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Baptist2Baptist
Sixth and Final Report of the SBC Funding Study
The Fifth and Final Report of the SBC
Stand For Marriage
Final Report of Ad Hoc CP Committee
Final Report of Ad Hoc CP Committee (Appendices)
Cooperative Program Advance Plan
Fourth Report of the SBC Funding Study Committee
Review of NOBTS's Sole Membership Charter Amend.
Response to reservations about sole membership
Reservations Concerning a Charter Amendment Prop.
Sole Membership - A Florida Layman’s Perspecti
A Letter to Dr. Denton Lotz
Letter from Albert W. Wardin
The Relation of the SBC to its Entities
SBC Funding Study - State of Giving
What is Sole Membership?
Sole Membership
Letter to Missouri Churches
Questions and Answers
Behind the Scenes at the SBC
Response by Morris H. Chapman to the BGCT
Does It Matter What Missionaries Believe?
Letter to the Baptist Standard
On Facts and Fallacies
Letter by SBC EC President to Dr. James L. Hill
A View from the Other Side
Carter's rift with SBC not a new development
SBTS Response to BGCT Seminary Study Committee
Response to BGCT Seminary Study Committee Report
SBTS Response to BGCT Seminary Study Committee
Exec. Comm. Interacts with BGCT Funding Proposal
The Pastor's Point of View on the BGCT
Feasibility Study for Name Change
Report of the SBC Peace Committee
Doctrine, Cooperation, and Association
Report to the Fellowship of Deacons
Too High a View of Scripture?
The Truth about the SBC and Texas
Christ, The Bible, and Human Experience
Bibliolatry — A Fraudulent Accusation
BFM - Still Thoroughly Baptist!
Texas First, Texas Only - Not the Spirit
Anti-SBC Leaders Threaten Cooperative Program
Southern Baptists and Women Pastors
The Root of the SBC Controversy
Your Church Reaching the World for Christ
Together We're Carrying Out the Great Commission
Doctrinal integrity paramount for Serminary
Have Baptists replaced Jesus with a book?
Why theology matters for the Great Commission task
A survey of the 2000 BFM
Baptists, the Bible and confessions
Southern Seminary and the Abstract of Principles
An Open Letter to Southern Baptists
A Statement About the Baptist Faith & Message
An Example of the Need to Change The BFM
Incredible Vanishing Corporations
Committee on Cooperation - Report and Findings
An Open Letter from Dr. Allen to Dr. Wade
Why Cooperate?
The Southern Baptist Convention is Alive and Well
Letter by SBCEC President to TX Church Leaders
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"There should be an 'Abstract of Principles', or careful statement of theological belief, which every professor in such an institution must sign when inaugurated, so as to guard against the rise of erroneous and injurious instruction in such a seat of sacred learning."

James P. Boyce
from "Three Changes in
Theological Institutions"
- summarized by John Broadus, 1856



Context for Review of New Orleans Seminary’s Sole Membership Charter Amendments
by D. August Boto and James P. Guenther
February 4, 2005

In the course of the discussions between the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee and the various SBC entities regarding the recommendation of sole membership amendments to their various charters, it became the practice to supply them with footnoted drafts showing the suggested, beneficial changes.  In all cases, the drafts were prepared by the SBC’s lawyers and submitted to the entities, which in turn would review those drafts, ask questions, suggest changes or otherwise respond.  Any differences were worked through to mutually satisfactory conclusions.  Often there were no differences, and the drafts were approved as the final documents by the entities, submitted to the Executive Committee for recommendation to the Convention, and ultimately approved by the Convention.  Except for there not yet being a conclusion of the matter, the above course was also followed with regard to the New Orleans seminary, and included supplying sample documents to New Orleans Seminary on several occasions:

  • On September 5, 1997, a letter was sent to all the entities commending the apparent advantages of sole membership, asking for a consensus from among the entity leaders, including a draft of some possible SBC governing document changes, and indicating that the Executive Committee would be working with each entity to craft appropriate amendments.
  • On January 20, 1998 a second letter was sent to all entity heads including drafts of possible SBC Bylaw amendments and asking for input.
  • On September 21, 1999 a conference was held with Dr. Kelley during which he was given, as examples, copies of the sole membership charter amendments the Midwestern, Golden Gate, and Southwestern seminaries had already adopted.  (All other entities except Southeastern Seminary had adopted sole membership prior to that date.  Southeastern Seminary adopted sole membership in 2000).
  • On December 4, 2001, Convention and Executive Committee representatives met with seminary representatives and discussed sole membership, at the conclusion of which meeting the seminary asked for, among other things, a draft of suggested charter changes adopting sole membership accompanied by a brief or footnotes referring to the effect of the changes and applicable laws.
  • On January 24, 2002, the requested draft and other materials were sent to the New Orleans seminary.

The text of that 1/24/2002 footnoted draft is what the trustees of the New Orleans seminary ultimately approved in October of 2004, expressing reservations in doing so.

Read the suggested amendments, as well as the footnotes containing the opinions of SBC legal counsel. 
Reservations Expressed by New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary Concerning a Charter Amendment Proposal
Response to reservations about sole membership posed by the New Orleans seminary

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