Baptist/ Churches of Christ Family
The Baptists historically are antiauthoritarian, lay-oriented, and opposed
to liturgy and creeds. They have opposed the establishment of state churches,
and they baptize only adult believers. There is a strong evangelistic and
revivalistic style.
HISTORY
History has been a problem for the Baptists. The question of when and where
they originated has been seen as important for them, with no clear answers.
One school of thought, the earliest to appear in Baptist circles, holds the
"Jerusalem-Jordan-John theory." In that view the Baptists can be
dated to John the Baptist and his Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River. They
are concerned with an "apostolic succession" of Baptist congregations
and take great pains to define and locate it.
A second group focused on a continuity of doctrine. They saw Baptist roots
in the Anabaptist wing of the Reformation.
A third group looked to seventeenth century England. In their view theological
issues led the Baptists to move away from the positions of the Anabaptists and
Calvinists on issues such as predestination and affiliation with the state.
Theological issues that came to be accepted as the churches developed are
still hallmarks in present Baptist churches. Immersion of adults was seen as
the correct mode of Baptism. Baptists view themselves as congregationally
governed but completely separated from the state.
As early as the 1600s churches joined together in speaking with one voice on
issues they saw as important. These associations came to be continuing
structures for congregations to affiliate with others.
BELIEFS
Creeds or doctrine are seen as less important than the Bible, and there is a
reluctance to discipline members for dissent from accepted doctrine.
Baptists have generally rejected the idea of sacrament in their
consideration of the common Christian rites of Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
They have instead used the term “ordinance” and see themselves as following
biblical commands. The Lord's Supper is seen as a memorial meal. Baptism by
immersion is seen as an emblem of the believer's faith.
Baptists rejected structures involving leadership by bishops or elders. The local
church is seen as the true focus of Christian life and authority and is largely
autonomous. A continued issue was the need for freedom from the state.
IN AMERICA
In the early 1700s, the Great Awakening began to affect the Baptists. Their
number increased tremendously, but they also found themselves involved in new
controversy. A group called the Separatist Baptists began who saw the
"born again" experience as indispensable. They refused contact with
those who did not share their view.
Splits occurred in associations of Baptists in the 1800s over the issue of
slavery, with some individuals and congregations taking strong abolitionist
positions while other groups felt that the owning of slaves was not sinful.
Some groups pushed the issue by appointing owners of slaves as missionaries and
then questioning the associations as to their acceptability. The Southern
Baptist Convention was formed as a result of that controversy.
Generally, ecumenical participation by Baptists has been hindered by both
the extreme congregational polity and the demand for doctrinal unity with those
with whom they have contact.
CONSERVATIVE BAPTIST MOVEMENT
In the early 1900s the Northern Baptist Convention experienced splitting
over the fundamentalist-modernist controversy. The Fundamentalist movement
focused on the issues of social action and the deviation from doctrine by
missionaries. The Fundamentalists opposed the post-World War I policies which
seemed to involve unsuitable social activism, and they opposed the sending of
missionaries who did not hold a strong conservative Baptist position. When the
convention turned away from their demands, they organized the Conservative
Baptist Fellowship (CBF),
PRIMITIVE BAPTISTS
In the 1800s a concern arose over the missionary societies and other forms
of greater organization, including seminaries. There was also concern about
secret societies such as the Masons. These disputes resulted in further
splitting of some associations.
Those who opposed what they considered innovations came to consider or
describe themselves as the ”true” Baptists. Formal letters between
congregations became the means of expressing unity with other congregations of
similar belief.
There is a rejection of theological training, and that has contributed to
disputes over theological issues, such as predestination. All hold the view
that God elected the saved before the creation of the world. Some hold that God
predestined everything that happens.
Many congregations practice the ritual of footwashing, but some consider it
an ordinance while some make it a test of fellowship. The King James version of
the Bible is preferred but usually not mandatory.
The local church consists of members, deacons, and elders. Members must be
adult baptized believers. Deacons oversee the temporal affairs. Ministers have
little or no theological training and, typically, no salary. They are expected
to study the Scriptures. No musical instruments are used in worship. Sermons
are delivered extemporaneously, in a distinctive sing-song voice. Also
associated with the Primitives is Harp Singing, a cappella singing in four-part
harmony which sounds much like eighteenth century folk music.
While not organized in a hierarchical fashion, there is a definite
organizational structure to the Primitive Baptist movement which can be defined
by doctrine and by letters of correspondence. Each association has a sister
association to which it sends annual letters of greeting. Such letters are
recognition of being in communion and professing similar doctrines. With rare
exceptions, associations in correspondence will not overlap geographically.
Several groups have taken steps to organize more formally and to form more
regional structures.
GENERAL BAPTISTS
The first Baptists in both England and America held that salvation is
possible for all. They believed in a "general" atonement in
opposition to the "particular" atonement or strict predestination of
the Calvinist Baptists, who said the number and identity of the elect were
predetermined before the world began.
SEVENTH-DAY BAPTISTS
Seventh-Day or Saturday worship has been a recurring issue for Baptists in
search of ways to recover the primitive church. Some congregations came to be
formed with that as a central theme.
CHRISTIAN CHURCH (DISCIPLES OF
CHRIST) AND RELATED CHURCHES
Many members of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and its sister
bodies would be offended by being thought of as "Baptists," but they
arose at least partly from the Baptists. The Christian Church holds some beliefs
and practices in common with Baptists; for example, believers' Baptism by
immersion, the celebration of the Lord's Supper as a memorial meal, and the
effort to restore New Testament Christianity.
The Campbells were Scotch-educated Irishmen who had, during their years of
training, become heavily influenced by some Presbyterian leaders who had
adopted a free-church position.
Thomas Campbell came to America in 1807 and joined the Philadelphia Synod of
the Presbyterian Church, but his name was removed from the rolls in May 1807
under charges of heresy. Thomas founded the Christian Association of Washington
(Pennsylvania) to give form to the antiauthoritarian protest. At about the same
time, Alexander Campbell broke with the Scotch Presbyterians and sailed for
America.
The Campbells, repulsed by the Presbyterians, began to form congregations in
fellowship with a Baptist association. During that time the central concepts
were formed. Some of those ideas were in direct conflict with Baptist precepts,
and that led to the dissolution of fellowship in 1830.
A central issue was "Restoration," the attempt to restore New
Testament Christianity, with specific programs to carry it out and theological
distinctions to support it. The new churches also rejected any body larger than
the individual congregation.
A major thrust of this group was that a restoration of the New Testament
would include a union of all Christians.
While Alexander Campbell was among the Baptists, the sacraments or
ordinances became a major issue, believers' Baptism by immersion replaced
pouring. The Lord's Supper was viewed as a memorial meal offered each Sunday
and open to all Christians, even those who had not been immersed.
A number of Presbyterian ministers were instrumental in the developing
Church. Emphasis was on the independence of the local church, the Scriptures as
the only authority, and conferences of churches for fellowship and edification
only. The group took the name "Christian Church."
There was a merger in 1830. No sectarian designation was wanted, so several
"non-sectarian" names began to be usedóChristian Church and Disciples of
Christ being the most common.
At the heart of the Disciples' organization was rejection of what they saw
as problems in Christianity. They saw its division as a result of the creeds
and doctrines of the different Churches. They rejected any organizational
structure not based on the Bible. They took the "Bible only" as their
primary ideal and extreme congregationalism as their structure.
In the early 1900s there was finally an agreement by the different groups of
Disciples to form one central organization, called the International Convention.
CHRISTADELPHIANS
The Christadelphians was formed after disagreement by Dr. John Thomas with
the Christian Church. He believed that knowledge and belief in the gospel must
precede Baptism. Groups began to form and each was given the name ecclesia (the
Greek word for church).
The Christadelphians deny the Trinity and resemble the early Unitarians in
Christology.The Holy Spirit is seen as God's
power which executes his will. Each person is seen as being unconscious from
the time of death to the resurrection. At the end time, Christ will appear
visibly; all believers will be resurrected and judged, and the kingdom will be
established. The kingdom will be the kingdom of Israel restored in the Holy
Land. The wicked will be annihilated. Most important, Thomas taught that
Baptism by immersion after receiving knowledge of the gospel was essential for
salvation. Closed communion is practiced. The Christadelphians do not
participate in politics, voting, war or holding civil office.
The organization of the ecclesias is congregational. Each ecclesia elects
local officers called serving brethren. The serving brethren include managing
brethren and presiding brethren. The former conduct the temporal affairs and
the latter the speaking, teaching, and pastoral work. Groups of ecclesias meet
in fraternal gatherings which have no legislative powers.
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Comments received:
..It bothers me to
see the United Church of Christ listed under Baptist denominations. I
see the point in terms of governance, but it seems to me that in terms of
doctrine it belongs in the reformed family. And as a liberal former UCC
member (now Episcopalian) living surrounded by southern Baptists I would like
to see the UCC in more liberal company...
~~~~~~~~~~
...The United
Church of Christ and the Baptists do not belong in a family together.
While the American Baptist denomination and the UCC share a similar leftish
theology, the UCC has little common roots with the Baptist family. As you
probably know, the UCC comes from a merger with the old German Reformed Church
(called the Evangelical & Reformed Church), with the Congregationalists
(formerly the denomination of the Puritans, who baptized infants). There
was a very small portion of the most liberal Cambellites who also merged in
with them, but this was tiny. The UCC should go with the
Reformed/Presbyterian family, though few are Calvinist today. Also, you
may want to separate out the Cambellites from the Baptists. These would
include the Disciples of Christ, Churches of Christ, and Christian Churches,
primarily.
Page was last updated on 08/14/00
