SBC church plants: up 27 percent in 2011

Last year was an encouraging one for church planting by Southern Baptists. According to new statistics released by the North American Mission Board, the number of plants reported by state convention partners grew by 27 percent -- from 780 to 990 -- between 2010 and 2011.

These figures represent the first two-year span using a new church planting reporting procedure instituted in 2010, whereby all NAMB-reported new starts were required to have received an SBC ID. Distributed by LifeWay Christian Resources, SBC IDs are usually obtained through Baptist associations, state conventions or the SBC Executive Committee and are essential to identify and track congregations uniquely. Read more

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SBC 2011 statistical realities
Southern Baptists Experiencing Accelerating Decline in Membership

The Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination in the USA, is reporting further decline in its membership. At the same time the SBC is reporting increases in baptisms and church plants from previous years. A number of the factors behind these trends also affect the Anglican Church in North America nd other denominations.