Southern Baptists reinforce ban on women pastors and expel churches with female leaders.

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has expelled two US churches, Saddleback and Fern Creek Baptist Church, for having female pastors, stating that the office of pastor should be "limited to men." In total, five churches have been expelled from SBC for being led by women. Following the expulsion, a constitutional amendment was passed stating that SBC-affiliated churches should employ "only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture." The move has been criticized by some as a step backward for gender equality in the church.