As Baptists, we are a group of people who have long stood for religious freedom. It’s in our history, it’s in our DNA and it’s rooted in scripture.
Religious liberty is also woven into the fabric of our country. Early settlers came to America to escape religious persecution and in search of religious freedom. The opening line of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
Religious freedom not only protects and preserves our right to worship, but also to live out and express our faith in the public square. While we here in America don’t face the same threats of violence like many of our brothers and sisters around the world, we have experienced numerous and increasing challenges to religious liberty in recent years.
Pastors, churches and faith-based organizations often find themselves at the forefront or even in the crosshairs of many of these religious liberty cases. And issues can often arise with little or no warning.
That’s why N.C. Baptists have engaged in a partnership with the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) that will benefit our churches in valuable ways. ADF is the largest religious freedom legal association in the world, and it offers a “church alliance program” where ministries can access valuable legal resources and protection.
Services available through this program include reviews of church governing documents, reviews of policies and procedures, access to legal resources and even pro bono representation, if necessary.
As part of the partnership between N.C. Baptists and ADF, our affiliated churches can sign up at a significant discount. Pricing for the church alliance program is on a tiered model based on a church’s average attendance so that every church can be a part of this partnership. Local Baptist associations can benefit from this partnership, as well.
To sign up for the church alliance program, visit adfchurchalliance.org and enter the promo code NCBAPTIST20. If you have any questions about the church alliance program, you may contact Seth Brown, director of convention relations, at [email protected]. Seth has been instrumental in working to facilitate this partnership.
This offer for every church and every association comes thanks to your generosity. When services like the ones that ADF offer are needed, pastors and churches often don’t know where to turn. We are glad that you turn to N.C. Baptists. We are here with and for you as we are all on mission together.
This new partnership is just one of the ways your state convention wants to provide relationships and resources to our local churches that fuel missions and ministry partnerships as we are on mission together.
