Members of the Southern Baptist Convention gathered for their annual meeting in 2021 and voted unanimously to adopt a resolution condemning the genocide committed by the Chinese government against Uyghurs and other ethnic Muslims.
According to the Christian Post (CP), this makes them the first large denomination established in the United States to come out against the atrocities in question.
As part of its Resolution 8, the SBC called on the Chinese Communist Party to put an end to the genocide of the Uyghur people, who are mostly found in China's western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and to "restore to them their full God-given rights."
It also called on the United States government to "prioritize the admission of Uyghurs to this country as refugees and provide resources for their support and resettlement."
Prayers are also requested for the persecuted religious minorities and Christian workers who provide both practical assistance and the Gospel of Christ, according to the document, which may be seen here.
Presented to nearly 15,000 messengers assembled in Nashville on Tuesday, the resolution highlighted "credible reporting" that revealed the CCP's mistreatment of Uyghurs. Forced abortions, rape, sexual assault, sterilization, organ harvesting, human trafficking, and scientific experimentation are just a few of the atrocities that have occurred in the process of the persecution.
Griffin Gulledge, a pastor of Madison Baptist Church in Madison, Georgia, was the one who drafted and presented the motion. He described the persecution of Uyghurs as "one of the worst things happening in the world."
I am thrilled the SBC adopted this resolution condemning the Uyghur Genocide committee by the Chinese government. Unless I am mistaken, we are the first major Protestant Christian group in America to speak out formally to condemn this genocide. Read the full text: pic.twitter.com/K6xki2XqUZ
"” Griffin Gulledge (@griffingulledge) June 15, 2021
"All of this is happening under the authority of the Chinese government, and nobody's saying anything. We have an obligation to speak," he said in a statement to CP.
Gulledge emphasized that denouncing the Uyghur persecution is consistent with the SBC's theological goal to follow Jesus' command in the Bible for His disciples to preach the Gospel across the globe.
According to him, "the greatest Baptist contribution to theology is the freedom of religion. This is an area for us to be consistent and to say, 'We're going to protect the freedom of religion, no matter what it is.' The freedom of religion opens the door to global evangelization. As Baptists, our two greatest priorities are the freedom of religion and global evangelization."
Several Uyghur human rights organizations were "very, very excited" to see Southern Baptists offer their support to the cause before the resolution was presented on Tuesday, according to Gulledge, who spoke with them before delivering it.
Gulledge is completing his doctorate in systematic theology at the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He first became interested in the suffering of Uyghurs after reading a story in the New York Times about their hardship.
From there, Gulledge began posting a series of tweets to bring attention to the abuses, which quickly became popular.
Soon, the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission held a webinar last summer that centered on China's persecution of the Uyghur Muslim minority.
China's treatment of Uyghurs was branded "genocide" by the U.S. State Department under former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier this year, after periods of condemnation during President Donald Trump's administration.
And despite President Joe Biden's refusal to call it a genocide, instead preferring to brand it as a "Chinese cultural norm," the Biden administration's Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, reaffirmed the previous leadership's declaration that what is happening to Uyghurs in China indeed amounts to genocide.
Gulledge expressed his desire to see Christian organizations "of all sorts, whether nonprofits and NGOs, relief agencies or other denominations," follow the SBC's lead in "using their voice and influence to advocate for these people," as he puts it.
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor," he said, citing Luke 4:18. "He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free."
Gulledge expressed optimism that people will speak up because he believes it is in keeping with their Christian calling.
