Wednesday 30 July 2008

Not all recession is bad: baptisms down



Baptisms in the Southern Baptist Convention have fallen to a 20-year low, a trend that is setting off alarm bells in America's largest evangelical denomination.
From Reuters

I was a Baptist, and our church put a lot of emphasis on full-immersion, adult baptism. We believed that salvation was thru faith in christ, and not by works, but that a truly born-again person would want to follow the commands of jesus, hence baptism, communion etc.

The article discusses the unease felt by Southern Baptists over the decline in baptisms, as it is an indicator of church growth, but as it interviews some of the nuttier delegates, some choice quotes result.

Evangelist Jim McNiel of St. Louis, the drop in baptism numbers was a sign that the biblical "end times" described in the Book of Revelation were drawing near.
"I see two factions. You have one for believers but you also have a faction from Satan and there is a strong battle looming," he said.


Yes, it's the Satan faction. They are a bit like lobbyists, but have more integrity.

No comments: