Some even ask what is the difference between Baptists and Christians. Unfortunately, the atheistic propaganda of the Soviet Union left its mark on the hearts and minds of people, and very little attention is paid to issues of faith. That is why such questions arise. Who are Baptists, and how do they differ from Christians... It’s funny for any knowledgeable person to hear such questions. Because Baptists are Christians. Because a Christian is a person who believes in Christ, recognizes Him as God and the Son of God, and also believes in God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Baptists have all this and, moreover, they share a common apostolic creed with the Orthodox, and the Baptist Bible is no different from the Orthodox Bible, because the same synodal translation is used. But there really are differences, otherwise they would not be called Baptists.

The first difference between Baptists and Orthodox Christians lies in the very name of this branch of Christianity.

Baptist - comes from the Greek baptizo, which means to baptize, to immerse. And Baptists, based on the Holy Scriptures, perform baptism only at a conscious age. Infant baptism is not performed. Baptists take the basis for this from the following texts of the Bible:

“So now we also have a baptism similar to this image, not the washing of carnal uncleanness,
but the promise of a good conscience to God saves through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” - 1
Pet. 3:21.

“Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. Who will believe and
be baptized, he will be saved” - Mr. 16:15-16; Acts 2:38, 41, 22:16.

Water baptism according to the Word of God is performed on those who believe in Jesus
as his personal Savior and experienced being born again. You can read what being born again is in the Gospel of John in the third chapter. But the point is that a person must believe in God and then be baptized. And not the other way around, as is done in Orthodoxy. Because Baptism, according to Baptists, is not only a sacrament, but also a promise, which is also written about in the Bible Pet. 3:21. .

“Behold, water: what prevents me from being baptized?.. If you believe with all your heart, you can. He answered and said: I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he ordered
stop the chariot: and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water; and baptized him” - Acts. 8:36-38, 2:41, 8:12, 10:47, 18:8, 19:5.
Baptism is performed by ministers through immersion in water in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
“Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” - Matt. 28:19.
The believer's baptism symbolizes his death, burial and resurrection with Christ.
“Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, so that, like Christ,
raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also walk in newness of life. For if we are united with Him in the likeness of His death, then we must also be united
likeness of the resurrection” - Rom. 6:3-5; Gal. 3:26-27; Col. 2:11-12. When performing baptism, the minister asks questions to the person being baptized: “Do you believe,
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God? Do you promise to serve God in a good conscience?” - Acts 8:37; 1 Pet. 3:21. After an affirmative answer from the person being baptized, he
says: “According to your faith, I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” The person being baptized pronounces the word “Amen” together with the minister.

The second difference between Baptists and Orthodox. Icons and saints.

If you have been to Baptist Houses of Prayer, you have probably noticed that there are no icons there. The walls may be decorated with gospel paintings, but no one prays to them. Why?

Theological debates in this area have been going on for centuries. But the most reasonable argument of the Baptists is that the icons depict saints. Saints are not God, but people. People cannot be omnipresent like God, who fills the entire Earth with the Holy Spirit. And when a person turns to another righteous person who has lived a righteous life and even performed miracles and may he be in heaven, then how does the prayer get to the saint? God, who is Omnipresent, will transfer it to a saint, so that this saint, for example, Nicholas the saint, will then again transfer it to God!? Not logical. But few people think about how prayer gets to the saint. Also, few people think about whether prayer to a saint is communication with the deceased, which is prohibited in the Bible. The Orthodox respond to this by saying that everyone is alive with the Lord. Well, yes, they are alive. and those who are alive in hell, and those who are alive in heaven. Why did the Lord give the ban then?! It turns out that the Orthodox are violating God’s prohibition. This is the difference. Therefore, Baptists do not pray to the saints who are depicted on icons. Baptists pray only to one God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and there is no sin in this, even from the point of view of the Orthodox.

The third difference between the Orthodox and the Baptists.

Baptists do not drink alcohol. There is no direct prohibition on this in their teaching. But such a tradition has developed, in order to differ from the sinful world and not allow the possibility of sin, Baptists preach abstinence from alcoholic beverages, smoking, drugs and other addictions. “Everything is permissible for me, but nothing should possess me,” said the Apostle Paul. And the Baptists are great in this regard.

The fourth difference.

Baptists do not perform funeral services for the dead. And they believe that if a person died and did not repent, then only God decides his future fate. In Orthodoxy, in this regard, the mentality of the Russian people is very well reflected, where God can send even a sinful person to heaven if the priest prays. Baptists are inclined to personal responsibility in their worldview and, again, based on the Holy Scriptures, the story of the thief on the cross and the story of the rich man and Lazarus, they conclude that God instantly decides the fate of the human soul and no funeral service will help if the person himself has not repented , then no amount of nepotism will work.

The fifth difference between Baptists and Orthodox Christians.

Community.

Baptists are more inclined than Orthodox to establish close church ties and communication. Brothers communicate in brotherly communication, sisters in sisterly communication, youth in youth communication, children in children's communication, and so on. Staying in fellowship is one of the characteristics of Baptists, which helps them learn about each other’s needs and help them solve everyday and spiritual problems that arise. A Baptist church is somewhat similar to an Orthodox monastery. Any believer in Christ who has joined the Baptist church can join and become part of the community, find friends, serve God and support from brothers and sisters.

The sixth difference is Divine service.

For Baptists, worship, meaning Sunday worship, is held differently than for Orthodox Christians.

Of course there is also prayer, singing and preaching. Only now the prayer to God is made in understandable Russian, and not in Old Church Slavonic. The singing is almost the same, maybe choral, maybe universal. But it can be solo or trio. And maybe during the service a poem is recited or a testimony from life is told about how God works. Special attention is paid to the sermon so that a person does not leave the church empty. Baptists do not make the sign of the cross, although they have nothing against it.

The seventh difference between the Orthodox and the Baptists is the veneration of relics.

Baptists respect the dead righteous, but do not make their remains objects of worship, because they do not find examples of such worship in the Bible. Yes, they say, there is a case in the Bible when, during the death of Christ, a young man who died was resurrected from contact with the bones of the prophet. But Christ resurrected 2000 years ago. And nowhere is there a commandment to worship the bones of dead people. But it is written that only God should be worshiped and served. Therefore, Baptists refrain from such dubious practices, considering them to be relics of paganism that entered the church from ancestors who were forcibly baptized.

These are the main differences that immediately catch the eye; there are others, but they are less interesting for the common person. And if anyone is interested, you can look at the Baptist or Orthodox website.

Who are Baptists

Who are Baptists? Baptists are Protestant Christians. The name comes from the Greek word words“βάπτισμα”, which is baptism from βαπτίζω - “I immerse in water,” that is, “I baptize.” Literally, Baptists are baptized people.

Christianity has many faces, just like the many faces of the people living on earth. Only in the time of Jesus Christ was there no disagreement between people among his followers. Or rather, they were, but Jesus resolved them with his word. Then the time came for Christ to leave the earthly world and ascend to the Father. But Jesus did not leave Christians alone and sent the Holy Spirit, who lives in the hearts of believers. For the first three centuries, Christianity held on. There were no baptisms of children, there were no icons, there were no statues. Christianity was persecuted and was not up to the splendor of the poor wounded church, which kept the faith and the Word of the Lord. Through the centuries the church has carried the undistorted Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. God kept his word.

How did the Baptists appear?

But people remain people. People are different from people. And Christianity, spreading across the face of the earth, absorbed the customs and traditions of peoples who believed in Christ, but did not completely abandon their former customs and rituals. And they came up with something that was not in the Bible. In the West, indulgences, a kind of pass to heaven, were sold for money. The Pope was mired in debauchery and burdened himself with secular power. In the east, as well as in the west, the Word of God became far from the language of the people to whom it was spoken. Hebrew, Latin and Greek were considered sacred languages; the Russian Orthodox Church won the right to serve in Old Church Slavonic. But he was also incomprehensible to people. People's ignorance and ignorance of God's word allowed the priests to retain the right to read and interpret the scriptures as they pleased, which led to the emergence of something that was not in the Bible. This went on for a long time. Until one monk, having studied the languages ​​in which the Bible was written, decided to resist the desecration of the church. He wrote down as many as 95 outrageous points on which the church departed from the Bible. And he nailed them to the doors of the church, believed to be in Witenberg. He translated the Bible into German. People outraged by the impunity of the official church followed him. Thus began the reformation of the church. Then the Bible was translated into English and French. The state church brutally resisted people's desire to read the Bible in their native language. In each state, churches essentially reminiscent of Baptists arose. in France, they were called Huguenots. Have you heard about St. Bartholomew's Night? 30,000 Protestants were killed for their faith. In England, persecution of Protestants also began.

Baptists in Russia

But everything comes to Russia late. Peter was the first to try to translate the Bible into Russian. But the Pastor who translated the Bible died under mysterious circumstances. And the translation matter was frozen. Alexander the first resumed translation. Several books of the New Testament and several books of the Old Testament were translated. The translation became popular among the people and was banned for fear of shaking the political atmosphere in the country, since the translation of the Bible could lead to people moving away from Orthodoxy, which was the connecting element of Russian statehood. Translation in other countries occurred several centuries ago. For example, Luther, in Germany, translated the Bible in 1521. In 1611 in England it was translated into English by King James. In Russia, translation was not allowed to develop. Alexander II resumed the translation. And only in 1876 the people received the Bible in Russian!!! Friends, please think about these numbers!!! 1876!! It's almost the 20th century!! The people did not know what they believed in! The people did not read the Bible. Keeping people ignorant for so long was stupid and sinful. When people began to read the Bible, Russian Protestants naturally arose. They were not brought from abroad and were first called “Orthodox living according to the gospel,” but they were excommunicated from the church. But they organized themselves into communities and began to be called Evangelical Christians. The evangelical movement grew, people turned to God. And as in other countries, the official church was outraged that someone was pointing out its shortcomings and, with the support of the state, began persecuting Russian Protestants. They were drowned, sent into exile, and imprisoned. It is sad. People who believe in God, no matter what their denomination, should not persecute other Christians who believe in the same God, even if they differ in some ways. In the south of Russia, the evangelical movement is gaining momentum among ordinary people. In the North of Russia - among the intelligentsia. In England, Protestants received the name “Baptists”, from the Greek and English word “baptizo”, “bapize” - which means to baptize. Because one of the differences between Baptists and Orthodox Christians is that Baptists are baptized at a conscious age.

About the Baptists.

Baptists do not baptize infants. Evangelical Christians did not baptize them either. Then these two churches merged and became known as Evangelical Christian Baptists. The emergence of this church was predetermined by the emergence of a translation of the Bible into Russian. What did the Baptists find in the Bible that prevented the translation of the Bible for so long and kept the people in the dark? But the Russian people were not established in their faith, were not a thinking people, and the revolution, with its promises of freedom, equality and brotherhood, quickly changed the attitude of the Orthodox towards their faith. But it did not change the faith of Baptists and Evangelical Christians, who passed through the Soviet Union and carried their faith despite stupid accusations of debauchery and sacrifices. Of course, the Baptists did nothing of the kind. Baptists are Christians who preach a chaste life according to God's word. It is the Bible, as God’s word, that is the authority and foundation of their faith for Baptists. Baptists believe that just as Jesus Christ answered questions with his word, the Bible has answers to questions that arise in the life of a believer. Baptists reject what came into the church after the Scriptures were written.

And that’s why our Russian Protestants try to imitate Christ in everything. Christ did not strive for wealth and pomp, and Baptist worship does not require gold and expensive attributes. Christ did not wear luxurious clothes and Baptists do not strive for luxury. But they do not strive for poverty, they work with their own hands, run their own business if they can, as the Apostle Paul taught. Baptists have large and strong families. Secular education is encouraged, and musical education is also encouraged. Therefore, Baptist services are full of music and sermons. At a worship service, a choir can sing, music can be played, performed solo or by a musical group of believers. Baptists are not conservative when it comes to serving God and can bring in a variety of creative elements. Baptists have a positive attitude towards the state. They serve in the army. They pay taxes. Because the Bible says that all authority is established by God and must be respected. Among all Protestants, Baptists are theologically closest to Orthodoxy, and believe in Christ as the Son of God and God. They believe in God the Father and the Holy Spirit. They believe in the resurrection of the dead and the forgiveness of sins thanks to the atoning sacrifice of Christ. Therefore, the differences lie in some moments of the service, external attributes and what came to the church after the Bible was written, the differences are in what is not in the Bible. You can read it at the link below.

Social life of Baptists

What else can you tell about Baptists? As people, they are kind and sympathetic people. Hardworking. Baptists call a priest a pastor or elder; usually, in addition to serving in the church, he also works at work. Therefore, Baptists cannot be accused of doing nothing for society. Baptists, like many believers of other denominations, feed the hungry and are engaged in healing society, working with alcoholics and drug addicts, with God's help returning them to work and normal social life. In general, the attitude towards Baptists among those who have encountered them is positive, and their teaching evokes respect and surprises with its logic and simplicity. You can attend their services by going to the House of Prayer at the appointed time and sitting in an empty seat to get to know them better.

Over the two thousand years of its existence, Christianity has split into a large number of denominations, each of which calls itself a “church.” But in relation to competitors, different names are used. The attitude towards Baptists in Orthodoxy is clear: this is not a church, but one of the Protestant sects. However, the number of believers - more than forty million - casts doubt on whether this is really the case. How do Baptists differ from Orthodox Christians, and to what extent did these differences cause such an attitude towards them?

Where did Baptists come from?

The powerful Reformation movement in the 16th century marked the beginning of such a phenomenon as Protestantism. Catholicism, which had previously almost completely dominated the minds of Europeans, was forced to make room. Almost simultaneously the following Protestant movements arose:

Lutheranism; Calvinism; Zwinglianism; some smaller currents.

The first Baptists appeared a little later, at the very beginning of the 17th century. In 1609 in England there was...

The Lord Jesus Christ appeared on earth two thousand years ago to save all humanity from the curse, sin and death that became his companions from the moment his ancestors Adam and Eve sinned. And now, in order to better understand who Baptists are from the point of view of Orthodoxy, it is necessary to turn to the moment of formation of the True Church, when God, with the help of his disciples-apostles, created the Church as His kind of mystical body, and through church sacraments communication with Him began to take place. Therefore, people who believed in Christ began to go to church and through the action of the Holy Spirit received healing of the body, peace and peace in the soul. But then who are the Baptists, where did they come from?

Dissenters, heretics and sectarians

To preserve the unity of faith, the Church limited and established laws and rules for its existence. Anyone who violated these laws was called schismatics or sectarians, and the teachings they preached were called heresy. The Church looked at the schisms...

Adherents of one of the branches of the Protestant church are called Baptists. This name comes from the word baptize, which is translated from Greek as “to dip”, “to baptize by immersing in water.” According to this teaching, one must be baptized not in infancy, but at a conscious age by immersion in consecrated water. In a word, a Baptist is a Christian who consciously accepts his faith. He believes that a person's salvation lies in wholehearted faith in Christ.

Church of Evangelical Christian Baptists. History of origin

Baptist communities began to form in the early seventeenth century in Holland, but their founders were not Dutch, but English Congregationalists who were forced to flee to the mainland to avoid persecution by the Church of England. And so, in the second decade of the 17th century, namely in 1611, a new Christian teaching was formulated for the English, who, by the will of fate, lived in the capital of the Netherlands - Amsterdam...

Question No. 421

Who are Baptists?

Tatiana Zagorskaya, Chilhowie, USA
12/09/2002

Hello Father Oleg!

Please help me explain to my son why he cannot be baptized in a Baptist church. We are Christians. I myself began to study the Bible several months ago and I cannot give him a decent answer. The fact is that where we live there is no Christian church (USA), and my son and his friends began going to a Baptist church. They study the Bible there. Therefore, I ask you very much - write for him in simpler words the answer to this question. Also, please tell me, how is Bible study different for Baptists? And is there a sin in his going to this church? And even if he does not accept baptism and continues to study the Bible there, how should I feel about this? Perhaps it should be prohibited?
Thanks for the answer.

Answer from Father Oleg Molenko:

Baptists are a sect of peculiarly lost people, which has nothing to do with the Church of Christ and...

The rector of the Temple of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, Sergius Tretyakov, answers readers’ questions.

Father Sergius, what is the difference between the Christian faith and the Baptist faith?

A slightly incorrect question: Baptists are Christians. But there are many different Christians, and their religions differ. The Orthodox Church is very ancient; all the main tenets of its doctrine were formulated long before the advent of Baptistism.

So, Baptists are one of the oldest and most established Christian sects (you shouldn’t compare them with any Pentecostals, New Apostles or Evangelists, and even more so with Jehovah’s Witnesses). Why a sect? This is a traditional classification: Lutherans, Anglicans, Calvinists and Reformed churches are usually called Protestant churches, and other Protestant denominations are called sects.

Baptistism originated in England in the first half of the 16th century. The reason was a dispute about the form of performing the sacrament of Baptism: the Anglicans (among whom the Baptists appeared) baptized by sprinkling...

Baptists consider infant baptism to be categorically unacceptable, since they are firmly convinced that a person must approach the issue of choosing faith himself on the basis of his convictions, life experience and voluntary renunciation of unworthy (sinful) actions. And what beliefs, experiences and sins might an unintelligent baby have?

Like other Protestants, Baptists accept the Bible as Holy Scripture. The spiritual leader (elder) of each Baptist congregation does not have absolute authority. Decisions on important issues affecting the interests of the community are made either by the church council, consisting of the most authoritative and respected representatives of the community, or by the general meeting. Baptist services are not confined to any strict framework, like those of the Orthodox or Catholics; rather, they are improvisation and include sermons, singing, as well as reading prayers, in their own words, and some works of spiritual content.

The main day of prayer for Baptists is...

Who are Baptists?

Baptists are followers of one of the directions of Protestant Christianity - Baptistism. To better understand who Baptists are, you should understand the features of this doctrine, plunge into its history, and also find out how Baptistism is developing now.

The word "Baptist" comes from "baptizo", which literally means "immersion" in Greek. The word "Baptism" refers to baptism, which among Baptists occurs in adulthood by immersing the entire body in water.

Baptistism evolved from English Puritanism. It is based on the principle of voluntary baptism of people in adulthood who have strong convictions and do not accept committing...

Faith and the Baptist Church

Baptist communities arose at the beginning of the 17th century. The founders were English Congregationalists who fled to Holland from persecution of the Church of England. In 1611, the new doctrine was formulated in the “Confession of Faith of the English Living at Amsterdam in Holland.” The first Baptist community arose in England in 1612, and in North America in 1639. From the end of the 18th century. Baptists begin to spread widely, especially in the USA. In 1905, the Baptist World Union was formed, with its center in the USA. Currently, Baptist organizations operate in many countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America.

Baptist ideas

The main principle of Baptistism is “Live in the world, but be not of this world,” i.e. obey earthly laws, but give your heart entirely to Christ. The name of the denomination comes from the Greek baptizo - “immerse in water, baptize.” Baptism is considered by Baptists as an act of conscious conversion to faith, spiritual rebirth...

History and Origins of Evangelical Christian Baptists

Baptistism is one of the directions of Protestantism. Evangelical Christian Baptists are one of the denominations traditionally present in our country. Baptists got their name due to the fact that adults were baptized out of conscious faith. The first Baptist community was formed in 1609 in Amsterdam, among refugees from England. From here Baptistism spread to the British Isles and then to America.

In the 19th century Baptistism is becoming a truly global denomination. Baptist communities are springing up in Canada, Australia, India, and most European countries, including Russia. As of 2008, there are more than 105,000,000 Baptists in the world. In Russia, the first evangelical Baptist Christians appeared in the 19th century, when the Russian Bible Society published a Bible translated into Russian. The first Russian Baptist was Nikita Isaevich Voronin, who was baptized by faith in 1867...

BAPTISTS: evil sect or recognized church?

Recently, a number of publications have been observed in the Tver press, the authors of which expressed their biased opinions about Baptists. This prompted me to prepare this article, which attempts to objectively address this issue.

Who are they?

This is what the Great Soviet Encyclopedia says about Baptist Christians: “Baptists (from the Greek baptizo - I dip, baptize by immersion in water). Adherents of one of the varieties of Protestantism. According to the doctrine of Baptistism, a person’s salvation is possible only through personal faith in Christ, and not through the mediation of the church; the only source of faith is the Holy Scriptures.”

Formally, Baptistism arose during the Reformation at the beginning of the 17th century. However, to claim that Baptistism as a doctrine originates at this time is fundamentally incorrect. Baptist Christians did not come up with anything new, but only returned to...

Religious sects that arose in Europe in the 17th - 19th centuries represented

are mainly Protestant-type organizations.

Protestantism (from Latin protestans - publicly declaring) - general

designation of religions and sects associated with the Reformation and forming in

collectively the third most important variety of Christianity - along with

Orthodoxy and Catholicism.

The earliest and most influential new growth that grew on the soil

Protestantism became Baptism. Based on Baptistism in the 1st third of the 19th century. arose

Adventists, who branched into a number of sects, one of which goes back to

Jehovah's Witnesses (late 19th - early 20th centuries). At the beginning of the 20th century. arose

Pentecostals.

Baptists, Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses differ among religious

sectarianism is most widespread and has international centers.

1. BAPTISTS

The name of this sect comes from...

One of the most widespread religious movements throughout the world that call themselves “Christian” is BAPTISM.

Baptistism originated in England in two independent communities. The emergence of Baptistism was facilitated by anti-Catholic protests in the 14th-15th centuries, and then by the powerful Reformation movement in the 14th century, which developed simultaneously with the continentals. At the end of the 14th century, the Catholic priest and Oxford teacher John Wycliffe (1320-1384) began to express similar in spirit reformist Baptist ideas. He advocated a literal interpretation of Scripture, rejected monasticism and the Catholic teaching on the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts as unbiblical, rebelled against monastic land ownership and luxury of the clergy and believed that church property should be nationalized, argued that the Holy Scriptures should be translated into the national language and he himself took part in its translation into English.

Although Wycliffe's teachings did not go beyond church reforms, he...

Evangelical Christian Baptists are the largest Protestant denomination in Russia and the second largest Christian denomination in our country; our churches and communities are located in the cities and many towns of our country. Therefore, the word “Baptist” is not something new and alien to a Russian citizen. Today there are about 150,000 Baptist Christians living in Russia. The total number of Baptists is more than 120 million people living in 200 countries - this is one of the largest Christian denominations in the world. But despite all this, even today many people ask: “Who are Baptists? What is their faith? Are they Christians? How do you feel about the world around you? Who can become a member of their church?

Formally, Christian Baptists trace their history back to Holland, where in 1609 a community of people who were baptized in faith at a conscious age and according to personal faith arose. They were all English. And in 1612 the first community arose in England. In Russia, the evangelical awakening led to the emergence of the church...

But who are Baptists? Here is a small attempt to figure it out without getting Orthodoxy involved.

A sect that emerged from among the English Puritans. The first Baptist community was created in 1633, and in 1639 it was already moved to North America, where the state of Rhode Island became its center. At first, the influence of the sect was insignificant. Only at the end of the 18th century, after the creation of the “Preaching Union”, which declared its goal not to spread Baptistism as a new teaching, but supposedly only to preach Christianity among American blacks, free from dogmas, rituals and generally binding symbolic signs, did the Baptist movement meet with sympathy and material the support of many wealthy Americans.
This sect is split into many sects. Its division began in the 17th century, when Baptists were divided into “private” Baptists, who accepted Calvin’s doctrine of unconditional predestination, and “general” or “free will Baptists”, who recognized the universality of the saving grace of God...

1. SACRED SCRIPTURE (BIBLIOLOGY)

We believe and teach that:
The canonical books of the Bible constitute the Word of God, equally inspired in all parts, which is such regardless of our attitude towards it. Only these books are the highest and only infallible revelation of God about Himself, about the spiritual and material world (including man) and represent the only infallible and sufficient rule of faith and behavior. Moreover, the highest authority of Scripture is received not from the Church or tradition, but from God Himself.

Being completely and literally inspired in the original text, the Bible is absolutely inerrant and without error in the content of all the subjects it deals with. It has a dual authorship and nature (divine and human). This means that God, through the Holy Spirit, using the individual characteristics of the authors and their cultural and historical way of thinking, gave humanity ahistorical and equally applicable to any era...

Beliefs and life of Baptists in Ukraine as a result of the spiritual search of the people

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WhosuchBaptists?

The word "Baptist" comes from the Greek word "baptizo" and means baptism (literally, "immersion"). The basis of Baptist doctrine is the principle of voluntary and conscious baptism of adults by faith in Jesus Christ as God and Savior.

InWhatbelieveBaptists?

The foundation of Baptist faith and life is the Word of God. Being Christians, they recognize the Bible as a Divinely inspired Book, which includes 66 books and consists of the Old and New Testaments. Personal study of the Bible and fulfillment of the commandments of Christ, according to Baptists, is the only true way to know God.

The doctrine of God corresponds to the traditional Christian understanding, which developed back in the 1st century. Baptists profess the trinity of God - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, each Person of Whose has all the attributes of God. Baptists recognize Christ as the only mediator between God and people and believe in His atoning sacrifice.

The doctrine of man lies in the understanding of the complete depravity of his nature by sin. Salvation is only possible through the grace of God (Ephesians 2:8-9) and personal faith. The most important moment in a person’s life is turning to God through repentance before Him for one’s sins. Thanks to the death of Christ for the sins of man, at the moment of repentance, God forgives him, grants him salvation and eternal life. This change manifests itself in a person's daily life. The Holy Spirit, who has since lived in a person, encourages him to pray, study the Bible, strengthens faith, inspires good deeds, teaches, convicts of sins, consoles, encourages him to testify to other people about what God has done in the life of this person .

Baptists understand the Church of Christ as a community that consists of spiritually regenerated people. Those whose lives have been changed by the gospel can join their local church. For Baptists, what is important is not churching, but spiritual birth, not the external side of religion, but the internal.

Whatspeaksstory?

Since the birth of the first church in Jerusalem, when the Holy Spirit descended on believers, about three thousand people have repented and been baptized by faith. Christ himself was baptized by John the Baptist while already an adult (Matthew 3:13-17). In the original text of the Bible, written in Greek, John the Baptist is called John the Baptist.

Under the influence of the Reformation, the Holy Scriptures were translated into understandable language, which prompted society to read the Bible daily and communicate “without intermediaries” with God. At the center of the life of the Reformed Church was only the Gospel of Jesus Christ, so various Christian movements began to form, one of which is Baptistism.

The emergence of the Evangelical Baptist movement on the territory of Ukraine took place in the middle of the 19th century. It was the result of the spiritual search of the Ukrainian people and the dissemination of the Holy Scriptures. Ordinary people, seeking to know the Lord, read the Bible, which at that time was translated into Russian.

In 1882, there were already about a thousand Baptists in the Kherson, Ekaterinoslav and Kyiv provinces. They were distinguished by a sober and modest way of life, a desire to study, hard work, and loyalty to their families, thanks to which they achieved prosperity during the absence of persecution. However, the entire history of Baptists is filled with persecutions, which only occasionally gave way to a certain thaw. Many believers died in custody, many lost their families due to forced relocation to difficult conditions, many experienced bullying from fellow villagers, secular authorities and the clergy. However, despite the persecution, at the end of the 19th century. the number of Baptists has already reached 5 thousand people.

HowliveBaptistsToday?

New conditions for the activities of evangelical Christian Baptists opened up with the proclamation of perestroika in the Soviet Union in 1985. Changes in legislation allowed churches to practically come out of hiding and engage in active spiritual and educational activities.

The All-Ukrainian Union of Associations of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (USOECB) today numbers over 2,800 churches and groups, which include about 140 thousand believers who consciously profess and practice their faith. In the Zaporozhye region alone there are 127 Baptist churches.

Baptists hold their main weekly worship service on Sunday; on weekdays, additional meetings may be held specifically dedicated to prayer, study and discussion of the Bible and other religious activities. Worship services consist of preaching the Word of God, choir singing accompanied by instrumental music, extemporaneous prayers (in one's own words), reading spiritual poems and poems.

Members of Evangelical Christian Baptist churches lead a sober lifestyle, completely abstaining from smoking, drinking alcohol and drugs. There are rehabilitation centers for drug and alcohol addicts to return to a full life in society. Every year, children's camps are organized to improve the health of children, including orphans and children from low-income families. Spiritual and charitable service is carried out in prisons, orphanages and homes for the elderly. There are children's and youth clubs of churches and missions. In every region there are Christian associations and societies that provide diverse charitable assistance to various segments of the population. Missionary activities are carried out in Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, Central Asia and other countries near and far abroad.

YuliaCHUKHNO

SimpleANSWERSoncomplexQUESTIONS

Whatsuchsect? WhichdangerHereexists?

The word “sect” does not appear in the Bible, and the terms “false teaching” and “heresy” are used to denote false teachings. Therefore, we will use the explanation of secular scientists. Ozhegov’s dictionary gives the following definition: “A sect is a religious movement that has separated from any creed and is opposed to it; or a group of individuals isolated in their own narrow interests.” According to Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary, a sect is a brotherhood that has adopted its own, separate doctrine of faith; agreement, interpretation, schism or heresy. Recently there has been abuse of the word “sect”. Representatives of atheistic circles and so-called traditional confessions label literally all religious movements as “sects”, without thinking at all about whether this is actually so. Therefore, when using such words, you should be tactful and careful.

WhichsinsNotforgivesGod?

God does not forgive sins for which a person has not repented. Christ atoned for all the sins of people with His death. For the sake of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God forgives every sinner who believes in Him. But it should be added that the Bible identifies a special sin, which is said to be unforgivable. This sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. This sin is committed by a person who utters curses against the Holy Spirit or deliberately attributes the action of God to Satan. By this, a person hardens his heart so much that the Holy Spirit leaves him. Such a person does not feel the need to repent and perishes in his stubbornness.

Saveswhetherbaptism?

Let's read two texts from the Bible that talk about God's way of salvation. In the 16th chapter of the Gospel of Mark it is written: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; and whoever does not believe will be condemned.” In chapter 2 of the book of the Acts of the Apostles we read: “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” These texts indicate the important stages of a person’s approach to God: first comes faith in Jesus Christ, then repentance, then baptism. The consequence of true repentance is regeneration. It is birth from the Holy Spirit, and not baptism or some other step, that saves a person.

Answered Pavel TUPCHIK

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The rector of the Temple of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, Sergius Tretyakov, answers readers’ questions.

— Father Sergius, what is the difference between the Christian faith and the Baptist faith?

A slightly incorrect question: Baptists are Christians. But there are many different Christians, and their religions differ. The Orthodox Church is very ancient; all the main tenets of its doctrine were formulated long before the advent of Baptistism.

So, Baptists are one of the oldest and most established Christian sects (you shouldn’t compare them with any Pentecostals, New Apostles or Evangelists, and even more so with Jehovah’s Witnesses). Why a sect? This is a traditional classification: Lutherans, Anglicans, Calvinists and Reformed churches are usually called Protestant churches, and other Protestant denominations are called sects.

Baptistism originated in England in the first half of the 16th century. The reason was a dispute about the form of performing the sacrament of Baptism: the Anglicans (among whom the Baptists appeared) baptized by sprinkling with water, they inherited this custom from the Catholics. But during the Reformation, interest in the language of writing the Bible became widespread, and in it the verb “baptize” comes from the Greek “baptizo” - to completely immerse in liquid. Baptists began to baptize by full immersion, and not only baptize, but also re-baptize those who had already been baptized by sprinkling.

So how, exactly, do Baptistism and Orthodoxy differ? Baptistism, like all Protestant sectarianism, is a religion of external piety, its entire aspiration is aimed at transforming society according to the social gospel commandments (such as “do not steal”, “honor your father and mother”, “do not envy”, “help your neighbor” and etc.), but there is absolutely no desire for internal transformation, the “deification” of a person. The Baptist ideal is the good citizen who lives by the commandments. And the ideal of Orthodoxy is Holy. For Baptists, it is unthinkable to withdraw from the world into the desert, seclusion, silence, the desire for poverty and lack of amenities. Such a person for them is an asocial type, a renegade. Therefore, Baptistism has not given birth to a single Saint in the entire history of its existence. But Orthodoxy, meanwhile, cannot be imagined without its Saints; they are its pillars and teachers, starting with Christ Himself, and further through the Apostles to Ambrose of Optina, John of Kronstadt and the ascetics of our times.

A saint is the fruit of Orthodox piety, and the fruit of Baptist piety is a respectable burgher. Don’t think, I’m not against a respectable person - that’s wonderful, but Orthodoxy teaches that no integrity is durable until the soul is cleansed by repentance and crowned with deep humility, and this is something that is not in Baptistism. Baptists read, but do not understand, the words of Christ that “He came to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” They are the righteous, already saved by Christ, as they themselves claim. But in Orthodoxy - alas: no one can consider himself saved until death, as the greatest among the Holy Ascetics said.

The main task for Baptists is evangelization (attracting more and more new members to their community), they are multiplying their ranks. So, since the understanding of Christianity in Baptistism is external, it knows nothing about the deep life of the spirit, Baptists do not even have an interest in such a life, and hence the denial of most of the manifestations of the Spirit of God, such as the Sacraments. For them, Baptism is not a sacrament, but a rite of admission into members of the community, Communion is simple bread and wine, pastors are leaders from among the members of the community, and not priests appointed by the Grace of God, the temple is not the temple of God, but a house for prayer meetings, like Jewish synagogue, etc. And icons for them are just pictures, even moreover, pagan idols. They consider the Orthodox to be idolaters and are proud of the fact that they fulfill the commandment, but for some reason they do not notice that at the same time as the commandment, Moses was given the command to build a Temple and decorate it, including with images of Angels, before whom worship was to be performed (veil and Ark Covenant). And in general, the theological teaching of Baptists is very fragmented: some places (especially those relating to the biblical text) are worked out very scrupulously, constantly being researched, but somewhere there are solid blank fields that elude the attention of researchers; there is no coherent worldview. For them, it is as if the entire first millennium after the Nativity of Christ, the era of the Ecumenical Councils, never happened. A sort of lapse in memory: the era of the Apostles immediately passes into the era of Baptistism, and only the Bible is left from the sources of doctrine.

Baptist worship is also more of a school than a service itself. If at an Orthodox service they mostly pray (and the prayers themselves are the fruit of the spiritual experience of the Psalmist David and the Holy Fathers), then Baptists mostly read the Bible, interpret and study its texts, listen to the pastor’s sermons, and sometimes even watch films on a religious theme. Their spiritual singing is mostly self-composed hymns like “let us follow Christ as a friendly, joyful family...”, and their prayers, although sincere, are spontaneous, arbitrary and very superficial (let the Baptists not be indignant, for, excuse me, I have heard more than once in my own ears). In general, the prayers of most Protestants are formal, short, and do not occupy a central place in their spiritual life.

T. Karpizenkova

What is the difference between the Christian faith and the Baptist faith?: 17 comments