Our Farewell Letter to Baptists

Leaving Behind a Beloved Tradition

We have recently left the Baptist tradition. We did not do so because we were disillusioned with Scripture. In fact, it was because we took Scripture together with Church History seriously that we could no longer remain a part of the Baptist faith.

We never desired to rebel against the Baptist tradition. It is still not our intention to disparage Baptists. We grew up Baptist, came to understand the Gospel, and were baptized in Baptist churches. For many years, we believed “Baptist” was synonymous with being faithful.

---

Origen would subscribe (maybe?)…

Ancient Christian answers for our culture’s most profound questions. Subscribe for regular articles in your inbox.

---

We both attended a Baptist college, and this past May, Josh graduated from a Baptist seminary. We helped plant a Baptist Church in one of the least Bible-minded cities in America. It was in a Baptist church that Josh preached his first sermon, was ordained, and pastored in his first church. Nearly all of our connections are Baptist. Culturally and relationally, our Baptist roots run deep. We sincerely love Baptists and are thankful for their heritage.

This letter is not written in bitterness, but in the hope to provide clarity to those of our family, friends, and mentors who are questioning why we have left, as well as to honor the tradition that was once our haven, but we now realize cannot be our future home. Our journey has not been one of intentional rebellion, but of retrieval and rediscovery, of creeds and sacraments, of liturgy and a deeper understanding of ecclesiology.

We were always told as young people to follow the “old paths.” Well, the “old paths” have led us away from Baptists and especially the Independent Fundamental Baptist tradition in which we were both raised.

(Josh) I am thankful for my Alma Mater, Ambassador Baptist College. There, I learned Greek, how to study the Bible more deeply, and how to communicate truth effectively.

However, during my undergraduate studies, I was particularly frustrated with my Baptist History class. I remember hoping to learn about my Baptist forefathers. Instead, I learned about the Baptist acrostic and the highly dubious pamphlet, The Trail of Blood.

I worked on campus, and at the time, my boss also served as the registrar. I remember telling him how confused I was about what it meant to be a Baptist, and that I wasn’t sure I’d remain one long-term. It was hard for me to admit. To this day, I’m so grateful for his response.

“Whether you stay a Baptist or not, I will be happy for you as long as you follow Jesus.”

We have personally researched the Baptist tradition in depth since our undergraduate studies and sincerely appreciate its history. We have learned that Baptists started as a separatist movement from the Church of England in the 17th Century. We have read many of their major confessions, such as the First and Second London Baptist Confessions, The Philadelphia and New Hampshire Confessions, or our personal favorite, The Orthodox Creed of 1679. We wish more Baptists today would embrace their confessional history.

While the modern Baptist tradition has many issues that pushed us to consider other denominations, those weren’t the main reasons we chose to leave. Every denomination has its flaws. In the end, what convinced us was the biblical testimony, the strength of the theological arguments, and the historical credibility of more ancient forms of Christianity.

Yes, Baptists have a rich heritage spanning 400 years. But the Church is 2000 years old.

I guess our transformation began when we picked up the Church Fathers. Around five years ago, Josh started earnestly reading through the earliest post-Scripture witnesses to the growth and theology of the early Church. Both of us have since enjoyed much of the truth and devotion found within these Patristic sources.

When we began studying the early Church writers, we were first shocked at their relevance to our modern times. We couldn’t believe we had never read these beautiful works of theology and devotion. In short, we fell in love with the Early Church.

What started as enjoyment became uncomfortable as we realized that the Early Church taught doctrines, sometimes unanimously, that we did not grow up believing. Worst of all? Many of these doctrines were thoroughly Biblically based and backed by sound argumentation. What made our interpretations of Scripture, the ones we had been taught our whole lives but were in reality at most 400 years old, better than the ancient testimony of the Church?

We changed slowly, then all at once. First, our interpretive method changed. We decided that if the Church has consensually accepted an interpretation of Scripture for most of history, then it should get preferential treatment over an interpretation that is relatively recent. We quickly gave up dispensationalism and embraced the ancient creeds.

Second, we became more sacramental. We began to realize that the Eucharist (Communion/Lord’s Supper) is far more than a mere symbol of Christ’s Body and Blood. Instead, after a thorough study, we became convinced that the body and blood of Christ are truly present during the celebration of the Eucharist in some extraordinary way. Christ is really present with the Eucharist.

Many Baptists, especially those in the Reformed Baptist camp, would hold to Real Presence. But as we became more sacramental, we were forced to confront the historical testimony of baptismal regeneration, something that, if we accepted, would make us decidedly not Baptist.

Until that point, our evolving beliefs still could fall under the umbrella of the Baptist tradition.

Lastly, as we continued to study baptismal regeneration, we also were considering other factors that strike against the Baptist identity we had, such as episcopal church government (think Bishops, priests, and deacons), ancient liturgical practices, the real possibility of apostasy, and a genuine longing for broader Church unity.

About a year ago, we could no longer set these questions aside and decided to dive deeply into researching them. What pushed us to study even more were the Catholic positions on many of these and other topics. We discovered that the arguments against many Catholic doctrines we had heard our entire lives were, in many cases, weak strawmen. For a short time, we found ourselves seriously considering conversion to Catholicism.

We did not become Catholic for several significant reasons, but that is a story for a different article. Suffice it to say, while we now have a deep appreciation for aspects of the Catholic Church, we cannot agree with them on several key doctrines and practices.

One doctrine that we found the Catholic Church was closer to the Bible than we had been as Baptists was baptismal regeneration and infant baptism. We will be baptizing our children this coming month. For a comprehensive handling of this subject, Josh has written a significant research paper, which can be accessed here. We now believe that the Biblical evidence is clear,

Baptism is a sacrament in that it bestows grace to the recipient. The particular grace it bestows is the washing away of sin, the regeneration of the recipient, and union with Christ, his Covenant, and his Church. Baptism effectually identifies the recipient with Christ's death, burial, and resurrection and is the ordinary means of regeneration.

After studying several traditions, we realized Anglicanism was a good fit for us. Our family is joining the Diocese of the Living Word, a conservative diocese of the ACNA and GAFCON. Here’s why:

1. Biblical: Anglicans hold to the supremacy of Scripture even over tradition. Article VI. of the Thirty-Nine Articles states, “Holy Scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation: so that whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man, that it should be believed as an article of the faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation.”

2. Historical: Anglicans recognize that Church tradition complements Scripture and benefits the soul. Their Book of Common Prayer is saturated with both the Scripture and prayers of godly men. In the work of interpretation, they understand that Church consensus plays a role in correctly understanding Scripture. This is seen clearly in their acceptance of the ancient creeds and their deep appreciation for ancient liturgy, which they practice whenever they open the Book of Common Prayer. This is the correct approach to interpreting the Bible, rather than each person interpreting a passage as he personally understands it.

3. Ecumenical: Anglicans have historically pursued the unity of the universal Church and their foundational documents express an ecumenical position. We are not talking about a liberal ecumenicism like that of the late 20th Century but an ecumenicism built on orthodox Christianity, the creeds, and the enduring principles of Scripture. We are saddened by the hyper-separatist movements that have come to characterize many circles in the Baptist tradition. For example, many pastors we both love and respect have been completely ostracized when changing Bible translations, music styles, or slight theological positions. Unfortunately, this hyper-separatism characterizes much of the Independent Baptist movement. To be clear, there are other Baptists who truly seek unity in the Body of Christ. I am thankful for the pastors at our previous church who sent us off in a loving, brotherly manner after months of counsel. While we may not experience perfect unity until we stand before the throne of God, the Church should seek it fervently now and refuse the fleshly instinct to castigate fellow Christians.

4. Sacramental: Anglicans are sacramental in that they believe God works extraordinarily through specific ordained means. The two sacraments ordained by Christ are Baptism and the Eucharist. They hold that Baptism and the Eucharist are more than symbols and are truly means of God’s grace. The Sacraments are not works of men, but works of God, and salvation only comes from the works of God, not the works of man. As Article XI. of the Thirty-Nine Articles states, “We are accounted righteous before God, only for the merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ by faith, and not for our own works or deservings: Wherefore, that we are justified by faith only is a most wholesome doctrine, and very full of comfort...”

We’re grateful for the Baptist heritage we received. Many of the lessons we learned in the Baptist tradition will stay with us for life, shaping our personal devotion to God, how we disciple our children, and how we approach future ministry. Baptists prioritize Scripture, emphasize evangelism, and preach the Gospel with simplicity and clarity.

We love Baptists, even if we no longer claim the title. We believe Baptists are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We still hold to the sufficiency of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection to cleanse sins. We affirm that the Bible is God’s holy and inerrant Word. We will seek the salvation of lost souls for the rest of our lives while we work tirelessly to disciple those sheep who are within Christ’s flock.

And we look forward to the day when we stand before God, when our eyes are perfectly opened, and we will no longer say “I’m Baptist” or “I’m Anglican” but rather, “I’m in Christ.” We love you all and are genuinely grateful for how each of you has invested in our lives. God bless you.

Through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; in him you bring us to the knowledge of your truth, and unite us by the bond of one Faith and one Baptism, that we might love one another and manifest your love to the world.

(Common of an Ecumenicist, The Book of Common Prayer, 2019 ed., 158)