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative, set to open in 2012.

We thought any partnership — what little has been released about it — offered plenty of potential for the BCM, hobbled in recent years by financial woes worsened by a lackluster economy. The situation is reportedly serious enough that college officials plan to halt construction of the BCM’s hospital once the building’s shell is done.

We’re happy to learn from BCM interim President William Butler that the financial picture is improving and that all seem agreed that BCM should retain its independence, even as it holds out the possibility of future negotiations with Baylor University.

Sadly, some BCM faculty who signed a petition opposing any partnership with Baylor University swallowed old stereotypes about fundamentalism on the loose at Baylor University when even some of the university’s chief critics could have told them fundamentalism has been battered by moderate forces on campus for years.

Even our colleagues at the Houston Chronicle, an otherwise fine newspaper, gave credence to this absurd notion.

Yes, fundamentalism has been a topic of concern on campus from time to time, just as it has been in other corners of our nation. But Baylor’s famous machinations at the Baptist General Convention of Texas in 1991 to prevent any fundamentalist takeover of the university would seem to have settled the matter on any broad scale.

When controversy has erupted about fundamentalism, it’s because most of the Baylor family remains vigilant to prevent such sentiments from creeping into the life and academic domain of the university. Meanwhile, its recently announced $30 million research consortium, set to partner Baylor students and researchers with high-profile and start-up companies, and its $103 million, 153-lab science building testify to its ambitious, high-tech agenda.

If such talks arise again, we sincerely hope some of the BCM faculty are better-versed on the truth than they were last month.