Thousands of Southern Baptists have voted overwhelmingly to advance a formal ban on churches with women pastors in the nation’s largest conservative evangelical denomination. The vote at their annual meeting sent a clear message that men alone should preach to congregations. They easily exceeded the two-thirds majority required to amend the Southern Baptist Convention’s constitution. The ban will require a similar vote at next year’s annual meeting to gain final approval. The amendment would tighten existing restrictions in the Southern Baptist Convention, which already has a faith statement opposing women pastors.

Southern Baptists will gather for their annual meeting on Tuesday. And for the fourth year in a row, they'll debate whether to formally ban churches with a woman in any role resembling that of pastor. One thing they're unlikely to debate is any noticeable change in the politics of many Southern Baptists. They form the vanguard of the broader white conservative evangelical support for President Donald Trump. More than 11,000 church representatives have preregistered for the two-day meeting in Orlando, Florida. The Southern Baptist Convention's membership has declined to its lowest since 1973, but it remains influential as the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S.

Thousands of people have streamed onto the National Mall in Washington for a daylong prayer rally. The event Sunday is billed as a “rededication of our country as One Nation under God.” President Donald Trump is expected to address the crowd in a video message Sunday. The event is part of the celebrations this year marking 250 years of U.S. independence. The conservative Christian lineup features guests who often argue that the United States was founded as a Christian nation. That narrative is disputed by many historians and other religious traditions.