The Southern Baptist decree on women in ministry is wrong. Take it from a Christian | Opinion

The Southern Baptist Convention has been in the news lately. The country’s largest Protestant denomination met in New Orleans with the central issue being the role of women in ministry. Delegates to the annual meeting voted to amend their constitution to limit the role of women, dictating that “only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture.”

The action of the convention is not surprising. The rejection of women in leadership confirms what I believe many assume about Christianity in the United States, that it is conservative and aligned with conservative political movements. One doesn’t have to look far to find instances of Christian churches and groups loudly supporting everything from book banning to a woman’s right to choose and LGBTQ+ rights. Conservative Christian voices are a loud part of our national political debates.

It is a given that we live in a time when participation in religion is in numerical decline. This decline includes the Southern Baptist. A Wall Street Journal poll shows that the number of Americans who say religion is very important to them has dropped from 62% in 1998 to 39% in 2023. Yet, even in this time of decline conservative, Christian groups continue to generate attention and influence.

It is easy to understand why many in our region — what some who study religious trends call the None Zone — see religion in general and more specifically Christianity as a threat to progressive values like equality, environmental reform and freedom of expression. I understand this, but find it unfortunate.

There are other voices. One was Rev. William Gaddy, a founder of The Interfaith Alliance, an organization committed to the separation of church and state, religious freedom and challenging bigotry. Rev. Gaddy died this past week. He was 81.

And there are other voices. My own denomination has ordained women since 1965 and LGBTQI+ folks since 2012. The Presbyterian Church (USA) celebrates diversity and believes in the separation of church and state. The PCUSA policy statement on public education, which I helped write, is clear that the church not school is the place for religious education. It affirms the importance of public education for all children, stating that, “Quality public schools offer a holistic education, one that equips our children to live both meaningful and productive lives where they learn to think critically and become effective citizens, where they gain an appreciation for the sweep of human history and the arts.”

This policy affirms that a holistic education is not a threat to faith and spirituality.

Indeed, it can deepen faith and spirituality.

The decline in religion in this country does not negate the fact that there are still a wide variety of religious voices that need to be heard. There are many reasons why we don’t hear more from progressive, moderate and liberal voices. It is too easy to blame the media. My sense is that many non-conservative Christian communities and members are simply struggling to survive the numerical decline.

I also wonder, at times, if some faith leaders spend so much time talking within their communities about the issues that they don’t have the time or capacity to talk with the broader non-faith community. There are many different reasons.

This Fourth of July weekend when we celebrate freedom, let’s celebrate religious diversity and the separation of church and state.

It’s a separation that is critical — for both the church and the state.

Rev. Brown is the creator and host of Blues Vespers, which begins its 25th season July 9 at Immanuel Presbyterian Church. He retired from Immanuel Presbyterian Church and is a writer, poet and frequent preacher at Fox Island United Church of Christ.