Founders Ministries
Reformed Baptist group within the Southern Baptist Convention
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Founders Ministries, previously known as the Southern Baptist Founders Conference, is a Reformed Baptist group within the Southern Baptist Convention in the United States. Its goal is to return Southern Baptists to what it considers their Calvinist roots,[1][2] and it has contributed to the Southern Baptist Convention conservative resurgence. The executive director is Thomas Ascol.
| |
| Formation | November 13, 1982 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Cape Coral, Florida |
Executive Director | Thomas Ascol |
| Website | founders |
Formerly called | Southern Baptist Founders Conference |
The Southern Baptist Founders Conference was established in 1982, holding its first annual conference in 1983.[3] The organization which developed was renamed Founders Ministries in 1998.[4] As of 2007, there were 807 subscribing congregations in the United States.[5]
According to Nathan Finn, non-Calvinists within the Southern Baptist Convention "seem to be especially concerned with the influence of Founders Ministries."[6] Critics argue that Southern Baptists have never been Calvinistic. Tom Ascol, Executive Director of Founders Ministries, stated a majority of the founders of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1845 held to the doctrines of grace.[7]
Founders Ministries has operated Founders Press since 1983,[8] and publishes Founders Journal, a quarterly journal established in 1990.
In December 2020, Founders Ministries established the Institute of Public Theology, which has undergraduate and certificate programs.[9] In January 2025, Founders Ministries established Founders Seminary, a residential seminary in Cape Coral, Florida. Ascol, Voddie Baucham, and Tom Nettles were the founding faculty.[10]