1689 Baptist Confession of Faith

The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith,[1][2] also called the Second London Baptist Confession, was written by Particular Baptists, who held to a Calvinistic soteriology in England to give a formal expression of their Christian faith from a Baptist perspective. Because it was adopted by the Philadelphia Association of Baptist Churches in the 18th century, it is also known as the Philadelphia Confession of Faith.[3] The Philadelphia Confession was a modification of the Second London Confession that added an allowance for singing of hymns, psalms and spiritual songs in the Lord's Supper and made optional the laying on of hands in baptism.[4]

History

The confession was first published in London in 1677 under the title "A confession of Faith put forth by the Elders and Brethren of many Congregations of Christians, Baptized upon Profession of their Faith in London and the Country.[5] With an Appendix concerning Baptism."[3] It was based on the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) and the Savoy Declaration (1658), with modifications to reflect Baptist views on church organization and baptism.[3] The confession was published again, under the same title, in 1688 and 1689.[3][6]

The Act of Toleration passed in 1689 enabled religious freedom and plurality to co-exist alongside the established churches in England and Scotland. This official reprieve resulted in representatives from over 100 Particular Baptist churches to meet together in London from 3–12 September to discuss and endorse the 1677 document. Despite the fact that the document was written in 1677, the official preface to the document has ensured that it would be known as the "1689 Baptist Confession of Faith".[6]

Influences

Particular Baptists were quick to develop churches in colonial America, and in 1707 the Philadelphia Baptist Association was formed.[7] This association formally adopted the 1689 confession in 1742[7] after years of tacit endorsement by individual churches and congregational members. With the addition of two chapters (on the singing of psalms and the laying on of hands), it was retitled The Philadelphia Confession of Faith[8] Further Calvinistic Baptist church associations formed in the mid-late 18th century and adopted the confession as "The Baptist Confession".[9]

References
  1. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, Documents, Reformed
  2. 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith . 1689 – via Wikisource.
  3. Schaff, Philip (1877). "The Baptist Confession of 1688 (The Philadelphia Confession)". The Creeds of Christendom (entry). Vol. 3 - The Creeds of the Evangelical Protestant Churches. New York: Harper & Bros. pp. 651–. ISBN 978-1-61025-039-9.
  4. Leonard, Bill J (2012). Baptists in America. ISBN 9780231501712.
  5. James Leo Garrett, Baptist Theology: A Four-century Study, Mercer University Press, USA, 2009, p. 72
  6. J. Gordon Melton, Faiths Across Time, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2014, p. 1258
  7. Reid, DG; Linder, RD; Shelley, BL; Stout, HS (1990), Dictionary of Christianity in America, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
  8. "The Philadelphia Confession of Faith". The Spurgeon Archive. Archived from the original on 1 July 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  9. William Cathcart, The Baptist Encyclopedia - Volume 2, The Baptist Standard Bearer, USA, 2001, p. 573

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