Evangelical ministers in the Baptist Union say ‘the seriousness of the situation’ in the denomination is not being fully addressed.
In an open letter to the trustees of the Baptist Union of Great Britain (BUGB), leaders representing around 180 evangelical pastors say any future proposals to change same-sex ethics should be ‘determined by all members of the Union, rather than [just] the Council’.
The BU Council did recently reaffirm that married accredited ministers in the denomination ‘can only be in a marriage which is defined exclusively as between a man and a woman’.
But the letter’s authors say future discussions of the issue should instead be made at a General Meeting, ‘in keeping with our long-standing Baptist, congregational principles of the members having a vote’.
They also express alarm over the fact that the Baptist Union and its member organisations ‘are in sharp decline… We are yet to see the seriousness of this situation being frankly acknowledged and properly addressed.’
