The Southern Baptist Convention voted 6,028 to 2,026 to advance a constitutional amendment banning women from serving as pastors, requiring a two-thirds vote next year to become official. The move solidifies the denomination's conservative stance and draws sharp reactions from advocates for women in ministry.
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), the largest Protestant denomination in the United States, overwhelmingly voted on Wednesday to advance a formal constitutional amendment banning women from serving as pastors, reinforcing the conservative evangelical stance that only men should lead congregations.
The amendment, which passed with a 6,028 to 2,026 vote-a 3-to-1 margin exceeding the required two-thirds majority-will need a similar supermajority at next year's annual meeting to be enshrined in the denomination's constitution. The vote took place during the SBC's two-day annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, with over 11,000 delegates, known as messengers, in attendance.
Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a leading figure in the push for the ban, framed the decision as a defining moment for biblical fidelity. This is an opportunity for Southern Baptists to speak in truth, in unity, in conviction, Mohler said. There is a great line that divides liberal and biblical evangelicalism, and you can see it on this very issue. The trajectory of liberal denominations is clear.
The amendment's language specifically targets any church that acts to affirm, appoint, or endorse a woman serving in the office or function of a pastor, elder, or overseer, particularly in preaching to the assembled congregation. The SBC already has a faith statement opposing women pastors, but the constitutional amendment would make expulsion of noncompliant churches more straightforward.
Opposition to the measure was led by South Carolina pastor Doug Mize, who argued that the denomination already has a mechanism to expel churches with women in senior pastoral positions and has successfully done so multiple times. He stated that the amendment was unnecessary. The SBC has previously taken action against churches like Saddleback Church in California, citing an existing clause barring churches whose faith and practice are out of harmony with the denomination.
The debate over women in ministry has been contentious for years, with advocates pointing to biblical passages that proclaim men and women as equal under God and that call women to proclaim the gospel. In contrast, SBC leaders cite passages that limit pastoral roles to men. The vote marks a significant step in a long-running battle within the SBC.
In the previous three annual meetings, a majority of messengers voted to amend the constitution to ban women in any pastoral role, but only one of those votes achieved the necessary two-thirds supermajority, causing the effort to stall. This year's decisive outcome reflects a consolidation of conservative power. The move starkly contrasts with practices of more liberal Protestant denominations that ordain women and have opened leadership roles to them.
However, many conservative evangelical groups, including some Pentecostal and charismatic circles where prominent women pastors exist, still vary in their practices. The Catholic and Orthodox churches, the world's two largest Christian communions, ordain only men to the priesthood. The organization Baptist Women in Ministry, which supports female ministers across Baptist denominations, issued a statement expressing grief and solidarity with those harmed by the vote.
We express our solidarity with the women in ministry who have been harmed by this vote, the hateful rhetoric and propaganda leading up to the vote, and the damaging theology the vote represents, the statement read. Women in ministry deserve affirmation, respect, and the opportunity to follow God's call. We are heartbroken that they have been denied those fundamental freedoms in the process of this vote.
Later on Wednesday, SBC messengers also considered a nonbinding resolution with similar language opposing women pastors, which only requires a simple majority to pass. Additionally, they voted on resolutions addressing a range of issues from immigration to antisemitism. The outcomes of these votes further underscore the denomination's conservative trajectory
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