WASHINGTON (ABP) — The biggest news story among Baptists in 2007 was about an event that has not even happened yet — the announcement of an unprecedented meeting of Baptists from across North America — according to an informal survey of journalists in the Baptist media world.
The Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant, announced by former presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton — and the ensuing controversy stirred by its critics — was the top vote-getter in 2007's Associated Baptist Press survey. The meeting will be held in Atlanta Jan. 30-Feb. 1.
Huckabee
Here's the top-10 list, ac-cording to Baptist editors, journalists, bloggers and public-relations professionals who responded to ABP's call:
1. Carter, Clinton announce New Baptist Covenant gathering. Two Baptist ex-presidents hope the Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant draws as many as 20,000 Baptists from a broad array of racial, theological and political backgrounds to discuss ways to cooperate in promoting social justice.
But some Baptists criticized the event, complaining the Southern Baptist Conven-tion had not been invited to participate. Some said the event has a left-leaning political bias and is aimed at shoring up the presidential candidacy of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.
2. Former pastor Huckabee runs for White House. Mike Huckabee — former Arkansas governor, pastor and president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention — was considered by most pundits to be at best a second-tier candidate until support from disgruntled rank-and-file GOP evangelicals fueled a surge late in the year.
3. Klouda sues SWBTS, Patterson. Sheri Klouda, who was hired to teach Hebrew at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2002, was fired in 2006. She sued in March, claiming gender discrimination and breach of contract. Southwestern officials — including seminary president Paige Patterson — said having a woman training male pastors in the theology school was unbiblical and counter to seminary policy.
4. Strife on IMB board continues as trustees censure Burleson. The International Mission Board trustee board voted to censure trustee Wade Burleson and bar him from official participation in board activities. They claimed his blogging in opposition to two controversial IMB policies violated trustee rules. Burleson countered the rules themselves were un-Baptistic.
5. SBC messengers declare BF&M “sufficient.” One of Burleson's arguments is that IMB policies regarding the baptisms of missionary candidates and their beliefs about speaking in tongues went beyond the parameters of the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message. At the SBC annual meeting in June, he and like-minded bloggers encouraged the successful passage of a motion declaring the document the “sufficient” doctrinal guide for convention agencies. However, some SBC agency heads quickly noted they will continue to use other doctrinal restrictions in addition to the document.
6. Texas Baptists elect first female president. Messengers to the Baptist General Convention of Texas annual meeting elected retired Texas Woman's Missionary Union Executive Director Joy Fenner as president in a contested election. Fenner became the first woman to head the largest Baptist state convention.
7. (tie) Hammond elected NAMB president. After a tumultuous year at the SBC's domestic-missions agency, in which a previous president was dismissed after an investigation into his management and financial dealings, Geoff Hammond was recruited from his position as an executive with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia convention.
7. (tie) Turmoil in Missouri Baptist Convention. Disputes between rival conservative Baptist groups in Missouri led to the ouster of the state convention's executive director. Later, messengers to the Missouri Baptist Convention annual meeting registered their disapproval of the political faction that had forced David Clippard out, rejecting all the candidates endorsed by the Missouri Baptist Layman's Association.
9. Falwell dies at 73. Legendary Southern Baptist pastor and media impresario Jerry Falwell died suddenly in May, the first of an aging generation of conservative Christian leaders to pass away. Falwell was beloved by his followers and reviled by his critics, including many Baptists and other Christians, for his controversial statements about church-state separation and various groups he disfavored. However, he built both a massive church and an evangelical university from nothing.
10. North Carolina convention in turmoil. Years of pro-SBC fundamentalists consolidating their grip on the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina's leadership led most of the state convention's affiliated agencies — including three colleges and the state's Woman's Missionary Union — to distance themselves from the convention. In response, messengers to the annual meeting voted to defund WMU. They also expelled a prominent and historic Charlotte congregation, Myers Park Baptist Church, for its stance on accepting gays and lesbians.