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)
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Resolution on Religious Freedom in Russia
The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, July 5-7, 2017:
REAFFIRMS our historic Baptist commitment to religious freedom as a gift of God to all people, regardless of denomination or religion; and that this same commitment is enshrined in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18, to which the Russian Federation is a signatory;
Resolution on Violations of Religious Freedom in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Region
The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016:
RENEWS its concern about the continuing humanitarian crisis in Nigeria previously addressed by a BWA resolution in 2012;
Appendix II: Baptist World Alliance Resolutions Paper
1. The diverse worldwide Baptist family, represented through the Baptist World Alliance (BWA), is concerned about the contemporary religious, missional, social, cultural, political and economic issues that affect the global family.
2. One means of giving expression to the conclusions Baptists draw on issues of concern to them, and of bearing witness to this before the world, is through the preparation, adoption and sharing of resolutions proposed by member bodies, commissions, etc., for approval by the BWA General Council.
3. BWA’s approach to framing resolutions is informed by biblical teaching and predicated on Baptists’ trinitarian faith. The resolutions are shaped by the values and convictions generally affirmed by Baptists and are proposed by members of the Baptist family, or by the Resolutions Committee, which also considers, reviews and amends them where necessary for presentation to the General Council for consideration and possible adoption.
Situation in Ukraine
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Izmir, Turkey, July 9-11, 2014:
NOTES with concern that, in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine generally, the situation has led to increased religious persecution, especially against evangelical Christians;
Resolution on Refugees in East Africa
The Baptist World Alliance General Council, meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, July 5-7, 2017:
NOTES with appreciation the resolution titled “Ministry to Refugees” adopted by the General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Vancouver, Canada, July 6-8, 2016;
Living Water
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Ede, the Netherlands, July 27- August 1, 2009;
Gives thanks to God for the impact of the ‘Living Water’ conferences on evangelism and leadership development in regional and national Baptist bodies;
Climate Change
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20- 25, 2008;
Confesses that humans have often denied or ignored our interdependence with creation and abrogated our stewardship of creation, resulting in misuse of the earth’s resources, environmental degradation, and damage to ecosystems;
Involuntary Fingerprinting of Roma People in Italy
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20- 25, 2008;
Laments that the Italian government, without objection of the European Union, is practicing the involuntary fingerprinting of all Roma people within its borders, including children, which we regard as ethnic profiling;
Refugees and Immigration
BWA General Council Resolution 2008.7 The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20- 25, 2008; Recognizes the global growth of refugee migration and international relocation with more than 67 million current refugees and...
Zimbabwe
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20- 25, 2008;
Rejoices in the work God is doing among his people in Zimbabwe and in particular through the Baptist churches in Zimbabwe;
Ministry of Reconciliation
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20- 25, 2008;
Expresses deep sadness and regret over religious and ethnic conflicts that claim many lives and create deep scars in different parts of the world;
Evangelism and Contextualization of the Gospel
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20- 25, 2008;
Gives thanks to God for the rich spiritual legacy of Reformers like Jan Hus and Petr Chelcicky whose witness still inspires Czech Baptist life which began one hundred and fifty years ago;
400th Anniversary of the Formation of the First Baptist Congregation
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Prague, Czech Republic, July 20-25, 2008;
Resolves to commemorate the 400th Anniversary of the first Baptist congregation, formed in Amsterdam in 1609, by meeting for its next Annual Gathering in the Netherlands in 2009;
Appreciation
MOTION was made and seconded, and carried
32GC76 that the following resolution be adopted:
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Melbourne, Australia, resolves
Appreciation
MOTION by W. A. Criswell was seconded, and carried 33GC76 that the following resolution be adopted:
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance resolves to place on record, as the European Office of the Baptist World Alliance is transferred from London, England, to Hamburg, Germany, its sincere and warm appreciation of the significant contribution made to the Baptist World Alliance by the Baptist Union of Great Britain and Ireland from its inception and throughout its history,
Relief and Development Programs
MOTION by Roy Bell was seconded, and carried
34GC76 that the following resolution, and all pending amendments, be referred to the Executive Committee for consideration.
Since certain governments engage in programs of relief and development beyond their boundaries, and in so doing use their own and other governmental agencies, national voluntary agencies, but do not use international voluntary agencies; and
Food Aid as a Political Instrument
MOTION by W. A. Criswell was seconded, and carried 35GC76 that the following resolution be adopted:
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, believing that the feeding of the starving and the undernourished ought not to be limited to people whose governments are closely allied to donor governments, and recognizing that some governments have used, or have been under pressure to use relief,
Peace Conference
5 MOTION was made, seconded, amended, and carried 36GC76 that the following resolution be adopted:
The General Council, having learned of the preparations to hold a World Conference in 1977, involving representation from all the major religions of the world, entitled “World Conference of Religious Workers for Lasting Peace, Disarmament, and Just Relations Among Nations,”
Appreciation
BE IT RESOLVED that we show our appreciation to the Baptist people of Miami, especially the staff and congregation of the Central Baptist Church of Miami, and the Miami Baptist Association for their fine hospitality.
Appreciation
WHEREAS the General Secretary and staff of the BWA have served the meeting with outstanding efficiency and courtesy, thereby facilitating the speedy and effective work of this Council,
Charismatic Movement
WHEREAS the Commission on Doctrine and Inter-Church Cooperation has for a number of years devoted some of its attention to the charismatic movement, we request the Commission to provide the 1978 BWA General Council such summary statement and guidelines for our Baptist fellowship as they deem appropriate.
Human Rights
WHEREAS the Commission on Freedom, Justice, and Peace has for a number of years devoted some of its attention to the issues of human rights, we request the Commission to provide the 1978 BWA General Council such summary statement and guidelines as they deem appropriate.
Testing of Nuclear Weapons
WHEREAS the Baptist World Congress, held in Tokyo in 1970, called for International “agreements for the limitation of both offensive and defensive strategic weapons” and for “immediate agreements to suspend the further deployment of all offensive and defensive nuclear strategic weapons systems, subject to national verification or such other measures of observation and inspection as may be appropriate,”
Message to Baptist Churches Throughout the World
The Baptist World Alliance is a fellowship of almost 29 of the 33 million Baptists in the world. They represent many nations and widely differing cultures and ways of life and thought. It is neither within its power nor its function to direct, or rule on the internal affairs of the political or economic procedures of its constituent bodies or of their countries.
Theological Training and “The Seminary Fund”
Carl W. Tiller had been asked to prepare a report for the Council on efforts made in past years by Baptists of the world to provide theological training and to establish a theological seminary in the heart of Europe. His written report contained a history of a seminary fund for training in the Slavic languages, begun in 1908 by Baptists.
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