The Southern Baptist Convention

The Southern Baptist Convention is the world’s largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, serving over 16 million members in more than 42,000 congregations. The SBC became its own denomination in 1845 in Georgia after a regional split with the northern Baptists over multiple issues, namely slavery and missionary work. Although the SBC is still heavily concentrated in the south, it has lost some of its regional identity with 42 state conventions and member churches across the nation. The individual conversion experience is important to the SBC, which rejects infant baptism in favor of a public immersion in water. The SBC has manifested its theological perspectives in the Baptist Faith and Message, which was first written in 1925 but has been significantly revised twice, once in 1963 and again in 2000. Although the BFM is not a creed, and individual churches need not adopt it as a statement of faith, faculty in SBC-owned seminaries, such as the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, must affirm that their teachings are consistent with the BFM. The basics tenets of the BFM uphold the ideals of cooperation; a free church in a free state; the autonomy of the local church; the sanctity of life; missionary work; soul competency; and the equal participation of women in ministry. The BFM also affirms that all laypersons have the same rights as ordained ministers and can freely communicate with God, minister in the name of Christ, and interpret Scripture. Southern Baptists traditionally uphold two ordinances, the Lord’s Supper and Baptism. The SBC does not mandate how often the Lord’s Super is observed, and although communion varies by congregation, it is an important and central point to the faith. As previously mentioned, Southern Baptists reject infant baptism and instead adopt Believer’s baptism, wherein candidates profess their belief in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Baptism is only administered to individuals who have reached the “age of accountability” and choose to make a personal commitment to Jesus Christ, demonstrated through immersion in water. Traditionally, Southern Baptists worship in a less formal manner that does not make use of stated liturgy. Services generally include hymns, congregational prayer, choral music, reading of Scripture, a collection of offerings, and a sermon. The SBC is Congregationalist, meaning that each local church is autonomous and is not held formally accountable or responsible to higher levels of organization and authority. The SBC is a cooperative association in which churches pool resources, not a body controlled by an executive administration.