NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The Southern Baptist Convention passed resolutions Wednesday to support feeding the hungry, preserving marriage and protecting children from pornography, avoiding more controversial statements that have riled critics in the past.
On the final day of an annual meeting shunned by many moderates, SBC delegates stuck to resolutions that would carry broad support.
SBC statements of past years, such as declarations that women should not be pastors and should ``submit graciously'' to their husbands, were nowhere to be found.
``There is no major issue on the table that's grabbing everyone's attention,'' said the Rev. Danny Akin, head of the SBC's Committee on Resolutions. ``I think it's very much reflective that this particular convention is very much of one mind on these issues.''
A more provocative motion put forward by one attendee quickly died on the floor. He suggested asking President Bush to name June Heterosexual Family Pride Month, instead of Gay Pride Month as President Clinton did.
The lack of contention at the two-day meeting partly reflected the increasing conservative control of America's largest Protestant denomination.
Some moderates are leaving to form alternative fellowships.
The year-old Mainstream Baptist Network has chapters in 12 states. The decade-old Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has 14 state and four regional chapters. And former President Carter last year cut ties to the denomination, saying its ``increasingly rigid'' positions violated his faith.
Attendance at this SBC meeting was about 9,100. The record high of 45,519 was set in 1985 in Dallas.
The only public conflict came outside the Louisiana Superdome on Wednesday. The gay rights group Soulforce, which has protested at the meetings of other denominations, tried to enter the arena with a casket they said represented gays hurt by Southern Baptists' anti-homosexual teachings. About 30 protesters were arrested without incident and released.
The Southern Baptists also issued declarations against euthanasia, human cloning and Internet pornography. They also asked members to give more to fight world hunger.
The denomination voted to support a federal lawsuit accusing the Navy of discriminating against chaplains of evangelical faiths. Delegates also warned Congress to reject any campaign finance reform that limits free speech.
The top resolution reflected the SBC's plan to address the divorce rate among its members by urging pastors to convince couples they should promise not to get divorced quickly.
The declaration promoted what's called covenant marriages, in which couples formally agree before marrying that if they become estranged, they will undergo intensive counseling before splitting up.
Despite the conservative-moderate rift, Southern Baptist leaders in Louisiana insisted their 15.9 million-member denomination will grow.
Said the Rev. James Merritt, the denomination president, ``I don't believe there is a group of Bible believers anywhere in the world that love Jesus more than Southern Baptists.''
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AP-NY-06-13-01 1822EDT
Copyright 2001 The Associated Press.