ANAHEIM, Calif. (BP)—Southern Baptists publicly lamented the harm their “actions and inactions have caused to survivors of sexual abuse” in a resolution adopted by messengers to the 2022 SBC annual meeting in Anaheim, Calif.
Messengers agreed sexual abuse is an abomination before God that grieves Christ, abandons the demands of Scripture, violates the image of God and “causes harm to those who are entrusted to the church’s care and protection.”
The resolution said sexual abuse perpetrated by pastoral leaders or church members is a violation of the sacred trust for pastoral leaders, and sexual abuse in the church is a failure of personal and public witness.
The resolution denounced “in the strongest possible terms every instance of sexual abuse, those who perpetrate abuse” and those who seek to defend or protect perpetrators.
The SBC apologized and asked forgiveness from survivors of sexual abuse for their failure to care well for survivors, failure to hold perpetrators accountable and failure to prioritize protection and justice for survivors over the “reputation of our institutions.”
“We prayerfully endeavor to eliminate all instances of sexual abuse among our churches,” messengers said.
‘Protect the innocent’
In another resolution, messengers encouraged lawmakers in every state to pass laws providing consistent definitions and classifications of sexual abuse by pastors.
“Laws and codes of professional ethics in many states prohibit sexual relationships between professionals such as physicians, psychiatrists, attorneys and their patients/clients, even with consent, because the position of authority held by the professional creates an unhealthy opportunity for abuse,” messengers said, adding that pastors should be held to a standard at least as high as secular professionals.
Messengers, furthermore, asked lawmakers to pass laws shielding churches from civil liability when they share information about alleged abuse with other organizations or institutions.
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Though local church autonomy is a Baptist distinctive, messengers said it is “important and biblical” to develop a culture of transparency and mutual responsibility between churches “so that it is clear that our churches are not places for predators to hide.”
“We support actions that protect the innocent within the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention from wolves in shepherd’s clothing and embrace actions that empower churches to be able to report instances of abuse to appropriate authorities without fear of civil liability,” the resolution said.
‘Dignity and value of every human life’
Messengers anticipated a historic moment surrounding the looming U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization by encouraging all Southern Baptists to pray for the overturning of the precedent established by Roe v. Wade.
The SBC implored fellow Southern Baptists “to continue and increase their efforts to serve and support local pregnancy resources centers, pro-life organizations, churches, foster care and adoptive families.”
Messengers committed to stand with and pray for abortion-vulnerable women and urged state legislatures to enact “pro-life policies that uphold the dignity and value of every human life, including both vulnerable women and children.”
Another resolution addressed the Imago Dei and “helpful content submitted in several resolutions” to affirm the value and dignity of every human being as created in the image of God.
“Rejecting God’s good design for the Christian life and seeking to craft an ethic based on our individualistic will and desires is not only an affront to God but also a grave sin of selfishness, rebellion and pride,” messengers said.
The resolution decried the daily exposure to “countless narratives often at odds with God’s design for sexuality through mass media and various forms of entertainment, like social media, that promote ideologies that run contrary to the scientific and biological realities of the created order rooted in the dignity of every human being.”
Messengers said they will redouble ongoing efforts to “cultivate a heart of wisdom and discernment in the next generation especially in regards to various forms of entertainment and social media.”
Another resolution denounced the teachings of the “prosperity gospel,” which it defined as “the belief that Jesus’ sacrificial and atoning death grants believers health, wealth and the removal of suffering, sickness and poverty.”
“The prosperity gospel distorts biblical generosity, preys on the most vulnerable, solely blames people for their own sickness due to lack of faith and corrupts a biblical understanding of suffering,” the resolution stated, adding that “Scripture warns us to guard against false teaching.”
Russia committed ‘egregious acts of violence’
A resolution about the war in Ukraine cited biblical references to God as “the God of peace” and Jesus as “the prince of peace” and referring to Jesus’ declaration that “blessed are the peacemakers.”
The resolution noted the Russian Federation “has not engaged in good faith negotiations for peace but instead has committed egregious acts of violence, hostility and aggression against the people of Ukraine.”
Messengers strongly condemned the actions of the Russian Federation in its acts of war against a sovereign nation, and, in agreement with House Resolution 956, called upon Russian President Vladimir Putin to “cease hostilities immediately, withdraw the Russian military and end this war of aggression against Ukraine.”
The resolution implored the U.S. government to “prioritize the admission of Ukrainian refugees into our country and provide resources for their support and resettlement.”
Messengers also stated their support for “Ukrainian brothers and sisters in Christ as well as the people of Ukraine who have endured these atrocities” and vowed to pray for fellow Christians in the Russian Federation and for an end to the war.
Opposed to forced assimilation and conversion
A resolution addressing religious liberty and forced conversions among Native Americans cited a Bureau of Indian Affairs Investigative Report released in May which found that the United States “maliciously targeted” Native American, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiian children “as part of a diabolical plan to dispossess these people groups from their native lands by forced assimilation through the establishment of mandatory boarding schools.”
The resolution noted that between 1819 and 1969 the Federal Indian boarding school system “consisted of 408 Federal Indian Boarding Schools across 37 states or then-territories” and that the federal government subcontracted with religious organizations to operate the schools in order to force conversions and to assimilate indigenous children into Christianity.
Messengers encouraged fellow Southern Baptists to “decry the methods of forced assimilation and conversion as well as the dehumanization of fellow image bearers” and expressed support for Native Americans, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians as they process the findings of the report.
Also in the resolution, messengers vowed to “earnestly pray for the families of those targeted by the atrocities,” condemned any federal government policy to replace a tribal culture and declared the atrocities “reprehensible, betraying the Great Commission.”
“We stand against forced conversions and distorted missiological practices as contrary to our distinctive beliefs as Baptists in religious liberty and soul freedom,” messengers said.
Another resolution affirmed the importance of ministry in the “rural mission field” in the United States.
It noted more than 75 percent of all towns and cities in the United States are small nonurban communities of fewer than 25,000 people, and nearly 20 percent of the U.S. population resides in rural areas.
Messengers expressed “commitment to and recognition of the mission field in rural places,” pledged to continue supporting the work of the Cooperative Program to reach rural places, encouraged churches to seek opportunities to “establish, help and revitalize churches in rural communities,” and stated support for the work rural churches do to spread the gospel.
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