DALLAS — The Southern Baptist Convention on Wednesday again spurned a constitutional ban on female pastors as the prohibition’s proponents failed to move the needle on a contentious issue that has prompted several years of debate and the exit of multiple congregations from the nation’s largest Protestant denomination.
For the second year in a row, 61% of SBC messengers, or delegates, voted for the measure, just short of the required two-thirds majority.
The matter has tested the Nashville-based denomination’s commitment to church autonomy as some churches choose to embrace more egalitarian views about women in ministry rather than complementarianism, which prescribes different roles for men and women.
The SBC has disfellowshipped several prominent churches because of female pastors within the last several years, including Saddleback Church, a megachurch in Southern California; Fern Creek Baptist of Louisville, Kentucky; and First Baptist Church Alexandria in Virginia.
Others, like NewSpring Church in South Carolina, have left voluntarily.
James Goforth, senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Ferguson, Missouri, spoke against the measure, calling it an unnecessary distraction from more important issues.
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But Alexander Odum, pastor at Northside Baptist Church in Fort Myers, Florida, expressed frustration with such characterizations, noting that the SBC’s credentials committee had initially failed to recommend Saddleback’s ouster in 2022 after the church had ordained several female pastors. The SBC eventually disfellowshipped Saddleback in 2023, which by then had a woman serving as head co-pastor.
“That yearlong delay was the direct result of the committee not having clarity,” Odum said. “There is no reason to run away from our biblical beliefs about the office of pastor.”
A messenger to the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting fills out a ballot during a session on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas.
The motion limiting pastor and church elder roles to men only was introduced by Juan Sanchez, senior pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, who said the measure simply echoed Baptist principles but was needed to provide clarity for the nation’s largest group of evangelical Christians.
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He noted that some have worried about the legal ramifications of passing the measure but said it was important to adhere to biblical principles.
“There will always be legal concerns,” Sanchez said. “We are not a people governed by attorneys. We are a people governed by a book.”
Approval of the ban could have risked the departure of additional churches from the denomination, which is struggling to maintain its membership of just under 13 million. But the measure’s backers have said adherence to doctrine should trump membership concerns, despite opponents’ concerns that it would be too repressive.
This story has been updated to clarify information about Saddleback Church’s ouster from the SBC.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Southern Baptists spurn constitutional ban on women pastors