'Great Commission Baptists' is proposed description of SBC
Arkansas Baptist News | Tuesday, February 21, 2012 at 6:20AM NASHVILLE, Tenn. – “Great Commission Baptists” is proposed description for the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC).
A task force appointed by SBC President and Georgia pastor Bryant Wright of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church, Marietta, Ga., recommended the new description for Southern Baptists unhappy with the current name of the convention. They will now have the option of adding another descriptor to their signs, stationary, or identification, or simply do nothing at all, according to a report of the SBC name change committee.
The announcement was made at the SBC Executive Committee meeting held at Feb. 20 in Nashville.
The Great Commission Baptists verbiage could use in addition to the SBC name or in place of it, Committee Chairman Jimmy Draper told Executive Committee members on Feb. 20.
The descriptor will not require a legal name change and so, if recommended to messengers in New Orleans in June and approved by those messengers, it would be available for immediate use. Since it does not change the denomination’s historic name there would be no need for it to be approved at a second convention.
The description is completely voluntary and is not binding on any congregation, state convention, or national entity.
Information for this story was provided by Joe Westbury, managing editor of The Christian Index, the official newsmagazine of the Georgia Baptist Convention.
Related story:
Task force: Keep legal SBC name, but adopt informal name, 'Great Commission Baptists' Read
Reader Comments (1)
At a time when money is tight with churches, why is there such a waiste of money to do what a church could already do if they wanted to. I do not see anything wrong with being called Southern Baptist even if I lived up North. That is what we are. I am not ashamed to called a Southern Baptist at this time. When many people in churches don't know what they believe or stand for the last thing we need to do is muddy up the waters just as they are started to clear up and let people see what they do believe. Surely they have better things to worry about like the millions going to Hell every day. thats just my thoughts on all this nonsense!