Is it really that importatant for a Baptist church to have the name "Baptist" in their name?

[Felipe Rios]

Not too long ago my church decided to change the name of the church for several reasons (I will mention those reasons). We went from Grace Missionary Baptist Church to New City Church. Because we took the name 'Baptist" out of our name, many of our brethren from other sister churches have given us a hard time because of it. A pastor even accused us of not being Baptist because we took the name "Baptist" out of our name.

Reasons why we changed our name:

1. There were too many churches around us with the name "Grace" and we were being confused for another church.

2. Our name was too long and it was hard for people to remember our name when we evangelized.

3. There are some Bapticostal churches around us with the name "Missionary" in it and we didn't want to be confused with that denomination.

4. My church wanted a simpler and basic name so that people can remember us easier.

5. We chose "New City" after the New Jerusalem where we will live with God in eternity. Our slogan is "New Life leads to New City."


Reasons why we decided to not leave "Baptist" in our name:

1. Most unchurched people do not know what a "Baptist" is and may not even know if we are a "Christian" church (I had a situation when someone asked me if we were Christians). So we didn't want people to not come to our church just because our name has "Baptist" in it.

2. Most Baptists are already in a Baptist church so we want to promote ourselves as a Christian church. We are not looking for Baptists to join our church (though they are welcomed of course), we are looking for the unchurched since most of our city does not go to any church.

3. We do not have to have the name "Baptist" in our name to be Baptist, so our church didn't have a problem with removing "Baptist."

4. Jesus never gave His church a name so we felt comfortable with making a change to our name.


We are still Baptist. Our doctrine has not changed and it will not change!


What is your opinion on this? Is it right that others are giving us a hard time over this?

 

[Rob_BW]

When you say sister churches, are you talking about a local association?

 

[Felipe Rios]

When you say sister churches, are you talking about a local association?

Yes. Baptist churches within our association.

 

[Jerome]

Good luck with that.

A sample:

New City Church

a local assembly in fellowship with, and a part of, General Council of the Assemblies of God

New City Church

We're a church that focuses on environmental justice.

New City Church

we are families, singles, and kids, Democrats and Republicans, gay and straight, poor and rich, moral and loose. At New City, we believe in not judging anyone

 

[Felipe Rios]

Good luck with that.

A sample:

New City Church

New City Church

New City Church

where did you get that information?

 

[Felipe Rios]

When I Google New City Church different "types" of churches come up. If our old name did not help, who are we to say that our new name will not. I guess time will tell. But at the end of the day, it is not the name that matters, but the doctrine that matters.

 

[Jerome]

Yes, just google, all manner of churches are adopting trendy generic names like that
All manner.

Former pastor Tullian Tchividjian's church was named that:

Tullian Tchividjian

"A grandson of (Evangelist) Billy and Ruth Graham, Tullian was the Founding Pastor of the former New City Church (in Fort Lauderdale, Florida) which merged with the historic Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in 2009....After a season of self-destruction leading up to, and following, his resignation from Coral Ridge in June 2015, Tullian is now married to Stacie"

 

[thatbrian]

at the end of the day, it is not the name that matters, but the doctrine that matters.

If that's the case, why did you change the name?

 

[InTheLight]

If that's the case, why did you change the name?

He went into great detail in his original post.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL

 

[Deacon]

Name changes are always hard - somebody always has a "better" idea.
The reasons you give fall in line with many of the common reasons churches change names.

Names connote different things in different locations.

A "New" Name church probably wouldn't work well in the NE Philly region.
Nearby is the Bryn Athyn Cathedral of the New Church, a Swedenbougian cult church of the New Jerusalem.

Rob

 

[Felipe Rios]

If that's the case, why did you change the name?

I'm pretty sure I gave the reasons already. My point is that Baptists shouldn't freak out about not having Baptist on the church name.

 

[Use of Time]

I'm pretty sure I gave the reasons already. My point is that Baptists shouldn't freak out about not having Baptist on the church name.

Mine doesn’t. Things seem to be working out fine.

 

[Reformed]

I think the Baptist moniker is helpful but not necessary. I am more concerned with what comes out of the pulpit and whether the members show the love of Christ.

 

[Ziggy]

Because I hold certain very specific views regarding doctrine and church polity, I will _not_ attend a church that does not have "Baptist" in its name. Otherwise, neither I nor prospective attendees can tell whether e.g., "Celebration Church" is Baptist, Charismatic, Pentecostal, or even cultic, and I don't want to go church hopping here there and everywhere just to try and sort things out. Your mileage might vary, but I will remain consistent on that point.

 

[Rob_BW]

Because I hold certain very specific views regarding doctrine and church polity, I will _not_ attend a church that does not have "Baptist" in its name. Otherwise, neither I nor prospective attendees can tell whether e.g., "Celebration Church" is Baptist, Charismatic, Pentecostal, or even cultic, and I don't want to go church hopping here there and everywhere just to try and sort things out. Your mileage might vary, but I will remain consistent on that point.

I figured if the "Amen Church" was a member of the local "Smith River Baptist Association," then they were waving the baptist flag sufficiently enough that I wouldn't be concerned whether or not the word baptist was in their name.

My opinion only.

 

[Jerome]

Nine Types of Trendy Church Names

Don’t go with a name that gives visitors information about your church....Go with a name you can market....I conducted an informal social media survey, and was overwhelmed by the responses....I’ve broken these church names...(all of which I’ve checked, and all of which are real) into nine handy categories.

Random Words....“City”...” Elevate Church”...“The Compass Church,” “Reality Church”....Some names made me wonder if a deacon’s kid selected them while looking out the window during a road trip....“The Harbor”...“The Orchard”...“The River.”

The Romance Novel....“Epiphany"...“New Horizons”...“Passion”...“The Refuge”

The Gated Community....“Bayside”...“Pointe” (with an “e”—fancy!)...“The Crossing”

The Night Club....“Elevate”...“Epic”...“Ignite”...“Submerge”

The Gym....“Cross-Training"...“Champion”...“Church on the Move”...“Potential”...“Foundry”

The Internet Startup....“Catalyst Church”...“Mosaic Church”...“ONE Church”...“Watermark.”

The Spa....“Renovate”...“Radiant”...“Healing”...“Wellspring.”

You get the picture, but at the end he summarizes research that's debunked excuses often given for seeker-sensitive, pretentious namechanges.

 

[Deacon]

Makes you wonder if churches that pick trendy names are setting themselves up for another name change at a not-so-distant time.

The Gated Community....“Bayside”...“Pointe” (with an “e”—fancy!)...“The Crossing”.

Yikes! I attend Crossing Community Church - who would have guessed that its a tready name?
That's been its name since its inception in the mid-1970's.
Our sponsoring church removed "Baptist" from their name a decade later.
We worship near Washington Crossing, PA so the name is a place name too.

Rob

 

[OnlyaSinner]

When we lived in Northern Maine, in an area 95% RCC (and not coincidently, 95% Franco-American), the fundamental churches were almost all called "[town name] Bible Church." However, they were all thoroughly baptistic in doctrine and practice. There was a lone "Baptist" church, older than the Bible churches, in the mainly Scotch-Irish town at the end of pavement, a settlement isolated from other "English" areas by 50+ miles of Francophone towns. Perhaps, within that RCC enclave, "Bible Church" was sufficient to distinguish the works from the local religious establishment.

 

[Felipe Rios]

Because I hold certain very specific views regarding doctrine and church polity, I will _not_ attend a church that does not have "Baptist" in its name. Otherwise, neither I nor prospective attendees can tell whether e.g., "Celebration Church" is Baptist, Charismatic, Pentecostal, or even cultic, and I don't want to go church hopping here there and everywhere just to try and sort things out. Your mileage might vary, but I will remain consistent on that point.

But if you were a lost person, I guarantee you are likely to go to a New City Church as opposed to a New City Baptist Church. Put yourself in the shoes of the lost.

 

[Ziggy]

One church I formerly belonged to was clearly a strong Baptist Church (SBC) in name and practice. A few years after I left, it first dropped "Baptist" from its name, and later altered even what was left of the original name into "The Bridge Church ," in the process moving strongly into the charismatic movement with all the usual trappings. Yet even today it still claims to be "loosely" affiliated with the SBC -- do I recommend it to anyone, including a lost person? Absolutely not. My 2c.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention this: after the approximately 2-3 years of these changes _not one_ former member of the original Baptist church remained -- all had gone to various other churches that retained the "Baptist" moniker in their name.