Southern Baptists Report Decline

This should be a humbling wake-up call for us all.  Southern Baptists have long been leaders in church planting, church growth and personal evangelism.., in short, "if it can happen to them, it can happen to any of us..."

By Bob Allen, Associated Baptist Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) – The Southern Baptist Convention reported declines last year in several categories traditionally used as markers of denominational vitality, according to annual statistics released June 9 by LifeWay Christian Resources. The 2010 Annual Church Profile showed dips in baptisms, total church membership, worship attendance and participation in Sunday school and other Christian education programs. Declines were also reported in giving categories, but some of that was attributed to the fact that not all Baptist state conventions asked churches for information in ways that make for year-to-year comparison. Southern Baptists reported 5 percent fewer baptisms in 2010 than in 2009 – 332,321 compared to 349,737. Total membership was counted at 16,136,044, a drop of 0.15 percent and the fourth straight year of membership losses. “I pray that all of us will see the urgency of the moment,” said Thom Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay. “We must make the Great Commission the heart of all we do and say. These latest numbers should be received with a broken spirit and a God-given determination to reach people for Christ.” One area that did show increase was the number of churches, which rose 1.59 percent to 45,727. Rainer said he was encouraged by a church-planting trend that could help stall the membership decline. Read More