Rankin reverses course;
IMB missionaries must sign
___By Bob Allen
___Associated Baptist Press
___RICHMOND, Va. (ABP)--The 5,100 missionaries appointed by the Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board will be required to affirm the controversial Baptist Faith & Message 2000.
___The doctrinal statement has been rejected by the Baptist General Convention of Texas because of its declaration that wives must submit to their husbands and that women may not serve as pastors, as well as its deletion of an earlier statement that the criterion for interpreting the Bible is Jesus Christ.
___The new requirement of all IMB missionaries reverses a policy adopted by IMB trustees one year ago. Last January, IMB trustees voted not to require missionaries already on the field to endorse changes to the Baptist Faith & Message. Instead, they upheld a traditional practice of requiring missionaries to work within parameters of the statement even if they disagree with minor points.
___In a letter now being received by missionaries worldwide, however, IMB President Jerry Rankin cites ongoing controversy about the issue and asks missionaries to read and affirm the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message.
___"Failure to ask for this affirmation is creating suspicion that there are IMB personnel whose beliefs and practices are inconsistent with those represented by Southern Baptists," he wrote. "While we believe this is unfounded, we do not need an issue such as this to generate needless controversy, erode support and distract us from the focus on our task at such a critical time of opportunity around the world."
___Rankin said the changes adopted in the 2000 version aren't "major" changes but constitute "appropriate responses to contemporary issues and challenges."
___"To assist our board in assuring Southern Baptists that all those who serve with the International Mission Board and (are) supported by the convention affirm and support the current Baptist Faith & Message, I am asking that you sign the attached form indicating your affirmation and return it to your regional leader," he wrote.
___An attachment asks missionaries to respond yes or no to this statement: "I have read and am in agreement with the current Baptist Faith & Message." The form asks anyone replying "no" to cite their areas of difference.
___By signing and dating the form, the missionary also affirms, "In accountability to the International Mission Board and Southern Baptists, I agree to carry out my responsibilities in accordance with and not contrary to the current Baptist Faith & Message as adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention."
___Rankin said neither trustees nor SBC leadership required him to ask for the affirmation. However, the board is aware of the action and supports it, he said.
___While Rankin's letter doesn't spell out the consequences for not affirming the statement, he advised, "I cannot overemphasize how important your cooperation is in order for us to move forward in fulfilling the Great Commission."
___"We who have chosen to serve with a denominational mission agency are expected to be doctrinally accountable to those who provide our support and send us out," Rankin wrote. "There should be no reticence in our willingness to express agreement with what the SBC has adopted."
___Rankin wasn't immediately available for comment, but IMB spokesperson Wendy Norvelle said administrators "expect most, if not all," missionaries will comply with the request. Regional leaders will counsel with any missionaries who express concerns about signing the pledge, she explained.
___One of those regional leaders told missionaries in his area the 2000 version of the Baptist Faith & Message is not significantly different from the 1963 version.
___"I believe you will not find the changes that significant," wrote Robin Hadaway of the IMB's Eastern South America office in an e-mail to missionaries. "I fully support and appreciate Dr. Rankin's letter and his leadership in this matter."
___BGCT Executive Director Charles Wade asked the IMB to reconsider the mandate.
___"Texas Baptists have felt deeply the responsibility to help, to protect the missionaries," Wade wrote in a response to IMB administrator Terry Sharp.
___"These dear people are godly men and women. They deserve better treatment. It is beyond my understanding how Baptists have come to this kind of coercion. I am reminded of John Leland's remonstrance when asked about a confession of faith: 'What is this Virgin Mary that is placed between the conscience of a man and the Holy Bible?'
___"It may seem expedient to ask this of the missionaries to quiet the mistrust of your constituents," Wade continued. "But the nature of legalism, fundamentalism, of hierarchical religious authority is to never be satisfied. What will be required of you and your missionaries in the future?
___"This has long since ceased to be about believing the Bible," Wade asserted. "Our missionaries' faithfulness to God and Scripture surely cannot be questioned. I appeal to you to reconsider your decision to make this a mandatory matter for your people."
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