Baptist
Encyclopedia
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denomination
s and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism
should be performed only for professing believers (believer's baptism
, as opposed to infant baptism
), and that it must be done by immersion
(as opposed to affusion
or sprinkling
). Other tenets of Baptist churches include soul competency
(liberty), salvation
through faith alone
, scripture alone
as the rule of faith and practice, and the autonomy of the local congregation
. Baptists recognize two ministerial offices, pastor
s and deacon
s. Baptist churches are widely considered to be Protestant
churches, though some Baptists disavow this identity.
Diverse from their beginning, those identifying as Baptists today differ widely from one another in what they believe, how they worship, their attitudes toward other Christians, and their understanding of what is important in Christian discipleship.
Historians trace the earliest Baptist church back to 1609 in Amsterdam
, with English Separatist
John Smyth as its pastor. In accordance with his reading of the New Testament
, he rejected baptism of infants and instituted baptism only of believing adults. Baptist practice spread to England, where the General Baptists considered Christ's atonement to extend to all people, while the Particular Baptists believed that it extended only to the elect. In 1638, Roger Williams
established the first Baptist congregation in the North American colonies
. In the mid-18th century, the First Great Awakening
increased Baptist growth in both New England and the South. The Second Great Awakening
in the South in the early 19th century increased church membership, as did the preachers' lessening of support for abolition
and manumission
of slavery
, which had been part of the 18th-century teachings. Baptist missionaries have spread their church to every continent.
The Baptist World Alliance
reports more than 41 million members in more than 150,000 congregations. In 2002, there were over 100 million Baptists and Baptistic group members worldwide and over 33 million in North America. The largest Baptist association is the Southern Baptist Convention
, with over 16 million members.
word (baptistés, "baptist," also used to describe John the Baptist
), which is related to the verb (baptízo, "to baptize, wash, dip, immerse"), and the Latin
baptista.
The term Baptist as applied to Baptist churches is a modification of the term Anabaptist
(which means rebaptizer), and was used into the 19th century as a general epithet for churches which denied the validity of infant baptism, including the Campbellite
s, Mennonite
s and Schwarzenau Brethren
or German Baptist
s, who are not identified with modern day Baptists. The English Anabaptists were called Baptists as early as 1569. The name Anabaptist continued to be applied to English and American Baptists, even after the American Revolution.
, (2) the view that it was an outgrowth of Anabaptist traditions, (3) the perpetuity view which assumes that the Baptist faith and practice has existed since the time of Christ, and (4) the successionist view, or "Baptist successionism
", which argues that Baptist churches actually existed in an unbroken chain since the time of Christ.
The Baptist faith originated from within the English Separatist
movement. Prior to the Protestant Reformation
, the Church of England
(Anglicans) had broken away from the Catholic Church. Then came the mainstream Reformation. There were some Christians who were not content with the achievements of the mainstream Protestant Reformation. There also were Christians who were disappointed that the Church of England had not made corrections of what some considered to be errors and abuses. Of those most critical of the Church's direction, some chose to stay and try to make constructive changes from within the Anglican Church. They became known as "Puritans" and are described by Gourley as cousins of the English Separatists
. Others decided they must leave the Church because of their dissatisfaction and became known as the Separatists.
Historians trace the earliest Baptist church back to 1609 in Amsterdam, with John Smyth as its pastor. Even prior to that, in 1606, John Smyth, a Fellow of Christ’s College, Cambridge, had broken his ties with the Church of England. Reared in the Church of England, he became "Puritan, English Separatist
, and then a Baptist Separatist," and ended his days working with the Mennonites. He began meeting in England with 60–70 English Separatists
, in the face of "great danger." The persecution of religious nonconformists in England led Smyth to go into exile in Amsterdam
with fellow Separatists from the congregation he had gathered in Lincolnshire, separate from the established church (Anglican). Smyth and his lay supporter, Thomas Helwys
, together with those they led, broke with the other English exiles because Smyth and Helways were convinced they should be baptized as believers. In 1609 Smyth first baptized himself and then baptized the others.
In 1609, while still there, Smyth wrote a tract titled "The Character of the Beast," or "The False Constitution of the Church." In it he expressed two propositions: first, infants are not to be baptized; and second, "Antichristians converted are to be admitted into the true Church by baptism." Hence, his conviction was that a scriptural church should consist only of regenerate believers who have been baptized on a personal confession of faith. He rejected the Separatist
movement's doctrine of infant baptism (paedobaptism). Shortly thereafter, Smyth left the group, and layman Thomas Helwys took over the leadership, leading the church back to England in 1611. Ultimately, Smyth became committed to believers' baptism as the only biblical baptism. He was convinced on the basis of his interpretation of Scripture that infants would not be damned should they die in infancy.
Smyth, convinced that his self-baptism was invalid, applied with the Mennonites for membership. He died while waiting for membership, and some of his followers became Mennonites. Thomas Helwys and others kept their baptism and their Baptist commitments. The modern Baptist denomination is an outgrowth of Smyth's movement. Baptists rejected the name Anabaptist when they were called that by opponents in derision. McBeth writes that as late as the 18th century, many Baptists referred to themselves as "the Christians commonly—though falsely—called Anabaptists."
, some early Baptists were influenced by some Anabaptists. According to this view, the Dutch Mennonites (Anabaptists) shared some similarities with General Baptists (believer's baptism, religious liberty, separation of church and state, and Arminian views of salvation, predestination and original sin). However, there were significant differences between Anabaptists and Baptists, though not so significant as the differences among many contemporary Baptist groups. Representative writers include AC Underwood and William R Estep. Gorley writes that among some contemporary Baptist scholars who emphasize the faith of the community over soul liberty, the Anabaptist influence theory is making a comeback.
The relations between Baptists and Anabaptists were early strained. In 1624, the then five existing Baptist churches of London issued a condemnation of the Anabaptists.
.
The perpetuity view is often identified with The Trail of Blood, a pamphlet by J.M. Carrol published in 1931. Other Baptist writers holding the perpetuity view are Thomas Crosby, G.H. Orchard, JM Cramp, William Cathcart, Adam Taylor and DB Ray This view was also held by English Baptist preacher, Charles Spurgeon
as well as Jesse Mercer
, the namesake of Mercer University.
In 1612, Thomas Helwys established a Baptist congregation in London, consisting of congregants from Smyth's church. A number of other Baptist churches sprang up, and they became known as the General Baptists. The Particular Baptists were established when a group of Calvinist Separatists adopted believers’ Baptism.
and John Clarke
, his compatriot in working for religious freedom, are variously credited as founding the earliest Baptist church in North America. In 1639, Williams established a Baptist church in Providence, Rhode Island
, and Clarke began a Baptist church in Newport, Rhode Island
. According to a Baptist historian who has researched the matter extensively, "There is much debate over the centuries as to whether the Providence or Newport church deserved the place of 'first' Baptist congregation in America. Exact records for both congregations are lacking."
The Great Awakening energized the Baptist movement, and the Baptist community experienced spectacular growth. Baptists became the largest Christian community in many southern states, including among the black population.
In 1845, the Baptists congregations in the United States split over three main issues: slavery, missions, and doctrinal integrity. The northern congregations were opposed to members in the southern congregations owning slaves, and tried to prevent slaveholders from being missionaries. However, not appointing a proportionate number of missionaries to the southern region of the US sparked animosity from the southern churches. The southern congregations were also concerned over perceived liberalism in the north, accusing some missionaries of denying virgin birth and divinity of Jesus. The split created the Southern Baptist Convention
, while the northern congregations, then known as Northern Baptists, formed their own umbrella organization now called the American Baptist Churches of the USA
(ABC-USA).
After the American Civil War, another split occurred: most black Baptists in the South separated from white churches and set up their own congregations. In the late 1860s, they rapidly set up several separate state conventions. In 1895 their three national conventions merged into the National Baptist Convention
. With 8 million members, it is the largest African-American religious organization and is second in size to the Southern Baptist Convention.
. There also are a substantial number of smaller cooperative groups. Finally, there are Baptist churches that choose to remain autonomous and independent of any denomination, organization, or association.
In 1905, Baptists worldwide formed the Baptist World Alliance
(BWA). The BWA now counts 218 Baptist conventions and unions worldwide with over 41 million members. The BWA's goals include caring for the needy, leading in world evangelism and defending human rights and religious freedom. Though it played a role in the founding of the BWA, the Southern Baptist Convention
severed its affiliation with BWA in 2004.
. Many Baptist groups, including the Southern Baptist Convention
and the Baptist Bible Fellowship do not cooperate with the Alliance. Their number can add up to a total of close to 100 million adherents in the world through 211 denominations, making Baptists the largest Protestant denomination in the world.
According to the Barna Group researchers, Baptists are the largest denominational grouping of born again Christians in the USA A 2009 ABCNEWS/Beliefnet phone poll of 1 022 adults suggests that fifteen percent of Americans identify themselves as Baptists.
Besides North America and Europe, large populations of Baptists also exist in Asia, Africa and Latin America, notably in India
(2.4 million), Nigeria
(2.5 million), Democratic Republic of the Congo
(DRC) (1.9 million), and Brazil
(1.7 million).
A large percentage of Baptists in North America are found in five bodies—the Southern Baptist Convention
(SBC); National Baptist Convention
(NBC); National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.
; (NBCA); American Baptist Churches in the USA (ABC); and Baptist Bible Fellowship International
(BBFI).
, which is a public profession of faith in Jesus, followed by water baptism.
Most baptists do not believe that baptism is a requirement for salvation, but rather a public expression of one's inner repentance and faith. Therefore some churches will admit into membersip persons who make a profession of faith but fail to follow through with believers' baptism.
In general, Baptist churches do not have a stated age restriction on membership, but believer's baptism requires that an individual be able to freely and earnestly profess their faith. (See Age of Accountability)
Shared doctrines would include beliefs about one God; the virgin birth; miracles; atonement for sins through the death, burial, and bodily resurrection of Jesus; the Trinity
; the need for salvation (through belief in Jesus Christ as the son of God, his death and resurrection, and confession of Christ as Lord); grace; the Kingdom of God; last things (Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth, the dead will be raised, and Christ will judge everyone in righteousness); and evangelism and missions. Some historically significant Baptist doctrinal documents include the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith, 1742 Philadelphia Baptist Confession, the 1833 New Hampshire Baptist Confession of Faith
, the Southern Baptist Convention
's Baptist Faith and Message
, and written church covenant
s which some individual Baptist churches adopt as a statement of their faith and beliefs.
Most Baptists hold that no church or ecclesiastical organization has inherent authority over a Baptist church. Churches can properly relate to each other under this polity only through voluntary cooperation, never by any sort of coercion. Furthermore, this Baptist polity calls for freedom from governmental control.
Exceptions to this local form of local governance include a few churches that submit to the leadership of a body of elders, as well as the Episcopal Baptist
s that have an Episcopal system
.
Baptists generally believe in the literal Second Coming
of Christ. Beliefs among Baptists regarding the "end times
" include amillennialism
, dispensationalism
, and historic premillennialism
, with views such as postmillennialism
and preterism
receiving some support.
Some additional distinctive Baptist principles held by many Baptists:
Most Baptist traditions believe in the "Four Freedoms" articulated by Baptist historian Walter B. Shurden:
Some doctrinal issues on which there is widespread difference among Baptists are:
movement, and the backlash against it, led to widespread and bitter controversy among the American Baptists. During this era, the American Baptists were split between missionary and anti-missionary. A substantial secession of Baptists went into the movement led by Alexander Campbell, to return to a more fundamental church.
, Baptists became embroiled in the controversy over slavery in the United States. Whereas in the First Great Awakening
, Methodist and Baptist preachers had opposed slavery and urged manumission, over the decades they made more of an accommodation with the institution. They worked with slaveholders in the South to urge a paternalistic institution. Both denominations made direct appeals to slaves and free blacks for conversion. The Baptists particularly allowed them active roles in congregations. By the mid-19th century, northern Baptists tended to oppose slavery. As tensions increased, in 1844 the Home Mission Society
refused to appoint a slaveholder as a missionary
who had been proposed by Georgia. It noted that missionaries could not take servants with them, and also that the Board did not want to appear to condone slavery.
The Southern Baptist Convention
was formed by nine state conventions in 1845, founded in part on the premise that the Bible
sanctions slavery and that it is acceptable for Christians
to own slaves. They believed slavery was a human institution which Baptist teaching could make less harsh. Not only were many planters among its membership, but some of the denomination's prominent preachers, such as the Rev. Basil Manly, Sr.
, president of the University of Alabama
, were planters
and owned slaves (he owned 40.)
As early as the late 18th century, black Baptists began to organize separate churches, associations and mission agencies, especially in the northern states. Not only did blacks set up some independent congregations in the South before the American Civil War
, freedmen quickly separated from white congregations and associations after the war. They wanted to be free of white supervision. In 1866 the Consolidated American Baptist Convention, formed from black Baptists of the South and West, helped southern associations set up black state conventions, which they did in Alabama
, Arkansas
, Virginia
, North Carolina
, and Kentucky
. In 1880 black state conventions united in the national Foreign Mission Convention, to support black Baptist missionary work. Two other national black conventions were formed, and in 1895 they united as the National Baptist Convention
. This organization later went through its own changes, spinning off other conventions. It is the largest black religious organization and the second largest Baptist organization in the world. Currently American Baptist numerical strength is greatest in the former slaveholding states. The Baptist faith is the predominant faith of African Americans.
On June 20, 1995, the Southern Baptist Convention voted to adopt a resolution renouncing its racist roots and apologizing for its past defense of slavery. More than 20,000 Southern Baptists registered for the meeting in Atlanta. The resolution declared that messengers, as SBC delegates are called, "unwaveringly denounce racism, in all its forms, as deplorable sin" and "lament and repudiate historic acts of evil such as slavery from which we continue to reap a bitter harvest." It offered an apology to all African-Americans for "condoning and/or perpetuating individual and systemic racism in our lifetime" and repentance for "racism of which we have been guilty, whether consciously or unconsciously." Although Southern Baptists have condemned racism in the past, this was the first time the predominantly white convention had dealt specifically with the issue of slavery.
The statement sought forgiveness "from our African-American brothers and sisters" and pledged to "eradicate racism in all its forms from Southern Baptist life and ministry." Currently about 500,000 members of the 15.6-million-member denomination are African Americans and another 300,000 are ethnic minorities. The resolution marked the denomination's first formal acknowledgment that racism
played a role in its founding.
sought to reset the ecclesiastical separation which had characterized the old Baptist churches, in an era when inter-denominational union meetings were the order of the day. James Robinson Graves
was the primary leader of this movement and one of the most influential Baptists of the 19th century. While some Landmarkers eventually separated from the Southern Baptist Convention, the movement's influence on the Convention continued well into the 20th century. Its influence continues to affect Convention policies. In 2005 the Southern Baptist International Mission Board forbade its missionaries to receive alien immersions for baptism.
The Northern Baptist Convention had internal conflict over modernism in the early 20th century, ultimately embracing it. Two new conservative associations were founded as a result: the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
in 1933 and the Conservative Baptist Association of America
in 1947. Following similar conflicts over modernism, the Southern Baptist Convention adhered to conservative theology as its official position. Two new Baptist denominations were formed by former Southern Baptists who rejected the Southern Baptist interpretation of the Bible: the Alliance of Baptists
in 1987 and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
in 1991.
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
s and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
should be performed only for professing believers (believer's baptism
Believer's baptism
Believer's baptism is the Christian practice of baptism as this is understood by many Protestant churches, particularly those that descend from the Anabaptist tradition...
, as opposed to infant baptism
Infant baptism
Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. In theological discussions, the practice is sometimes referred to as paedobaptism or pedobaptism from the Greek pais meaning "child." The practice is sometimes contrasted with what is called "believer's baptism", or...
), and that it must be done by immersion
Immersion baptism
Immersion baptism is a method of baptism that is distinguished from baptism by affusion and by aspersion , sometimes without specifying whether the immersion is total or partial, but very commonly with the indication that the person baptized is immersed completely...
(as opposed to affusion
Affusion
Affusion is a method of baptism where water is poured on the head of the person being baptized. The word "affusion" comes from the Latin affusio, meaning "to pour on" . Affusion is one of three or four methods of baptism, in addition to the greater wetting of total immersion baptism and...
or sprinkling
Aspersion
Aspersion , in a religious context, is the act of sprinkling with water, especially holy water. Aspersion is a method used in baptism as an alternative to immersion or affusion...
). Other tenets of Baptist churches include soul competency
Soul competency
Soul competency is a Christian theological perspective on the accountability of each person before God. According to this view, neither one's family relationships, church membership, or ecclesiastical or religious authorities can effect salvation of one's soul from damnation...
(liberty), salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
through faith alone
Sola fide
Sola fide , also historically known as the doctrine of justification by faith alone, is a Christian theological doctrine that distinguishes most Protestant denominations from Catholicism, Eastern Christianity, and some in the Restoration Movement.The doctrine of sola fide or "by faith alone"...
, scripture alone
Sola scriptura
Sola scriptura is the doctrine that the Bible contains all knowledge necessary for salvation and holiness. Consequently, sola scriptura demands that only those doctrines are to be admitted or confessed that are found directly within or indirectly by using valid logical deduction or valid...
as the rule of faith and practice, and the autonomy of the local congregation
Congregationalist polity
Congregationalist polity, often known as congregationalism, is a system of church governance in which every local church congregation is independent, ecclesiastically sovereign, or "autonomous"...
. Baptists recognize two ministerial offices, pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
s and deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
s. Baptist churches are widely considered to be Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
churches, though some Baptists disavow this identity.
Diverse from their beginning, those identifying as Baptists today differ widely from one another in what they believe, how they worship, their attitudes toward other Christians, and their understanding of what is important in Christian discipleship.
Historians trace the earliest Baptist church back to 1609 in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, with English Separatist
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
John Smyth as its pastor. In accordance with his reading of the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, he rejected baptism of infants and instituted baptism only of believing adults. Baptist practice spread to England, where the General Baptists considered Christ's atonement to extend to all people, while the Particular Baptists believed that it extended only to the elect. In 1638, Roger Williams
Roger Williams (theologian)
Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, which provided a refuge for religious minorities. Williams started the first Baptist church in America,...
established the first Baptist congregation in the North American colonies
First Baptist Church in America
The First Baptist Church in America is the First Baptist Church of Providence, Rhode Island, also known as First Baptist Meetinghouse. The oldest Baptist church congregation in the United States, it was founded by Roger Williams in Providence, Rhode Island in 1638...
. In the mid-18th century, the First Great Awakening
First Great Awakening
The First Awakening was a Christian revitalization movement that swept Protestant Europe and British America, and especially the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, leaving a permanent impact on American religion. It resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of personal...
increased Baptist growth in both New England and the South. The Second Great Awakening
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening was a Christian revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1800, had begun to gain momentum by 1820, and was in decline by 1870. The Second Great Awakening expressed Arminian theology, by which every person could be...
in the South in the early 19th century increased church membership, as did the preachers' lessening of support for abolition
Abolition
Abolish means to put an end to something or to stop something.Abolition may refer to:*Abolitionism *Abolition of death penalty *Abolition of monarchy*Prison abolition movement...
and manumission
Manumission
Manumission is the act of a slave owner freeing his or her slaves. In the United States before the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which abolished most slavery, this often happened upon the death of the owner, under conditions in his will.-Motivations:The...
of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, which had been part of the 18th-century teachings. Baptist missionaries have spread their church to every continent.
The Baptist World Alliance
Baptist World Alliance
The Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...
reports more than 41 million members in more than 150,000 congregations. In 2002, there were over 100 million Baptists and Baptistic group members worldwide and over 33 million in North America. The largest Baptist association is the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
, with over 16 million members.
Etymology
The term Baptist comes from the GreekGreek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
word (baptistés, "baptist," also used to describe John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
), which is related to the verb (baptízo, "to baptize, wash, dip, immerse"), and the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
baptista.
The term Baptist as applied to Baptist churches is a modification of the term Anabaptist
Anabaptist
Anabaptists are Protestant Christians of the Radical Reformation of 16th-century Europe, and their direct descendants, particularly the Amish, Brethren, Hutterites, and Mennonites....
(which means rebaptizer), and was used into the 19th century as a general epithet for churches which denied the validity of infant baptism, including the Campbellite
Campbellite
Campbellite refers to any of the religious groups historically descended from the Restoration Movement, a religious reform movement in the early 19th century in the United States...
s, Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
s and Schwarzenau Brethren
Schwarzenau Brethren
The Schwarzenau Brethren, originated in Germany, the outcome of the Radical Pietist ferment of the late 17th and early 18th century. Hopeful of the imminent return of Christ, the founding Brethren abandoned the established Reformed and Lutheran churches, forming a new church in 1708 when their...
or German Baptist
German Baptist
The German Baptists movement was founded as a fusion of the Anabaptist and Radical Pietist movements. German Baptists are not to be confused with Primitive, Separate, Southern, Particular, and all other mainline Baptist denominations who, although generally unified on rudimentary doctrines such as...
s, who are not identified with modern day Baptists. The English Anabaptists were called Baptists as early as 1569. The name Anabaptist continued to be applied to English and American Baptists, even after the American Revolution.
Origins
Baptist Historian Bruce Gourley outlines four main views of Baptist origins: (1) The modern scholarly consensus that the denomination traces its origin to the 17th century via the English SeparatistsEnglish Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
, (2) the view that it was an outgrowth of Anabaptist traditions, (3) the perpetuity view which assumes that the Baptist faith and practice has existed since the time of Christ, and (4) the successionist view, or "Baptist successionism
Baptist successionism
Baptist successionism is one of several theories on the origin and continuation of Baptist churches – also known as "Baptist perpetuity" or "The Trail of Blood". It is the theory that there has been an unbroken chain of churches since the days of Christ which have held similar beliefs of the...
", which argues that Baptist churches actually existed in an unbroken chain since the time of Christ.
English separatist view
The predominant view of Baptist origins is that Baptists came along in historical development in the century after the rise of the original Protestant denominations. This view of Baptist origins has the most historical support and is the most widely accepted. Representative writers include William H. Whitsitt, Robert G. Torbet, Winthrop S. Hudson, William G. McLoughlin and Robert A. Baker. This position considers the influence of Anabaptists upon early Baptists to be minimal. It was a time of considerable political and religious turmoil. Both individuals and churches were willing to give up their theological roots if they became convinced that a more biblical "truth" had been discovered.The Baptist faith originated from within the English Separatist
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
movement. Prior to the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
, the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
(Anglicans) had broken away from the Catholic Church. Then came the mainstream Reformation. There were some Christians who were not content with the achievements of the mainstream Protestant Reformation. There also were Christians who were disappointed that the Church of England had not made corrections of what some considered to be errors and abuses. Of those most critical of the Church's direction, some chose to stay and try to make constructive changes from within the Anglican Church. They became known as "Puritans" and are described by Gourley as cousins of the English Separatists
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
. Others decided they must leave the Church because of their dissatisfaction and became known as the Separatists.
Historians trace the earliest Baptist church back to 1609 in Amsterdam, with John Smyth as its pastor. Even prior to that, in 1606, John Smyth, a Fellow of Christ’s College, Cambridge, had broken his ties with the Church of England. Reared in the Church of England, he became "Puritan, English Separatist
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
, and then a Baptist Separatist," and ended his days working with the Mennonites. He began meeting in England with 60–70 English Separatists
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
, in the face of "great danger." The persecution of religious nonconformists in England led Smyth to go into exile in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
with fellow Separatists from the congregation he had gathered in Lincolnshire, separate from the established church (Anglican). Smyth and his lay supporter, Thomas Helwys
Thomas Helwys
Thomas Helwys , an Englishman, was one of the joint founders, with John Smyth, of the Baptist denomination.In the early seventeenth century, Helwys was principal formulator of that distinctively Baptist request: that the church and the state be kept separate in matters of law, so that individuals...
, together with those they led, broke with the other English exiles because Smyth and Helways were convinced they should be baptized as believers. In 1609 Smyth first baptized himself and then baptized the others.
In 1609, while still there, Smyth wrote a tract titled "The Character of the Beast," or "The False Constitution of the Church." In it he expressed two propositions: first, infants are not to be baptized; and second, "Antichristians converted are to be admitted into the true Church by baptism." Hence, his conviction was that a scriptural church should consist only of regenerate believers who have been baptized on a personal confession of faith. He rejected the Separatist
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
movement's doctrine of infant baptism (paedobaptism). Shortly thereafter, Smyth left the group, and layman Thomas Helwys took over the leadership, leading the church back to England in 1611. Ultimately, Smyth became committed to believers' baptism as the only biblical baptism. He was convinced on the basis of his interpretation of Scripture that infants would not be damned should they die in infancy.
Smyth, convinced that his self-baptism was invalid, applied with the Mennonites for membership. He died while waiting for membership, and some of his followers became Mennonites. Thomas Helwys and others kept their baptism and their Baptist commitments. The modern Baptist denomination is an outgrowth of Smyth's movement. Baptists rejected the name Anabaptist when they were called that by opponents in derision. McBeth writes that as late as the 18th century, many Baptists referred to themselves as "the Christians commonly—though falsely—called Anabaptists."
Anabaptist influence view
Another view is that early seventeenth-century Baptists were influenced by continental Anabaptists. Proponents of this view hold that although Baptist originated from English SeparatistsEnglish Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
, some early Baptists were influenced by some Anabaptists. According to this view, the Dutch Mennonites (Anabaptists) shared some similarities with General Baptists (believer's baptism, religious liberty, separation of church and state, and Arminian views of salvation, predestination and original sin). However, there were significant differences between Anabaptists and Baptists, though not so significant as the differences among many contemporary Baptist groups. Representative writers include AC Underwood and William R Estep. Gorley writes that among some contemporary Baptist scholars who emphasize the faith of the community over soul liberty, the Anabaptist influence theory is making a comeback.
The relations between Baptists and Anabaptists were early strained. In 1624, the then five existing Baptist churches of London issued a condemnation of the Anabaptists.
Perpetuity view
Prior to the 20th century, Baptist historians generally wrote from the perspective that Baptists had existed since the time of Christ. Proponents of the Baptist perpetuity view consider the Baptist movement to have always been historically separate from Catholicism and in existence prior to the Protestant ReformationProtestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
.
The perpetuity view is often identified with The Trail of Blood, a pamphlet by J.M. Carrol published in 1931. Other Baptist writers holding the perpetuity view are Thomas Crosby, G.H. Orchard, JM Cramp, William Cathcart, Adam Taylor and DB Ray This view was also held by English Baptist preacher, Charles Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon
Charles Haddon Spurgeon was a large British Particular Baptist preacher who remains highly influential among Christians of different denominations, among whom he is still known as the "Prince of Preachers"...
as well as Jesse Mercer
Jesse Mercer
Jesse Mercer was a prominent Baptist minister and a founder of Mercer University in the U.S. state of Georgia. Born in North Carolina on December 16, 1769, he was the son of Silas Mercer, a Baptist minister who moved his family to Wilkes County, Georgia in the early 1770s...
, the namesake of Mercer University.
Baptist Origins in the UK
Baptist Origins in North America
Both Roger WilliamsRoger Williams (theologian)
Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, which provided a refuge for religious minorities. Williams started the first Baptist church in America,...
and John Clarke
John Clarke (1609-1676)
John Clarke was a medical doctor, Baptist minister, co-founder of the colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, author of its influential charter, and a leading advocate of religious freedom in the Americas....
, his compatriot in working for religious freedom, are variously credited as founding the earliest Baptist church in North America. In 1639, Williams established a Baptist church in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, and Clarke began a Baptist church in Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
. According to a Baptist historian who has researched the matter extensively, "There is much debate over the centuries as to whether the Providence or Newport church deserved the place of 'first' Baptist congregation in America. Exact records for both congregations are lacking."
The Great Awakening energized the Baptist movement, and the Baptist community experienced spectacular growth. Baptists became the largest Christian community in many southern states, including among the black population.
In 1845, the Baptists congregations in the United States split over three main issues: slavery, missions, and doctrinal integrity. The northern congregations were opposed to members in the southern congregations owning slaves, and tried to prevent slaveholders from being missionaries. However, not appointing a proportionate number of missionaries to the southern region of the US sparked animosity from the southern churches. The southern congregations were also concerned over perceived liberalism in the north, accusing some missionaries of denying virgin birth and divinity of Jesus. The split created the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
, while the northern congregations, then known as Northern Baptists, formed their own umbrella organization now called the American Baptist Churches of the USA
American Baptist Churches USA
The American Baptist Churches USA is a Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainline, although varying theological and mission emphases may be found among its...
(ABC-USA).
After the American Civil War, another split occurred: most black Baptists in the South separated from white churches and set up their own congregations. In the late 1860s, they rapidly set up several separate state conventions. In 1895 their three national conventions merged into the National Baptist Convention
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
The National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. is the largest predominantly African-American Christian denomination in the United States and is the world's second largest Baptist denomination...
. With 8 million members, it is the largest African-American religious organization and is second in size to the Southern Baptist Convention.
Baptist affiliations
Many Baptist churches choose to affiliate with organizational groups that provide fellowship without control. The largest such group is the Southern Baptist ConventionSouthern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
. There also are a substantial number of smaller cooperative groups. Finally, there are Baptist churches that choose to remain autonomous and independent of any denomination, organization, or association.
In 1905, Baptists worldwide formed the Baptist World Alliance
Baptist World Alliance
The Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...
(BWA). The BWA now counts 218 Baptist conventions and unions worldwide with over 41 million members. The BWA's goals include caring for the needy, leading in world evangelism and defending human rights and religious freedom. Though it played a role in the founding of the BWA, the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
severed its affiliation with BWA in 2004.
Statistics
Today, 46 million Baptists belong to churches cooperating with the Baptist World AllianceBaptist World Alliance
The Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...
. Many Baptist groups, including the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
and the Baptist Bible Fellowship do not cooperate with the Alliance. Their number can add up to a total of close to 100 million adherents in the world through 211 denominations, making Baptists the largest Protestant denomination in the world.
According to the Barna Group researchers, Baptists are the largest denominational grouping of born again Christians in the USA A 2009 ABCNEWS/Beliefnet phone poll of 1 022 adults suggests that fifteen percent of Americans identify themselves as Baptists.
Besides North America and Europe, large populations of Baptists also exist in Asia, Africa and Latin America, notably in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(2.4 million), Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
(2.5 million), Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
(DRC) (1.9 million), and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
(1.7 million).
A large percentage of Baptists in North America are found in five bodies—the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
(SBC); National Baptist Convention
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
The National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. is the largest predominantly African-American Christian denomination in the United States and is the world's second largest Baptist denomination...
(NBC); National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.
National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.
The National Baptist Convention of America, Inc. is an African-American Baptist body organized in 1915 as the result of a struggle to keep the National Baptist Publishing Board of Nashville independent. Those supporting the independence of the publishing board, headed by Rev. R. H...
; (NBCA); American Baptist Churches in the USA (ABC); and Baptist Bible Fellowship International
Baptist Bible Fellowship International
The Baptist Bible Fellowship International is a separatist, fundamentalist Baptist organization formed in 1950 by members who separated from the World Baptist Fellowship. It is headquartered in Springfield, Missouri...
(BBFI).
Qualification for membership
Membership policies vary due to the autonomy of churches, but the traditional method by which an individual becomes a member of a church is through believer's baptismBeliever's baptism
Believer's baptism is the Christian practice of baptism as this is understood by many Protestant churches, particularly those that descend from the Anabaptist tradition...
, which is a public profession of faith in Jesus, followed by water baptism.
Most baptists do not believe that baptism is a requirement for salvation, but rather a public expression of one's inner repentance and faith. Therefore some churches will admit into membersip persons who make a profession of faith but fail to follow through with believers' baptism.
In general, Baptist churches do not have a stated age restriction on membership, but believer's baptism requires that an individual be able to freely and earnestly profess their faith. (See Age of Accountability)
Baptist beliefs and principles
Baptists, like other Christians, are defined by doctrine—some of it common to all orthodox and evangelical groups and a portion of it importantly distinctive. Through the years, different Baptist groups have issued confessions of faith—without considering them to be creeds—to express their particular doctrinal distinctions in comparison to other Christians as well as in comparison to other Baptists. Most Baptists are evangelical in doctrine, but Baptist beliefs can vary due to the congregational governance system that gives autonomy to individual local Baptist churches. Historically, Baptists have played a key role in encouraging religious freedom and separation of church and state.Shared doctrines would include beliefs about one God; the virgin birth; miracles; atonement for sins through the death, burial, and bodily resurrection of Jesus; the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
; the need for salvation (through belief in Jesus Christ as the son of God, his death and resurrection, and confession of Christ as Lord); grace; the Kingdom of God; last things (Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth, the dead will be raised, and Christ will judge everyone in righteousness); and evangelism and missions. Some historically significant Baptist doctrinal documents include the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith, 1742 Philadelphia Baptist Confession, the 1833 New Hampshire Baptist Confession of Faith
1833 New Hampshire Baptist Confession of Faith
In 1833, Baptists in the United States agreed upon a confession of faith around which they could organize a missionary society under the Triennial Convention. The New Hampshire Confession of Faith was drawn up by the Rev. John Newton Brown of New Hampshire, and was adopted by the New Hampshire...
, the Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
's Baptist Faith and Message
Baptist Faith and Message
The Baptist Faith and Message is the confession of faith of the Southern Baptist Convention . It summarizes key Southern Baptist thought in the areas of the Bible and its authority, the nature of God as expressed by the Trinity, the spiritual condition of man, God's plan of grace and salvation,...
, and written church covenant
Church covenant
The church covenant is a declaration, which some churches draw up and call their members to sign, in which their duties as church members towards God and their fellow believers are outlined...
s which some individual Baptist churches adopt as a statement of their faith and beliefs.
Most Baptists hold that no church or ecclesiastical organization has inherent authority over a Baptist church. Churches can properly relate to each other under this polity only through voluntary cooperation, never by any sort of coercion. Furthermore, this Baptist polity calls for freedom from governmental control.
Exceptions to this local form of local governance include a few churches that submit to the leadership of a body of elders, as well as the Episcopal Baptist
Episcopal Baptist
Although most Baptist groups are congregationalist in polity, some have different ecclesiastical organization and adopt an Episcopal polity governance...
s that have an Episcopal system
Episcopal polity
Episcopal polity is a form of church governance that is hierarchical in structure with the chief authority over a local Christian church resting in a bishop...
.
Baptists generally believe in the literal Second Coming
Second Coming
In Christian doctrine, the Second Coming of Christ, the Second Advent, or the Parousia, is the anticipated return of Jesus Christ from Heaven, where he sits at the Right Hand of God, to Earth. This prophecy is found in the canonical gospels and in most Christian and Islamic eschatologies...
of Christ. Beliefs among Baptists regarding the "end times
Christian eschatology
Christian eschatology is a major branch of study within Christian theology. Eschatology, from two Greek words meaning last and study , is the study of the end of things, whether the end of an individual life, the end of the age, or the end of the world...
" include amillennialism
Amillennialism
Amillennialism is a view in Christian end-times theology named for its rejection of the theory that Jesus Christ will have a thousand-year long, physical reign on the earth...
, dispensationalism
Dispensationalism
Dispensationalism is a nineteenth-century evangelical development based on a futurist biblical hermeneutic that sees a series of chronologically successive "dispensations" or periods in history in which God relates to human beings in different ways under different Biblical covenants.As a system,...
, and historic premillennialism
Premillennialism
Premillennialism in Christian end-times theology is the belief that Jesus will literally and physically be on the earth for his millennial reign, at his second coming. The doctrine is called premillennialism because it holds that Jesus’ physical return to earth will occur prior to the inauguration...
, with views such as postmillennialism
Postmillennialism
In Christian end-times theology, , postmillennialism is an interpretation of chapter 20 of the Book of Revelation which sees Christ's second coming as occurring after the "Millennium", a Golden Age in which Christian ethics prosper...
and preterism
Preterism
Preterism is a Christian eschatological view that interprets prophecies of the Bible, especially Daniel and Revelation, as events which have already happened in the first century A.D. Preterism holds that Ancient Israel finds its continuation or fulfillment in the Christian church at the...
receiving some support.
Some additional distinctive Baptist principles held by many Baptists:
- The supremacy of the canonical Scriptures as a norm of faith and practice. For something to become a matter of faith and practice, it is not sufficient for it to be merely consistent with and not contrary to scriptural principles. It must be something explicitly ordained through command or example in the Bible. For instance, this is why Baptists do not practice infant baptism—they say the Bible neither commands nor exemplifies infant baptism as a Christian practice, even though nowhere does the Bible forbid it. More than any other Baptist principle, this one when applied to infant baptism is said to separate Baptists from other evangelical Christians.
- Baptists believe that faith is a matter between God and the individual (religious freedom). To them it means the advocacy of absolute liberty of conscience.
- Insistence on immersion as the only mode of baptism. Baptists do not believe that baptism is necessary for salvation. Therefore, they do not consider it to be a sacrament, since it imparts no saving grace.
Most Baptist traditions believe in the "Four Freedoms" articulated by Baptist historian Walter B. Shurden:
- Soul freedom: the soul is competent before God, and capable of making decisions in matters of faith without coercion or compulsion by any larger religious or civil body
- Church freedom: freedom of the local church from outside interference, whether government or civilian (subject only to the law where it does not interfere with the religious teachings and practices of the church)
- Bible freedom: the individual is free to interpret the Bible for himself or herself, using the best tools of scholarship and biblical study available to the individual
- Religious freedom: the individual is free to choose whether to practice their religion, another religion, or no religion; Separation of church and stateSeparation of church and stateThe concept of the separation of church and state refers to the distance in the relationship between organized religion and the nation state....
is often called the "civil corollary" of religious freedom
Beliefs that vary among Baptists
Since there is no hierarchical authority and each Baptist church is autonomous, there is no official set of Baptist theological beliefs. These differences exist both among associations, and even among churches within the associations.Some doctrinal issues on which there is widespread difference among Baptists are:
- EschatologyEschatologyEschatology is a part of theology, philosophy, and futurology concerned with what are believed to be the final events in history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world or the World to Come...
- CalvinismCalvinismCalvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
vs. ArminianismArminianismArminianism is a school of soteriological thought within Protestant Christianity based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius and his historic followers, the Remonstrants... - The doctrine of separationDoctrine of separationThe doctrine of separation, also known as the doctrine of non-fellowship, is a belief among some Protestant religious groups that the members of a church should be separate from "the world" and not have association with those who are "of the world". There are many scriptures in both the Old...
from "the world" and whether to associate with those who are "of the world" - GlossolaliaGlossolaliaGlossolalia or speaking in tongues is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables, often as part of religious practice. The significance of glossolalia has varied with time and place, with some considering it a part of a sacred language...
(speaking in tongues) - How the Bible should be interpreted (hermeneutics)
- The extent to which missionaryMission (Christian)Christian missionary activities often involve sending individuals and groups , to foreign countries and to places in their own homeland. This has frequently involved not only evangelization , but also humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged...
boards should be used to support missionaries - The extent to which non-members may participate in the Lord's SupperLord's SupperThe Lord's Supper may refer to:*Eucharist, Mass or Communion, a rite in Christianity*The Last Supper, the last meal Jesus of Nazareth shared with his disciples in the collection of Christian Scriptures called The Holy Bible....
services - Which translation of Scripture to use (see King-James-Only movementKing-James-Only MovementThe "King James Only movement" advocates the superiority of the Authorized King James Version of the Protestant Bible. The topic increased in newsworthiness in 2011, the 400th anniversary of the translation's 1611 initial publication....
), the very nature of GospelGospelA gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John... - The role of women in marriageChristian views of marriageChristian views on marriage typically regard it as instituted and ordained by God for the lifelong relationship between one man as husband and one woman as wife, and is to be "held in honour among all...."...
- The ordination of women as deacons or pastors.
Controversies that have shaped Baptists
Baptists have faced many controversies in their 400-year history, controversies of the level of crises. Baptist historian Walter Shurden says the word "crisis" comes from the Greek word meaning "to decide." Shurden writes that contrary to the presumed negative view of crises, some controversies that reach a crisis level may actually be "positive and highly productive." He claims that even schism, though never ideal, has often produced positive results. In his opinion crises among Baptists each have become decision-moments that shaped their future. Some controversies that have shaped Baptists are:- Missions crisis
- Slavery crisis
- Landmark crisis
- Modernist crisis
Missions crisis
Early in the 19th century, the rise of the modern missionsMission (Christian)
Christian missionary activities often involve sending individuals and groups , to foreign countries and to places in their own homeland. This has frequently involved not only evangelization , but also humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged...
movement, and the backlash against it, led to widespread and bitter controversy among the American Baptists. During this era, the American Baptists were split between missionary and anti-missionary. A substantial secession of Baptists went into the movement led by Alexander Campbell, to return to a more fundamental church.
Slavery crisis
Leading up to the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Baptists became embroiled in the controversy over slavery in the United States. Whereas in the First Great Awakening
Great Awakening
The term Great Awakening is used to refer to a period of religious revival in American religious history. Historians and theologians identify three or four waves of increased religious enthusiasm occurring between the early 18th century and the late 19th century...
, Methodist and Baptist preachers had opposed slavery and urged manumission, over the decades they made more of an accommodation with the institution. They worked with slaveholders in the South to urge a paternalistic institution. Both denominations made direct appeals to slaves and free blacks for conversion. The Baptists particularly allowed them active roles in congregations. By the mid-19th century, northern Baptists tended to oppose slavery. As tensions increased, in 1844 the Home Mission Society
Home mission society
The American Baptist Home Mission Societies is a Christian missionary society. It was established in New York City in 1832 to operate in the American frontier, with the stated mission "to preach the Gospel, establish churches and give support and ministry to the unchurched and destitute." In the...
refused to appoint a slaveholder as a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
who had been proposed by Georgia. It noted that missionaries could not take servants with them, and also that the Board did not want to appear to condone slavery.
The Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
was formed by nine state conventions in 1845, founded in part on the premise that the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
sanctions slavery and that it is acceptable for Christians
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
to own slaves. They believed slavery was a human institution which Baptist teaching could make less harsh. Not only were many planters among its membership, but some of the denomination's prominent preachers, such as the Rev. Basil Manly, Sr.
Basil Manly, Sr.
Basil Manly, Sr. was an Alabama planter, Baptist preacher and educator.The family moved to Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1837, when Manly became president of the University of Alabama, a post he held until 1855...
, president of the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, were planters
Plantations in the American South
Plantations were an important aspect of the history of the American South, particularly the antebellum .-Planter :The owner of a plantation was called a planter...
and owned slaves (he owned 40.)
As early as the late 18th century, black Baptists began to organize separate churches, associations and mission agencies, especially in the northern states. Not only did blacks set up some independent congregations in the South before the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, freedmen quickly separated from white congregations and associations after the war. They wanted to be free of white supervision. In 1866 the Consolidated American Baptist Convention, formed from black Baptists of the South and West, helped southern associations set up black state conventions, which they did in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, and Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. In 1880 black state conventions united in the national Foreign Mission Convention, to support black Baptist missionary work. Two other national black conventions were formed, and in 1895 they united as the National Baptist Convention
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
The National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. is the largest predominantly African-American Christian denomination in the United States and is the world's second largest Baptist denomination...
. This organization later went through its own changes, spinning off other conventions. It is the largest black religious organization and the second largest Baptist organization in the world. Currently American Baptist numerical strength is greatest in the former slaveholding states. The Baptist faith is the predominant faith of African Americans.
On June 20, 1995, the Southern Baptist Convention voted to adopt a resolution renouncing its racist roots and apologizing for its past defense of slavery. More than 20,000 Southern Baptists registered for the meeting in Atlanta. The resolution declared that messengers, as SBC delegates are called, "unwaveringly denounce racism, in all its forms, as deplorable sin" and "lament and repudiate historic acts of evil such as slavery from which we continue to reap a bitter harvest." It offered an apology to all African-Americans for "condoning and/or perpetuating individual and systemic racism in our lifetime" and repentance for "racism of which we have been guilty, whether consciously or unconsciously." Although Southern Baptists have condemned racism in the past, this was the first time the predominantly white convention had dealt specifically with the issue of slavery.
The statement sought forgiveness "from our African-American brothers and sisters" and pledged to "eradicate racism in all its forms from Southern Baptist life and ministry." Currently about 500,000 members of the 15.6-million-member denomination are African Americans and another 300,000 are ethnic minorities. The resolution marked the denomination's first formal acknowledgment that racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
played a role in its founding.
Landmark crisis
Southern Baptist LandmarkismLandmarkism
Landmarkism is a type of Baptist ecclesiology--it may also appear as Old Landmarkism in some works. Adherents are normally styled Landmark Baptists or simply Landmarkers within the United States, but are known as Landmarkists in the United Kingdom. The term Landmarkism originates in : "Remove not...
sought to reset the ecclesiastical separation which had characterized the old Baptist churches, in an era when inter-denominational union meetings were the order of the day. James Robinson Graves
James Robinson Graves
James Robinson Graves was a US Baptist preacher, publisher, evangelist, debater, author, and editor. He was born in Chester, Vermont, the son of Z. C. Graves, and died in Memphis, Tennessee. His remains are interred in Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis.Though raised in a Congregational background, he...
was the primary leader of this movement and one of the most influential Baptists of the 19th century. While some Landmarkers eventually separated from the Southern Baptist Convention, the movement's influence on the Convention continued well into the 20th century. Its influence continues to affect Convention policies. In 2005 the Southern Baptist International Mission Board forbade its missionaries to receive alien immersions for baptism.
Modernist crisis
The rise of theological modernism in the latter 19th and 20th century also greatly affected Baptists. The Landmark movement, already mentioned, has been described as a reaction against incipient modernism among Southern Baptists. In England, Charles Haddon Spurgeon fought against modernistic views of the Scripture in the Downgrade Controversy.The Northern Baptist Convention had internal conflict over modernism in the early 20th century, ultimately embracing it. Two new conservative associations were founded as a result: the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
The General Association of Regular Baptist Churches is one of several Baptist groups in North America retaining the name "Regular Baptist"....
in 1933 and the Conservative Baptist Association of America
Conservative Baptist Association of America
-History:The first organization of Conservative Baptists was the Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society , now called WorldVenture, formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1943. The Conservative Baptist Association of America was organized in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1947. The Association operates...
in 1947. Following similar conflicts over modernism, the Southern Baptist Convention adhered to conservative theology as its official position. Two new Baptist denominations were formed by former Southern Baptists who rejected the Southern Baptist interpretation of the Bible: the Alliance of Baptists
Alliance of Baptists
The Alliance of Baptists is a fellowship of Baptist churches and individuals in the United States. In its theology and social stances, the Alliance is characterized as a progressive or liberal Christian fellowship...
in 1987 and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is a Christian fellowship of Baptist churches formed in 1991. Theologically moderate, the CBF withdrew from the Southern Baptist Convention over philosophical and theological differences, such as the SBC prohibition of women serving as pastors. The Cooperative...
in 1991.
See also
- List of Baptist confessions
- List of Baptist denominations
- List of Baptists