Southern Baptists, have been historically, Calvinistic.
Look at the Confessions of Faith of these churches.
I know this to be true because while in seminary classes, one of the history classes I took was "Southern Baptist Heritage" taught by a man who has his doctrate in Southern Baptist history: Dr. James Willingham, Ph.D, D. Minn.
What we have is this, in the 1950's, through the advancment of Modernism, liberalism crept in the Southern Baptist Seminaries.
Golden Gate,
Midwestern,
New Orleans,
Southeastern,
Southern and
Southwestern.
In 1858, the very first Southern Baptist seminary, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, then in Greenville S.C., adopted the "Abstract of Principles" as the standard by which, all teachers were reqired to teach by. They believed this so much that all teachers were required to sign to it.
If you read it, you will find that it is Calvinistic in its teachings. And it speaks of 5 point Calvinism.
However, with the influx of Liberism, many of the 5 pointers were pushed out of the schools. So that some entirely renounced their Calvinistic roots.
Shocking fdact is, that due to Liberal Modern teachers, in 1978, only 34% of all students entering the Doctrate level at Southern Baptist seminaries even believed in God!
In the 1980's, Conservatives regained control of the SBC and since then, they have been guiding members back to their Calvinistic roots in much opposition to the Liberal crowd.
This is evident by the split in 2000 over the "homosexual" and "women submit" issues in the CoF.
Sothern Baptist and Calvinism are terms that until the 1950's were equal.
It is only recently that Southern Baptists have differinciated themselves from Calvinism.
Strange though, the SBC in 2000 showed a membership that was Calvinistic in their beliefs that equaled to 16,000,000 members.
The SBC is second only to Catholics in America. And they (Southern Baptists) are beginning to come back home to Calvinism.
God Bless
Till all are one.
