Texas Baptists Reject Christian Nationalism; Affirm "Historic Tenets of Religious Liberty"

Texas Baptists Affirm Religious Liberty; Reject Christian Nationalism

The largest of the state convention bodies affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, the Baptist General Convention of Texas, has passed a resolution during its 2022 annual meeting which is essentially a repudiation of Christian Nationalism.  Meeting in Waco, the messengers in attendance supported the resolution which rejects government attempts to favor one religion over another, and which coerces the worship of Christ.  The Baptist General Convention of Texas has approximately 1.7 million church members in slightly over 4,000 churches in the state of Texas, as well as scattered churches in at least 10 other states.  It is the largest of the state convention bodies that make up the Southern Baptist Convention. 

The resolution avoided using the specific term "Christian Nationalism,' but the content clearly rejected any of its tenets.  It affirmed religious liberty and also condemned any government attempt to commandeer churches for secular purposes.  

Some of the critics of the resolution, according to the report in the Baptist Standard, felt that the resolution should have called out Christian nationalism by name, citing examples from Germany in the 1930's when Pastor Dietrich Boenhoffer and other confessing Christians called out the Nazi movement by name.  It was also noted that the resolution was introduced and supported by many younger pastors and church leaders.  

The wording, according to those involved in its authorship, was intended to avoid making a political statement.  An accompanying resolution on cultural engagement demonstrated a desire to shift the focus from "divisive rhetoric" at the expense of grace, truth and love which "characterizes the gospel." 

We see this as a positive development, that the largest state affiliate of the largest Evangelical denomination recognizes the inherent difficulties of a pseudo-Christian movement and seeks to educate people on the core values of the gospel.  It is a demonstration of their respect for religious liberty and for separation of church and state, pointing to the historic involvement of Baptists in developing American religious liberty.   It is becoming increasingly apparent that this aberrant theology is not as popular as once thought, and is not gaining a foothold even in conservative denominations.