Eight resolutions to be proposed to messengers attending the upcoming SBC Annual Meeting in Dallas are ready for review.
The resolutions committee released the proposed resolutions today (May 30) because of a bylaw change in 2023, which now requires the release at least 10 days ahead of the annual meeting.
Previously, messengers received the resolutions at the meeting, sometimes with only a few minutes to review the content.
The 2025 proposed resolutions are:
- On Appreciation for the City of Dallas
- On the Centennial Anniversary of the Cooperative Program
- On the Harmful and Predatory Nature of Sports Betting
- On Banning Pornography
- On Restoring Moral Clarity through God’s Design for Gender, Marriage, and the Family
- On Standing Against the Moral Evils and Medical Dangers of Chemical Abortion Pills
- On Advocating for International Religious Freedom
- On Honoring the Centennial Anniversary of the Baptist Faith and Message and Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Baptist Faith and Message (2000)
Read the content of the resolutions in the attached document here.
While the authors of the resolutions are not publicized by the resolutions committee, some surface through advocacy efforts.
For instance, all who followed the May 13 gathering in Memphis celebrating the CP’s 100th anniversary will recognize the resolution marking the centennial.
Others may notice content in other resolutions that match advocacy pieces from a variety of groups.
Haven’t we always opposed porn?
Regarding the resolution calling for a ban on pornography, it was Brent Leatherwood, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, that initiated a request for a fresh focus on the topic.
The U.S. Supreme Court will soon release its decision in the Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton pornography case, which revolves around a Texas law requiring websites to verify the ages of people seeking adult content, such as pornography.
“I’m pretty optimistic the court is going to come back and say yes, this is an appropriate action to take,” Leatherwood shared with The Baptist Paper. “There are children being harmed, and people who are part of the material being harmed.
“Because I’m optimistic the court is going to find [the age verification requirement] is appropriate, then I’m thinking ahead,” he explained. “What do we need to say? What do we need to do more of? … I think there is more to be done.”
While Baptists have repeatedly expressed opposition to all forms of pornography, updating content in a new resolution also times out with the late May passage of the federal Take It Down Act, which criminalizes nonconsensual images online.
‘Unique time … with real data’
“This is a unique time because we now have real data for just how destructive pornography is for communities and families and individuals,” Leatherwood said.
“The resolution is aspirational and will help to keep driving the ball down the field with an end goal toward getting this destructive, harmful, evil material … out of the public square.
“I think this is something a lot of Southern Baptists feel very strongly about because so many different individuals, marriages and families are dealing with it. … It’s got to stop. The resolution is a good way to plant a flag that says this is the objective as a convention of churches we are going to drive.
“We understand the evil represented by pornography, but (having) a real objective gives us all the running room we need to work at the federal level and with our state convention partners at the state level,” he said.
The advocacy efforts are only enhanced by a resolution like the one proposed being adopted around the same time the court decision is released, Leatherwood added.
The members of the resolutions committee as well as more information on the process can be found in the Baptist Press story here.
EDITOR’S NOTE — If you have questions about any of the resolutions or would like The Baptist Paper staff to research background information on any of them, email news@thebaptistpaper.org with your request and we’ll do our best to help with the research. We also welcome your comments on how the resolutions committee did in regard to topics selected and content provided.
