Southern Baptists Re-Observed

"In 1993, sociologist Nancy Ammerman published an edited collection, Southern Baptists Observed, that assayed the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) as the conservative takeover of the denomination was triumphant and expanding. This volume examines the state of the SBC now that it has been under conservative control for a generation. Contributors address the sweeping success of the takeover-based on enforcing doctrinal fidelity, especially on issues like biblical inerrancy and complementarianism, a rejection of modern, secular values, and advanced international missionary work-alongside the movement's failure to attract and retain members by the turn of the twenty-first century. Essays by Elizabeth Flowers, Barry Hankins, Bill J. Leonard, Melody Maxwell, Alan Willis, and others are grouped under four broad categories: Truth and Freedom: Baptist Institutions and Contentious Issues; Defining and Defending Biblical Truth: Staking the Boundaries; Apologies, Reconciliation, and Continuing Reality; and the View from Outside. The volume begins with a foreword by Ammerman and an introduction by editor Keith Harper contextualizing the history of the movement and the issues it faces today, including those related to gender, homosexuality, race, and abuse"--