When I was in seminary, a chapel speaker said that someone asked him one time, “If you were not a Southern Baptist, what would you be?” He said that his response was, “I would be ashamed.” This is the context in which I was born and bred. In 1998, I made the leap to what I believed was a more progressive Baptist tribe. Between 2005 and 2008, I moved even further into positions where I could work with a more diverse family of believers. Those experiences have been rich and rewarding. There are many reasons for my decision (one that I did not make lightly). One was the theological shift of the Southern Baptist Convention that sought to bring all of those in convention life—not only employees but churches—into lockstep. Baptists have not traditionally been a creedal people, but groups of Baptists have historically adopted confessions of faith such as The Philadelphia Confession (1742) and The New Hampshire Confe...
Comments from a Christ-follower on things that matter to him