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SBC Annual Meeting and Pastors’ Conference
June 11, 2023 - June 14, 2023
The 2023 SBC Annual Meeting and Pastors’ Conference are scheduled for June 11-14, 2023, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans* on the bank of the Mississippi River and Port of New Orleans. Hotel reservations open in October 2022. With preparations underway, leaders are promising it to be a gathering that accomplishes all the necessary business with a healthy dose of laissez les bons temps rouler (“let the good times roll”).
SBC Pastor’s Conference website
About the 2023 Meeting
“I couldn’t be more excited to help show off the Kingdom work happening in the New Orleans metro area,” said Jay Adkins, lead pastor of First Baptist Church in Westwego and chair of the local arrangements committee. “All the history, music, art, food and good times are waiting. So are the souls of those my brothers and sisters will engage with the Gospel for those days in June of 2023. Please be praying now for fertile ground as you look forward to joining us in the ‘northernmost Caribbean city.’
A Visit NOLA website provides messengers and guests information on activities, restaurants and family entertainment options as well as missions and ministry opportunities. It also includes background on the city and a welcome from Jamie Dew, president of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.
Fred Luter’s election to become the Convention’s first Black president marked the historic 2012 New Orleans annual meeting, the last time Southern Baptists gathered there. Luter is in his 37th year as pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans.
Dew joined other Baptist leaders in expressing his excitement for next year’s gathering.
“NOBTS is thrilled to welcome Southern Baptists to our great city in 2023,” he said. “We want to encourage Southern Baptists to come early or stay late to take in the rich food and culture of New Orleans. We can’t wait to have you here with us and show you all God is doing on our campus and in our city.”
“We’re expecting 10,000-12,000 messengers in New Orleans next year and possibly over 15,000 in total attendance,” said Jonathan Howe, EC vice president for Communications. “The original selection of Charlotte reflected the annual meeting attendance at the time. The change to New Orleans simply reflects the current math.”
Howe, a Louisiana native, said “The Road to New Orleans” will premiere in January. The 20-part video series will provide greater insights into the annual meeting’s setting as it did in 2021 with “The Road to Nashville” and this year’s “The Road to Anaheim.”
Local Baptist efforts in preparation won’t slow down, Adkins said.
“[Executive Director] Jack Hunter and [business manager] Alex Brian are hard at work organizing our New Orleans Baptist Association of Churches (NOBA) to be ready to help host next year’s convention,” he said. “We are looking forward to sharing about our five medical clinics and our numerous local ministry and mission sites.”
*Executive Committee members voted April 28 to move the 2023 Annual Meeting from Charlotte to New Orleans due to the growth in attendance of recent gatherings.
