In addition to the Baptist Faith and Message 2000, SBC seminaries have also adopted the Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood as their charter statement. At least five of the six Southern Baptist seminaries have adopted it. Gateway Baptist Theological Seminary does not list it on their website, but possibly has adopted it.

Seminaries are where young (and sometimes old) men get their credentials to preach. Women can get a PhD in ministry, but it is with restrictions. Women’s degrees are to used in teaching women and children, but not preaching.

The Danvers Statement fills in the blanks that the BF&M 2000 left out. It is the most anti-woman document available and sanctioned by the SBC, whose leaders wrote much of it. It is the guiding statement by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood and its purpose is solely how Christian families and churches are to reject women’s equality in both church and home, keeping women submissive to ALL men for All time. They are proud of it, of course, but look – its title is taken from Danvers, MA where the witch hunt trials were in 1692 and in 1987 when this manifesto against women was born, it had been 300 ago. At that time and now, it has been revived in the form of the Danvers Statement. I write about this in my book The Biblical Marriage Myth: The Devil Comes Calling, and show you where and how they frame it (hint, you’ll also find it in the title).

In October 2009, the Danvers Statement was adopted by the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) in Fort Worth, Texas. They are the largest of the six SBC seminaries, so their adoption of the Danvers Statement makes it clear that most Baptists believe that men are elected by God to have “headship” over women. At least one of the smaller SBC seminaries, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, was already using it as their affirmed statement.

This document has but one purpose, and that is to convince Christian women to surrender to male control in the church and in the home.

Subscribing to the notion that all men are born leaders, and all that is needed for them to step up to that role is a little coaching, classes are taught at some SBC seminaries in how to get men to lead and women to follow. Pastors who are taught this as seminarians will naturally view women as being inferior to males when it comes to counseling women in church ministries and with family problems. Women counseled by these types of pastors are often led to believe it is their fault when their marriages begin to fail.

It is likely that your pastor has his degree from a Southern Baptist Convention seminary. Or perhaps the degree was from a seminary with teachers who studied at an SBC seminary. It is also likely that your youth minister has his or her degree from one of these seminaries that ardently teach male headship. They will teach this to the youth groups in churches they serve.

This teaching will affect attitudes and beliefs of the young men your daughters will marry.

Young girls and women will be told they are mistaken if they think God is calling them into ministry. Teenage girls will learn that their membership in churches – the body of Christ – comes with restrictions.

Next subject: Non-denominational Churches

Shirley Taylor Books (available on Amazon in print and on Kindle)
The Biblical Marriage Myth: The Devil Comes Calling
The Power of a Book: The Street Evangelist
Raising the Hood: A Christian Look at Manhood and Womanhood
Women Equal: No Buts
Dethroning Male Headship: 2nd Edition
From Wife to Widow: What I Know Now
Beyond the Grave: A Christian Dilemma