FARMINGTON, Ky. (BP)–Wiley Drake, pastor of First Southern Baptist Church in Buena Park, Calif., will be nominated for second vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention this June, according to an announcement by Kentucky pastor Bill Dodson.
“Over the past 50 years that I’ve been attending Southern Baptist Conventions, I don’t think I’ve ever met a Southern Baptist any more committed to our conservative values than Wiley Drake,” said Dodson, pastor of Bell City Baptist Church near Farmington, Ky., and a former chairman of the trustees of the Annuity Board (now GuideStone Financial Resources).
Drake “has the kind of guts that Southern Baptists have always loved in their leaders,” Dodson said, “and I think it’s time we recognize that Wiley really does represent a segment of Southern Baptists.”
Dodson noted that Drake has been a regular at the microphones of SBC annual meetings in making motions about various cultural issues, yet the California pastor also has a strong track record in caring for the homeless in his community.
“Wiley has a great blend of heart for social concerns -– not just the big-issue items that conservatives talk about all the time, but concerns for the poor and for justice –- and he’s got a keen eye for doctrine and fidelity to our Baptist Faith and Message,” Dodson said, referencing the SBC’s statement of beliefs.
“The only disadvantage of having Wiley Drake as second vice president is that we won’t get to see him on the convention floor,” Dodson said. “But maybe some folks will think that’s an advantage. Either way, I’ve grown to love Wiley and appreciate his consistency, integrity and wit.”
Information for the most recent year from Southern Baptists’ Annual Church Profile survey, 2004, for First Southern Baptist Church in Buena Park lists $200 in gifts through the SBC Cooperative Program, with no information provided in other categories. Baptist Press asked Drake for several figures, which he supplied for the past five years. For 2005: Church membership stood at 95; 67 baptisms were recorded; total receipts were $96,450, including $1,000 in CP gifts.
The SBC annual meeting will be June 13-14 in Greensboro, N.C.
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