Who Would Be Considered First baptist and baptist Theologian In History?

[JesusFan]

And no, don't mean John the Baptist and Apostle Paul!

 

[preachinjesus]

The first Baptist is likely John Smythe...and thus the first theologian since all Baptists become theologians after either a pint or a well cooked ham...

In America, Roger Williams is traditionally seen as establishing the first Baptist congregation.

 

[glfredrick]

Charles Spurgeon said this:

We believe that the Baptists are the original Christians. We did not commence our existence at the reformation, we were reformers before Luther and Calvin were born; we never came from the Church of Rome, for we were never in it, but we have an unbroken line up to the apostles themselves. We have always existed from the days of Christ, and our principles, sometimes veiled and forgotten, like a river which may travel under ground for a little season, have always had honest and holy adherents. Persecuted alike by Romanists and Protestants of almost every sect, yet there has never existed a Government holding Baptist principles which persecuted others; nor, I believe, any body of Baptists ever held it to be right to put the consciences of others under the control of man. We have ever been ready to suffer, as our martyrologies will prove, but we are not ready to accept any help from the State, to prostitute the purity of the Bride of Christ to any alliance with Government, and we will never make the Church, although the Queen, the despot over the consciences of men. —Charles H. Spurgeon

Most true historians will disagree with him in fact, but not in sentiment.

Henry Vedder, A Short History of the Baptists, for instance, says this:

"To Baptists, indeed, of all people, the question of tracing their history to remote antiquity should appear nothing more than an interesting study. Our theory of the church as deduced from the Scriptures requires no outward and visible succession from the apostles. If every church of Christ were to-day to become apostate, it would be possible and right for any true believers to organize to-morrow another church on the apostolic model of faith and practice, and that church would have the only apostolic succession worth having-a succession of faith in the Lord Christ and obedience to him. Baptists have not the slightest interest therefore in wresting the facts of history from their true significance; our reliance is on the New Testament, and not on antiquity; on present conformance to Christ's teachings, not on an ecclesiastical pedigree, or the validity of our church organizations, our ordinances and our ministry. By some writers who have failed to grasp this principle, there has been a distressful effort to show a succession of Baptist churches from the apostolic age until now. It is certain, as impartial historians and critics allow, that the early churches, including the first century after the New Testament period, were organized as Baptist churches are now organized, and professed the faith that Baptist churches now profess."

There is an effort made by many down through the ages (since the advent of the actual Baptist movement, post Reformation) to trace baptistic concepts and doctrines through protesting groups set apart in some way from Roman Catholicism, but in almost every instance there is a failure of said groups to actually adopt pure Baptist doctrines -- and at times the failure of the groups in question was downright heretical in nature.

John Smyth and Thomas Helwys are widely regarded as the first to adopt a purely "baptist" doctrine, but even they did not baptize by immersion, which is part and parcel of what it means to be Baptist. The first group to actually be called "Baptist" (versus "ana-Baptist") were a splinter group from the separatists that comprised the Smyth Helwys group who were in exile in Holland during their formation years.

If ONLY baptism by immersion is considered, then the Greek Orthodox Church might be seen as a forerunner to modern Baptists, for they have continually baptized by immersion in the biblical model since their first days following the Apostles of Christ. But, certainly, there are other more serious doctrinal differences between actual Baptists and the Orthodox Church that disqualify them from being seen as leading to modern Baptists.

There are also the ana-baptist groups, in large part coalesced by Menno Simmons, and there are several distinctions that draw the two groups -- ana-baptists and baptists together and some suggest that Smyth and Helwys were influenced by the ana-baptists while in Holland, though no historical evidence exists to prove this contention.

Some or all of the above plus the leadership of the Holy Spirit operating through and with the Word of God are actually the most likely cause of the people called Baptist.

At London, on the third of April, 1575, a small congregation of Dutch Baptists convened in a private house outside the city gate, was interrupted while at worship by a constable and twenty-five persons were taken before a magistrate, who committed them to prison. When brought to trial they were urged to recant, and after enduring much torture, five of them consented. Later on fifteen of the rest were sent out of the country; of the remaining five, one died under the rigors of his imprisonment, two were burned at the stake and the other two were finally released. Thus begins the history of Baptists and their persecutions in England. But prior to this time, about 1618, an English Baptist church had been organized in Holland by John Smyth, who died soon after this time. This church was composed of 38 members, and had been scattered before the death of Smyth, but sometime about 1611, Thomas Helwys, who had been a prominent member thereof, returned to England when he established the first Baptist church on English soil. Within the next thirty years forty-four Baptist churches had been formed in England. These churches were solid in principle and polity and were objects of great persecution.

At the end of the day, after reading thousands of pages on this subject, I am convinced that GOD was the foundation of the Baptists, and that no man can rightly take credit. Men, as led by the Holy Spirit, working with the true text of Scripture, were led to do what it says (plainly) that Scripture said, even in the face of great opposition.

Baptist church after church started and failed as the people drifted to and fro in doctrine, yet Baptists still exist in the world.

So, who was the first Baptist? God knows...

 

[TomVols]

Dagg would likely be considered the first writing theologian of the SBC, followed by Boyce.

 

[Rippon]

Dagg would likely be considered the first writing theologian of the SBC, followed by Boyce.

Dagg,you're right.