Southern Baptists narrowly vote against officially prohibiting congregations with female pastors.
In a surprising turn of events, a proposal to formally ban churches with women in pastoral roles within the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) was voted down by a majority of delegates. Although it received 61% of the votes, it failed to achieve the needed two-thirds supermajority. This reverses a previous decision from last year that was in favor of the official ban.
Despite the defeat, the SBC's doctrinal statement still maintains that the role of a pastor should be limited to men. Even those who opposed the ban maintain their support for this belief, emphasizing that it's not necessary to reinforce the statement in the constitution.
Opponents mentioned that the SBC already has the power to remove churches that recognize women pastors, as demonstrated by their past actions. Last year, they expelled a historic Virginia church and another one last night (Tuesday) that had women in leading pastoral positions.
This controversial motion, which was first approved last year, could've made it into the SBC's constitution had it passed. It aimed to exclude churches that have women in any pastoral positions, from lead pastors to associates, or even those who affirm them in such roles. Proponents believe it's essential based on biblical teachings, estimating that hundreds of Southern Baptist churches are led by women.
The proposed amendment would have stated that any church "in friendly cooperation" with the SBC – their way of describing affiliation – must ensure that "it affirms, appoints, or employs only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture."
Critics argued that the convention already possesses the power to remove such churches and that passing the amendment might cause unintended consequences, such as disproportionately targeting Black Southern Baptist congregations, which often have women on their pastoral staffs.
After a brief debate, the motion swiftly moved to a vote.
Ryan Fullerton, pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, stated that the measure wasn't meant to prevent women from serving in the church in non-pastoral roles, like children's ministers. However, he claimed the Bible clarifies that the pastoral office should be held by men.
Contrarily, Spence Shelton, lead pastor of Mercy Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, felt it was unnecessary. He observed that the convention had already demonstrated its willingness to deal with churches that don't align with their beliefs through the expulsions of churches like Virgina's historic one and California megachurch Saddleback.
Both Saddleback and the other, smaller Kentucky church had women in top pastoral positions. They challenged their ouster at the 2023 annual meeting but were met with a resounding "no" from the delegates.
Spokespersons for the amendment assert that it likely won't result in an imminent, widespread purge but expressed concerns about the potential burden it could place on SBC volunteers and staff, who might need to conduct multiple investigations of churches.
On a completely different subject, delegates also elected Pastor Clint Pressley of Hickory Grove Baptist Church in North Carolina as the next SBC president in a race against six candidates. The president is an influential figure in the conservative evangelical network of churches, responsible for presiding over the annual meeting and appointing committees.
Out of the remaining six candidates, Pressley secured 56% of the votes, while his nearest opponent, Dan Spencer from Tennessee, received 44%.
The SBC is a non-binding network that can't dictate how independent churches should fill their pastoral positions, but they can determine which churches are part of their organization. Last year, the SBC chose not to rehire Saddleback, one of their largest congregations, and a small Kentucky church over this issue, both featuring women in the top pastoral roles. Both churches appealed their expulsion to the 2023 annual meeting and were firmly rejected by the delegates.
Once a student at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary earning a Master's degree in Divinity, Pressley's journey didn't end there. He became the leader of Hickory Grove in 2011 after commanding other churches in Alabama and Mississippi. As if that wasn't impressive enough, Pressley held the position of first vice president of the SBC during 2014-15 and remained a member of various denomination boards.
Recently, messengers in a gathering met on Wednesday with a plan to eliminate the Southern Baptist Convention's public policy agency, known as the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. The reason: these individuals felt that the commission wasn't pushing hard enough in the conservative sector.
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The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) still maintains that the role of a pastor is limited to men, despite the proposal to officially ban churches with women in pastoral roles falling short of the required votes. Even though the SBC expelled several churches with women in leading pastoral positions last year and this year, some argue that passing the amendment might disproportionately affect Black Southern Baptist congregations, which often have women on their pastoral staffs.
