Messengers to the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention in Birmingham were essentially ambushed by Resolution 9 (“On Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality”), being asked for a snap judgment on its elusive soundness. It played some reassuring notes and offered disclaimers, but in ensuring months, it became clearer that here was something of a Trojan Horse, being drawn not only into convention agencies but also into the nation at large. Turns out, CRT/I fosters a mindset of perpetual resentment and recrimination—guaranteed to corrupt the gospel of grace and wreck wholesome congregational harmony.

Counter-resolutions began bubbling up as early as that fall as the faithful had time to process what had happened, and Tennessee Baptists went ahead to pass one. Of course, plans were underway to address the error at the then upcoming 2020 SBC meeting, but it was cancelled over COVID. Along the way, I threw in my two cents worth in a column for The American Spectator, “The Racialist ‘Craniometer’” and a “virtual resolution” for Founders Ministries, “On the Prescription of Secular Analytical Tools. 

Some Baptist groups (Georgia, Kentucky, and Ohio) let the matter steep for a year before acting in their 2020 gatherings. And now, today, in the weeks before the 2021 convention, a “Resolution on the Incompatibility of Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality with the Baptist Faith and Message” is gathering supportive signatures.

In this context, I think it would be good to listen to what some states have said. The image I attach to this piece is taken from an old SBC Executive Committee brochure, Meet Southern Baptists. Back in my EC staff days, we introduced this schematic to show how the churches rule and that ours is not a hierarchical denomination. (I recall an exchange from my time in the PR VP slot, one in which I was asked if I was speaking from the SBC headquarters: “No, the local church is the HQ. We’re just the gofers” [as are the state conventions and associations]. Some call our connection a rope of sand.”

Yes, there’s a legal case touching on this matter, one that’s moving through the federal court system. It concerns the North American Mission Board’s relationship with the Maryland-Delaware convention, the plaintiff, its former executive director, arguing that the national board acted high-handedly, even slanderously so. And, to make things more interesting, the ERLC blundered into signing on to a friend-of-the-court brief  prepared by the Thomas More Society, saying that the SBC was hierarchical, which it isn’t.

But back to the CRT/I resolution. Here’s a look at selected wording from four state convention resolutions. Each of them assured readers that the dignity of all ethnicities was grounded in the image of God and that we should be unstinting in our efforts to combat racism along with other evils of heart and deed. Nevertheless, the “analytical tools” touted in Resolution 9 were deemed problematic, as evidenced by these passages:

Tennessee: “Resolution Denouncing Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality” (2019)

 . . . “WHEREAS, CRT and intersectionality emphasize the priority of social and scientific analyses of humanity while failing to recognize the validity of Biblical truth in understanding the sinful nature of humanity, and . . .

 “WHEREAS, the Messengers of the Tennessee Baptist Convention are deeply troubled that some are injecting CRT and Intersectionality into theological context . . .

 “RESOLVED, that the messengers of the Tennessee Baptist Convention strongly denounce CRT and intersectionality as inconsistent with the Biblical worldview and theology . . .

Georgia: “On Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality” (2020)

. . .WHEREAS, Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality are sociological theories created in secluded corners of secular, postmodern university departments and constructed upon worldview assumptions and notions inconsistent with and unsympathetic to the historic Christian faith “once for all given to the saints” (Jude 3); and 

WHEREAS, Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality wrongly define racism in such a narrow way that primarily only dominant identity groups who wield “power” in society may be indicted with racism and/or racist behaviors; and 

WHEREAS, the passing of Resolution 9 by the 2019 Southern Baptist Convention subsequently caused confusion and consternation throughout the national convention resulting not only in churches withdrawing fellowship from the Southern Baptist Convention and state conventions passing resolutions condemning Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality, which created a distraction from fulfilling the Great Commission to which our Lord called Southern Baptists generally and Georgia Baptists specifically (Mt 28:19-20); and 

WHEREAS, not only does little, if any, evidence exist to indicate positive results when Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality have been tested, but contrarily, racial conflict continues unabated and sometimes worsens; and 

WHEREAS, Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality reject the “gospel as the power of God unto salvation to all who believe” (Rom 1:16) and the inspired Scripture as the all-sufficient guide for remedying, and as much as possible in a fallen world, healing all racial issues due to the sinful human condition the Word of God reveals (2 Tim 3:14-16; Eph 2:11-22; Rom 3:10, 23); . . .

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that given Scripture’s sufficient and final authority for identifying, diagnosing, and solving racial conflict; and given Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality are human constructs producing division and confusion among us, Georgia Baptists reject these human theories as neither useful nor neutral “analytical tools” to accurately assess racial conflict in society or church; . . . 

Kentucky: “On a Call to Deal with Racism from a Biblical Perspective” (2020)

. . .RESOLVED, That we reject worldly ideologies that intentionally or unintentionally seek to nullify, divide, subvert, and confuse godly efforts to seek unity in the body around racial unity efforts (Romans 12:2; Jude 1:19); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we reject any posture that assumes the worst about others, makes baseless accusations, and misconstrues human identity according to skin color (1 Corinthians 13:7; Exodus 20:16; Genesis 1:26-27); and be it further

RESOLVED, That it is the gospel of Jesus Christ only that is capable to bring about lasting personal and social change, to crucify racial sin, and to bring reconciliation (Romans 3:21-26); . . . .

Ohio: “On Critical Race Theory and the Sufficiency of Scripture” (2020) 

. . . WHEREAS, Christian unity is not created by the anti-biblical ideologies of intersectionality or Critical Race Theory, but instead is generated by our common salvation in Christ Jesus; and 

WHEREAS, The State Convention of Baptists in Ohio is committed to the sufficiency of Scripture and is committed to seeking biblical literacy through biblical teaching; now, therefore, be it 

RESOLVED, That the messengers to the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio affirm Scripture as the first, last, and sufficient authority regarding how our churches seek to address social ills and sinful actions, and that we reject Critical Race Theory and any other philosophy or practice which contradicts Scripture; . . . 

Having seen these, let’s return to the basic premise that the churches are “on top” and read resolution from a congregation in St. George, Utah, one in which they asked the association and state convention to speak to this matter. In the end, the recipients voted, instead, to send a message of concern to the SBC Executive Committee.

Desert Ridge Baptist Church, St. George, UT: “Proposed resolution from the CCBA to the UISBC regarding Resolution 9” (2019)

WHEREAS, at the 2019 SBC national meeting, a resolution was passed accepting “Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality” (CRT/I) as valid tools for interpreting Scripture and ordering the actions of Christ’s Church, and

WHEREAS, insufficient time for discussion of CRT/I on the floor of the meeting was allotted, and 

WHEREAS, CRT/I points away from the biblical categories of sin and righteousness to the categories of “oppressed” and “oppressor,” we are convinced that CRT/I is not a useful “analytical tool” for the explanation of Scripture, most specifically as it regards the presentation of the biblical plan of salvation, and

WHEREAS, we are very concerned about that the inroads that the contemporary “Social Justice” movement, which is largely motivated by CRT/I rather than by biblical truth, have made in the Southern Baptist Convention, and

WHEREAS, we are very concerned that, by adopting CRT/I, the saints of God are choosing to follow the culture rather than Christ and, in so doing, will continue to neglect our role in actively seeking true, biblical justice . . .

Back when I worked on/with the SBC Resolutions Committee (as chairman in 1989, member in 1990, and EC staff liaison 1992-1995), I came to see that these documents were framed to either 1. give voice to something Southern Baptists were dying to say, or bust (e.g., re President Clinton’s push to normalize gays in the military), or 2. inform them of something they needed to know, on which they would like to speak should they be so informed (e.g., re RU-486, the “morning after” abortion pill). In the matter of repudiating Resolution 9, it appears that #1 applies emphatically, and that the framers of these various counter-resolutions have done their work in supplying material for #2.