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The Making of the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message. By A. J. Smith. Eugene:Wipf and Stock
Publishers, 2008, 253pp., $31.00.
The Making of the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message was written by A.J. Smith to argue
that Herschel Hobbs through his work on the BFM sought to “avert an immediate
denominational split through the reformation of key historic Baptist doctrines, wording same
broadly to allow for widely divergent interpretations without sacrificing the Convention’s
conservative base”(p.2). This critique will identify the strenghts and the weaknesses of the book
to see if the author adequately supports his thesis with evidence.
Chapter 1 serves as an introduction. In chapter 1 Smith describes his thesis statement, the
background of development of confession and soul competency and confessionalism, the
methodology of his research, limitations, and other avenues of research. In Chapter 2 Smith
addresses the Apostasy Controversy by Dale Moody and the Elliott Controversy, historical crises
leading to the formation of the committee on BFM. In Chapter 3 the author describes concerns
faced by the committee. The committee had to deal with desegregation in Baptist schools and
churches as well as pressures from Catholicism, materialism, and communism. In addition, the
committee faced “many Southern Baptist’s fear of the liberal and neo-orthodox views of the
Bible” (p. 53). In Chapter 4 the author historically demonstrates why “soul liberty does not stand
alone as a doctrine in American Baptist life” (p.76). Baptists can apply the concept of soul liberty
to the Scripture, but it should be done within the confessional standard. In Chapter 5 the author
explains how the committee in 1925 developed the confession in the relation to the
principle of soul competency under the leadership of Mullins. In Chapter 6 the author outlined
how the 1963 committee was formed and who assisted to complete the final version of 1963
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BFM. In Chapter 7 the author explains four areas of doctrinal change. In regard to the Scripture
Jesus would be the key to interpretation. In regard to Anthropology man was simply innocent
before the fall. In regard to Soteriology salvation “progressed throughout life and would
culminate in the glorified state” (p.149). In regard to Ecclesiology (1) “local church autonomy
and equality of every member” (p.150) was affirmed; (2) denounced “Landmarkist ideology”
(p.150); (3) “the explanation of the symbolic meaning of baptism”(p.150) was expanded; and (4)
the wine in the Lord’s Supper was replaced with “fruit of the vine”(p. 151). In Chapter 8 the
author concluded his dissertation.
In some strengths can be identified. The Making of the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message
First, Smith does research well to prove the thesis statement. The author addresses in detail the
historical backgrounds why Herchel Hobbs and the committee had to revise BFM 1925, using
vast amounts of references. In each chapter the author uses many primary and secondary
resources to prove the assertion. Due to the author’s painstaking work, the reliability of the book
is strong. The author also explains well how social and doctrinal concerns had impacted on the
Baptists’ life in 1900. In addition, the author states clearly and dynamically how the conservative
and the liberal argued about the controversial doctrinal issues. Second, the author forms the
structure of the book well. Each chapter consists of an introduction, the body, and conclusion. It
helps readers easily understand the content of the chapter. Third, the author addresses well why
the confession was important for the Baptists. The author claims that “confession served not only
to distinguish Baptist from the other professing Christians but highlighted points of unity within
the Baptist family” (p.74) prior to 1900. The author also demonstrates after 1900 why “the
confession served the denomination as a guide to inform but it was quite limited in its function as
an instrument of doctrinal unity or accountability” (P.83).
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However, there are some weaknesses. First, in the beginning of the book the author states
that “some feared that the Convention would either be taken over by theological liberals or
fragment along doctrinal lines” (p.1) The author demonstrates successfully how hard the
conservative factions had worked to keep “key historic Baptist doctrines” (p.2) against the
attack of the liberal, presenting how the committee leaders and faculty members at seminaries
responded about the Apostasy Controversy and the Elliott Controversy. Yet, there was not
enough evidence such as (1) how deeply did these controversies influence the local churches and
laymen to abandon the fundamental Baptist belief?; (2) how seriously did the conservative
pastors and laymen consider the influence of these controversies?: or (3) were there any
representatives of laymen to assist the work of committee? Second, the author enlists Dale
Moody as an outside assistance. “The plan of the committee was to produce a document that all
could accept without sacrificing the conservative doctrinal base of the Convention” (p.123). Dale
Moody was in the center of controversy, but the author does not clearly explain why Dale Moody
was enlisted as an outside assistance. Lastly, the readers who are not Baptist cannot have clear
understanding whether the members of the committee in 1962 consisted of all conservative or
both conservative and liberal and how the SBC members and Baptist churches responded to the
BFM 1963.
In conclusion overall the author did a great work to historically demonstrate how the
BFM 1963 was made, presenting abundant theological evidence as well as social evidence which
had an effect on Baptist doctrines with an excellent organization. This book can be used as a
source for a seminary student and a Christian who wants to learn how the history of conflict
between the conservative and the liberal had an impact on believer’s life.
Jung Im Yang
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Liberty University School of Divinity, Lynchgurg, VA
