ROME, Ga. — North Broad Baptist Church, Rome, Ga., withdrew from the Floyd County Baptist Association after the association adopted a statement of faith that, among other things, bans female pastors.
Members of the church reportedly left the association’s annual meeting the evening of Sept. 27, shortly after their fellow messengers voted to adopt the 2000 revision of the Baptist Faith and Message as the association’s official doctrinal statement.
In November of 2003, the church called a husband-and-wife team to serve as its co-senior pastors. Shortly after Katrina and Tony Brooks began ministering at North Broad, the association’s executive board recommended adoption of the faith statement, which says the office of senior pastor is for men only. Messengers to the association voted 428–130 to adopt the statement. Earlier, messengers defeated by a similar margin an amendment that would have prevented any churches from being dismissed from the association in the future simply because they did not adhere to the statement. In response, North Broad members presented a letter of resignation to the association, thus ending the church’s 112-year-old affiliation.
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