Pictured: Jimmy Draper
Convention President Bryant Wright announced the 20-member task force during the opening session of the SBC Executive Committee’s Sept. 19-20 meeting in Nashville, Tenn. The announcement prompted a lively debate across the convention about the pros and cons of making such a change.
The 16 task force members attending the Oct. 26 meeting spent “a great deal” of time in prayer, aware of the far-reaching implications a name change would have, task force chairman Jimmy Draper said in an Oct. 26 statement.
“We spent a great deal of time in prayer, believing that we need God’s guidance and divine wisdom as we seek to serve Southern Baptists in this consideration,” Draper said. “We received a review of the history of the SBC name issue and are aware of the weighty matters that have been brought to light by previous studies and considerations.”
The committee’s work centers on whether the Southern Baptist mission would be advanced by a name change, Draper added.
“We are driven by only one great question — how can Southern Baptists be most faithful in reaching people for Jesus. Our concern is not public relations, politics, positioning or personal agendas,” Draper said. “We must ask ourselves constantly if there is anything that would help us to reach more people, plant more churches, and penetrate lostness here in the United States and around the world as we seek to fulfill the Great Commission.”
Draper’s statement said he appreciated “the responsible quality” of the group’s first discussion and affirmed the need for input from both rank-and-file Southern Baptists and those in positions of leadership. He said he would be contacting leaders for their input and that others can interact with the task force through a website, http://www.pray4sbc.com. Name change suggestions can be entered in a box that accepts up to 50 characters, while the form for submitting comments has been expanded beyond the 140-character limit originally in place.
Source: Baptist Press | Mark Kelly
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