Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

An editor has expressed a concern that the subject of the article does not satisfy the notability guideline or one of the following guidelines for inclusion on Wikipedia: Biographies, Books, Companies, Fiction, Music, Neologisms, Numbers, Web content, or several proposals for new guidelines.

If you are familiar with the subject matter, please expand the article to establish its notability. The best way to address this concern is to reference published, third-party sources about the subject. If notability cannot be established, the article is more likely to be considered for deletion, per Wikipedia:Guide to deletion. (See also Wikipedia:Notability)
This article has been tagged since April 2007.

The Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV) was founded June 7, 1823.[1] According to its Web site, it has a strong commitment to historic Baptist beliefs, one of which is full recognition of the autonomy of the local churches. The BGAV has a $14.2 million budget to fund their ministries in 2007. More than 1,400 Baptist churches choose to affiliate with the BGAV. [2]

The BGAV contributes more to the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) than any convention or union in the world.[3] In 2005, the BGAV had a budget of $14.4 million and elected the first African American officer (second vice president) in the BGAV's 181-year history.

The Baptist General Association of Virginia includes many churches with women deacons and ministers. It assists congregations that want to channel funds to the moderate Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF). In 2006, the BGAV received some Georgia Baptist churches requesting affiliation across the border.[4] Since the BGAV does not prevent its member churches from dually aligning with another Baptist group, some of its members may also affiliate with the more conservative Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), with which the BGAV has considerable disagreement.[5] The move is unusual for Southern Baptist churches which almost universally affiliate with conventions in their states or region. But it represents a growing interest in denominational links by affinity rather than geography, say some observers.[6]

An example of the breach between the BGAV and the SBC was a strong accusation made in 2004 by the Virginia Women's Missionary Union (WMU) against the SBC. A statement titled "Declaration of the Dignity of Women" alleged discrimination "against women in the work of Christian ministry." It took particular aim at the Southern Baptist Convention's Baptist Faith and Message (BF&M) 2000 statement of beliefs. The BF&M, which cites numerous Bible passages in various areas of belief, states that the office of pastor should be held only by men. The SBC no longer endorses women to chaplaincy roles that call for a "fully qualified member of the clergy or that have a role or function similar to that of a pastor." Referencing "humiliating affronts to the dignity of Christian women," the Virginia WMU declaration states:

We draw the strength to declare, with prophetic conviction:

  • That we reject all blanket discrimination against women in the work of Christian ministry, in particular, as elaborated in the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message;
  • That we reject the findings and policy of the North American Mission Board with regard to the non-endorsement of women to chaplaincy positions.
  • That we reject any devaluation of women worldwide."[7]

[edit] References and Notes

  1. ^ http://www.vbmb.org/history.htm Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV)
  2. ^ http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=24428
  3. ^ Dilday, Robert. BGAV to seek membership in Baptist World Alliance. http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?ID=19585
  4. ^ http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=24710
  5. ^ http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=24555
  6. ^ http://www.abpnews.com/93.article
  7. ^ http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=19574
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../b/a/p/Baptist_General_Association_of_Virginia_%28BGAV%29_5b41.html"