By Greg Warner
At least 12,000 Baptists worldwide will make their way to Birmingham, England, for the Baptist World Congress July 27-31, apparently undeterred by recent terror attacks in London.
Registration for the congress climbed above the 12,000 mark July 13, congress director Emmett Dunn told Associated Baptist Press. Only three people have cancelled since the London bombings, he said, while hundreds of others-most from the United States-continue to register for the centenary congress, marking the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Baptist World Alliance.
The BWA, a fellowship of 210 Baptist unions worldwide, was formed in London in 1905.
Pre-registrants for the 2005 meeting represent 107 countries, Dunn said. The largest group-more than 3,000-are from the United Kingdom. Approximately 2,000 are coming from North America, including more than 250 from Virginia.
But the 2005 congress won't be the largest ever. That distinction goes to the 1980 meeting, when 15,000 people gathered in Toronto. But this will be the largest event held at the International Convention Center in Birmingham, which has a capacity of 13,000.
Dunn said about 600 Baptists from Africa who want to attend have been rejected for travel visas to England. BWA has appealed those decisions to the British Consulate. So far, 62 Nigerians have been told their visa applications will be reconsidered, Dunn said, and others may follow.
Three BWA leaders issued a joint statement July 8, one day after the London attacks, in which four bombs killed more than 50 people in subway trains and a bus. They explained the decision to go ahead with the congress.
“We believe in the face of appalling evil we need to show our strong faith in Jesus Christ as Lord,” said the leaders-BWA general secretary Denton Lotz, outgoing president Billy Kim of South Korea, and David Coffey, incoming president and general secretary of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, which is playing host to the centenary congress.
Baptists attending the congress will show “solidarity with the suffering of the world,” they continued. “Our witness will be made even more powerful by the testimony of brothers and sisters from around the world who have experienced either persecution or violent acts of terrorism.”
Meanwhile, two days later, a security scare emptied central Birmingham of 20,000 people July 9. Police responded to two suspicious packages, neither of which proved to be a threat, and evacuated the downtown pub and restaurant district on its busiest night of the week.
The Baptist World Congress will take place in the same section of Birmingham. However, law enforcement officials told congress organizers that Birmingham is not a target of terrorists, according to the latest intelligence. Nonetheless, additional police foot patrols will be added during the congress, said Dunn, a Liberian working for the Virginia-based BWA.
“We try to control the controllable” and take the rest on faith, Dunn told ABP. He said organizers have been encouraged by the number of people who have contacted the BWA to express support for continuing the 100th anniversary meeting. Messages have come from Baptists in Germany, Nepal and Bangladesh, among others. “I just think we need to encourage our people to lift the congress up in prayer and concentrate on the spiritual,” Dunn said.
Lotz, the BWA head, added, “Our very travel to Britain from every corner of the earth will be a testimony to our belief that faith is greater than fear, hope greater than despair and love greater than hate.”
In a letter to British Prime Minister Tony Blair among others, Lotz said, “It is particularly sad when such tragedies are done in the name of religion.” But he pointed out Baptists-and particularly British Baptists-have championed the cause of religious liberty, so that Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and people of all other faiths can practice their religion freely. “We shall continue to defend religious freedom, separation of church and state, and respect for men and women of whatever faith tradition,” Lotz wrote.
The Baptist World Congress, held only once every five years, is a time of fellowship and training for leaders of the 31 million Baptists worldwide affiliated with BWA. Keynote speakers for the meeting are Rick Warren, record-setting author of The Purpose-Driven Life and pastor of Saddleback Community Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of the country's largest Baptist churches, and former U.S. president Jimmy Carter.
At the center of the five-day meeting are the evening gatherings, that feature worship, testimonies and cultural celebrations. The daytime schedule includes Bible studies, topical workshops and interest groups. Those unable to attend the congress can view video highlights on the group's website, bwanet.org.
Prior to the congress, about 800 women from 63 countries-a third from Africa-will gather in Birmingham for the BWA Women's Leadership Conference.
Several elements of the Baptist World Congress will illustrate the BWA's commitment to orthodox faith-more noticeable because of recent accusations from some Southern Baptists that the BWA is too influenced by liberal members.
During the opening session, participants will be asked to recite the Apostle's Creed-a surprise to some since Baptists historically eschew creeds. The reading is not binding doctrine, however, and it recreates an element of the original BWA gathering in 1905.
Also, the BWA will use the congress to launch a five-year evangelism emphasis, with a theme of “Jesus Christ, Living Water,” to encourage and train member bodies to evangelize their countries. A one-day training session will precede the congress.
This is the first congress ever without participation from the world's largest Baptist body, the Southern Baptist Convention, which withdrew its membership last year in a dispute over the organization's direction.
Two statewide groups traditionally represented by the SBC-the Baptist General Association of Virginia and the Baptist General Convention of Texas-are expected to be voted into membership during the congress. Both sought representation when the SBC withdrew. Their applications will be considered by the General Council, which meets July 27 and conducts much of the organization's business.
The BWA has been trying to recoup the SBC's $425,000 in annual support and has looked for help from friendly state and national groups in the U.S., as well as individual churches.
Increased contributions have been sent or promised from the American Baptist Churches-USA, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, and the Virginia and Texas conventions, among others.
Lotz said new contributions made up for the money lost when the SBC cut took effect in the last quarter of 2004, presumably about $106,000.
He said the BWA is trying to put the conflict with the SBC in the past.
“Finances are such a minor concern at this stage that we would rather emphasize the great spiritual event that the congress will be and the impetus for the next century of the BWA,” he said. “… Our member bodies know that we are the Baptist world family, and that means we are evangelical, Bible-believing and standing on Christ, the solid rock.”
Associated Baptist Press
Greg Warner is executive editor of ABP.