Although the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has established itself as a stalwart among conservatives, one group of Baptists thinks it’s not conservative enough.
The General Association of Regular Baptist Churches (GARBC) recently broke ties with Ohio’s Cedarville University, a school affiliated with the association since 1953, according to an Aug. 29 Christianity Today article. The move came at the association’s national conference, when GARBC messengers ratified a dissolution statement by a vote of 311 to 283.
John Greening, the GARBC national representative, commended Southern Baptists for their “well-publicized conservative resurgence” but said the move toward conservative theology was only “a good step forward, though it did not win unanimous support.”
He criticized the SBC for honoring Billy Graham, saying there was “no one in evangelical circles who has done more to blur the lines of distinction between evangelicals and Catholics than Billy Graham.”
Greening said the debate over Cedarville is an issue of “primary versus secondary separation” — that is, should the school be held responsible for its theology alone or for that of its friends, such as Southern Baptists.
“There are individual SBC churches that are endeavoring to take a stand for truth and a historic Baptist position,” he said. “Notwithstanding, it is obvious the SBC is a work in progress.” He pointed to the election of Frank Page as new president of the SBC as cause for concern, since Page reportedly acknowledged the practice of tongues.
With 1,359 churches worldwide, the GARBC is one Baptist organization that embraces the term “fundamentalist.” It has no centralized authority that governs the actions of its churches, which are fiercely independent. Each church decides what to support, so many GARBC churches view the SBC’s Cooperative Program, or centralized denominational budget, with suspicion.
Cedarville University, with more than 3,000 students, insists the relationship with the SBC-affiliated State Convention of Baptists in Ohio signifies no change from its historical direction. A statement on the school’s Web site says Cedarville has no official ties to the SBC. Neither the GARBC nor the SBC gives the school any financial support, according to the site. (ABP)
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