c. 2000 Religion News Service

(UNDATED) Former President Jimmy Carter, long known as a Southern Baptist Sunday school teacher, has announced he “can no longer be associated with” the nation’s largest Protestant denomination.

In a statement and letter released Thursday (Oct. 19), Carter said he had come to this decision after Southern Baptists approved a revamped statement of faith this summer.

“Although I will continue my work as a Baptist deacon and Sunday School teacher in Maranatha Baptist Church … I have come to the very painful decision that I can no longer be associated with the Southern Baptist Convention,” he said in the statement.

The 76-year-old Carter, whose church is in Plains, Ga., has been a Southern Baptist since he was 11.

He also wrote a letter that will be distributed to 75,000 Baptists across the country by Texas Baptists Committed, a moderate Baptist group.

At his request, the former president met with moderate leaders from Georgia, Texas and Virginia about a month ago at his office in the Carter Center in Atlanta.

They discussed the latest changes in the statement of faith and Carter decided to send a letter to Baptists along with a tape in which Charles Wade, the executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, explained the revisions.

Carter told Religion News Service the faith statement “became much more narrow,” limiting the autonomy of local churches and the interpretation of Scripture.

“They are increasingly imposing a creed on a denomination who’s very founding was based on a commitment against creeds,” he said of conservative Southern Baptist leaders.

Carter objects to the new faith statement’s treatment of women, especially their “exclusion from major roles in the church.” The new language says “the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.”

He also opposed the previous change in the statement of faith in 1998, which said wives should “submit … graciously” to their husbands. He said that change “extracted a small portion of one verse to the exclusion of other evidence in the Bible.”

Carter said his congregation decided in September to give half of its mission contribution to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, a moderate Baptist group based in Atlanta.

More than two years ago, the former president brought leaders of the moderate and conservative factions of the Southern Baptist Convention together for private meetings.

“I really wanted to try to find some common ground on which we could work together,” Carter said. “I’ve been disappointed.”

Now, the controversy between moderates and conservatives has escalated to the point that the moderate-led Baptist General Convention of Texas has scheduled a vote at its upcoming meeting on drastically reducing the money it sends to some Southern Baptist entities. At other state conventions, including Georgia’s, votes are expected to be taken on affirming the latest version of the Baptist Faith and Message.

SBC Executive Committee President Morris Chapman said he was disappointed with Carter’s decision, though not surprised because the former U.S. president has long been aligned with the moderate Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

“Nevertheless, his timing and the need to make a public announcement are curious to me,” said Chapman, referring to the vote scheduled at the Texas meeting Oct. 30-31.

But Carter said he had Georgia Baptists in mind _ who gather Nov. 13-14 _ rather than Texans when he decided to make his announcement.

“I’m not trying to influence the Texas Baptists,” he said. “I don’t think there’s any doubt that the Texas Baptists will not adopt the new creed. The Georgia Baptist Convention leadership are all very conservative but even they have been divided on whether or not this new creed should be adopted.”

David Currie, coordinator of Texas Baptists Committed, said Carter’s letter and the tape will cost about $80,000 to distribute.

He hopes the message will prompt some of the 19,000 Texans who receive the letter to attend the meeting in Corpus Christi, at which the funding vote will be taken.

“We were anxious to get it out ahead of that,” he said.

Carter said he has not relished his decision.

“I’ve done it with a great deal of pain and anguish,” he said.

And he said he may not agree with conservative Southern Baptist leaders, but he doesn’t feel “critical” of them.

“I don’t have any hard feelings against them,” he said. “The issue is already drawn. I just wanted people to know which side I came out on.”

DEA END BANKS