By Alan O'Sullivan
Having served as general secretary of the Baptist Union of Great Britain since 1991, David Coffey is facing a new challenge-the presidency of the Baptist World Alliance.
Coffey, the sole nominee for BWA president, was elected July 30 to that wider international ministry during the Baptist World Centenary Congress.
He will continue as general secretary of the British Baptist union until 2006 and will end his BWA presidency in 2010. Interspersed are some personal landmarks of his own-he will celebrate both his 65th birthday and 40th wedding anniversary with his wife, Janet, in 2006.
Coffey has clear ideas as to where the BWA should go. His vision is based on an adherence to gospel essentials and “living in tolerance with one another.”
For him, motivating Baptists to be truly evangelical is fundamental.
“The key I think is to say that, however ancient the institution, is it flexible enough to be open to the winds of the Holy Spirit?”
He also wants to find ways of making sure the “legacy of leadership” is passed on to the next generation. “We've been led for a number of decades by gifted leaders … but we need to nurture a newer leadership, quite young like that in Eastern Europe. I think to empower them and those in many other parts of the world … would be one of my visions of the BWA for the 21st century.”
In order to make this vision a reality, Coffey is working on a global academy for emerging leaders within the Baptist family.
He also hopes the BWA will continue to be a voice for the voiceless and for the powerless.
“There has been a wonderful movement within the Baptist family to support the “Make Poverty History” campaign,” he says. “That technically comes to an end on Dec. 31, but the long walk to justice for the world's poor will go on.”
Unity is another of Coffey's themes. “There is a key need for unity in the family. We have sustained some deep disappointments in a major member body [the Southern Baptist Convention] departing from the Alliance, and I think that in a fractured world you need a united Baptist family.
“Jesus expects us to be united in order to bear a good witness,” he adds. “We're a very diverse family. And unless we ground our unity in Jesus Christ, we can't ground it anywhere else, because there is no other safe place.”
Reflecting on the SBC-BWA rift, he said, “I think we need to be able to distinguish between essential gospel truths and non-essentials which belong to being part of the Baptist family. Then we're allowing one another liberty in certain non-essential areas, and in all of that a willingness to disagree charitably.”
Coffey defines essential gospel truths as those concerning the Trinity and the cardinal doctrines concerning the incarnation, the life, death, resurrection and coming again of Jesus Christ. Non-essentials are “areas of discipleship where we have to exercise liberty.”
“In terms of church order, there will be differences of opinion, [such as] how we worship the Lord, who has the authority to minister-male and female or just male. I particularly affirm the ministry of male and female, but I have to recognize that not everyone shares that opinion.”
Associated Baptist Press
Alan O'Sullivan is features editor of the Baptist Times, the newsjournal of the Baptist Union of Great Britain.