Overview

"Baptists originated as a protest movement within the church but have developed over time into a distinct sect, one committed to preserving its place in the hierarchy of denominations. In today's postmodern, disestablished context, Baptists are in danger of becoming either a religious affinity group, a collection of individuals who share experiences and commitments to a set of principles, or a countercultural sect that retreats to early Enlightenment propositions for consolation and support.In Contesting Catholicity, Curtis W. Freeman offers an alternative Baptist identity, an ""Other"" kind of Baptist, one that stands between the liberal and fundamentalist options. By discerning an elegant analogy among some late modern Baptist preachers, seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Baptist founders, and early patristic theologians, Freeman narrates the Baptist story as a community that grapples with the convictions of the church catholic. Deep analogical conversation across the centuries enables Freeman to gain new leverage on all of the supposedly distinctive Baptist theological identifiers. From believer's baptism, the sacraments, and soul competency, to the Trinity, the priesthood of every believer, and local church autonomy, Freeman's historical reconstruction demonstrates that Baptists did and should understand themselves as a spiritual movement within the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church. A ""catholic Baptist"" is fully participant in the historic church and at the very same time is fully Baptist. This radical Baptist catholicity is more than a quantitative sense of historical and ecumenical communion with the wider church. This Other Baptist identity envisions a qualitative catholicity that is centered on the confession of faith in Jesus Christ and historic Trinitarian orthodoxy enacted in the worship of the church in and through word and sacrament."

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9781481300285

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Reviews

Whatever the response to 'Other Baptists' from readers, all will benefit from this one volume bibliographic resource on theologies Christian, Catholic, Protestant, Free Church, Baptist, ancient and modern, postmodern, post liberal, post fundamentalist, pre Christian, post Christian and mid-Christian. --Bill J. Leonard Pacific Journal of Baptist Research This may well be one of the most important books written by a Baptist, both for its vision of Baptist life for Baptists and also for its vision of the church for those of other traditions. --Andy Goodliff, Belle Vue Baptist Church Regent's Reviews Part history, part theology, and part social theory, Contesting Catholicity seeks to point the theological way forward for Other Baptists who wish to retrieve the tradition of Baptist-catholic protest. --R. Lucas Stamps, Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, California Baptist University Journal of Baptist Studies Overall I appreciate how the book zeroes in on the Holy Spirit at work in salvific ways in small groups of the faithful, inviting them to express a distinct color of the Christian life for the benefit of the whole church. --Susanna L. Cantu Gregory Horizons In this wonderful book, Freeman recovers for both Baptist and non-Baptists the spiritual heart of the traditional practice of theological contestation as an ongoing effort of reform and transformation, and thereby reaffirms the practical and vital importance of doctrine in the life of the Church catholic in all its forms. --Nicholas M. Healy, St. John's University The Christian Century Freeman's exposition of catholicity is an important one that invites reflection accross the ecumenical church...there is much to ponder in this important book. --Walter Brueggemann The Christian Century Freeman has done both the Baptist tradition and other ecumenically minded Christians a tremendous service with this book. The more the vision of 'contesting Christianity' takes hold in Baptist circles, the more they will be inclined to take creedal Christianity seriously, and the more confident we can be of an orthodox, ecumenical future for the church. --Hans Boersma The Journal of Religion Baptist leaders, even if they do not share Freeman's theological vision, should give attention to his diagnosis of problems in contemporary Baptist life and be aware of the therapy he is prescribing. --Fisher Humphreys Pacific Journal of Baptist Research As the subtitle Theology for Other Baptists indicates, Freeman primarily addresses Contesting Catholicity to fellow Baptists. Its publication last year, however, was also an ecumenical event, a major contribution to receptive ecumenism (270-71) in which Freeman challenges fellow Christians to recognize the gifts they might receive from Baptists. --William L. Portier Horizons An important book for Baptists that care about the future of the movement --Spencer Boersma, First Baptist Church McMaster Journal of Theology and Ministry A refreshing contribution to the question of Christian unity --David W. Boshart Anabaptist Witness [Freeman's] well-told narrative of Baptist trajectories as a microcosm of a larger American Protestant story deserves to be read widely not only within but also outside Baptist circles. --Kimlyn J. Bender Books & Culture [ Contesting Catholicity] is the most significant development in Baptist theology since Jim McClendon's Systematic Theology. This work stands for me as a milestone in the road, marking the journey thus traveled and prospecting the one yet to be. --Adam C. English Pacific Journal of Baptist Research ...This is a significant book we must all read. If you are not an Other Baptist, you must read this in order to learn and to dialogue ecumenically. And if you are an Other Baptist, then this is the book that now sets the standard for your discussion. --C. Douglas Weaver Pacific Journal of Baptist Research ...this is the most important book of post-liberal Baptist theology since James Wm. McClendon Jr. completed his three-volume Systematic Theology in 2000. --Fisher Humphreys, Samford University Baptist History and Heritage Journal ...the most important ecumenical development in recent times. --Stanley Hauerwas Rhythms of Faithfulness: Essays in Honor of John E. Colwell Contesting Catholicity makes a significant constructive contribution to Baptist theology, an important addition to recent discussions of Baptist identity, and represents the most sophisticated articulation of the Bapto-Catholic vision that has yet been published. --Nathan A. Finn Southeastern Theological Review Contesting Catholicity is the result of Freeman's personal odyssey to retrieve, negotiate, and proffer a distinctively Baptist theology for the present moment by listening to diverse Baptist voices as well as 'the holy imperfection and medley of difference' that is the great company of the saints. The book is his lucid (and critical) attempt to follow the vector of McClendon's baptist vision, and an ecumenical announcement that Baptist theology is indeed come of age. --Mark Medley Horizons [Contesting Catholicity] is an ecumenical tour de force that moves all of us in the right direction. --Dennis Doyle Horizons Freeman's book is a manifesto, detailed and learned, but also engagingly vigorous, for a special way of being 'Baptist'. --Ephraim Radner, Wycliffe College First Things Curtis Freeman's latest book, Contesting Catholicity, is one all Baptists should read. --Derek C. Hatch The Baptist Standard ...a valuable resource for those in other traditions who are seeking theological renewal. -- Choice

[Freeman's] well-told narrative of Baptist trajectories as a microcosm of a larger American Protestant story deserves to be read widely not only within but also outside Baptist circles. Freeman's book is a manifesto, detailed and learned, but also engagingly vigorous, for a special way of being 'Baptist'. ...this is the most important book of post-liberal Baptist theology since James Wm. McClendon Jr. completed his three-volume Systematic Theology in 2000. Contesting Catholicity is the result of Freeman's personal odyssey to retrieve, negotiate, and proffer a distinctively Baptist theology for the present moment by listening to diverse Baptist voices as well as 'the holy imperfection and medley of difference' that is the great company of the saints. The book is his lucid (and critical) attempt to follow the vector of McClendon's baptist vision, and an ecumenical announcement that Baptist theology is indeed come of age . Curtis Freeman's latest book, Contesting Catholicity, is one all Baptists should read. Part history, part theology, and part social theory, Contesting Catholicity seeks to point the theological way forward for Other Baptists who wish to retrieve the tradition of Baptist-catholic protest. As the subtitle Theology for Other Baptists indicates, Freeman primarily addresses Contesting Catholicity to fellow Baptists. Its publication last year, however, was also an ecumenical event, a major contribution to receptive ecumenism (270-71) in which Freeman challenges fellow Christians to recognize the gifts they might receive from Baptists. This may well be one of the most important books written by a Baptist, both for its vision of Baptist life for Baptists and also for its vision of the church for those of other traditions. Overall I appreciate how the book zeroes in on the Holy Spirit at work in salvific ways in small groups of the faithful, inviting them to express a distinct color of the Christian life for the benefit of the whole church. Contesting Catholicity makes a significant constructive contribution to Baptist theology, an important addition to recent discussions of Baptist identity, and represents the most sophisticated articulation of the Bapto-Catholic vision that has yet been published. Whatever the response to 'Other Baptists' from readers, all will benefit from this one volume bibliographic resource on theologies Christian, Catholic, Protestant, Free Church, Baptist, ancient and modern, postmodern, post liberal, post fundamentalist, pre Christian, post Christian and mid-Christian. Freeman has done both the Baptist tradition and other ecumenically minded Christians a tremendous service with this book. The more the vision of 'contesting Christianity' takes hold in Baptist circles, the more they will be inclined to take creedal Christianity seriously, and the more confident we can be of an orthodox, ecumenical future for the church. A refreshing contribution to the question of Christian unity ...a valuable resource for those in other traditions who are seeking theological renewal. In this wonderful book, Freeman recovers for both Baptist and non-Baptists the spiritual heart of the traditional practice of theological contestation as an ongoing effort of reform and transformation, and thereby reaffirms the practical and vital importance of doctrine in the life of the Church catholic in all its forms. [Contesting Catholicity] is an ecumenical tour de force that moves all of us in the right direction. ...the most important ecumenical development in recent times. Baptist leaders, even if they do not share Freeman's theological vision, should give attention to his diagnosis of problems in contemporary Baptist life and be aware of the therapy he is prescribing. [ Contesting Catholicity] is the most significant development in Baptist theology since Jim McClendon's Systematic Theology. This work stands for me as a milestone in the road, marking the journey thus traveled and prospecting the one yet to be. An important book for Baptists that care about the future of the movement Freeman's exposition of catholicity is an important one that invites reflection accross the ecumenical church...there is much to ponder in this important book. ...This is a significant book we must all read. If you are not an Other Baptist, you must read this in order to learn and to dialogue ecumenically. And if you are an Other Baptist, then this is the book that now sets the standard for your discussion.

Author Information

Curtis W. Freeman is Research Professor of Theology and Director of the Baptist House of Studies at Duke Divinity School.

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