November 13, 1999

CLEVELAND—The stage was set Wednesday (Nov. 10) for the Alliance of Baptists—a Washington, D.C.-based communion of 60,000 Baptists in 125 congregations in the southeast—to become the 36th member communion of the National Council of Churches (NCC).

The NCC's General Assembly declared the Alliance eligible for membership, meaning that next year's Assembly will take the final vote establishing formal membership for the Alliance and seating its delegation.

"From our beginnings in 1987, the Alliance of Baptists has been more a movement than an organization," said Executive Director Stan Hastey in a brief written "overview." "Born in the white-heat controversy of a fundamentalist uprising that resulted in the capture of the Southern Baptist Convention, the Alliance was first named the Southern Baptist Alliance. Within five years, however, our sense of identity as a movement separate and apart from the convention out of which we came had solidified to the point of changing our name to the Alliance of Baptists and abandoning finally the struggle for the soul of the SBC."

Following endorsement of the Alliance for NCC membership, Mr. Hasty, in a voice quaking with emotion, told the Assembly its vote "is an act of true grace. Though we are only 10 years old, we have envisioned the action you have taken today since our beginning—we Baptists in the South have isolated ourselves from the rest of the world for far too long. Today marks a milepost of significance for us that I can scarcely exaggerate. With great thanksgiving, we offer ourselves to you."

Progressive National Baptist Convention General Secretary the Rev. Dr. Tyrone Pitts, Jr., endorsed the application by the Alliance of Baptists, noting that the two Baptist groups have a history of cooperation on a variety of ministries, including mission outreach to Cuba.