Oklahoma Southern Baptists flock to meeting
Hundreds of Oklahoma Southern Baptists headed south to Dallas this week for their denomination’s annual meeting.
The Rev. Joe Ligon, president of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, said he was pleased with the turnout of about 525 Oklahoma delegates called messengers who attended the gathering Tuesday and Wednesday at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in downtown Dallas.
“It seems we have a good contingent of Oklahoma pastors, and I’m glad to see that,” said Ligon, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Marlow, said Wednesday.
Ligon said it’s one thing for Oklahoma Baptists to take care of their local churches.
“That’s Job One. Then we have the opportunity to work associationally and in our statewide convention. That’s critical ministry,” he said.
However, it’s also important for local members of the denomination to work with others within their faith organization outside the state.
“We are a national organization — actually international— so the more voice we can have in the process, the better for Southern Baptists in general and Oklahoma Baptists in particular.”
Some meeting highlights
MAKING A STATEMENT: This year’s gathering included the approval of numerous resolutions, which are the denomination’s way of expressing opinions or concerns.
Three related resolutions took center stage, with one affirming the dignity and worth of women, one denouncing abuse and one calling pastors and ministry leaders to sexual purity.
The emphasis of the three resolutions came as the convention found itself confronting the dubious actions of several of its leaders. In May, prominent Southern Baptist seminary leader Paige Patterson was ousted from his post as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary amid allegations that he mishandled two allegations of rape that were made on the campus. Trustees of the seminary also cited Patterson’s discussion of a teen girl’s body and his advice to a woman experiencing domestic violence.
In April, Frank Page, president and chief executive of the convention’s Executive Committee, resigned after admitting to having a morally inappropriate relationship with a female church member at a church where he previously served as pastor.
Tuesday, convention
delegates made it clear that they felt women should be treated with dignity and respect, that no abuse should be tolerated and that clergy should avoid sexual infidelity.
“We affirm the gifts of women in their distinctive God-assigned roles, even as we continue to witness to Scripture’s teaching in a culture increasingly confused in matters of gender and sexuality,” the resolution “On the Dignity and Worth of Women” stated.
On decrying abuse, the delegates said “We deplore failures to protect the abused, failures that have occurred in evangelical churches and ministries, including such failures within our own denomination . ... Biblical headship blesses, honors and protects wives and children and does not require them to submit to sin or to abuse.”
Other resolutions also were worthy of note, many of them focusing on other hot button issues of the day such as gun violence, immigration, racism, opioid addiction and abuse.
In a resolution entitled “On Renouncing the Doctrine of the ‘Curse of Ham’ as a Justification for Racism,” Southern Baptists said many churches once openly endorsed the “false teaching” of the so-called “Curse of Ham” narrative, which “errantly” construed Genesis 9:25-27 to say that God ordained the descendants of Ham to be marked with dark skin and be relegated to a subordinated status based on race. The resolution said this doctrine has been used to enslave and continues to be used by white supremacists as a cloak to invoke God’s holy name “in unholy acts of demeaning, dishonoring and dehumanizing
certain people who bear His image.”
The statement said Southern Baptists “maintain and renew our public renunciation of racism in all its forms, including our disavowal of the ‘curse of Ham’ doctrine and any other attempt to distort or misappropriate the Bible to justify this evil.”
In a resolution on immigration, the messengers reiterated their desire to see immigration reform including an emphasis “on securing our borders and providing a pathway to legal status with appropriate restitutionary measures, maintaining the priority of family unity, resulting in an efficient immigration system that honors the value and dignity of those seeking a better life for themselves and their families.” The resolution also noted that any form of nativism, mistreatment or exploitation is inconsistent with the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
One of its own was touched by gun violence in November 2017 when a gunman opened fire at First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs in Sutherland Springs, Texas. In the mass shooting, 26 people were killed and 20 others were wounded. In a resolution decrying gun violence and mass shootings, messengers expressed solidarity with gun violence victims and commended the heroism of police and other first responders and bystanders who intervene in violent situations.
The resolution included a call for federal, state and local authorities to address the gun violence epidemic by “evaluating the social maladies that lead to escalations in gun violence and mass shootings” and a call for the same authorities to implement preventative measures
to reduce gun violence while operating in accordance with Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.”
“We affirm that it is the depravity, sinfulness and wickedness of the human heart that gives birth to gun violence and mass shootings,” the statement said.
DISASTER RELIEF: The denomination marked the 50th anniversary of its disaster relief organization. “Southern Baptist Disaster Relief represents the best of Southern Baptist cooperation and partnership in times of crisis and disaster, focusing on the local church and highlighting compassion and changed lives,” the convention said in a resolution. The statement noted that Southern Baptist Disaster Relief was named National Member of the Year by Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster or VOAD.
BE MY GUEST: Several wellknown guest speakers made presentations including financial expert and author Dave Ramsey and Jonathan Evans, chaplain of the Dallas Cowboys and son of popular Dallas area preacher Tony Evans. Ramsey gave a general presentation on Tuesday and joined in a panel discussion on stewardship on Wednesday.
NOD TO BILLY GRAHAM: Baptists put their feelings for the late Rev. Billy Graham, whom they described as a “beloved Southern Baptist,” in writing with a resolution commemorating his life and ministry. Graham died in February at age 99.
“Billy Graham’s relationship to the Southern Baptist Convention was one of affection, cooperation and church membership” and his life “modeled integrity modesty, lifelong fidelity to one’s spouse and humility, despite worldwide acclaim,” the statement said.