A recent critique of the Southern Baptist Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission evinces the decline in Protestant institutions, which is bad news for America.
Nearly all U.S. Protestant denominations are declining, conservative and liberal, though the liberal ones are declining much faster, as American Christianity becomes increasingly nondenominational or post denominational. It’s hard to find people under age 60, even in denominations, who have strong personal denominational institutional commitments.
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) remains by far the largest U.S. Protestant denomination, with just under 13 million members, having declined from its height of 16 million over 20 years ago. United Methodism, which once exceeded the SBC, is now just over 4 million.
Compared to Mainline Protestant denominations, like United Methodism, the link between Southern Baptist congregations and the denomination can be tenuous. SBC congregations own their own property, choose their own clergy, and self-govern. They belong to the SBC if they send money to it. Ending affiliation with the SBC can be as easy as ending funding.
In keeping with America’s post-denominational atmosphere, increasing numbers of Southern Baptist churches do not advertise their SBC affiliation in their signage or on their websites. A large Washington, D.C. congregation of largely young people, for example, last year voted to remove any SBC reference from its website. A former senior SBC official told me last year he does not expect the SBC to exist in ten years, as the older people with strong SBC attachments leave the scene.
Likely many current U.S. Protestant denominations will not meaningfully exist in ten years, except as legal structures, sometimes with endowments. SBC churches are much better equipped for America’s post denominational reality because their congregations are already independent, and American post denominational evangelicalism is mostly Baptist in theology and ethos. Perhaps “Southern Baptist” will fade as a formal institution and become the moniker for a wide community rooted in an ethos.
As elsewhere in America, the SBC is affected by political polarization. Its membership is overwhelmingly white, conservative, southern and Republican. Its leadership has been so since the “conservative resurgence” of the 1980s, when “moderates” in the seminaries and agencies were removed in favor of conservatives. One fruit of that resurgence was Richard Land in 1988 becoming head of the denomination’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), based in Nashville, but with a Washington, D.C. office. ERLC interprets and transmits the SBC’s teachings on public issues.
Land kept his office until 2013 and in that role was a leader in wider conservative evangelicalism, aligned with the political conservatism of that era that supported Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. He was succeeded by Russell Moore who remained until 2021. Moore’s tenure was often rocky partly because he was not aligned with the emerging populist new right tied to Donald Trump and Make America Great Again (MAGA). He was succeeded by Brent Leatherwood, who mostly stays out of the public eye and diligently represents the SBC’s official positions, which remain conventionally conservative: pro-life, pro-religious liberty, pro-traditional marriage and family, and pro-Israel. But new right figures in the SBC, and outside the SBC, oppose the ERLC as ostensibly “woke” for not explicitly echoing MAGA.
A recent critique complains that the ERLC has a “reputation for ‘woke stuff’” and is “too busy with woke stuff to help conservative policy efforts.” The article doesn’t detail what qualifies as “woke,” since ERLC’s positions remain unchanged. Instead, the article claims ERLC has become “irrelevant” because the several people in Washington, DC whom it quotes, like U.S. Senator Mike Lee, who are MAGA aligned, say the ERLC has no access to the Trump Administration is not a significant presence on Capitol Hill.
What exactly is the role of ERLC? Its 2024 annual report says:
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission exists to assist Southern Baptist churches by helping them understand the moral demands of the gospel, apply Christian principles to moral and social problems and questions of public policy, and to promote religious liberty in cooperation with churches and other Southern Baptist entities.
This focus is on the local church, not on Washington, D.C., Capitol Hill, or the current administration. The critique claims the ERLC’s last major influence on legislation was in 1993, when its general counsel “helped engineer” the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which overwhelmingly passed Congress after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling against native rites using the drug Peyote. That general counsel collaborated with the very liberal and secular American Civil Liberties Union, and he earned a letter of thanks from then President Bill Clinton.
Were that to happen today, almost certainly the ERLC would be denounced as worse than “woke.” That the legislation protects non-Christian religious practices, including shamanistic native rites, also would miff today’s ERLC critics, some of whom advocate a legal preference for Christianity. That general counsel told the article author that his involvement in RFRA was “probably the first major involvement by Southern Baptists in legislative drafting,” and, according to the author, “because he stopped representing the ERLC two years later, it was also one of their last.”
The ERLC was founded in 1947, so it seems odd that the article judges it by what it reports to have been a unique role in crafting legislation 32 years ago. The Southern Baptist Convention across 80 years apparently has not expected ERLC to prioritize crafting legislation in the U.S. Congress. Its chief purpose is helping churches understand public issues, especially religious liberty. For many ERLC critics, religious liberty for all, even though an historic Baptist focus, is no longer a priority. It might even qualify as “woke.”
Today’s challenge is that post denominational Christians, even if they’re in denominations, aren’t looking to denominations for counsel. Instead, they look online, to other sources, often not Christian, and more attuned to contemporary political trends, for better or for worse. Absent the ERLC, this trend among Southern Baptists doubtless would accelerate. And the MAGA-aligned critics of ERLC would displace ERLC as the major SBC public voice.
Much of today’s hyper polarization results from the decline of major Protestant institutions, which provided transgenerational wisdom that strove to transcend passing political moments. Without their influence, many American Christians are prone to conflate their online-developed political preferences, often tied to hyperbolic perspectives, with Christianity.
American Protestantism, absent strong institutions, is increasingly unmoored and intemperate. Roman Catholic teaching of course always provides ballast. But ideally Protestants should offer their own historical, corporate teachings about public life. Maybe it’s not too late to reinvigorate old institutions. Maybe there will have to be some new wineskins.
The ERLC has long been the only major conservative Protestant denominational public policy agency. For decades it was overshadowed by more liberal Mainline Protestant agencies, who have now become irrelevant as their denominations shrink. Its voice is unique and temperate in a wider climate adverse to temperance. Hopefully, its critics will motivate ERLC more widely to explain historic Baptist teachings about religious liberty and public life. Those teachings are much needed now, by Southern Baptists, and by all Americans.
Comment by samuel on April 1, 2025 at 10:19 am
Thank you Mr. Tooley for writing another excellent and balanced article.
Comment by Richard A Hyde on April 1, 2025 at 11:51 am
Fair and balanced. What a concept.
Comment by Wilson R. on April 1, 2025 at 1:25 pm
Fair and balanced so far as it goes, but I am surprised that Mr. Tooley does not mention the most divisive conflict going on in Southern Baptist circles right now, which involves the role and treatment of women.
While this conflict hasn’t caused anything close to the loss of membership that we’ve seen in the UMC over LGBTQ issues, the loss is significant, and the drivers are the denomination’s refusal to allow women as pastors (or even as speakers from a pulpit, as we saw from the explosion over Beth Moore, the beloved and best-selling author) and its treatment of women who have brought reports of clergy sexual abuse.
Comment by Diane on April 1, 2025 at 2:56 pm
I called the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, TN, with a question a couple years ago. Among the numbered options on its phone menu was, “Press such-and-such to report sexual abuse”. Definitely not welcoming!
Comment by John on April 1, 2025 at 8:35 pm
I got to say Mark. You’re last couple articles have surprised me. You’re actually providing well-thought out and valid critiques of MAGA and the alt-right that conservative Christians need to hear. Of course, your former groupies will likely all turn you, call a woke turncoat, and stop reading your material except to trash it, like they already do to David French. But in sad way that does kinda prove your point, doesn’t it?
Comment by Gary D Foster on April 2, 2025 at 7:03 pm
I’m a former Ordained SBC Pastor who left in 1980 just as the Texas Fundies were riding rough shod over anyone who did not share their fundamentalist thinking. I was a student at Midwestern Baptist Seminary during that time but changed denominations while there.
I saw many excellent Profs lose their jobs. It was disgraceful. Theologically they really were for the most part “moderate”. It became a different denomination. What was actually a big tent group became a highly restricted one .
This huge shift actually became the beginning of the end of true Baptist faith and polity. Old foundational positions on Church and State were laid aside and the Convention with its fundie wolves began to interfere with individual Churches in a bullying way. The idea of a sovereign self governing body of local believers was nearly lost if not lost. Meanwhile, the culture changed towards women’s positions in society. This made a younger generation uncomfortable in this sexist rejection of women in leadership roles. This is a denomination that deserves to fade away. I also noticed just about every SBC church in my parts of the Kansas City Metro dropped SBC on the sign or followed popular ideas by renaming the Church a “Community Church”. This is a clear sign of decay. As to Russell Moore, he was square peg in a round hole and he went left when the others went right. He’s destroying Christianity Today. Carl Henry, who I was privileged to have prayer with would be heart broken.
Comment by Tim Ware on April 3, 2025 at 12:40 am
There are still many Clinton/Bush Republican “conservatives” around who haven’t given up hope that someday the tide might shift back in their direction.
Comment by John Wright on April 3, 2025 at 8:45 am
I’ve been in the SBC for many years and only recently moved to my new wife’s church which is independent but of similar beliefs.
I think the conservative resurgence saved the SBC. The people in the pews were tired of one thing taught in church and another in the seminary. To many were coming out completely liberal in their thinking. That is why the takeover happened. The fruit of those seminaries was bad.
I also think women should not be pastors though I do not oppose them teaching. I think any denomination though has to make a decision on that theological position. You can’t have fellowship when you might show up at a church only to discover a woman pastor. If that goes against your beliefs then it becomes problematic. So unlike a lot of other beliefs it has to be an interchurch issue.
I think the SBC should have split over the issue and those churches believing in both women pastors and accepting of LGBTQ+ behavior should have spun off into another denomination.
Comment by John on April 3, 2025 at 1:51 pm
Tim Ware,
It won’t if all they do is wait around.
Comment by Everett F. Pomare on April 3, 2025 at 6:53 pm
John,
Haven’t you heard of the Alliance of Baptists and Cooperative Baptist Fellowship? If you know your church history (and Baptist history particularly), you might know that the Convention made its split over the LGBT thing and the woman preacher thing a long time ago (though the woman preacher thing is still a fight on the fringes). The Alliance was expelled in 1986 and the Cooperatives left on their own in 1991 after coming to a conclusion that they were too progressive for the now more orthodox Convention, but also too conservative and fundamental for the Alliance—”moderate Baptists” as they called themselves. In practice, both groups would be quite liberal by overall standards, and a more orthodox Baptist or other Christian mightn’t necessarily feel comfortable at a typical church of either, even though they may admittedly be a bit more homely at a CBF church. The CBF today still calls itself moderate, though in practice, its more progressive congregations (eg. Wilshire in Dallas) tend to set the course for where they might go next. There’s also a growing faction within this group calling for full LGBT affirmation that not everyone there necessarily is on board with that is being helped by a group called the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists (which merged with an old CBF-aligned group called the Affirming Network a few years ago), so only the Creator knows whether or not CBF will have its own version of the recent Methodist split over gays and transgenders. The Alliance has some overlap with CBF (particularly with the more liberal CBF churches—some of whom double affiliate with them), but is way, way, WAY more liberal. So liberal is the Alliance, in fact, that to call them “Baptist” is really a misnomer, because by any measure you look, there’s nothing Baptist about them at all! Indeed, they’re frankly more Unitarian Universalist than they are Baptist, and that’s saying something right there! Most of those Baptist churches that you see at Pride parades and protests are probably Alliance, though you might also have a good smattering of CBF congregations, too. In New England you have the one old-line group in the American Baptists, who are also liberal and are overall somewhere between the CBF and the Alliance theologically, though they also have from my understanding a small conservative contingent that is very similar to the more numerous IFB and SBC congregations in parts of the South (eg. West Virginia). Some of these conservative ABCUSA churches are from my understanding even King James only! CBF and Alliance are definitely more mainline overall than evangelical/fundamental. If there is ever a Baptist reunion, it will likely be between the CBF and ABC rather than the Alliance, SBC, and IFB. Why? Because the ABC is still too liberal for the SBC and certainly the IFB, while for the Alliance it might still be too conservative. Same goes for the NIFB (Anderson crowd). I like saying that the Alliance and Steven Anderson crowds, despite being on opposite sides of the spectrum (NIFB far-right, AofB far-left) have far more in common than they might realize. Both are relatively small, insignificant groups that only have a handful of churches (NIFB mainly made up of Anderson and his friends) that are known for their equally extreme positions on theology and culture. Both are also anti-Israel and require it (with the Alliance requiring all churches to be Palestinian and LGBT affirming in order to join) and jettison certain notions of traditional Baptism, like the autonomy of the local church. “Baptist fringe” as I say.
Comment by Salvatore Anthony Luiso on April 4, 2025 at 1:34 pm
Thank you for this article. I donate money to the ERLC, I’m on their e-mail mailing list, and I follow them on Facebook. I have seen no evidence that they are “woke”. If anything, I have seen evidence that they are trying to please, placate, and ingratiate themselves with Baptists who are pro-Trump and pro-MAGA.
As I think you know, for years Americans have lost faith in institutions of all kinds. I see no reason to believe this trend will stop, let alone change direction.
Comment by Jane L Smith on April 5, 2025 at 11:39 pm
The reason for the drift and decline in Southern Baptist attendance/churches are the deep deceptions that have been ushered in by the COVERT New Calvinist movement! Dr. Mohler (and others) have made it their mission to transition from the conservative movement to the Reformed movement! The problem is, that couldn’t be done HONESTLY!!! And they knew it!!! The members would never accept it. So…they’ve been working for 20 years to deceive, lie and trick their way in!!! Seminarians lying to get in the pulpit, then tearing a church apart within 5-7 years. Other pastors converting to Reformed, then working to indoctrinate and position key (gullible) people … deacons, Personnel Committee, etc.. Also working to get the church debt free. Then, when they start to reveal it thru their preaching , and are confronted, they won’t resign … they won’t answer questions … it feels wrong … and people leave. In our situation, the Pastor lied to our 750+ ATTENDING congregation. He early on, led an aggressive drive to become debt free. When we later became aware of his beliefs, and confronted him … we were expected to leave, or be turned out! So 350 people, including EVERY charter member, left! That had been our church home for 28 years. We raised our family there. He’d been there 10 years, and took over a multimillion dollar, debt-free facility. Then, sent a letter to those remaining asking that they be sure to conserve energy by turning lights off when leaving a room … but not to worry too much because they’d laid a MILLION DOLLARS back to have for the days ahead. Many of the people who stayed STILL DID NOT UNDERSTAND THAT THE PASTOR’S BELIEF SYSTEM HAD CHANGED! Over the next few years, more people left! They came to understand what New Calvinism was …. and it’s NOT what they believed, or wanted to ascribe to. Within 4 years, the Pastor’s main sidekick left, and a year later, he retired. He and his wife moved closer to family …. and he walked away from HIS DESTRUCTION of a wonderful local congregation who’d worshipped together for 40+ years!!!! During the very end of his time there, I know the Social Justice issue was significant, but I don’t know if it affected anything there specifically. But, between THE GREAT REFORMED DECEPTION, and trying to cram the WOKE mess down everyone’s throat, it is no wonder the Southern Baptist Convention is dying. The woke mess might be receding. The NEW CALVINISM mess is NOT RECEDING!!! Potential Pastors are LYING TO PASTOR SEARCH COMMITTEES EVERY DAY TO BE HIRED!!! I’d love to hear just how delicate the discussion is at Seminary, as Calvinist seminarians are instructed NOT to divulge their true beliefs/intentions when they are interviewing for a Pastor position in a “TRADITIONAL” SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHURCH!!!! WHAT’S HAPPENING IS EVIL!!! TO LIE TO THESE PEOPLE IS EVIL!!! TO DESTROY TRADITIONAL SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHURCHES ALL OVER AMERICA IS EVIL!!!! People might wonder why the SBC is dying …. I submit to you that it is NOT dying, IT IS BEING MURDERED BECAUSE DR. MOHLER, AND SELFISH MEN LIKE HIM WANT WHAT THEY WANT!!! THEY WANT TO DECEPTIVELY/SECRETLY “IMPOSE THEIR WILL” ON THE TRADITIONAL MEMBERS OF THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION!!! The result … whether by congregational splits, or people feeling the cold shift of something just not being right ….. one way or another PEOPLE ARE WALKING AWAY! A few are going to other Southern Baptist Churches, a few are going to nondenominational churches, but most are walking away. Period. Especially the ones who are deeply hurt by engaging, and seeing the greed and selfishness of a takeover. That’s me. I don’t know that I will ever be able to be part of a church again. Our beloved church family was not considered in any way by the mongrels who wanted their way. That’s hard to unsee. Keep it up SBC! Keep it up New Calvinists! Keep it up whatever Woke/Social Justice warriors are still out there! WITH YOU AT THE HELM, NOT ONLY WILL THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION BE DEAD IN 10 YEARS …. THE BUILDINGS WON’T EVEN BE RETAINED AS NONDENOMINATIONAL CHURCHES!!!! THE TOXICITY WILL DESTROY EVERY REMNANT OF IT … THAT’S HOW BAD YOU ARE!!!! So, all you seminarians planning to covertly pastor “traditional southern baptist churches”, and flip them, you might wanna plan on a double major of …. I don’t know …. vertical horticulture?!?!? The sad part is …. NONE OF THIS WAS NECESSARY!!!! New Calvinists (or old ones) could have just said /or say now …. I’M A NEW CALVINIST, AND THIS IS WHAT I BELEIEVE. IF I DON’T GET A CHURCH, I’M WILLING TO HANG A SHINGLE, AND START A NEW CHURCH. WE’L MEET IN A SCHOOL, OR A SPACE IN A STRIP MALL, AND BUILD WHENEVER WE CAN. BUT THEY WON’T DO THAT BECAUSE THE PEOPLE WILL NOT COME!!!! Even when our church was split apart …. and it was so important for the deceivers to win ….. THEY NEVER ADDED THE WORD “REFORMED” TO THE NAME/and BAPTIST CHURCH signage OUT FRONT!!! Never!!!! Because they knew people would NOT come!!! The SBC IS DYING…..WHETHER YOU CONSIDER IT BY SUICIDE, OR MURDER …. THE RESULTS ARE GOING TO BE THE SAME. THANKS KNOW IT ALLS!!! THANKS TOP BRASS!!! And, THANKS to all those members who were sucked in, and bought the line that, “you get Reformed Theology because you’re so smart … you’re smarter than the average church-goer …. you get it …. YOU’RE OBVIOUSLY ONE OF THE CHOSEN!” Yes! You! We’re sad you fell for that “balonie!” (sp) and … we miss you. The saddest part in all of this is that due to the PRIDE of these people, they’ll NEVER REPENT! They’ll NEVER SAY THEY ARE SORRY! And, in most churches, when a New Calvinist pastor leaves, the powers that be are sure to put themselves on the NEXT PASTOR SEARCH COMMITTEE …. and they drag the exact same thing in to the church because IT PLEASES THEM … IT IS WHAT THEY WANT … AND THEY WILL HAVE THEIR WAY …. EVEN IF “EVERYONE” ELSE LEAVES!!!! And, it is THAT ATTITUDE that will be the death of The Southern Baptist Convention. RIP. Sad.
Comment by Tom on April 8, 2025 at 8:15 am
@Diane
“Among the numbered options on its phone menu was, “Press such-and-such to report sexual abuse”. Definitely not welcoming!”
I’m not sure why offering that as an option on the phone menu is a problem. I mean, it’s not good that someone felt it was necessary, obviously, but at least they’re acknowledging the issue rather than trying to hide or obfuscate it.
Comment by David Gingrich on April 8, 2025 at 8:53 am
“American Protestantism, absent strong institutions, is increasingly unmoored and intemperate.” So…the purpose of this article was to promote “temperance”???
What “unmoored and intemperate” things is Mark afraid of? I suspect MAGA, a political (not religious) awakening.