INDIANAPOLIS — SBC messengers at the 2024 annual meeting approved the reports of three groups that were formed at last year’s annual meeting in New Orleans.
Here’s a closer look at what transpired:
ARITF recommendations
Messengers overwhelmingly approved two recommendations brought forward by the SBC Abuse Reform and Implementation Task Force (ARITF).
The recommendations hand the priorities identified by ARITF over to the SBC Executive Committee to further implement. The move closes a chapter of Southern Baptist life marked by three consecutive annual meetings where new task forces were appointed to make recommendations toward and implement abuse reforms.
Those recommendations were:
• That the messengers of the 2024 Southern Baptist Convention affirm the objectives outlined in the 2024 Report of the Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force, in particular, 1) the expansion of the Ministry Toolkit, 2) the establishment of the Ministry Check website, and 3) the creation of a permanent home for abuse prevention and response, but the Convention does not require the use of any particular organization outside the Convention’s entities or commissions to accomplish these objectives.
• That the messengers of the 2024 Southern Baptist Convention urge the Executive Committee to work earnestly to complete the implementation of these objectives by recommending a structure adequate to support these objectives, by recommending the allocation of funds sufficient for the effective accomplishment of them, and to report back to the messengers to the 2025 SBC Annual Meeting on actions taken in response.
In the Executive Committee on June 10, EC president and CEO Jeff Iorg said he will lead the EC to move quickly on the recommendations of the ARITF.
GCR Evaluation Task Force recommendations
Messengers adopted the six recommendations proposed by the Great Commission Resurgence Evaluation Task Force with one slight amendment during the SBC Annual Meeting’s Tuesday evening session June 11.
Recommendation 2, which called for simplifying the Annual Church Profile (ACP), added another point clarifying the request for a church to provide its total amount of Cooperative Program giving.
One messenger brought forward an amendment regarding two questions on the ACP profile asking churches about screening and training processes for staff and volunteers regarding sexual abuse prevention.
The proposed amendment to strike those two questions was ultimately struck down by messengers and thus remained in the recommendation.
In speaking with reporters after the report, chairman Jay Adkins said that “there were some really good intentions with the GCR” and Southern Baptists’ struggles to increase baptisms and other areas is not unique.
A postmodern — even post-Christian — world makes that more of a challenge. “Culturally, there is a natural dip,” he said. “Scripture speaks to these sorts of issues as they relate to the church.”
Cooperation Group recommendations
Messengers also approved four recommendations from the Cooperation Group, which was tasked in 2023 to study the issue of how Article 3 of the SBC Constitution references the Baptist Faith and Message.
The recommendations included:
• To ensure that edits or amendments to The Baptist Faith & Message follow the same process as amendments to the Constitution (two-thirds vote, two consecutive years), we recommend the Executive Committee propose changes to our governing documents for the Convention’s consideration at the 2025 Annual Meeting.
• To ensure that the sole authority for seating messengers is vested in the messenger body, we recommend the Executive Committee propose changes to our governing documents for the Convention’s consideration at the 2025 Annual Meeting. We also recommend celebrating churches seating messengers for the first time.
• To ensure the fidelity of our trustees to our doctrinal confession, we recommend the Executive Committee propose changes to our governing documents for the Convention’s consideration at the 2025 Annual Meeting to require the Committee on Nominations to nominate as entity trustees and standing committee members only those candidates who affirm the Convention’s adopted statement of faith
• To clarify our cooperative unity, we recommend the Executive Committee evaluate the usefulness and accuracy of a public list of churches and report their updates at the 2025 Annual Meeting.
The task force was called for by messengers at the 2023 SBC annual meeting and named last summer by then-president Bart Barber. B&R
