SBC 2021: This year’s family reunion
Some of my favorite childhood memories involve attending family reunions. It was always fun to visit with cousins and other kin we hadn’t seen in a long time and catch up on what was happening in their lives. There was always lots of good food. We never failed to have a little business session where we elected a secretary who kept everyone’s address current and a president who was responsible for making arrangements for the location and date of the next reunion. There was usually at least one moment during the reunion that involved a little drama about something. We learned to take it in stride because it was just part of being in a family.
This week my wife and I attended the annual SBC meeting. It felt a lot like those family reunions from my childhood. After 16 months of isolation, Southern Baptists were ready to see each other! We laughed a lot. (Thanks, AC Man!) We ate a lot. (Thanks, Nashville restaurants!) We elected some leaders and made some really important decisions. Sure, there were a couple of moments when it might have felt to outsiders like the SBC was dealing with drama, but to those of us present in the room, it just felt like family working through issues in a (mostly) agreeable way.
“I left quite satisfied that God continues to be at work in and through our family. And for that, I’m grateful.”
Before you get bent out of shape reading what a media outlet (religious or secular) said about the family reunion, speak to someone who was there. Before you decide to cut yourself off from the family because a decision was made that you didn’t like, remember the positive things that come with being part of a family, and ask yourself if you really want to walk away from that.
From my perspective, the family clearly said: “We will not be racist or sexist. We will not tolerate or cover up sexual abuse or misconduct. We will continue to be Gospel-focused and biblically based. We will continue sending missionaries domestically and internationally. We may disagree on the exact process needed to accomplish these things, but we agree that this is the direction we want to go, and we want to go this direction together.”
That’s what I heard my family say, and even though some votes I cast “lost,” I left quite satisfied that God continues to be at work in and through our family. And for that, I’m grateful.
Dr. Terry W. Dorsett serves as the executive director of the Baptist Convention of New England.