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MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Meeting in Memphis, Tenn., for the first time in its history, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship focused on the theme of “Embrace the World: Building Bridges” during the 18^th annual General Assembly.

 

Randy Hyde, chair of the Assembly steering committee and pastor of Pulaski Heights Baptist Church in Little Rock, Ark., welcomed about 2,000 attendees to the first full day of events June 19.

 

“There is hope springing from the silt of these Delta lands, and people who call themselves ‘Baptists’ are a vital part of that hope,” Hyde said. “Sharing the gospel means breaking barriers, and here on the banks of this great river we have more than our share ... which is why we have built bridges.”

 

American Baptist human rights advocate Lauran Bethell, who serves in the Netherlands, talked about bridging gaps in relationships as Jesus did with the Samaritan woman at the well. She challenged the Assembly to not become imprisoned by fear of crossing the bridges of culture, morality and gender.

 

“There are many Christians and … churches who … suffer from the fear,” she said. “It’s a fear of falling and a fear of failing … [or] a fear of the unknown of the other side.”

 

Bethell spoke specifically about ministry among prostitution and human trafficking victims, asking Fellowship Baptists to pray for victims, learn more about the problem and cross a bridge.

 

“This is God’s moment. Let’s cross the bridge of fear … risk … devastation … pain,” she said.  

 

In his keynote address, CBF Executive Coordinator Daniel Vestal cited the example of civil rights leader and Baptist pastor Martin Luther King Jr., who was assassinated in Memphis 40 years ago.

 

“The death and funeral of Dr. King was the event that awakened my social conscience,” Vestal said. “It made me realize for the first time in my life that I bore responsibility for the racial and economic injustice in this nation. Yet, in the past 40 years the disparity between rich and poor has widened, and the gap between rich and poor nations has increased. Extreme global poverty is a scandal. Domestic poverty in this nation, the richest nation in the history of the world, is a shame and a tragedy. So the mission of God continues.”

 

At the evening worship session, attendees contributed $9,978 toward the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Offering for Religious Liberty and Human Rights. In its fourth year, the offering will go to the Baptist World Alliance and European Baptist Federation to fund ministries and initiatives that promote religious liberty and human rights.

 

 

Donald Messer, executive director of the Center for the Church and Global AIDS, urged more than 50 people gathered for the CBF AIDS Network luncheon to link their faith with the AIDS crisis.

“We live in a world which is facing the worst health crisis in over 700 years,” said Messer, who wrote “Breaking the Conspiracy of Silence.” “We honestly don’t know how many people are infected. It’s easier to count the number of fish in the sea than it is to count the number of people who were already affected or already died because of the stigma and discrimination associated with this disease.”

Messer said the challenge of our time is to discover how churches respond with ministry and education, and join the partnership with others to make a difference. He said the best way to engage people in the AIDS crisis is to tell stories.

“We must encourage people with HIV to speak in our churches so that people can connect with people,” Messer said. “As we tell those stories, share them and preach them, we begin to identify with people who are suffering.”

During the Thursday morning business session, the General Assembly was presented with the nominating committee’s report, including Hal Bass as moderator-elect and Joanne Carr as recorder. Also presented was the 2008-09 ministries and missions budget of $16,500,000. These items will be voted on by the Assembly Friday.

 

Jack Glasgow, CBF moderator-elect, provided a report on the Fellowship’s involvement with the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Following a motion during last year’s Assembly, the Coordinating Council voted to endorse the MDGs. Glasgow reported that CBF field personnel are involved in more than 100 projects that collectively address each of the eight goals.

 

“In the future we want CBF to be a learning community where field personnel, staff and congregations all share ideas and best practices of ministries that address the MDGs,” said Glasgow. “We want to assist churches in educating and involving their members in ministries that address the goals. And, we want churches to share with us their unique and creative ways to engage in ministry related to the MDGs. This is the right path for missional churches to travel.”

 

CBF moderator Harriett Harral provided attendees with an introduction to the prayer and discernment process, which began Thursday afternoon and continues Friday.

 

“This afternoon, the entire assembly is going to convene specifically and solely for the purpose of praying to discern the Spirit’s leadership,” Harral said. “We are a people convinced of the power of prayer – this is going to be a unique and holy time for us and a time that will have great impact on our future as a fellowship.”

 

Presentations of authors’ copies of their newly released books were made to Cecil Sherman, former CBF coordinator and author of “By My Own Reckoning,” and Daniel Vestal, CBF executive coordinator and author of “Being the Presence of Christ.”

 

“There is a piece of this story that explains how this organization has been called into being,” said Sherman. “Of course, it is an explanation from my point of view. This is one take on the events that called CBF into being. We need to remember the events that called us into being and be guided by them as we wisely chart our future.”

 

 

At the “Working Together to End Poverty” event Thursday, Chad Hale, a minister in the Grant Park neighborhood of Atlanta, talked to the gathering of more than 100 Fellowship Baptists about the food cooperative model, an asset-based community development project.

 

The food co-op can be an alternative to a food pantry. Instead of handing out food to people, many of whom become encouraged to return, the co-op is a holistic approach.

 

“This is an amazing amalgam that uses food to create community,” Hale said. “It’s evangelism in the best sense of the word. Those in need work to distribute the food, so they are helping themselves in the process.”

 

Hale said he was inspired by a similar program used by a Methodist group in Florida. He liked the concept because members are encouraged to help themselves. Co-op members pay $3 a month to participate. Once every two weeks, they receive a box of supplemental food, valued between $70 and $100. Members help unload trucks, pack boxes and distribute food to other members. Those who cannot afford it can work extra to off-set the fee.

 

“The food helps off-set some of the expenses for these families,” he said. “It helps [them] stay in [their] homes and frees up money for utilities and mortgages. It’s an incredible tool for fighting homelessness.”

 

The Assembly concludes Friday, June 20, with a final session of discernment and a celebration of missional churches and ministries around the world.

 

CBF is a fellowship of Baptist Christians and churches who share a passion for the Great Commission and a commitment to Baptist principles of faith and practice. The Fellowship’s mission is to serve Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission.