National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

The National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. (National Baptist Convention) is the largest predominantly African-American Christian denomination in the United States and is the world's second largest Baptist denomination. The Convention's membership is near 10 million^[1][2][3] nationwide and is headquartered at the Baptist World Center in Nashville, Tennessee.^[4]

History

Origins

The root of cooperative efforts began in the Antebellum Period. In the south, independent Black Baptist Churches belonged to White Associations because formation of all Black churches into Associations or Conventions was prohibited. The first attempts at cooperative efforts began in the North with Ohio and Illinois leading the way. In 1834 Black Baptists in Ohio formed the Providence Baptist Association. In 1838, following the lead of the Baptists of Ohio, Illinois Black Baptists formed the Wood River Baptist Association.

As early as 1840, Black Baptists sought to develop a cooperative movement beyond state lines. Baptists in New York and the Middle Atlantic states formed the American Baptist Missionary Convention. The spirit of cooperation beyond state lines soon spread westward. In 1864 the Black Baptists of the West and South Organized the Northwestern Baptist Convention and the Southern Baptist Convention. In 1866 these two conventions met with the American Baptist Convention and formed the Consolidated American Baptist Convention. One of the great successes of the new Consolidated American Baptist Convention was the support given to black Baptists in the South to form State Conventions.

After emancipation, Black Baptists in the South with the support of the Consolidated Convention formed their own State Conventions. Among these were Alabama, North Carolina, Virginia, Arkansas, and Kentucky. Despite the pioneer work of the Consolidated Convention, regionalism continued among Black Baptists. In 1873 the Black Baptists of the West formed the General Association of the Western States and Territories, and in 1874 the East organized the New England Baptist Missionary Convention. This continued regionalism and other factors caused the decline and eventual demise of the Consolidated American Baptist Convention.

Formal formation

In 1880, about 150 Baptist pastors met in Montgomery, Alabama, and formed the Foreign Mission Convention. The formation of the Foreign Mission Convention was to some degree a result of the demise of the Consolidated American Baptist Convention. The Consolidated Convention's death created a vacuum in mission work, especially for African missions. In response to this void, Rev. William W. Colley, a missionary to Africa issued a call for Black Baptists to meet in Montgomery, Alabama for the purpose of organizing a national convention to do extensive foreign missionary work.

At the initial 1880 meeting, Rev. W. H. Alpine of Alabama was elected President of the Foreign Mission Convention and is considered the first President of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. Subsequently, two other national Black conventions were formed. In 1886, Rev. William Simmons of Kentucky led the formation of the American National Baptist Convention. In 1893 Rev. W. Bishop Johnson of Washington, D.C. led the formation of the National Baptist Education Convention. The desire to have one convention remained alive and the movement reached its fruition on September 24, 1895 at the Friendship Baptist Church in Atlanta, when these three conventions came together to form the National Baptist Convention of the United States of America. The heart of the new convention was that the three former conventions serve as the three boards of the convention: Foreign Missions, Home Missions, and Education.

History of administrations

Rev. E. C. Morris was elected president of the National Baptist Convention of the United States of America in 1895 and served for 27 years. His tenure was important for laying the foundation of the Convention. In addition to growth and organization, one of the greatest achievements during his presidency was the formation of the National Baptist Publishing House in Nashville, Tennessee. One of the motivating factors for the formation of the National Baptist Convention was the desire of Blacks to publish literature written by their own ministers. The American Baptist Publication Society refused to publish writings of black ministers in their publications in 1890 because of resistance from their White Southern clients. This event, more than any other, motivated Blacks to desire their own Convention and publication agency. One year after the formation of the Convention, the National Baptist Publication Board was established under the leadership of Richard Boyd in Nashville, Tennessee. It was given the right to supply National Baptist churches with general ministry and Sunday School supplies. In a short time the publishing house became the largest Black publishing enterprise in the world. The twenty-seven years of Morris' leadership represented the formative period for the Convention.

Upon the death of E.C. Morris, L. K. Williams became President of the Convention in 1924. Several notable accomplishments were made during his sixteen years. One of his major concerns was the expanding of the publishing board. Williams appointed L. G. Jordan as General Secretary of the Board and laid plans for a new building. The building was opened for inspection in 1925. On the recommendation of President Williams, it was named the Morris Building in honor of the noble service and legacy of E. C. Morris. A Laymen's Department was also established.

David V. Jemison succeeded Williams as President of the Convention in 1940. The two major accomplishments during the thirteen years of Jemison's Presidency were paying off the mortgage on the Morris Memorial Building and the purchase of the Bath House in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

In 1953, Joseph H. Jackson of Chicago became President and served until 1982. Jackson twenty-nine year tenure was the longest of any President. Among President Jackson's many contributions was the many new commissions and restructuring of the convention. He also purchased the National Baptist Freedom Farm and set up an unrestricted scholarship at Roosevelt University.

In 1983, T. J. Jemison became President of the Convention and served in that position for twelve years. His crowning achievement was the building of the Baptist World Center; a Headquarters for the Convention in Nashville, TN. He spoke out on public issues more than some presidents, and was opposed to the Gulf War. In a controversial statement, he spoke in favor of the boxer Mike Tyson, who had been convicted of rape. The uproar caused by Jemison's remarks translated into a deep decline of membership and associated churches in the convention in 1992. Later presidents built up the convention again.

Henry Lyons of Florida was elected President in 1994. The Lyons tenure was characterized by much activity as He established a Unified Program, reduced the debt on the Baptist World Center, and dissolved the debt on the Sunday School Publishing Board. In addition, many commissions were added to the convention. Legal problems, however, forced Lyons to resign from the presidency.

S. C. Cureton, Vice President-At-Large, took over the leadership of the Convention in 1999 and served the remainder of the Henry Lyons' tenure.

In 1999, William J. Shaw of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania became the Convention's president and served until 2009. His presidency was centered on the motto and theme 'V.I.S.A': Vision, Integrity, Structure and Accountability. Although the Shaw administration had many hurdles to overcome, he worked hard to reestablish integrity and credibility in the Convention, and to make the Convention a leader for the work of Christ in the nation.

Julius R. Scruggs of Huntsville, Alabama was elected President in 2009 and serves in that capacity today.

Splits and significant outgrowths

In 1897, during the Morris Administration, a group of National Baptist pastors left the convention and formed the Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention. The separation was centered on two issues: the location of the foreign mission board and greater cooperation with White Baptists.

The second split, also during Morris' Presidency, came in 1915 over ownership and operation of the Publishing Board. Of all of the agencies of the convention, the Publishing Board was the most successful, under the leadership of R. H. Boyd. Leaders and pastors of the Convention became suspicious of the actions of the Publishing Board when they did not receive the reports they thought the convention ought. A debate ensued concerning the ownership and those who supported Boyd and his view that the Board was independent of the Convention formed the National Baptist Convention of America. It became known as the Unincorporated Convention (now National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.). Because of the question of incorporation, leaders who remained in the original Convention led a movement to incorporate the Convention. The Constitution was amended in 1916 and the convention was later incorporated, naming itself the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

It was during the Jackson tenure that a third split occurred in the Convention. The two key issues were tenure and the lack of support of the civil rights movement. Gardner C. Taylor of New York challenged Jackson for the Presidency, but lost. After the election, a group led by L. Venchael Booth, formed a new Convention at the Zion Baptist Church, Cincinnati, Ohio in 1961, calling itself the Progressive National Baptist Convention.

In 1992 a fellowship was formed within the convention by Paul S. Morton of New Orleans, Louisiana. The organization was named the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship. This organization's primary focus was on spiritual gifts, speaking in tongues, prophecy, exclamatory worship, etc. The leadership of this fellowship later separated completely from the Convention.

State conventions

Auxiliaries/subsidiary bodies

Congress of Christian Education

The National Baptist Congress of Christian Education is the training arm of the Convention. It is an annual event, held in June, that draws more than 50,000 attendees from around the country and the world. The Congress includes over 300 classes, lectures and group discussion panels targeted and relevant to every age group and every area of the Christian Church and Ministry.

Sunday School Publishing Board

The Sunday School Publishing Board is the official publisher of the Convention and provides all of the educational resources of the convention. The Publishing Board was founded in 1915 and is one of the largest African American owned publishing companies. The Publishing Board supplies books, text books, curriculum and other resources to over 36,000 churches.

Dual Alignment

Known to occur though infrequently, a State Convention, District Association or Member Church of NBCUSA may dually align with another organization. The autonomous make-up of the NBCUSA gives local congregations the latitude to govern itself and contribute to the causes of other religious bodies as it seems necessary and is led by the Spirit.

Some members dually align with The Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention which offers the NBCUSA member a convention-wide focus on foreign missions.

The Mother Church is a well-rounded Spirit-led body of believers with ministries to meet the needs of her members, a strong theological foundation, and rich biblical preaching history that has endured and strengthened for over 130 years. The autonomous nature of the church allows the local congregation to decide its focus, interpret scripture and define its theology on issues not specified in the foundational truths of the Baptist Articles of Faith as well as dually align with a convention with a mission specialized on a specific issue.

Joint Convention

The Joint Convention of National Baptists converge on an American city every four years and comprises the four Black Baptist Conventions. The other three member conventions all originated from or trace origin to NBCUSA and together the four groups represent over 17,000,000 African-American Baptists in America. This convention of National Baptists meet to harness the power and influence of their collective bodies for Christian missions and social action.

Presidents

This is a list of the Presidents of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.

Higher Education Institution Affiliates

• Shaw University
• Virginia Union University
• American Baptist College
• Selma University
• Florida Memorial University
• Virginia University of Lynchburg
• Morehouse Theological Seminary

References

• The Story of the National Baptists, by O. D. Pelt
• Baptists Around the World, by Albert W. Wardin, Jr.
• Dictionary of Baptists in America, Bill J. Leonard, editor
• Salvatore, Nick, "Singing in a Strange Land: C. L. Franklin, the Black Church, and the Transformation of America", Little Brown, 2005, Hardcover ISBN 0-316-16037-7. (Contains lengthy discussion of politics of the National Baptist Convention including vignettes describing efforts by Martin Luther King, Jr. and others to depose Joseph H. Jackson in the 1950s.)

Membership numbers from World Council of Churches. http://www.oikoumene.org/en/member-churches/regions/north-america/united-states-of-america/national-baptist-convention-usa-inc.html

Study on the history and contemporary challenges of the NBCUSA, Inc. http://www.sociology.northwestern.edu/faculty/morris/docmorrislee-baptist.pdf

External links

• National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. - official Web Site
• Sunday School Publishing Board - official Web Site
• Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention - official Web Site