The believers' Church is a theological doctrine of Evangelical Christianity which teaches that one becomes a member of the Church by new birth and profession of faith. Adherence to this doctrine is a common defining feature of an Evangelical Christian church.

History

This doctrine has its origin in the Radical Reformation within Anabaptism.[1] The 1527 Schleitheim Confession by the Swiss Brethren, a group of Anabaptists of which Michael Sattler was part, is a publication that spread this doctrine.[2][3] In this confession, the believer's baptism after a profession of faith is placed as an essential theological foundation.[4] In 1644, the 1644 Baptist Confession of Faith published by Particular Baptists stated the same.[5] In 1916, the Pentecostal Assemblies of God Statement of Fundamental Truths stated the same too.[6][7][8][9] In 1967, the Believers' Church Conference was established at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States, and is held every two or three years at a different Evangelical Bible college.[10][11]

Adherence to the doctrine of the believers' Church is a common feature of defining an Evangelical church in the specific sense.[12][13]

Doctrine

A widely accepted definition of characteristics is that of the American historian Donald Durnbaugh, who summarizes the doctrine of the believers' Church in seven points:[14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

  1. Voluntary membership in the church. One becomes a member of the Church by new birth and profession of faith. The baptism, reserved for adolescent or adult believers (believer's baptism), is a symbol of this commitment.
  2. The Church is a fraternal community of mutual aid and edification.
  3. Charity and service in the church are an expression of a healthy Christian life.
  4. The Holy Spirit and the Bible are the only bases of authority in the Church. Some non-biblical religious traditions must be rejected. Members who do not respect the confession of faith of the Church and do not want to repent must be excommunicated from the community.
  5. Willingness to return to the fundamentals of the Early Church.
  6. A simple structure of the Church.
  7. Faith in the Church as the body of Christ.

The doctrine of the believers' Church should not be confused with that of the free church, which is a concept designating the separate churches of states.[21][22] Some Christian denominations that can be identified in the free church movement do not adhere to the doctrine of the believers' Church.[23][24][25]

Main adherent movements

Despite the nuances in the various evangelical movements, there is a similar set of beliefs for movements adhering to the doctrine of the believers' Church, the main ones being Anabaptism, Baptists and Pentecostalism.[26][27][28][29][30][31]

See also

Further reading

  • Barry L. Callen, Radical Christianity: The Believers Church Tradition in Christianity's History and Future, Evangel Publishing House, Kenya, 1999

References

  1. ↑ Sébastien Fath, Du ghetto au réseau: Le protestantisme évangélique en France, 1800-2005, Édition Labor et Fides, Genève, 2005, p. 378
  2. ↑ J. Philip Wogaman, Douglas M. Strong, Readings in Christian Ethics: A Historical Sourcebook, Westminster John Knox Press, USA, 1996, p. 141
  3. ↑ Donald F. Durnbaugh, The Believers' Church: The History and Character of Radical Protestantism, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2003, p. 65, 73
  4. ↑ William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p. 21
  5. ↑ Michael Edward Williams, Walter B. Shurden, Turning Points in Baptist History, Mercer University Press, USA, 2008, p. 17
  6. ↑ Douglas Jacobsen, Thinking in the Spirit: Theologies of the Early Pentecostal Movement, Indiana University Press, USA, 2003, p. 195
  7. ↑ John H. Y. Briggs, A Dictionary of European Baptist Life and Thought, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2009, p. 322
  8. ↑ Keith Warrington, Pentecostal Theology: A Theology of Encounter, A&C Black, UK, 2008, p. 164
  9. ↑ Roger E. Olson, The Westminster Handbook to Evangelical Theology, Westminster John Knox Press, USA, 2004, p. 259
  10. ↑ James Leo Garrett, Baptist Theology: A Four-century Study, Mercer University Press, USA, 2009, p. 534
  11. ↑ Paul Basden, David S. Dockery, The People of God: Essays on the Believers' Church, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2009, p. 333
  12. ↑ Religioscope, Sébastien Fath, À propos de l’évangélisme et des Églises évangéliques en France – Entretien avec Sébastien Fath, religion.info, France, March 3, 2002
  13. ↑ Donald W. Dayton, The Variety of American Evangelicalism, Univ. of Tennessee Press, USA, 2001, p. 155
  14. ↑ Philip LeMasters, Discipleship Between Creation and Redemption: Toward a Believers' Church Social Ethic, University Press of America, USA, 1997, p. 2
  15. ↑ William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p. 86-87
  16. ↑ George Thomas Kurian, Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States, Volume 5, Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2016, p. 222
  17. ↑ Howard A. Snyder, Signs of the Spirit: How God Reshapes the Church, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 1997, p. 40-41
  18. ↑ William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of Radical Christianity, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2012, p. 51
  19. ↑ Sébastien Fath, Du ghetto au réseau: Le protestantisme évangélique en France, 1800-2005, Édition Labor et Fides, Genève, 2005, p. 366, 378
  20. ↑ Donald M. Lewis, Richard V. Pierard, Global Evangelicalism: Theology, History & Culture in Regional Perspective, InterVarsity Press, USA, 2014, p. 297
  21. ↑ Donald F. Durnbaugh, The Believers' Church: The History and Character of Radical Protestantism, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2003, p. 8
  22. ↑ John Howard Yoder, Theology of Mission: A Believers Church Perspective, InterVarsity Press, USA, 2014, p. 147
  23. ↑ George Thomas Kurian, Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States, Volume 5, Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2016, p. 222-223
  24. ↑ Donald F. Durnbaugh, The Believers' Church: The History and Character of Radical Protestantism, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2003, p. 4-5
  25. ↑ John Howard Yoder, Theology of Mission: A Believers Church Perspective, InterVarsity Press, USA, 2014, p. 148
  26. ↑ William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p. 87 : "From the 16th century, those in the close circle of the believer's churches include the Mennonites, Brethren, Baptists, Amish, and Hutterites, to name the major subcategories. In more modern development, (…) such as the Pentecostals, may consider themselves believer's churches by this definition."
  27. ↑ Darren T. Duerksen, William A. Dyrness, Seeking Church: Emerging Witnesses to the Kingdom, InterVarsity Press, USA, 2019, p. 45 : "The Believer's Church: As we turn to the early “radical Reformation” or Anabaptist movement (…) widely seen in various Baptist, Pentecostal, community, and independent churches."
  28. ↑ Michel Deneken, Francis Messner, Frank Alvarez-Pereyre, La théologie à l'Université: statut, programmes et évolutions, Labor et Fides, Genève, 2009, p. 64 : Translation: "Teaching in evangelical establishments: (...) evangelical churches loving to present themselves as "believers' Church", whose members are convinced and committed Christians." Original text in French "L’enseignement dans les établissements évangéliques : (…) les églises évangéliques aimant à se présenter comme des « Églises de professants », dont les membres sont des chrétiens convaincus et engagés."
  29. ↑ Religioscope et Sébastien Fath, À propos de l’évangélisme et des Églises évangéliques en France – Entretien avec Sébastien Fath, religion.info, France, 3 mars 2002: Translation: "The criterion of "believers' Church" allows more clearly to define what is called stricto sensu of the evangelical". Original text in French: "Le critère d’«Eglise de professants» permet plus nettement de cerner ce que l’on appelle stricto sensu des évangéliques"
  30. ↑ Donald M. Lewis, Richard V. Pierard, Global Evangelicalism: Theology, History & Culture in Regional Perspective, InterVarsity Press, USA, 2014, p. 40 : "The modern mission movement is the outstanding exhibit of the influence of the evangelical theological impulse over the past four centuries". and 297: "The Baptist and Mennonite traditions are examples of believer's churches".
  31. ↑ Robert H. Krapohl, Charles H. Lippy, The Evangelicals: A Historical, Thematic, and Biographical Guide, Greenwood Publishing Group, USA, 1999, p. 11
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