Page created by
Bruce Gourley
Top Baptist History Web Sites
Not all websites are created equal. Among the foremost, trustworthy Baptist history web sites
are the following:
The Baptist History and Heritage Society
The Center for Baptist Studies
Baptist Archives
Location of archives included.
American Baptist Historical Society (Mercer University, Atlanta, GA)
Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives (Nashville, TN)
Georgia Baptist History Depository (Mercer University, Macon, GA)
Canadian Baptist Archives (McMaster Divinity College, Ontario,
Canada)
Original
Baptist Sources Available Online
For the researcher, a lot of original Baptist sources
are now available online, including the following:
The Baptist Catechism, Charleston Association (1813)
The Baptist Mission in India by William Staughton (1811)
"Exposition of the Views of Baptists, Relative to the Coloured Population
in the United States"
by Richard
Furman (1823, 1838)
Fifty Years Among the Baptists by David Benedict (1860)
A History of the Baptists, Volume 2 by John T. Christian
"A History of Clear Creek Church, and Campbellism Exposed"
by John Taylor (1830)
The Gospel Worthy of All Acceptance by Andrew Fuller (1781, partial)
The Millennial Harbinger, Volume 1
by Alexander Campbell (1830)
New Hampshire Confession of Faith (1833)
Notes on the
Principles and Practices of Baptist Churches by Francis Wayland
(1857)
"Remarks on Church Discipline" by Daniel Parker (1824)
A Short History of the Baptists by H. C. Vedder
The Trail of Blood by J. M. Carroll
William Carey's Works
Many other original sources are also available.
Following are links to two collections of works, including a note
regarding each collection's particular bias:
Baptist Library Online -- a General Baptist collection of materials
The Reformed Reader's Baptist History Collection -- Calvinistic or
Reformed
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A Very Brief
Introduction to Baptist History, Then and Now
by
Bruce Gourley, Baptist Historian
(Baptist Origins;
The Reformed Debate;
The Southern Baptist Controversy and Beyond)
Those who would research Baptist history via the Internet be warned:
there is an abundance of information about Baptist history, but most of it comes from
biased perspectives which are fed from personal agendas.
There is a long-held saying among Baptists:
when you get two Baptists together, you get three different opinions! This is most evident
when one reads online Baptist history resources: many seem bent on proving
that their particular view of Baptist history is the one and only true understanding of
Baptist history.
History, in fact, is subject to various
(and often contradictory) interpretations.
Baptist history is not exempt from the interpretive confusion.
Indeed, Baptists are even in disagreement over how they originated!
Views of
Baptist Origins
1. Outgrowth of English Separatism -- In this
view, the Baptist faith originated from within the Separatist movement, a movement which
arose in Europe with the goal of breaking away from the Church of England (which
previously had broken away from the Catholic Church, yet retained many of the trappings;
those within the Church of England who wished to remain a part of the Church and yet
purify it became known as "Puritans;" they were, in a sense, cousins to
Separatists). The influence of Anabaptists upon early Baptists is considered
minimal, according to this viewpoint. The earliest Baptist church is traced back to
1609 in Amsterdam, with John Smyth as pastor. The group's embracing of
"believer's baptism" became the defining moment which led to the establishment
of this first Baptist church. Shortly thereafter, Smyth left the group, and
layman Thomas Helwys took over the leadership, leading the church back to England in 1611. This
view of Baptist origins has the most historical support and is the most widely accepted
view of Baptist origins. Representative writers include William H. Whitsitt, Robert
G. Torbet, Winthrop S. Hudson, William G. McLoughlin and Robert A. Baker.
2. Influence of Anabaptists -- This view holds
that although Baptists originated from English Separatism, their emergence owes much to
the earlier Anabaptists. According to this view, some early Baptists were influenced
by some Anabaptists. The Dutch Mennonites (Anabaptists), for example, 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, other than this, there were significant differences between Anabaptists
and Baptists (Anabaptists tended towards extreme pacifism, communal sharing of earthly
goods, and an unorthodox optimistic view of human nature). Therefore, few Baptists
hold to this theory of Baptist origins. Representative writers include A. C.
Underwood and William R. Estep. Among some contemporary Baptist
scholars who emphasize the faith of the community over soul liberty, the
Anabaptist influence theory is making a comeback.
3. Continuation of Biblical Teachings -- Some
Baptists "seek to go back beyond the Anabaptist movement to trace the continuity of
Baptist forms of faith through the centuries" (Leon McBeth, The Baptist Heritage,
page 56). While advocates of this view do not claim a succession
of organized Baptist churches (see below), they believe that Baptist
faith and practice have existed since the time of Christ. This
view has a few advocates, including a
number of early Baptist historians, many of whom were concerned with presenting the
validity of their faith (denomination) over and above that of other denominations. Some representative writers of an earlier era include Thomas Crosby (one of the earliest Baptist historians,
he wrote in the early 1700s), A.H. Newman and David Benedict.
4. Succession of Baptist Churches -- This
viewpoint goes beyond mere "continuation of biblical teachings" and declares
that Baptist churches actually existed in an unbroken chain since the time of Christ and
John the Baptist. Commonly referred to as "Landmarkism" or the "Trail
of Blood" theory (J.M.Carroll wrote a book of supposed Baptist
history by this name), this view declares that those churches which
stood outside the influence of the Roman Catholic Church at various
times in church history were, in actuality although not in name, Baptist
churches. Refusing to embrace infant baptism, these churches
rejected the legitimacy of the Roman
Catholic Church as a Christian entity. However, many of the historical churches
which Landmarkists label as Baptist churches were actually heretical in regards to
doctrine. Nonetheless, the "Landmarkist" view, despite little
actual historical support, remains popular among certain Baptists. The reason for
its moderate popularity (and, indeed, strong popularity among some rural Baptists in the
southern and western United States) stems to some degree from a
long-standing dislike of Catholics by many Baptists. Representative writers of this viewpoint include J.M Carroll, G.H.
Orchard and J.M. Cramp. It should also be noted that much of
the Baptist history material thus far posted on the Internet is Landmarkist in nature,
indicating that Landmarkers remain a vocal lot.
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The Reformed Debate
In addition to the long-running debate over
Baptist origins, a new debate is now prominent in Baptist life: the question over whether or not Baptists (and particularly
Southern Baptists) are historically Calvinistic. The Founders
Journal (see below), along with Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary, is doing an admirable job in championing
the belief that Southern
Baptists have always been strict (5 point) Calvinists. Their efforts do fall short
of the truth, however, for although Baptists (including Southern Baptists) have certainly
been influenced by Calvinism, they have also been much influenced by Arminianism,
which historically served to moderate Calvinism and produce a warmly
evangelistic theology as mirrored in the Great Awakenings. Most Baptists today hold beliefs from both
Calvinistic and Arminian schools of thought. The current
Calvinistic debate
about Baptist history has reached the point where it is now affecting many Baptist churches
throughout America. The reader will note that a number of the online Baptist history
resources listed below are from the Reformed (or Calvinist) perspective.
The reader should also note that within the past few years, some
Reformed (or Calvinist) Baptists have shifted to using the
milder-sounding terminology of "doctrines of grace" rather than
"Calvinism."
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The Southern Baptist Controversy and Beyond
Finally, the 1980s to the present have witnessed a
new fundamentalist controversy (also often referred to as a "political"
and / or "biblical" controversy) within the largest Baptist
denomination, which has altered the course of Southern Baptist history,
and Baptist history in general. The minority fundamentalists, now
firmly in charge of the national Southern Baptist Convention, have
changed the direction and nature of the Convention, resulting in the
first statistical decline of the denomination in some 75 years.
They have sought to re-fashion Baptist history to reflect their theology and their insurgency, and as a result have caused much confusion
about Baptist history among Baptist laity and the general populace.
Whereas Baptists have historically been
non-creedal, the fundamentalist leadership of the SBC has forced creedalism
upon Southern Baptists through the implementation of the Baptist Faith and Message 2000. Whereas Southern Baptists have
traditionally believed in the Priesthood of all Believers, the
fundamentalist leadership positions pastoral authority above the
Priesthood of Believers. Whereas Baptists have historically held
to the authority of Scripture and looked to Jesus and the Holy Spirit as
the criterion for interpreting the Bible, the fundamentalist leadership
claims that looking to Jesus and the Holy Spirit as the authority for
faith is a liberal position. Instead, they have positioned the
Baptist Faith and Message 2000, and/or a modern interpretation of
Biblical authority known as "inerrancy," as the only valid way in which to
approach Scripture.
At the state Baptist level, many traditional state Baptist conventions are asserting their
autonomous rights in distancing themselves from the creedalistic,
fundamentalist SBC, refusing to enforce the Baptist Faith & Message
2000.
The year 2004 witnessed a significant new
development within the Southern Baptist Convention. The SBC
leadership defunded the
Baptist World Alliance, charging (with no merit) that the BWA is a
liberal, un-American institution. In response, many state Baptist
conventions and local Southern Baptist churches have increased their
support of the BWA.
In 2006, a rupture within the Southern
Baptist Convention occurred, as some younger (conservative) trustees of SBC agencies
are accusing the older leadership of being too narrow-minded; the older
leadership, in turn, views the younger leadership as being too liberal;
latest skirmish demonstrates the nature of fundamentalists' quest for purity.
During the last three years, Southern Baptist
leaders have publicly and repeatedly lamented the decline of the SBC,
yet remain convinced that fundamentalist theology is not to blame.
The problem, they maintain, is a lack of evangelism.
During the course of the Southern Baptist
controversy, a number of new entities have come into existence to
champion the very historic principles and cooperative spirit that the
SBC leaders have long since abandoned. These include the national
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship organization, evidencing the
trappings of a denomination and including numerous state and regional
organizations. Other moderate Baptist organizations, many of whom
partner with CBF, include the
Baptist Center for Ethics,
Baptist Women in Ministry, the national news journal
Baptists Today, the
Associated Baptist Press,
Smyth & Helwys Publishers, some fourteen
new Baptist seminaries / divinity schools, and
other entities. As the Southern Baptist Convention continues
its exit from traditional Baptist life and deeper into
non-denominational, evangelical, political fundamentalism, these new
entities will play a significant role in maintaining a Baptist witness
in America and the world.
For more information on current events in
this ongoing struggle from a traditional Baptist perspective, visit
BaptistLife.Com,
Mainstream Baptists,
The
Baptist Standard or
Baptists
Today. To view the fundamentalist perspective, go to
Baptist Press,
SBC Life, or
Baptist2Baptist.
A published chronology of this
controversy (through the mid-1990s) can be found by
clicking here.
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