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Southern Baptist Convention
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The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a United States-based, Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the US with over 16 million members and more than 42,000 churches.
The word Southern in Southern Baptist Convention stems from its having been founded and rooted in the Southern United States. The SBC became a separate denomination in 1845 in Augusta, Georgia, following a regional split with northern Baptists over the issues of slavery and missions. Since the 1940s, the SBC has lost some of its regional identity. While still heavily concentrated in the US South, the SBC has member churches across America and has 42 state conventions.http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN1033434120080610 Southern Baptists put a heavy emphasis on the individual conversion experience including a public immersion in water for baptism and a corresponding rejection of infant baptism. SBC churches are evangelical in doctrine and practice. Specific beliefs based on biblical interpretation can vary somewhat due to the congregational governance system that gives autonomy to individual local Baptist churches. HistoryOriginsMost early Baptists in the British colonies came from England in the seventeenth century, when the established Church of England persecuted them for their distinct religious views. Baptists like Roger Williams and Dr. John Clarke immigrated to New England in the 1630s.The oldest Baptist church in the South, First Baptist Church, Charleston, South Carolina, was organized in 1682 under the leadership of Rev. William Screven. A Baptist church was formed in Virginia in 1715 through the preaching of Robert Norden, and another in North Carolina in 1727 through the ministry of Paul Palmer. By 1740, there were about eight Baptist churches in the colonies of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia, with an estimated 300-400 members.Baker, Robert A. "Southern Baptist Beginnings," 2001 Baptist History and Heritage Society. Online at: http://www.baptisthistory.org/sbaptistbeginnings.htm New members, both black and white, were converted chiefly by northern Baptist preachers who traveled in the South during the Great Awakening. Baptists welcomed African Americans to more active roles than did other denominations. As a result, black congregations and churches were founded in South Carolina, Virginia and Georgia before the Revolution. In Virginia and most southern colonies before the Revolution, the Anglican Church was the state-established church and was supported by general taxes, as it was in Britain. It opposed the rapid spread of Baptists in the South. Particularly in Virginia, many Baptist preachers were prosecuted for "disturbing the peace" by preaching without licenses from the Anglican Church. Both Patrick Henry and James Madison defended Baptist preachers prior to the American Revolution in cases considered significant to the history of religious freedom. In 1779, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, enacted in 1786 by the Virginia General Assembly. Madison later took his own ideas and the ideas encompassed in this document about the importance of religious freedom to the Constitutional Convention, where he ensured they were incorporated into the constitution. Triennial ConventionBy the mid-1800s, numerous social, cultural, economic, and political differences existed among business owners of the North, farmers of the West, and planters of the South. These differences led to the formation of three separate Baptist national societies: the Triennial Convention, the Home Mission Society, and Baptists in the South.Slavery was the most critical issue among Baptists. Early Baptist and Methodist evangelicals in the South before the Revolution had promoted the view of the common man's equality before God, which embraced African Americans. They challenged the hierarchies of class and race, and urged planters to abolish slavery. Baptists struggled to gain a foothold in the South. The next generation of Baptist preachers accommodated themselves to the society. Rather than challenging the gentry on slavery, they began to interpret the Bible as supporting its practice. In the two decades after the Revolution, preachers abandoned their pleas that slaves be manumitted. Many Baptist preachers even wanted to preserve the rights of ministers themselves to be slaveholders. The Triennial Convention and the Home Mission Society reaffirmed their neutrality concerning slavery. Georgia Baptists decided to test the claimed neutrality by recommending a slaveholder to the Home Mission Society as a missionary in the South. Home Mission Society's board refused to appoint a slaveholder as a missionary, a decision that the Baptists in the South saw as an infringement of their rights. A secondary issue that disturbed the churches in the South was the perception that the American Baptist Home Mission Society did not appoint a proportionate number of missionaries to the southern region of the U.S. This was likely a result of the Society's not appointing slave owners as missionaries. Baptists in different regions also preferred different types of denominational organization. Baptists in the north preferred a loosely structured society composed of individuals who paid annual dues, with each society usually focused on a single ministry. Baptists in southern churches preferred a more centralized organization of congregations composed of churches patterned after their associations, with a variety of ministries brought under the direction of one denominational organization. Formation of the SBCThe increasing tensions and discontent of Baptists from the South regarding national criticism of slavery and issues over missions led to their withdrawal from the national Baptist organizations. They met at the First Baptist Church of Augusta, in May 1845. At this historic meeting they formed a new convention, naming it the Southern Baptist Convention. They elected William Bullein Johnson (1782-1862) as the new convention's first president. He had served as president of the Triennial Convention in 1841.Consequences and repentance of early racismResidual effects of the decision to separate from other Baptists in defense of white supremacy and the institution of slavery have been long lived. A survey by SBC's Home Mission Board in 1968 showed that only eleven percent of Southern Baptist churches would admit Americans of African descent. African Americans gathered to develop their own churches early on, including some before the American Revolution, to practice their distinct form of American Christianity away from attempts by whites at control. Within the Baptist denomination, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, African Americans established separate associations.During the conservative resurgence, the Southern Baptist Convention of 1995 voted to adopt a resolution renouncing its racist roots and apologizing for its past defense of slavery. The resolution repenting racism marked the denomination's first formal acknowledgment that racism played a role in its early history. By the early 21st century there were increasing numbers of ethnically diverse congregations within the convention. In 2008, almost 20 percent were estimated to be majority African-American, Asian or Hispanic and there were an estimated one million African-American members. Historical controversiesDuring its history, the Southern Baptist Convention has had several periods of major internal controversy. The denomination's lack of a hierarchical form of government (polity) lends itself toward public displays of disagreement.
TodayThe SBC has grown from its regional, sectionalist roots to a major force in American and international Christianity. There are Southern Baptist congregations in every state and territory in the United States, though the greatest numbers remain in the Southern United States, its traditional stronghold. President George W. Bush meets with the leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention in the Oval Office at the White House. Pictured with the President are Dr. Morris Chapman, left, Dr. Frank Page and his wife Dayle Page. Theology and practiceThe general theological perspective of the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention is represented in the Baptist Faith and Message (BF&M).http://www.sbc.net/bfm/bfmcomparison.asp Comparison of 1925, 1963, 2000 versions The BF&M was first drafted in 1925. It was revised significantly in 1963 and again in 2000, with the latter revision being the subject of much controversy. The BF&M is not considered to be a creed, such as the Nicene Creed. Members are not required to adhere to it. Churches belonging to the SBC are not required to use it as their statement of faith or doctrine, though many do in lieu of creating their own statement. Despite the fact that the BF&M is not a creed, faculty in SBC-owned seminaries and missionaries who apply to serve through the various SBC missionary agencies must affirm that their practices, doctrine, and preaching are consistent with the BF&M.
OrdinancesSouthern Baptists observe two ordinances: the Lord's Supper and Believer's baptism. The denomination makes a theological distinction between their ordinances and the more familiar term sacraments since the latter implies a connection to one's salvation.The Lord's SupperSouthern Baptists observe the Lord's Supper with no established frequency. Each local church decides whether it is to be observed monthly, quarterly, etc. Churches tend to use small individual glasses instead of a common cup. Non-alcoholic grape juice is most often served instead of wine. Both leavened and unleavened bread may be served but the unleavened variety is served most frequently.BaptismSouthern Baptists practice Believer's baptism, also known as credo-baptism (Latin for "I believe"). Candidates for baptism must profess belief in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Southern Baptists maintain the historic Baptist practice of administering baptism only to persons who have reached the "age of accountability", and who have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. They hold to the historic Baptist belief that immersion is the only valid mode of baptism. Candidates for membership in an SBC church must already be or become baptized believers. Some SBC congregations will accept previous baptisms by immersion from other denominations that they consider of "like faith and order" as being valid, provided that they were performed after the individual accepted Christ for salvation.Gender-based rolesBeginning in the early 1970s and operating in reaction to the perceived agenda of various “women’s liberation movements”, the Southern Baptist Convention, along with several other historically conservative Baptist groups, began corporately asserting the propriety of so-called traditional gender roles. Specifically, the SBC passed a series of resolutions at its annual meetings affirming a complementarian view of marriage and a patriarchal view of ordained Christian ministry. In 1998, the complementarian understanding of marriage was appended to the 1963 version of the Baptist Faith and Message by means of an official amendment as Article XVIII, The Family, and in the 2000 revision of this same document support for a male-only pastorate, the long-standing practice of the very great majority of SBC churches, was integrated into Article VI on the nature of the church.As individual churches affiliated with the SBC are autonomous, local congregations cannot be compelled to adopt a male-only pastorate. (The SBC contains no mechanism to trigger the automatic expulsion of congregations that adopt practices or theology contrary to the BF&M.) However, some SBC churches that have installed women as their pastors have been excluded from membership in their local associations of Baptist churches, and a smaller number have been expelled from their state conventions. This movement towards an ever increasingly official ban on women in the pastorate proved to be one of the most obvious issues in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship's (CBF) decision to break from the SBC. Worship servicesMost Southern Baptists observe a low church form of worship that is less formal and uses no stated liturgy. Worship services usually include: hymns; prayer; choral music by a choir, soloist, or both; the reading of Scripture; the collection of offerings; a sermon; and an invitation to respond to the sermon. Recently, many churches have incorporated various instruments and styles of music into their worship services (see contemporary worship). People may respond during the invitation by receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and begin Christian discipleship, to enter into vocational ministry, to join the church, or make some other public decision.StatisticsMembershipThe SBC claims to have more than 16.6 million members in 44,000 churches throughout the US. One internal study by the SBC shows that on average 38 percent of the membership (6,138,776 members, guests and non-member children) attend their churches' primary worship services. Southern Baptists do not track church attendance by numbers in the primary worship service; they track attendance through participation in Sunday School where 4,154,270 Convention members (less than 26 percent of SBC total membership) attend. Additionally, Sunday School enrollment in the United States decreased by 123,817 members between 2007 and 2008.The SBC has 1,200 local associations and 41 state conventions and fellowships covering all 50 states and territories of the United States. Through their Cooperative Program, Southern Baptists support thousands of missionaries in the United States and worldwide. They fielded over 10,000 missionaries in 2005. TrendsData from church sources and independent surveys indicate that since 1990 membership of SBC churches has declined as a proportion of the American population. Historically, the Convention grew throughout its history until 2007 when membership decreased by a net figure of nearly 40,000 members. Total membership of about 16.2 million was flat over the same period, falling by 38,482, or 0.2 percent. An important indicator for the health of the denomination is new baptisms which have decreased every year for seven of the last eight years, and as of 2008 have reached their lowest levels since 1987.This decline in membership and baptisms has prompted some SBC researchers to describe the Convention as a "denomination in decline". Former SBC president Frank Page declared that if current conditions continue half of all SBC churches will close their doors permanently by the year 2030.http://www.christianindex.org/4421.article This assessment is supported by a recent survey of SBC churches which indicated that 70% of all SBC churches are declining or are plateaued with regards to their membership. The decline of the SBC became an issue leading up to the June 2008 Annual Convention. Former SBC researcher, Curt Watke noted four reasons for the decline of the Southern Baptist Convention based on his research: increase in immigration, decline in growth among predominantly Anglo (white) churches, the aging of the current membership, and a decrease in the percentage of younger generations participating in church life. A failure to aggressively attract minorities also has been seen as a factor hurting Southern Baptist recruitment numbers. The actual decline in SBC membership may be more pronounced than these statistics indicate because Baptist churches, unlike United Methodist, Presbyterian and Evangelical Lutheran congregations, are not required to remove inactive members from their rolls. In addition, hundreds of large moderate congregations have shifted their primary allegiance to other Baptist groups such as the American Baptist Churches USA or the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, but have continued to remain nominally on the books of the Convention—and their members are thus counted in the SBC's totals—although these churches no longer participate in the annual SBC meeting or make more than the minimum financial contributions. OrganizationAs is true of most Baptists, Southern Baptists' typical form of government is congregationalist: each local church is autonomous without formal lines of responsibility to organizational levels of higher authority.Baptist churches believe strongly in the autonomy of the local church. The Convention is therefore conceived as a cooperative association by which churches can pool resources rather than as a body with any administrative or ecclesiastical control over local churches. It maintains a central administrative organization in Nashville, Tennessee. The Executive Committee, as it is called, exercises authority and control over seminaries and other institutions owned by the Southern Baptist Convention. However, the Executive Committee has no authority over its affiliated state conventions, local associations, individual churches or members. The Convention's confession of faith, the Baptist Faith and Message, technically is not binding on churches or members due to the autonomy of the local church. Politically and culturally, Southern Baptists tend to be conservative. Most oppose the use of alcohol as a beverage, homosexual activity and abortion with few exceptions. There are four levels of SBC organization: the local congregation, the local association, the state convention, and the national convention. Pastor and deaconGenerally, Baptists recognize only two scriptural offices: pastor-teacher and deacon. According to the Baptist Faith and Message, the office of pastor is limited to men based on certain New Testament scriptures. The Southern Baptist Convention passed a resolution in the early 1980s recognizing that offices requiring ordination (pastor and deacon) are restricted to men.Deacons of each church are elected by the congregation. In some congregations, deacons function much like a board of directors or an executive committee authorized to make important decisions. Such congregations typically retain the right to vote on major decisions, such as purchasing or selling property, large spending, and the hiring or firing of pastors and other paid ministers. In recent decades, some SBC congregations have shifted the role of deacons to less governance and more ministering and nurturing responsibilities. One such model is the Deacon Family Ministry Plan. In this model, the number of families in a local church is divided roughly among the active deacons. Each deacon is assigned responsibility for providing pastoral care and other spiritual guidance and assistance for the families assigned. Local congregationEach congregation is independent and autonomous. Thus, each local congregation is free to:
An exception to the above are certain smaller congregations called mission churches. Mission churches are sponsored by one or more larger congregations or by Baptist associations. The ordinary goal is for each mission church to become self-supporting and thus become an independent and autonomous church. A mission church is often created to reach a particular demographic group, such as residents of a new real estate development, a particular ethnic group, or young families. Local associationMost individual congregations choose to affiliate with Baptist associations which are generally organized within certain defined geographic areas within a state, such as a county. The prior general rule was that only one association existed in a specific geographical area, did not cross state lines (unless a state convention consisted of multiple states), and did not accept churches from outside that area. For many years, particularly within metropolitan areas, numerous associations have existed within the same county. While some believe the conservative takeover of the SBC in the 1980s served as a catalyst to multiple associations, the paradigm in the SBC had existed prior to 1980.The primary goal of many associations is evangelism and church planting (i.e., assisting churches in starting mission churches). Even with related ministries, such as food pantries or crisis pregnancy centers, associational volunteers and staff who conduct the ministries often share an evangelistic message along with material and practical assistance. An association cannot direct the affairs of member churches but can set requirements for continued fellowship. For example, an association may initiate the "dis-fellowshipping" (expulsion) from the association of any church with which the association disagrees, generally in areas of contentious practice or doctrine, such as: charismatic doctrine; a local church's ordination of women or sanctioning homosexuality (such as through ordination or blessing of same-sex unions); or acceptance of "alien immersion" (baptism with a method, such as sprinkling, not consistent with the typical Baptist requirement of immersion). Association meetings are generally held annually. The association is free to set the time and place, as well as determining the number of messengers, or delegates, each church may send. Each church is allowed a minimum number; the general practice—at the association level and at the higher levels as well—is that larger churches that provide more financial support are allowed more messengers. State conventionsIndividual congregations and associations may choose to affiliate into state conventions. With the exception of Texas and Virginia, which have two conventions, each state has only one convention. Some smaller states, in terms of number of SBC congregations, are affiliated into a larger multi-state convention.As with associations, the primary goal is evangelism and church planting. The state conventions support educational institutions, often institutions of higher education, and may support retirement and children's homes. As with associations, the state convention cannot direct individual church affairs but can set requirements for affiliation. It can also disfellowship churches at its discretion. The state convention generally meets annually, sets the time and place, and determines the number of messengers allowed per church. State conventions associated with the SBC include:
Additional supported and affiliated conventions:
Annual MeetingThe Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting consists of messengers from cooperating churches. In the month of June, they gather to confer and determine the programs, policies, and budget of the SBC. Each church may be represented by up to 10 messengers, the exact number being determined by the church's number of members and contributions to the national SBC organization.The following quotation from the SBC Constitution explains the membership and description of messengers to each annual meeting: Affiliated organizationsMissions agenciesThe Southern Baptist Convention was organized in 1845 primarily for the purpose of creating a mission board to support the sending of Baptist missionaries. The North American Mission Board, or NAMB, (founded as the Domestic Mission Board, and later the Home Mission Board) in Alpharetta, Georgia serves missionaries involved in evangelism and church planting in the U.S. and Canada, while the International Mission Board, or IMB, (originally the Foreign Mission Board) in Richmond, Virginia sponsors missionaries to the rest of the world.Among the more visible organizations within the North American Mission Board is Southern Baptist Disaster Relief. In 1967, a small group of Texas Southern Baptist volunteers helped victims of Hurricane Beulah by serving hot food cooked on small "buddy burners." In 2005, volunteers responded to 166 named disasters, prepared 17,124,738 meals, repaired 7,246 homes, and removed debris from 13,986 yards. Southern Baptist Disaster Relief provides many different types: food, water, child care, communication, showers, laundry, repairs, rebuilding, or other essential tangible items that contribute to the resumption of life following the crisis – and the message of the Gospel. All assistance is provided to individuals and communities free of charge. SBC DR volunteer kitchens provide more than 80% of the food distributed by the Red Cross in major disasters. SBC seminaries and collegesThere are six SBC theological seminaries devoted to religious instruction and ministry preparation.
There are multiple Baptist universities and colleges throughout the United states. See Southern Baptist-related Schools, Colleges, and Universities for further information. Other SBC organizations
Prominent Southern BaptistsThis list does not assume that all are active in the SBC or living their lives according to Southern Baptist principles. The following well-known individuals identified themselves as Southern Baptists at some time:Current members
Former members
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Used under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License; additional terms may apply.
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