Baptists from more than 60 countries attended the meeting. The BWA, the worldwide umbrella group for Baptists, links more than 214 national and regional Baptist denominational groups around the globe.

BWA leaders approved the plan, which was one result of a BWA Implementation Task Force that was appointed in 2005, during the BWA Centennial World Congress in Birmingham, England.

The re-structuring plan leaves the group's largest governing body, the BWA General Council, unchanged. But it reduces its smaller governing panel -- the BWA Executive Committee -- from 69 to 25 members while increasing the committee's power to carry on BWA business between annual gatherings. The plan also creates a 17-member nominating committee, charged with ensuring broad representation of the BWA's global membership on its boards and commissions.

The plan generated considerable debate during two open forums prior to its adoption, and BWA supporters amended it several times from the task force's original proposal.

A vocal Caribbean contingency raised questions about what impact the changes, if implemented, would have on the office of BWA General Secretary Neville Callam. Callam -- the century-old organization's first non-white chief executive -- took over his post year after many years of ministry in Jamaica.

Following debate, members of the Implementation Task Force withdrew a recommendation that the BWA develop formal covenants with its six autonomous regional bodies. The covenants would have spelled out mutual responsibilities between each region and the organization as a whole.

Since the full Baptist World Congress meets only every fifth year, officials hoped that the process could be agreed upon in time for changes to be implemented by the next World Congress meeting, scheduled for Hawaii in 2010.

In other business, several BWA commissions and panels held meetings during the gathering. A joint meeting of the BWA Doctrine and Interchurch Cooperation Commission and Freedom and Justice Commission resulted in the appointment of a smaller group to formulate a response to a letter from 138 moderate Muslim scholars titled, “A Common Word Between Us and You.” The letter was sent to world Christian leaders, including BWA president David Coffey, last October.

The group will formulate a response and circulate it to the BWA regional bodies for approval.

Bangladesh Baptist leader Dennis Datta received the BWA's Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award during the meeting. Government officials forced Datta out of Bangladesh in 1969 because of his advocacy for religious freedom and other human rights. He has since returned to the majority-Muslim nation and continued to work as a spokesman for Bangladeshi Christians as well as an outspoken advocate for the poor, women and environmental protection.

Editor Jim White contributed to this article.

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