encourage support for the BWA in Baptist churches and organizations, and among individual Baptist believers.” One
hundred and fifty ambassadors have already been identified, with the number expected to grow to 400.
Callam also urged the BWA to create two commissions. One commission would deal primarily with Baptist
conversations with Muslims. Declaring that the BWA has “encouraged Baptist bodies to consider opening
conversations with Muslims in their neighborhoods,” the BWA leader said the commission on Muslim dialogue would
“establish a mechanism at the global level with a view to lending coherence to the various dialogues taking place
locally and involving Baptists.” Such a commission would “receive contributions from ongoing dialogue taking place
around the world,” and “could also provide space for shared reflection and resource sharing that may be deemed
appropriate and useful.”
The general secretary also called on the BWA to discuss the subject of a “Christian multi-cultural hermeneutic
for intra-Baptist relations.” Claiming that there is a need “to examine the ways in which we understand the various
cultures of participants in the BWA,” Callam urged that there be the creation of a “special commission” that would,
among other things, “clarify whether, over the years, certain norms have been employed in defining what is
acceptable within the BWA” which “have chained the movement in a certain cultural captivity.”
The special commission may “contribute to the reduction of tension among believers from various cultures when
we gather in settings to seek consensus on difficult issues of concern to us in the worldwide Baptist movement.”
The commission would, in short, aid in deepening the understanding that Baptists have of each other, regardless
of cultural background or heritage.
REORGANIZATION
The General Council disbanded the BWA Division of Study & Research and the Division of Evangelism &
Education and replaced these with the Division of Mission, Evangelism and Theological Reflection (METR).
The newly-created division will consist of seven commissions – Evangelism, Theological Education &
Leadership Formation, Baptist Heritage & Identity, Doctrine & Christian Unity, Christian Ethics, Ministry, and Baptist
Worship & Spirituality.
Each commission will comprise approximately 25 “regular members” and not more than 25 “corresponding
members,” the former expected to attend at least three of the five meetings in each quinquennium, and the latter
attending at least one meeting in the five-year period.
The Division of Freedom and Justice, created by vote of the General Council in July 2008, will be comprised of
four commissions – Religious Freedom, Peace, Social & Environmental Justice, and Human Rights Advocacy, and
will have a similar structure to the commissions of METR. Raimundo César Barreto Jr. of Brazil was elected to serve
as the first director of the Division of Freedom and Justice and will take up office on March 1, 2010.
In addition to Barreto, other important personnel changes were made. George Bullard, previously elected by the
NABF as its general secretary, was named BWA regional secretary for North America. Harrison Olan’g of Tanzania,
who served as Interim General Secretary for the All Africa Baptist Fellowship following the death of Frank Adams in
December 2006, was formally confirmed by the General Council as BWA regional secretary for Africa.
Peter Pinder of the Caribbean, the longest serving regional secretary, having been elected in 1995, gave notice
of his retirement from the office. A new regional secretary for the Caribbean is expected to be named sometime in
2010.
Tony Peck for Europe, Bonny Resu for Asia and the Pacific, and Alberto Prokopchuk for Latin America, were
reaffirmed as BWA regional secretaries until 2015.
CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES
The General Council voted to amend the BWA constitution and bylaws.
The Executive Committee will now comprise 25 members, reduced from more than 60 persons, and will have
greater oversight responsibilities, including “overseeing the development and implementation of the overall program
of the BWA” and “generally overseeing the financial affairs of the BWA.”
Whereas previously three-months notice was required to convene BWA Executive Committee meetings, either
the president or general secretary can now call special meetings of the executive with a minimum of five-days
notice.
The five approved “clusters of commitment,” adopted by the General Council in 2007, are now included in the
BWA bylaws, stating that “the BWA will focus on
(Continued on next page)

PHOTO: Some of the BWA vice president-elects who were nominated by the General Council. Victor Samuel
Gonzalez, Harry Gardner, Ross Clifford, Paul Msiza, Olu Menjay, Burchell Taylor, and Daniel Carro
9
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32