The opening session of the New Baptist Covenant was like being in church — a very large Baptist church with a huge congregation. African-American Baptists were dressed in their Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes with those fantastic church hats. The younger generation of Baptists were there and many in their best jeans. There were Asians and Latinos. Indeed it was a great gathering of numerous Baptist tribes from across North America. When the opening music began, the sights and sounds and the triumph of so many Baptist folks in one room sent chill bumps down the spine!
Fred Anderson
And in their midst was one Italian Baptist, Massimo Rubboli, who teaches North American history at the University of Genova and who is an authority on church history. He spent several days in Richmond as a visiting scholar under the invitation of the Center for Baptist Heritage & Studies. He conducted research on early Baptist missions work in Italy, using the collections of the Virginia Baptist Historical Society and the International Mission Board, SBC. He also wanted to cover the New Baptist Covenant meeting for the Italians.
In the friendly atmosphere of the Atlanta gathering, the Italian visitor was accorded press privileges, attended a news conference between the press and former President Jimmy Carter, and even grasped the hand of the world's most famous peanut farmer. He attended all the sessions and probably was less surprised by the ethnic diversity. Although small in number, Italian Baptists are used to an easy mix of ethnic and language groups within their congregations. Throughout the partnership between the Baptist General Association of Virginia and the Italian Baptist Union, it has been the African-American Baptist choirs from Virginia which have received the most enthusiastic responses from the Italians.
When the dust settled in Atlanta, this columnist asked Massimo Rubboli for his impressions. He said: “I appreciated very much the effort done by Carter and his associates to bring together different denominations because I think it was certainly time to overcome past division in order to work together and have a deep fellowship and cooperation on issues related to social problems. It is important for Baptists to have a common testimony and to present themselves doing a common service in relation to all the issues raised at the conference.”
The gathering inspired the visitor to want something similar among European Baptists. “I think we should do more to seek common ground and to work together. We have many European countries that have the challenge of immigration so we could cooperate on this issue as well as others.”
The remarkable characteristic of the New Baptist Covenant gathering was an obvious sense of unity with respect for diversity. The organizers crafted a three-day program which focused on concerns which should transcend Baptist tribal differences: social justice, poverty, immigration, peacemaking, helping the least among us, religious liberty, racial understanding, and others. There even was a preaching marathon featuring outstanding North American Baptist pulpiteers. There certainly were worshipful moments and inspiring testimonies.
All of the pre-gathering naysayers would have been disappointed. For all their prognostications, there were no promotions on behalf of political candidates or veiled references to either of the two major political parties. And such references were especially absent from the message delivered by the spouse of one of the leading candidates. Indeed, if anything, former President Bill Clinton with a low and hoarse voice spoke in a conversational style about his faith pilgrimage and especially about the rift among Southern Baptists. He spoke as one desiring to see reconciliation.
It stuck this listener that Clinton spent an inordinate amount of time analyzing the philosophical reasons for the deep chasm between those of Southern Baptist heritage. It appeared that the people from tribes beyond the fray sat stony-faced as if they may not have understood the story or even wondered why it mattered in a setting which included so many other tribes of Baptists. If I were a member of the Progressive National Baptist Convention or the Union d'Eglises Baptistes Francaises au Canada, I might have dozed off or contemplated why I had paid so much to come to Atlanta to hear about the split among Southern Baptists.
At the end of one of the long days, the multitude, estimated at 15,000, formed a steady stream down the corridors and up several escalators. Looking back, they formed an endless line of humanity. They appeared like the children of Israel, albeit well dressed, on a long search for the Promised Land for Baptists. They even have a Moses and his name is Jimmy. I am not certain whether his last name is Carter or Allen. At least these Baptist children at their Atlanta gathering rode by motor coaches and private automobiles to sleep the night in comfortable beds.
If there have to be regrets, it was that there were few opportunities for planned mixing between members of the various tribes. There were plenty of shouts of recognition between old friends. There were times for handshakes, smiles and nods. But it is downright difficult for 15,000 tribesmen to dialogue about ideas and directions. Maybe that is why there are tribal chieftains and why we depend upon a Moses figure.
There have been other gatherings. In 1936 a joint meeting of the SBC and the Northern Baptist Convention (now the American Baptist Churches in the USA) was held in St. Louis. (Some 3,700 Southern Baptists were present.) In 1964 the Third Baptist Jubilee was held in Atlantic City celebrating the 150th anniversary of the organizing of Baptist work on the national level. The SBC and ABC messengers were the primary attendees but there were representatives from other tribes. (Over 13,000 Southern Baptists attended their convention meeting.) History will record that in 2008 numerous tribes gathered in Atlanta with the largest tribe noticeably absent. They would have enjoyed the meeting.
Fred Anderson is executive director of the Virginia Baptist Historical Society and the Center for Baptist Heritage and Studies. He may be contacted at [email protected] or at P.O. Box 34, University of Richmond, VA 23173.