Southern Baptists have been organizing and weighing in on social issues since their founding. When did it begin?Īs I mentioned above, there is some debate about when the organization that would become the ERLC began.

The name change from the Christian Life Commission (the previous name of the organization) to the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission represented the absorption of other committees and a commitment to the importance of this first freedom. For example, the Committee on Temperance and Social Service had little to say about the 1918 flu epidemic, whereas the ERLC has written extensively about the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. As time progressed, the organization came to address more and more needs, prompting the change in the name. The initial commissions were sporadic and worked on individual assignments rather than having a comprehensive agenda, focusing more on prohibition than other goals. Also, depending on how you want to date the founding of ERLC (information below), you could include a previous Social Service Commission (1913-1942) and a standing Committee on Temperance (1908-1913).Įach of these names has focused the organization at that particular time. Previously, it has been called the Christian Life Commission (1953-1997) and Social Service Commission (1947-1952).

The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is just the latest name in the history of this entity. Below are some highlights from the history of the ERLC and all its previous versions. The ERLC is the Southern Baptist entity tasked with speaking for Southern Baptists in the public square and speaking toSouthern Baptists on matters of moral importance. May 8, 2020, marks one of the anniversaries of the founding of what would become the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (more on those others below).

Southern baptist stand on gambling