Southern Baptists weigh new immigration resolution at meeting

Southern Baptists – As the Southern Baptist Convention heads into its final stretch of its annual meeting in Orlando, delegates will consider a proposed immigration resolution that calls for strict enforcement while rejecting nativism and discrimination. The draft omits a clear p

ORLANDO — Delegates walking into the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting this week will be weighing far more than wording. In the middle of a busy lineup of proposed statements, a single resolution on immigration asks messengers to hold two ideas at once: border security and compassion.

The timing is sensitive. The SBC’s final turn toward a decision is happening under a new president—Willy Rice—elected Tuesday by a 58%-42% margin. Rice, senior pastor of Calvary Church in Clearwater, Florida, is expected to continue the denomination’s rightward shift. And in recent months. harsh federal immigration enforcement by ICE and public confrontations tied to it have pushed the debate into the open.

The proposed resolution—titled “On Immigration, Human Dignity and the Rule of Law”—threads a line between evangelical views that say border security is crucial and a belief that it must be pursued with care for families and vulnerable people.

The draft acknowledges the need for strict immigration enforcement. including “the removal of those whom the government duly prioritizes for deportation and accountability for criminal activity. human trafficking and unlawful employment practices.” It rejects amnesty and also omits any mention of a clear path to legal residency for people in the U.S. illegally—something Ruth Melkonian-Hoover. a political science professor at Gordon College in Wenham. Massachusetts. said was a priority for previous SBC leaders.

At the same time. the resolution calls for humane immigration policies that uphold justice and mercy. strongly rejecting nativism. discrimination and racial or ethnic hostility. It exhorts “the government to take particular care of children and families. ” insisting upon respect for “the God-given worth and dignity of every person.”.

The resolution’s moral framing is where Melkonian-Hoover sees its heart—and where she also sees the sharpest tension. She said the statement leads off with the Christian belief that humans are created in God’s image. and from that foundation it calls people “to show justice. mercy. hospitality and love toward the vulnerable and the stranger” and to affirm “the worth and dignity of every person regardless of ethnicity or national origin.”.

“That was great to see,” she said. “What happened with ICE gave people pause. People were saying, ‘This is not why I voted for Trump.’ So, for many, this is a time to speak.”

A vote among messengers will decide whether those words survive the convention’s process. The resolution is scheduled to be considered Wednesday as the SBC’s annual meeting moves into its final stretch.

Rice’s election adds a new political weight to the room. The Nashville-based denomination elected Willy Rice Tuesday. replacing the prior president’s leadership role as messengers prepare for debates that can shape the SBC’s public posture. Rice’s win by 58%-42% marks a likely continuation of the denomination’s move toward the right.

No discussion of residencyu2014and the pushbacku2014sits at the center

Melkonian-Hoover said the lack of pathways toward legal residency in the resolution was “frustrating,” particularly because she said the denomination has historically supported such programs as part of comprehensive immigration reform efforts.

The friction also mirrors a wider shift inside evangelical communities. A 2024 survey conducted by Lifeway Research found evangelicals increasingly worried about immigration levels. while also remaining committed to Christian responsibility to care for those in the U.S. illegally and supportive of policies allowing them to pursue legal residency. Matthew Soerens. national director of the Evangelical Immigration Table. said at the time that there are “many evangelicals who both believe there are economic challenges related to immigration and see the arrival of immigrants as an evangelistic opportunity.”.

The stakes appear sharper in the face of growing documentation of family separations. A report released last month by World Relief and the National Association of Evangelicals estimates the separation of more than 1.3 million spouses and children from family members if the current administration’s immigration policies continue. The report compares the effect to separating “every spouse from their partner. and every child from their parents. ” in a “moderately-sized state like South Carolina or Kentucky.”.

Within the SBC, the debate has also been sharpened by voices pushing for a stricter approach. Trump loyalists within the denomination have pressed for a tougher immigration stance, including the nonprofit Center for Baptist Leadership, headed by William Wolfe, a self-described Christian nationalist.

But the impact of enforcement, and the way evangelicals reacted to it, has complicated the picture.

The ICE era and the fights spilling onto church floors

Events of the past year—especially aggressive deportation campaigns carried out by ICE—may have reshaped views within the SBC.

At the same time, anti-ICE efforts also faced evangelical backlash after demonstrators interrupted a Jan. 18 service at Cities Church in St. Paul. The interruption alleged that pastor David Easterwood was serving as acting director of the city’s ICE field office. Nine people. including former CNN anchor Don Lemon. were initially arrested. and 30 more were later indicted on federal charges related to the incident.

On June 3, St. Paul’s city attorney Irene Kao announced she would not pursue state charges in the case.

Those episodes have helped pull the immigration fight from the margins into the mainstream of SBC deliberations.

Even inside the denomination’s stated framework—supporting strict enforcement while condemning nativism and hostility—the resolution’s omissions and emphases may determine which wing of the SBC prevails.

It is a question messengers will answer on Wednesday, as the annual meeting advances toward the final decisions that will become part of the denomination’s public language.

A broader agenda still awaits delegatesu2014but the immigration vote may set the tone

The immigration resolution is only one item in the SBC’s slate of statements. Delegates are also contending with a separate proposal. a constitutional amendment put forward by Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Albert Mohler that would ban women from serving in primary church leadership roles within the denomination.

For now. however. immigration may be the issue that most directly tests how the SBC balances enforcement and mercy in an era when immigration enforcement has become a flashpoint. Melkonian-Hoover said she was glad the statement included the Christian call to justice and mercy. even as she criticized the absence of a legal residency path.

As messengers head deeper into the meeting—under new leadership and after months of contentious enforcement and high-profile church disruptions—the resolution’s language will not just be debated. It will signal which direction the SBC wants to speak in public when immigration remains one of the most politically charged issues in American life.

Southern Baptist Convention immigration resolution ICE deportation Willy Rice Ruth Melkonian-Hoover Lifeway Research World Relief National Association of Evangelicals David Easterwood Don Lemon