NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A panel for the Southern Baptist Convention recommended Monday that its leadership endorse a new, add-on description for the denomination - "Great Commission Baptists" - but stopped short of a complete, legal name change.
Officials described the new term as a way to give an official identity to affiliated churches and believers who don't want to use the term "Southern."
Convention President Bryant Wright and other church leaders are concerned that the Southern Baptist name is too regional and impedes the evangelistic faith's efforts to spread the Gospel worldwide.
The "Great Commission" refers to Matthew 28:16-20, in which Jesus instructs his disciples at Galilee to "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
"We are Southern Baptists. That's who we are. The Great Commission is what we do," said Jimmy Draper, the head of the name task force and a former SBC president. He was also president of the SBC's publishing and retail arm, LifeWay, when it changed its name from the Baptist Sunday School Board.
The panel rejected a complete name change, citing costs and difficulties like the thousands of will and trusts naming the SBC. They also noted the positive associations many hold with the name, such as with its well-regarded disaster relief organization.
