Key Developments in Christian History
A summary of Church history leading up to the emergence of Baptists.
Baptists have often been accused of ignorance regarding Church history. Especially in recent decades, this accusation has generally been true. If you talk to the average Baptist on the street, he or she is not likely to know much of Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin, or Thomas Helwys. Average Baptists are far more likely to concern themselves with their own experiences with Christ and His people than they are to demonstrate a deep interest in the Christians of past centuries.
However, it is wrong to assume that no Baptists have concerned themselves with history. As a matter of fact, many Baptists (common and scholarly) have devoted a great deal of time and study to the history of Christianity, and they have been motivated in no small measure by their desire to know their place in it.
The Trail of Blood: A Pseudo-History
In the early 1930s James Milton Carroll published “The Trail of Blood,” a short book that sought to explain Baptist history as a clear line of steady Baptists from the days of the Apostles. Carroll asserted that Baptists have always been distinctly Baptist, and that they have always been distinguished from the main historic lines of Christian development.
See Carroll’s timeline here:
During his own day, some Baptists argued that Carroll’s view of Baptist history was inaccurate. While Carroll’s desire to emphasize Baptist distinctives and independence from other traditions was and is worthwhile, his use of history was not a help to his cause. As the twentieth-century decades progressed, it has become increasingly clear that Carroll’s assertions demonstrated an idiosyncratic perspective, not a correct or reliable one.
A More Accurate History
In an effort to show a more accurate (though not exhaustive) historical lineage, I have created a chart that better represents the stream of Christian development from which Baptists emerged. It must be acknowledged that Baptists share a great deal in common with other Protestant traditions, and the reason for that is the shared family tree between Baptists and those other Protestants.
Here is my summary timeline:
An Explanation
First, you can see that Protestants and Roman Catholics share a history through the developments of western Christianity. Most all of the essential doctrines of the Christian faith were hammered out during the first millennium (some might argue the first few centuries). These doctrines are represented in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed.
The schism between East and West occurred for theological and political reasons, but one might argue that the heaviest factor was that of language. The two sides spoke different languages - Latin in the West, and Greek in the East - so their debates on the doctrine of the Trinity and the two natures of Christ (i.e., human and divine) were hindered by their inability to understand one another as well as they might have otherwise. And yet, the historical and geographic reality is that western Christianity is the stream in which Protestants and Roman Catholics divided.
After the Reformation
Next, in the aftermath of the Protestant Reformation, various new traditions arose. Among the most prominent (at least by sheer number) were those who became known as Reformed. This tradition is marked by a shared affirmation of the Three Forms of Unity - the Belgic Confession, the Canons of Dort, and the Heidelberg Catechism. This tradition continues today, and both the Anglican and Presbyterian traditions emerged from that fertile historical soil.
In sixteenth-century England, the Anglican tradition was established by the formation of the Thirty-nine Articles. Over the next century, many within the Church of England began to desire further purification of the church. Most of these became known as Puritans, and some dissented to become Baptists. The first Baptists in England baptized one another in 1609. John Smyth was the prominent leader (at least for a while) of this group, and Thomas Helwys became the leader and pastor of the first self-conscious Baptist church established in England in 1611/12. It was from this beginning that the General Baptists developed.
The English Baptists largely came from among the Anglicans, and the Puritans also had an influence upon some of them. Later, in the mid-seventeenth century, seven Particular Baptist churches in London published their own distinctive confession of faith - the First London Confession of 1644/46. A generation later, that group published yet another confession - the Second London Confession of 1677/89. These confessions (especially the second) played a major role early on in the development and cooperation of many Baptists in America.
Baptists in America
Both Puritans and English Baptists came to the New World during the seventeenth century, seeking to practice their tradition of Christianity without hindrance from the English crown and Church. When the Puritans arrived, they established the Congregationalist Church in their acquired domain (throughout New England). Baptists also sought to carve out areas where their tradition would be prominent (largely Rhode Island and Massachusetts).
Soon, Separates left Congregationalist churches in New England, forming new churches that practiced much the same as their old churches (including infant baptism). The exception was that they emphasized the need for conversion. In time, among these Separates, a new kind of Baptist developed. These Separate-Baptists congregated alongside their Separate brethren for a while, but the Baptist insistence upon believer’s baptism created a divide. In the mid-eighteenth century, New England Separates withdrew fellowship with the Separate-Baptists, and the latter became simply Baptist.
Baptists in America descending from English Baptists and those who emerged from the Congregational tradition in America began joining together in local associations. The first Baptist association in America was the Philadelphia Association (formed in 1707). One prominent Baptist association in New England, which included Baptists from both English and American origins, was the Warren Association (formed in 1767). The Warren Association intentionally modeled their cooperation and fellowship on the Philadelphia Association.
Redrawing Denominational Lines
The next major division and resettling of denominational lines in America came during the decades leading up to the Civil War (1861-1865). Northern Baptists and those in the south did not agree on the subject of slavery and the validity of slave-owners as missionaries. While this is a vital part of Christian and Baptist history, it did not significantly change the basic doctrine and practice of Baptist churches in America. The next development that did that was the “Modernist Controversy” of the early twentieth century.
Most every denomination in America faced this challenge, and they all divided over it in various ways. Modernists were those who redefined or rejected outright the concept of biblical inerrancy - they would not affirm that the Bible is the inerrant (i.e., without error) word of God. Fundamentalists or inerrantists were those who did affirm this doctrine.
Among the Southern Baptist Convention, the inerrantists won the day, publishing the Baptist Faith and Message of 1925. On the Scriptures, Southern Baptists affirmed “We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired, and is a perfect treasure of heavenly instruction; that it has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error…” 1925 was not the end of the debate over inerrancy among the Southern Baptist Convention, but it was an occasion that established a conservative Baptist trajectory.
Conclusion & Recommended Reading
This timeline and summary of history is not comprehensive, and it intentionally focuses on the historical developments that led up to the emergence of Baptists - especially Southern Baptists. It is my goal here to make Baptist history more accessible to more Baptists (and others who are interested).
For more on Baptist history, here is a recommended reading list (in alphabetical order):
The Baptist Story by Anthony L. Chute, Nathan A. Finn, and Michael A.G. Haykin
Baptists in America by Thomas Kidd and Barry G. Hankins
The Baptists (3 Volume set) by Tom Nettles
Baptist Theology by James Leo Garrett