It’s an old joke. A man stood before the judge seeking to change his name. The judge spoke, “I can certainly understand that a name like Joe Halfwit could cause problems for you. What would you like your new name to be?” The petitioner replied, “Your honor, I would like to change my name from Joe to Trevor.”
It seems to me that I spend more and more of my time explaining to people, “No, I’m not that kind of Baptist.” Everyone, it seems, has drawn conclusions about what those “Baptists” are all about.
Jim White
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About a year ago, Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources, did an informal Twitter survey asking people to respond in less than 140 characters to the question, “What do you think when you hear ‘Southern Baptist’?” In a blog, Rainer listed the responses in the order he received them. Because of space limitations I have included only the first 15, but they are representative of the rest. Here’s what people said.
- Legalism, Controlling
- Fights, Legalists
- Hellfire and brimstone, Pharisees
- Fried chicken, Don’t drink
- Women who can’t wear pants, Disney boycott
- Cooperative Program, Banjos
- Adrian Rogers, Fundamentalism
- Passion, Missions
- Conservative, Conservative
- Strategic, Bickering
- Disney boycott, Pharisees
- Piano, organ, and robes, Irrelevant
- Boycotts, Vacation Bible School
- Legalism, Becoming more Reformed
- Narrow-minded, Fond memories, Sad memories
- Legalistic, Awesome dinners
Granted, this is not a scientific sampling, but I suspect that it reflects the attitude of Americans in general. Assuming this is true, nobody could possibly deny that Southern Baptists have a problem. Okay, problems.
Clearly, Southern Baptists have an image problem. To be sure, not every Southern Baptist, nor even every Southern Baptist church, fits into the categories listed above. I haven’t heard a rousing sermon against women wearing pants in a good long while, now. Still, the tarnished image affects us all.
Some of the responses above reflect a bit of prejudice, perhaps. Even so, the problems are deeper than mere perception. Actions taken by the Southern Baptist Convention have caused it to become known for being narrow-minded and bickering over nonessentials. Is it any wonder membership is declining? What emotionally or spiritually healthy person would want to be identified with narrow-minded legalistic legalism?
Of course, some good things were also said. Awesome dinners. Fried chicken. As testimony thereof, the Southern Baptist Convention is the only place I can go and feel positively thin. But the negative things said cannot be ignored.
But is this problem unique to the SBC? Certainly not.
We have all been appalled by the vocal rants and placard raves of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas. The website address pretty much says it all: www.godhatesfags.com. Members of this “Baptist” church travel to other states to share the love of Jesus by angrily yelling names at people and holding up posters saying, “You’re going to hell.” 1 Peter 3:15 must have been excised from their Bibles.
When newscasts depict their latest pickets, their name is always part of the report: Westboro Baptist ….
What do we do about being “Baptist” in a culture that identifies this proud old name with legalism, fighting and downright craziness?
Like the Anglicans of the 17th century who were part of a church that lost its way, some have chosen the Puritan path. They seek to purify the name Baptist by redeeming it. To be sure, other kinds of Baptists exist. Kinder, gentler Baptists. I wonder what would happen if we conducted Rainer’s experiment again, only this time substituting the name “American Baptist” for “Southern Baptist?”
Another entity taking the Puritan path is the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Members of this group pride themselves on their progressiveness and their inclusiveness. Unlike the SBC, the CBF welcomes, supports, and encourages ideas shunned by their more conservative brethren and sisters — ideas like women pastors, for example. Has this progressiveness caused newfound respect for the denomination? Time will tell.
Again, like the Anglicans, others have chosen to separate. These modern separatists seek to distance themselves from the baggage associated with being Baptist. They choose to be known as “community churches” or to disassociate themselves from their Baptist family in other ways. Across the country examples are too numerous to list. Regardless what they call themselves, many of these churches espouse Baptist principles and often engage in Baptist practices whether or not they officially relate to a Baptist body of any kind.
What about Virginia Baptists? Should we separate from the name or attempt to purify it?
Perhaps no other group has such justifiable reason to take pride in our Baptist identification. Our forebears literally spilled their blood to rescue the name from the slurs and smears of those who considered Baptists to be ignorant cult members. They did this through firm faith and hard work. They engaged in clean living and selfless giving. They were uncompromising in their core convictions, but learned to agree to disagree on the non-essentials.
With strength of character they refused to be pushed around, but with gentleness of spirit, they refused to give offense (well, mostly). In short, by living like Christ’s own people, they first earned the respect, then the support and finally the participation of many who had once ridiculed them. We have rescued the name in times past.
Should Virginia Baptists change our name? The judge says, “I can understand why your name has created problems for you. What would you like to be called?” And the reply sounds, “Your honor, we seek to be known as Global Baptists.”
Don’t get me wrong. I’m a Virginian. Although my mother happened to be living beyond the borders of the Commonwealth at the time of my birth, by calling, circumstance, conviction and choice I’m a Virginian. But being a Virginia Baptist is bigger than the boundaries of a state and broader than the geographical confines of a Commonwealth.
Perhaps it is time to think globally or glocally.
The time may come when with deep regrets we must conclude that our name, Baptist, cannot be cleansed of its stains. Should that time ever come, we will have cause to separate ourselves from it. After all, it is only the name of Christ we cannot live without. But maybe for now we should leave our family name as it is and consider changing our other name.
Jim White is editor of the Religious Herald.