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:
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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BWA sends aid to displaced Iraqi Christians
The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) sent an initial sum of US$20,000 to assist with Christians displaced inside Iraq. Funds given by the BWA will be used to help provide food and other urgent relief supplies to approximately 500 Iraqi Christian families who fled Mosul...
Appeal made to Baptists to fight Ebola
The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is appealing urgently to Baptists to make generous contributions to help in alleviating the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. The BWA sent an initial sum of US$5,000 to Sierra Leone to assist in a public education campaign about the...
BWA accepts new members
Four new member organizations were accepted into membership of the BWA during the Annual Gathering in Izmir, Turkey, in July. The Democratic Republic of the Congo now has 13 members after the Baptist Community of the Faithful in Africa, established in 1958 and having...
Baptists in Gaza request urgent prayer, extend assistance
Baptists in Gaza are appealing to Baptists and other Christians to pray for their city that endured a month of heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas. “Due to the desperate situation which is unfolding in Gaza, I must write to you again to ask for more prayers,”...
Baptists take precautionary measures in wake of Ebola outbreak
Baptist leaders in West Africa have called for prayer and are taking precautionary measures to protect their constituencies and communities from the Ebola outbreak that is affecting Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) sent an initial sum...
21st Baptist World Congress
General Information: Welcome to the 21st Baptist World Congress! News FeedDurban, South AfricaBlog July 22-26, 2015 JESUS CHRIST, THE DOOR Photo Gallery Videos https://youtu.be/OWx39TEbG2A Press InformationMedia...
Callam re-elected to another five-year term
Baptist World Alliance (BWA) General Secretary Neville Callam has been re-elected by the BWA General Council at its meeting in Izmir, Turkey, to another five years in office. Callam, a Jamaican, became the first person who is neither North American nor European to...
International Baptists weigh in on unaccompanied minor problem in the USA
Baptists meeting in the biblical city of Izmir, Turkey, last Friday, passed a resolution expressing concern for accompanied minors entering the United States from Central America “who are victimized by separation from their families, economic exploitation, lack of...
South African to become president of global Baptist body in 2015
Ngwedla Paul Msiza of South Africa has been elected president of the Baptist World Alliance (BWA). Msiza and 12 vice presidents were elected by the BWA General Council, which convened during the Annual Gathering being held in Izmir, Turkey, From July 6-12. Msiza, 53,...
Human rights award presented to anti-trafficking campaigner
Ilie Coada, a Baptist pastor in Moldova who worked tirelessly against human trafficking and the sex trade in his country, has been presented with the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award for 2014. The award is given for significant...
Mission opportunities during global Baptist meeting in South Africa
Baptists attending the 21st Baptist World Congress in South Africa in July 2015 will have the opportunity to participate in mission projects in South Africa and other countries in Southern Africa. The Baptist World Alliance does not organize or arrange mission...
Baptists gather in historic city in Turkey
More than 300 Baptist leaders, pastors, theologians, seminary presidents, professors and interested Baptists from around the world are traveling to Turkey for worship, fellowship, study and decision meetings. The Annual Gathering will take place in Izmir, known...
Congress registration now open
Registration for the 21st Baptist World Congress in Durban, South Africa, from July 22-26, 2015, is now open online. Early bird discounted registration fees are in effect until November 30 after which the standard registration fees will apply. Registration is best...
Baptist Youth World Day of Prayer on June 8
The Baptist Youth World Day of Prayer will be observed on June 8. Churches are encouraged to plan worship services and events that include the participation of youth and reflect the importance of youth being engaged in prayer, worship and the mission of the church. A...
Tour opportunities at Baptist World Congress
Participants at the 21st Baptist World Congress in South Africa will have the opportunity to participate in a number of tours during and after the week of meetings, the first in Africa. The congress will be held July 22-26, 2015. There will be a choice between two...
Serbian Baptists appeal for help after deadly flooding
The Sava and Danube confluence in Belgrade, seen during Sava flood from Kalemegdan Fortress, Belgrade in May 2014 Baptists in Serbia are appealing to the worldwide Baptist family for assistance after deadly floods affected large parts of Southeast Europe. Heavy...
“Odessa on fire,” Christian community mourns
Pavel Unguryan (left) The city of Odessa is facing the latest brunt of the unrest in the Eastern European country of Ukraine. On May 2, clashes between pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian protestors killed at least 36 people. Four were killed during the protests and at...
Ukrainian and Russian Baptists seek common ground
Russian Baptist Union President Alexey Smirnov, left, and Ukraine counterpart Vyacheslav Nesteruk, at a meeting in Kiev on April 8 Baptist leaders in Ukraine and Russia met in April to “present a visible sign of support for the possibility of a peaceful dialogue...
Baptists respond to tornadoes and flooding in the US
A deadly tornado as it moved into Vilonia, Arkansas, on April 27 Baptists are responding to the spate of natural disasters that caused the loss of life and property in parts of the United States in late April. On April 25, numerous severe thunderstorms developed...
Alliance of Turkish Baptists formed
Pastors of the four churches that form a new Baptist union in Turkey Four Baptist congregations have formed the Alliance of Baptist Churches in Turkey. The goals of the group are to encourage member churches, explain the teachings of Baptists to member churches and to...
BWA Day observed in May
Baptist World Alliance Day is observed on May 3 and 4, depending whether Baptists worship on Saturday or Sunday. The emphasis is "Hear the Spirit – Transformation." Baptists around the world are encouraged to worship together and to pray for each other. Participants...
BWA negotiates discounted airfare for 2015 congress
Participants attending the 21st Baptist World Congress in Durban, South Africa, in 2015, can benefit from discounted airfares from South African Airways (SAA), the official airline for the congress. The congress will be held from July 22-26, 2015, at the International...
BWA director receives honorary doctoral degree
Emmett Dunn, director of the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) Youth Department, was one of six persons conferred with an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree by the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary (LBTS) on March 31. "The Board of Trustees with the Administration of...
Men’s devotional now available online
A daily devotional for Baptist men around the world is now available on the website of the Baptist World Alliance. A project of the BWA Men's Department, it invites participants to reflect on God, life, faith and discipleship. Preparers included Ayoola Badejo,...
Callam proposes merger of Baptist Congress and Youth Conference
Baptist World Alliance General Secretary Neville Callam has proposed that the Baptist World Congress and the Baptist Youth World Conference be merged. Both are planned by the BWA and are held at five-year intervals, normally two years apart from each other. Callam...
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