Overview

This book considers the distinctive ideas and expressions of Christian faith to be found in the historic Baptist churches. An outline of the history of the Baptist movement will be offered, from its British beginnings in Amsterdam in 1609, through its varied developments in Britain, Europe and North America, to its worldwide presence and diversity today, and its relationship to many other churches with apparently-similar practices (Pentecostal and 'new' churches, e.g.). Holmes draws the various threads together, noting the real diversities in the history of Baptist theology, but suggesting that in a vision of the present and urgent Lordship of Christ experienced in the local congregation, there is a thread that links most of these distinctives.

Full Product Details

Author:   Stephen R. Holmes (University of St Andrews)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   T.& T.Clark Ltd
Dimensions:   Width: 13.80cm , Height: 1.30cm , Length: 21.60cm
Weight:   0.272kg
ISBN:  

9780567000316

ISBN 10:   0567000311
Pages:   192
Publication Date:   19 April 2012
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Language:   English

Table of Contents

1. Who are the Baptists? Beginnings * The radical reformation: anabaptists and others * The English Puritan and Separatist movements * Amsterdam 1609 * General and Particular Baptists in the C17th * Baptists in the Evangelical Revivals 2. Who are the Baptists today? * The later development of British Baptist life * A brief history of Baptists in America * Oncken and European Baptist life * Baptists in the majority world * Baptists and 'baptistic' churches 3. The Baptist vision of the church * Believers' baptism * The local church at the heart of God's purpose (including anti-missions movements) * Congregational church government * The independence and interdependence of local congregations * The centrality of preaching and the place of the Lord's Supper * Charismatic ecclesiology * Baptist primitivism 4. Christ is Lord, and the believer is free * Thomas Helwys and the plea for religious liberty * The Lordship of Christ as the foundation of religious liberty * Liberty and believers' baptism: a natural match * 'Soul competency': a different vision of liberty * E.Y. Mullens and the origin of the concept * Recent expressions of soul competency * Politics and religious liberty 5. God's desire to save * 'Every Baptist a missionary': Ocken and the wider missionary vision * Mission as a mark of the church * Hypercalvinism and the founding of the Baptist Missionary Society * God's covenant of salvation * Paul Fiddes: the recovery and development of the covenant theme in Baptist theology 6. The high calling of the Christian * 'Congregations of visible saints' * The practice of church discipline * Walking according to Christ's rule: Baptist engagements with Scripture * Christian Ethics in Baptist perspective * Holiness beyond the congregation: the 'social gospel' and peacemaking. 7. Conclusion: a vision of Baptist theology

Reviews

In exploring the Baptist tradition, Stephen Holmes offers an astonishing range of material packed into a relatively small space. He clarifies the difficult balance between individuality and life in community that Baptists have tried to maintain, and with an exceptional ease he integrates history with theology, offering many insightful theological judgements as he tells the story. In a masterful way he sets the development of a particular group within the wider movements of church, society and Christian thought, in a tour de force that should be read by all students of the Christian Church. -- Prof Paul S. Fiddes, Regent's Park College, Oxford, UK Do Baptists have a theology? The answer, as this book clearly shows, is 'Yes'. But what sort of theology is it? Is it a version of Protestant evangelicalism, democratic individualism, or radical sectarianism? Holmes offers an account of Baptist theology as an activity that attends closely to the convictions and practices of congregations. This explains why expressions of Baptist theology often vary significantly. Yet in the particular attention to local gatherings, Holmes displays that Baptists still share the theological consensus of the wider church on such basic doctrines as the Trinity, the person and work of Christ, and creation. But as Holmes also makes plain, this emphasis on the gathered community finds distinctive manifestation in congregational church government, respect for the liberty of conscience, and participation in God's mission to the world. It is a clear and concise summary of Baptist theology that deserves to be widely used. -- Curtis W. Freeman, Research Professor of Theology and Director of the Baptist House of Studies, Duke University Divinity School, Durham, North Carolina, USA This volume focuses on the origins and establishment of baptism and proposes a key concept of the Church as a local community . . . A book which should be of interest to more than just evangelical Protestants. * Istina (Bloomsbury translation) *

Author Information

Stephen Holmes is Lecturer in Theology at The University of St Andrews, UK. He has published extensively in the field of Christian theology and has previously collaborated with Colin Gunton in The Practice of Theology (2001).

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