Southern Baptists

[Jazzy]

The Southern Baptist Convention has refused to welcome Saddleback Church back into its fold, rejecting an appeal by the California megachurch over its February ouster for having women pastors.

Southern Baptist church representatives at their annual meeting here also rejected a similar appeal by a smaller church, Fern Creek Baptist of Louisville, Kentucky, which is led by a woman pastor.

The results of the Tuesday votes were announced Wednesday morning on the concluding day of the the two-day annual meeting of the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, whose statement of faith asserts that only qualified men can serve as pastors.

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Is there a theology difference between Baptists and southern Baptists?

 

[Messy]

 

[Albion]

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Is there a theology difference between Baptists and southern Baptists?

No, the Southern Baptist Convention is merely one of the many different Baptist conventions (non-Baptists would say "churches" but Baptists are strong on local autonomy, so "convention" is the term used for the wider association of these congregations). By reputation, the SBC is the leader among the more traditionalist or conservative Baptist groups.

It's also the single largest Protestant church body in the USA and has congregations across the country, not just in the South as the name might suggest.

 

[Josiah]

IMO, denominations can do as they choose. It's their business. The SBC forbids women pastors.... Saddleback violated that.... the SBC had no choice but to either change the position of the denomination or kick out that congregation. I give them credit for standing on their beliefs. But I'm not a part of the SBC and so it's really none of my business.



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[Albion]

IMO, denominations can do as they choose. It's their business. The SBC forbids women pastors.... Saddleback violated that.... the SBC had no choice but to either change the position of the denomination or kick out that congregation.

That's right, despite the other slant that the AP News article put on the matter.

The SBC was faced with either 1) abandoning its position on an important Biblical issue, and doing so for the sake of "agreeing to disagree," or else 2) retaining the church's historic position on the matter, one that the SBC shares with the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox churches, conservative Lutheran synods, traditional Anglican churches, and others. These represent the churches that a majority of the world's Christians belong to.

In the process, Pastor Rick Warren didn't show his best side IMHO when he reacted to the overwhelming vote of the messengers (delegates) by griping that the result amounted to them having voted for "conformity."
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