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| What’s at Stake as Southern Baptists Move to Bar Female Pastors | What’s at Stake as Southern Baptists Move to Bar Female Pastors |
| (1 day later) | |
| The Southern Baptist Convention, a denomination that is often a bellwether for evangelical America, has expelled five churches from the convention this year over their appointment of women as pastors. | The Southern Baptist Convention, a denomination that is often a bellwether for evangelical America, has expelled five churches from the convention this year over their appointment of women as pastors. |
| The move to enforce a strict ban against women in church leadership comes as some evangelicals fear a liberal drift in their congregations and a departure from Scripture. | The move to enforce a strict ban against women in church leadership comes as some evangelicals fear a liberal drift in their congregations and a departure from Scripture. |
| Two of the expelled churches, Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., and Saddleback Church in Southern California, appealed to the denomination’s annual convention in New Orleans, but their appeals were overwhelmingly rejected in voting whose results were announced Wednesday. | Two of the expelled churches, Fern Creek Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., and Saddleback Church in Southern California, appealed to the denomination’s annual convention in New Orleans, but their appeals were overwhelmingly rejected in voting whose results were announced Wednesday. |
| At the same time, ultraconservatives were moving to amend the S.B.C. constitution to further restrict the role of women in leadership, by stating that a church could be Southern Baptist only if it “does not affirm, appoint or employ a woman as a pastor of any kind.” | At the same time, ultraconservatives were moving to amend the S.B.C. constitution to further restrict the role of women in leadership, by stating that a church could be Southern Baptist only if it “does not affirm, appoint or employ a woman as a pastor of any kind.” |
| The delegates are expected to vote on the proposal on Wednesday. Here is a guide to understanding what is at stake. | |
| With more than 47,000 churches and more than 13 million members, the S.B.C. remains the largest Protestant denomination in the United States. But its membership has been in decline. A 2022 report found that membership had dropped by about 3 percent annually over the last three years. |