A name change for the Southern Baptist Convention would be a superficial correction. What needs to be corrected is the image. The Mormons have become the second-fastest growing denomination by doing it. Maybe we need to spend some media money here in the U.S.A.
Here are the reasons why I’m Southern Baptist:
– Diversity of churches. I have found a little old country church I love. But if a megachurch is your thing, we’ve got that too. Music can be from praise-rock to orchestral to old-time convention singing. There’s a church if your kids need activities.
– Autonomy of congregations and individuals. Nobody from some big council hundreds of miles away is going to expel me. Sometimes I disagree with my pastor, and that’s okay.
It would take a big effort to do this kind of campaign, but if we can support missions on the other side of the world, we can reach out to our neighbors here with some modern advertising. Let’s find some way to tell people we are not snake-handlers!
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