Contending for the Faith: Southern Baptists in New Mexico, 1938-1995 (review)

This careful account could have easily been presented as a kind of company history, or worse, as a dry compendium of statistics drawn from the annual reports. Happily, however, the author keeps the larger cultural context in mind so that this denominational account is seen against the background of the surrounding, largely Roman Catholic, environment. He even offers excellent historical photographs; one can only complain, softly, about the absence of any maps or line graphs.

When Carnett began his study (as a doctoral dissertation at the University of New Mexico), Baptists were in a growth mode. This soon changed, however, to a marked leveling off. So the author's focus shifted from factors what would explain the growth to an examination of those elements contributing to the plateauing or "possible decline" (p. viii). In looking at "theology, structure, and fellowship," Carnett seeks to shed light on the shifting fortunes of Southern Baptists in New Mexico. This search leads him inevitably to a consideration of the roles of "pluralism, diversity, and secularization" (p. ix).

In the 1940's and '50's, the introduction of Southern Baptist churches into New Mexico pushed those churches beyond the boundaries of the Old Confederacy to which they had largely been confined. The move likewise called for a new understanding of racism that was no longer solely a matter of Blacks and Whites, but now also of Hispanics and Native Americans. A conference center just outside of Santa Fe assured that the altered perspectives would, to some degree, filter throughout the entire Southern Baptist Convention. Increasingly, it made less and less sense to equate Baptists with the Old South, and vice versa.

On the other hand, the comfortable relationship that Baptists in the Old South enjoyed with the public schools suffered a rude awakening in New Mexico as they found Catholicism to be the dominant influence not only in parochial schools but in public ones as well. On their part, Catholics were startled to find that the easy identification of church and state was no longer acceptable. "State money supported parochial schools and robed clergy taught in public instittions. Baptists saw in this practice not only a violation of the Bill of Rights but also a threat to freedom of religion..." (p. 61). Court contests followed, with Baptists in the process becoming more strict separationists than they had been in many parts of the Old South.

Baptists constitute the largest Protestant body in New Mexico, but one is tempted to ask,"So what?" For all of Protestantism is swallowed in the boundless sea of Catholicism, to say nothing of Asian religion, New Thought, and ever-rising secularism. In this alien mix, Baptist churches turned from being evangelical engines to tamer sociological centers, from seeking God's will to serving personal needs. New Mexico Baptists, the author concludes, "have lost their vision and sense of direction" (p. 177).