Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America

The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America-Bautistas por la Paz (BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz) is a Baptist Christian denomination. The headquarters is in Charlotte, North Carolina.

History

The Convention has its origins in the establishment of the Baptist Pacifist Fellowship by a group of the American Baptist Churches USA in 1939. ^[1] It was officially founded in 1984. ^[2] According to a denomination census released in 2020, it claimed 77 churches. ^[3]

Most members of BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz are located in one of the four member nations of the organization (Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States) however anyone around the world committed to the work of peace and justice can join. The BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz membership is composed of individuals and organizations with the latter being mostly churches. Some churches choose to get involved at a deeper level and are considered to be partner congregations of the organization.^[4]

BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz is a faith-based partner of Equal Exchange through the Baptist Fair Trade Project.^[5]

Beliefs

It seeks to gather, equip and mobilize peacemakers of faith across North America and beyond to engage in the work of peace rooted in justice. BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz provides resources and tools on a variety of social justice issues such as racial justice, justice for migrants and refugees, climate/environmental justice, justice for indigenous and native peoples and LGBTQ+ liberation to name a few.^[6] The organization also has several small grant programs to help fund local and global peacemaking initiatives.

Baptist Peacemaker

Baptist Peacemaker is a quarterly publication by BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz focusing on the work of peacemakers in the BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz network.^[7]

Annual Summer Conference

BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz holds a Summer Conference (also known affectionately as "Peace Camp") each year. Each gathering focuses on a different theme and changes location within the BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz member nations, usually held on a university campus.^[8] In 2019, however, the Summer Conference was held in conjunction with the 6th Global Baptist Peace Conference in Cali, Colombia.^[9]

References

^ C. Douglas Weaver, In Search of the New Testament Church: The Baptist Story, Mercer University Press, USA, 2008, p. 141
^ William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p. 73
^ BPFNA, Members, bpfna.org, USA, retrieved December 5, 2020
^ "Partner Congregations | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.
^ "Baptist Fair Trade Project | Equal Exchange".
^ "Resources | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Annual Themes | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.
^ "Summer Conference | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.

External links

BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz website

[1] C. Douglas Weaver, In Search of the New Testament Church: The Baptist Story, Mercer University Press, USA, 2008, p. 141

[2] William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p. 73

[3] BPFNA, Members, bpfna.org, USA, retrieved December 5, 2020

[4] "Partner Congregations | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.

[5] "Baptist Fair Trade Project | Equal Exchange".

[6] "Resources | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.

[7] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[8] "Annual Themes | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.

[9] "Summer Conference | BPFNA". Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2019-11-18.