Southern Baptist Convention Votes To Ban Women From The Pulpit
on Jun 10, 2026 • Updated Jun 10, 2026
At the 2026 Southern Baptist Convention, messengers to the convention voted to ban women from serving as pastors.
Meeting in Orlando, Florida, on Wednesday, June 10, the amendment, dubbed the “Truth and Unity Amendment,” was sponsored by Dr. Al Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
With this amendment, the long-controversial subject of women serving as pastors, overseers, or elders in churches that are part of the Southern Baptist Convention was taken to task, with the amendment proposing to add the following to the Constitution of the SBC:
“[A cooperating Southern Baptist church] does not act to affirm, appoint, or endorse a woman serving in the office or function of a pastor/elder/overseer, such as preaching to the assembled congregation.“
During a morning vote on June 10, the amendment was approved with 74.66% support, or a vote of 6,028 to 2,026.
An additional 20 ballots were disallowed.
A vote of a two-thirds majority was required for the change to the Constitution of the SBC, with The Christian Post noting that a similar vote at the 2025 convention failed.
Now, the SBC will vote on this again at next year’s convention, ratifying the amendment to the SBC Constitution.
Back in 2023, it was reported by American Reformer that there were approximately 1,844 female pastors serving in 1,225 SBC churches.
Notably, the Southern Baptist Convention is the largest Protestant Christian organization in the world.
Watch Mohler make the case for the amendment banning women as pastors within the SBC, here:
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More About The Debate Within The SBC
Among more conservative-leaning pastors within the Southern Baptist Convention, there are several Biblical sources that they believe support barring women from serving in churches as pastors.
1 Timothy 3:1-7 reads:
“It is a trustworthy saying: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a good work. An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but considerate, peaceable, free from the love of money; leading his own household well, having his children in submission with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to lead his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation of the devil. And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.”
Defending his amendment leading up to the June 10 vote, Dr. Al Mohler leaned on past statements made by the SBC on the subject of pastors being men.
Citing the “Baptist Faith and Message,” which was adopted by the SBC in 2000, Mohler said that the document “stated confessionally that the office of pastor is limited to men, as qualified by Scripture.”
Mohler argued that constitutional clarity was needed after 26 years of debate on the subject, favoring his amendment which leans on the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith.
“This is one of those moments when the Southern Baptist Convention can get it right, state it clearly,” he said. “We stand for truth, yes, and that truth produces the unity of our convention.”
Watch Dr. Al Mohler speak in support of his amendment ahead of the vote, here:
"When it comes to the office- comprehensive. When it comes to the function- specified. I have carefully crafted this language."
— Protestia (@Protestia) June 10, 2026
Al Mohler addresses and defends his Truth and Unity Amendment this morning, as folks line up to speak for and against it. #sbc26 #sbc2026 pic.twitter.com/0Y73qWpBtc
Opponents to the amendment, like Pastor Doug Mize, of First Baptist Church in Greer, South Carolina, argued, as quoted in The Christian Post, “What we have already works.”
While this decision has been made for the Southern Baptist Convention, other Protestant denominations are not as fixed to this view of men solely serving as pastors.
In the Anglican Church, King Charles III appointed the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, on Jan. 28.
At the White House, Pastor Paula White-Cain — a non-denominational minister — serves as senior advisor to the White House Faith Office, which was established by President Donald Trump.
When Trump was inaugurated for his second term, Bishop Mariann Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington made headlines for her sermon delivered in Trump’s presence concerning his own policies.
This is a developing story.
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