Annual Meeting of the Alabama Baptist State Convention
November 12-13, 2019
Eastern Shore Baptist Church | Daphne, Alabama
About
The Alabama Baptist State Convention was founded on October 28, 1823, as the third permanent state convention organized in the South. … The Baptists, though the largest religious group in the state, were weak and widely scattered. They numbered about 5,000 and had about 125 churches and 75 ministers.” (Baptists in Alabama: Their Organization and Witness, by A. Hamilton Reid. Montgomery, Ala.: Paragon Press, 1967).
Today, the State Convention has grown to more than 3,200 churches with approximately 1.1 million members. Each November, the Alabama Baptist State Convention convenes as a two-day meeting of messengers elected by affiliated churches. Messengers and invited guests hear reports about Great Commission ministries.
Between annual meetings, Convention bylaws provide that the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions will be the “executive, administrative, fiduciary, and promotional agency of the Convention.”
Both the State Convention and State Board of Missions support the missional efforts of a family of Alabama Baptist entities and auxiliary, including:
- Alabama Baptist Children’s Homes & Family Ministries
- Alabama Baptist Historical Commission
- Alabama Baptist Retirement Centers
- Alabama Woman’s Missionary Union (auxiliary)
- Board of Aid to Students in Church Related Vocations
- Christian Life Commission
- Education Commission
- Judson College
- Samford University
- Shocco Springs Conference Center
- The Alabama Baptist newspaper
- The Baptist Foundation of Alabama
- University of Mobile
The Convention also provides primary support for ALCAP (Alabama Citizens Actions Program), “Alabama’s moral compass” regarding biblical and moral concerns.
Hotels
Convention Hotel
Hilton Garden Inn Mobile East Bay/Daphne
29546 North Main Street
Daphne, AL 36526
(251) 625-0020
Rate: $94.00 (king or double queen) Breakfast buffet included
Deadline: October 11
Hampton Inn Daphne
Mobile East Bay/Daphne
29451 US Hwy 98
Daphne, AL 36526
(251) 626-2220
Rate: $99.00 (standard)
Breakfast included
Deadline: October 11
Homewood Suites Mobile
East Bay/Daphne
29474 North Main Street
Daphne, AL 36526
(251) 621-0100
Rate: $109.00 (studio king suite or one-bedroom king suite);
Breakfast & evening reception included (M-Th.); Full kitchen
Deadline: October 11
Courtyard by Marriott
1300 Cypress Way
Spanish Fort, AL 36527
(251) 370-1160
Rates: $105 (King/Queen)
$129 (Suite)
Bistro serving breakfast/dinner, Starbucks
Deadline: October 25
Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott
12000 Cypress Way
Spanish Fort, AL 36527
(251) 370-1160
Rates: $99.00 (king or double)
$119.00 (king suite)
Breakfast included
Deadline: October 25
Holiday Inn Express Fairhope
19751 South Greeno Road
Fairhope, AL 36532
(251) 928-9191
Rate: $89.00 (single or double)
Group code: CBA or Alabama Baptist Convention
Deadline: October 27
Holiday Inn Express Daphne
29726 Woodrow Lane
Daphne, AL 36526
(251) 621-1223
Rate: $99 (king or double queen)
$109 (suite king or double queen)
Breakfast included
Deadline: October 28
Comfort Suites
29450 N. Main Street
Daphne AL 36526
(251) 626-1113
Rate: $70.00 (king)
$80.00 (double queen)
Breakfast included
Group Code: Alabama Baptist Convention
Deadline: October 27
Best Western Plus
Daphne Inn & Suites
8931 Sawwood Street
Daphne, AL 36526
(251) 625-6260
Rate: $89.00 (king)
$94.00 double queen
Breakfast included
Messengers
What does it mean to be a messenger?
The Alabama Baptist Convention consists of members known also as messengers. Messengers are members of Southern Baptist churches cooperating with the Convention. Messengers are elected annually by the church where they are members and sent to the annual convention as their churches representative.
How many can a church send?
There are actually two formulas to determine this:
Numerical Basis: Every church is allowed one messenger. One additional messenger is allowed for every two hundred, or fraction thereof, members in excess of two hundred.
Financial Basis: One messenger is allowed from each church for any part of the first one thousand dollars contributed to the Alabama Baptist State Convention during the Convention’s preceding fiscal year. One additional messenger is allowed for the next one thousand dollars above the first one thousand dollars contributed to the work of the Convention, and one additional messenger for each two thousand dollars contributed to the work of the Convention above the first two thousand dollars.
No church will have more than twenty‑five messengers though.
How do you become one?
Contact your Southern Baptist church and ask to be sent as a messenger to the Alabama Baptist Convention Annual Meeting. Every church is autonomous and decides how their messenger allotment will be filled. Many will hold a business meeting before the convention for the church to vote on those wishing to be considered as messengers.
by Dogwood