The Southwide Baptist Fellowship is an

Independent Baptist Independent Baptist churches (some also called Independent Fundamental Baptist or IFB) are Christian congregations, generally holding to conservative (primarily fundamentalist) Baptist beliefs. Although some Independent Baptist churches refuse af ...

Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worsh ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is a member of the International Baptist Network.

Organisation

The organizational structure of government and by-laws within the Southwide Baptist Fellowship are not available for public viewing, but the organization includes a moderator and one of its main purposes is to convene regularly for conferences.

Beliefs

Considered a conservative and "

Fundamentalist Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishing ...

" association of Baptist churches, the Southwide Baptist Fellowship is not as staunchly devoted as other Baptist Fundamentalist Fellowships to the concept of absolute autonomy (local church independence) or the essential requirement of the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

(KJV). Certainly, most member churches of the Southwide Baptist Fellowship are Independent Baptist and remain " KJV-only". When it originated, the Southwide Baptist Fellowship was almost identical in teaching and outlook as the core of Independent Baptist Fundamentalism. It was heavily influenced by

Lee Roberson Lavern "Lee" Edward Roberson (November 24, 1909 – April 29, 2007) was an American pastor and evangelist. He was the founder of Tennessee Temple University and Temple Baptist Seminary in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Camp Joy, in Harrison, Te ...

and John R. Rice. Its hallmark code of behaviors (short hair on men, dresses on women, no

mixed bathing Mixed bathing is the sharing of a pool, beach or other place by swimmers of both sexes. Mixed bathing usually refers to swimming or other water-based recreational activities in public or semi-public facilities, such as hotel or holiday resort pool ...

, no movies, no contemporary music) and its

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Dispensationalism Dispensationalism is a system that was formalized in its entirety by John Nelson Darby. Dispensationalism maintains that history is divided into multiple ages or "dispensations" in which God acts with humanity in different ways. Dispensationali ...

were standard for

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

Fundamentalism Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishing ...

. Many of its members were openly antagonistic towards the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

and were outposken critics of SBC policies which, two decades ago, permitted a certain degree of

liberal theology Religious liberalism is a conception of religion (or of a particular religion) which emphasizes personal and group liberty and rationality. It is an attitude towards one's own religion (as opposed to criticism of religion from a secular position, ...

Increasing openness

Over time, particularly since the 1990s, the Southwide Baptist Fellowship has loosened some of its more strict requirements of dress and behavior. Currently, it remains a loose federation of Baptist churches that stand for conservatism, both religious and political, including political action, and overall it remains Dispensational in theology. It embraces but does not require strict independence.

Splinter Organizations

Once Southwide began to open up to more Southern Baptists and Contemporary Christian influences, the more conservative, KJV Only sections began forming separate fellowships such as the Nationwide Independent Baptist Fellowship, now known as the Atlanta Super Conference, and more recently the new Southwide Independent Baptist Fellowship.Southwide Independent Baptist Fellowship
/ref> Both of these groups have been influenced by leaders from independent Baptist institutions such as

Crown College (Tennessee) Crown College is a independent Baptist Bible college, trade school, seminary, language school, and music conservatory in Powell, Tennessee. History Clarence Sexton founded Crown College in 1991. The faculty and students of Crown College agre ...

West Coast Baptist College West Coast Baptist College is an independent Baptist Bible college in Lancaster, California, offering graduate and undergraduate degrees. West Coast opened in 1995 and is a member of the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and School ...

and Hyles-Anderson College.

Notes

External links

Southwide Baptist Fellowship Official Site
{{US baptist denominations Independent Baptist denominations in the United States