Rick Warren affirms his commitment to SBC

NASHVILLE — Author and pastor Rick Warren has affirmed that he and his church remain committed to the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), despite rumors to the contrary that began when he participated in a question and answer session with reporters in May. The author of the best-selling book “The Purpose Driven Life,” and pastor of Saddleback Community Church, Lake Forest, Calif., Warren called the rumors “nonsense” and “completely untrue.”

“I’m Southern Baptist, our church is Southern Baptist, and we cooperate in SBC missions support at every level,” he said.

In May, Warren appeared at an event in Key West, Fla., sponsored by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. A transcript was posted online. According to the transcript, Warren said Saddleback was not a Southern Baptist church. After reading the transcript, he said he realized he had misunderstood the reporter’s question and thus answered incorrectly.