Resolutions | Baptist World Alliance

Resolutions

Compiled by Rev. Dr. Lee B. Spitzer, BWA Historian

Welcome to the Baptist World Alliance Historical Archive!

We are pleased to share with you the entire set of Resolutions, Manifestos, Messages and Proclamations approved by delegates attending the Baptist World Alliance World Congresses from 1905 through 2015 (the 2020 Congress was postponed to 2021 due to the global pandemic).

Additionally, we are offering the Resolutions and Manifestos approved by the BWA General Council, which meets yearly. The online collection includes the years 1976-2019. The BWA Executive Committee Resolutions are currently being compiled, and a limited number are already accessible. The collection will be expanded over time.

Each Resolution document is in PDF format and seeks to reproduce the original text as closely as possible. This means that language and punctuation may be archaic and not in accordance with contemporary standards of discourse. Spellings of words sometimes are in British English and have been preserved as they were originally published. I am solely responsible for any typographical errors in reproduction, and I would deeply appreciate it if you would share with me any that you may discover.

It is the BWA’s hope that this collection will be useful to scholars, historians, denominational leaders, and clergy. Each document now contains a unique identification number, topical keywords, and four types of citations for academic purposes.

The range of issues covered by the collection is comprehensive, and many of the Resolutions speak to contemporary concerns (such as racism, antisemitism, poverty and war) with multi-cultural wisdom, spiritual integrity, and intellectual depth. Readers seeking to learn how Baptists on a global scale and across time have addressed the human condition in all of its variations (moral, social, economic, political, etc.) will be rewarded as well as challenged.

In Baptist polity, Resolutions and other collective statements are not binding on Baptist individuals or churches. They intend to share wisdom and raise consciousness rather than to demand or coerce conformity or hinder the soul freedom and responsibility of people to follow God according to the dictates of their own Christ-led conscience. In the foreword to the 1955 Golden Jubilee World Congress Official Report (p. 6), BWA General Secretary Arnold T. Ohrn stated this principle well:

Further, it should be understood that an Alliance Congress, when adopting pronouncements, can speak for itself alone. The resolutions naturally carry great moral authority, coming as they do from a Congress so representative of Baptists in the entire world. But no union or convention has ever authorized a Baptist World Congress to speak on its behalf. The people who voted for the resolutions, did so on their own behalf, not on behalf of their churches or conventions. But these statements would never have been proposed, much less adopted, if they were not considered indicative of the trends of opinion within the Baptist world.

If you should need any further assistance in utilizing this online historical archive, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Rev. Dr. Lee B. Spitzer,
BWA Historian (Click here to contact)

For ease of reference, click one of the buttons below to see resolutions in that category.

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Child Sexual Abuse in the Church

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
AFFIRMS the intrinsic and inestimable value of children and young people as gifts from God and as the promise of future generations;

Encouraging Discipleship in Turkey

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014: RECOGNIZES the courage and faithfulness of the disciples of Christ in the nation of Turkey;
ACKNOWLEDGES the government’s efforts towards mutual respect and tolerance among different religious groups, which help promote peace and harmony among all of its peoples;

Current Crisis on the Korean Peninsula

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
NOTES, with concern, the nuclear test carried out by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), the escalation of rhetoric involving the DPRK, Republic of Korea and the USA of America, and the fear that this can lead to armed conflict in the region;

Human Rights Based on the Work of Anabaptist Richard Overton

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013, in honor of the Human Rights Advocacy award winner for 2013, Glen Stassen:
RECALLS the contributions of English Anabaptist Richard Overton who encouraged Christians to discover human rights by recognizing the rule of God as revealed in Jesus;

Resolution on Displaced Persons

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
REMEMBERS that the Bible honors displaced persons, including the people of Israel who lived as exiles for forty years before entering Canaan (Exodus 13ff.), and who later experienced displacement, loss and trauma when exiled to Assyria and Babylon (e.g. 2 Kings 24:10-16), and the Lord Jesus Christ who, with his family, experienced life as a displaced person (Matthew 2:13-23);

Crisis in the Middle East and North Africa

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
ACKNOWLEDGES that impact of the “Arab Spring” in the Middle East and North Africa has led to an increase in the persecution of minorities, including Christians;

End to United States of America (USA) Embargo on Cuba

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
ACKNOWLEDGES that more than two decades have passed since the end of the Cold War, and that most negative manifestations of that struggle have been ameliorated, except for the continuing USA embargo against Cuba begun in 1960;

Gender Equality and Gender-Based Violence

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
BELIEVES that everyone is created in the image of God and so possesses inalienable dignity and value, and that Jesus Christ, who died on the Cross for both women and men, commands us to love one another, as he has loved us (John 13:43);

Myanmar, Violence and Religious Liberty

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir Turkey, July 9-11, 2014: AFFIRMS the many significant steps taken by President Thein Sein’s government in Myanmar in recent years to relax restrictions and permit a more open society.

Gratitude for Life and Ministry of George Liele

The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016:
ACKNOWLEDGES the profound challenges created in many parts of our world by the massive flow of refugees and displaced persons,

Proclamation of the Gospel

The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016:
ACKNOWLEDGES the profound challenges created in many parts of our world by the massive flow of refugees and displaced persons,

Liberation Legacy of Sam Sharpe

The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016:
ACKNOWLEDGES the profound challenges created in many parts of our world by the massive flow of refugees and displaced persons,

Appreciation for Dr. J. Deotis Roberts

The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016:
ACKNOWLEDGES the profound challenges created in many parts of our world by the massive flow of refugees and displaced persons,

Dr. Duke K. McCall in Memoriam

The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016:
ACKNOWLEDGES the profound challenges created in many parts of our world by the massive flow of refugees and displaced persons,

Nelson Mandela

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
LAMENTS the atrocities occurring in Rakhine, Chin, Karen and Kachin states in Myanmar;

Crisis in Nigeria

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Climate Change and our Responsibility

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Global Baptist Mission

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Religious Liberty

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Caribbean Court of Justice

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Ocha Rios, Jamaica, July 1-6, 2013:
LAMENTS the atrocities occurring in Rakhine, Chin, Karen and Kachin states in Myanmar;

Appreciation for Gardner Calvin Taylor

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Resolution on Evangelism

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

Resolution on Foreign Guest Workers

The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
ACKNOWLEDGES that every human being is created in the image of God and thereby has an intrinsic
value to God and to the world (Genesis 1:26-27);

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