Baptism(from the Greek "baptizo" - "immerse in water", "baptize") - religious trend referring to Christian Protestantism. Founder baptism - John Smith(1554-1612). The main feature of the movement is abandonment of infant baptism, the belief that a person should choose faith consciously in adulthood, only in this way can it be observed voluntariness principle.

Baptist doctrine is based on the following tenets:

• The only authority in matters of faith and daily life is Bible;
• In the Church there can only be reborn people(deliberately baptized);
• Greater freedom for local church communities in independent solution of practical issues;
• Freedom of conscience;
• Separation of church from state(Until recently, the most orthodox Baptists rejected the oath of office, military service, and the courts).

Baptism began in 1609 in Amsterdam, when several English Puritans, under the leadership of John Smith, founded their religious community. Three years later baptism infiltrated England- exactly there the dogmas were finally formulated creeds.

Baptism is divided into two streams:

• General Baptists;
• Private Baptists.

General Baptists it is believed that Christ its victim atoned for the sins of all people without exception. To find salvation you need participation of God and human will... From point of view private Baptists, which is close to Calvinism and other Protestant movements, Christ atoned for the sins of only a select part of humanity... Human salvation is carried out only by God's will, it originally predetermined and he cannot be influenced by good or bad deeds. John Smith and his followers identified themselves as general Baptists. The first private Baptist congregation was formed in 1638 in England.

Baptists believe in Second Coming of Christ when the resurrection of the dead and the Last Judgment occur, which will reward everyone according to their merits - the righteous will go to heaven, and the wicked will be doomed to eternal torment.

In the Baptist Church there are elders, deacons and preachers... Moreover, the structure of the church very democratic- the most important issues are resolved jointly at church councils or meetings of believers.

In a relationship rites baptists do not adhere strictly to the canon, unlike, for example, the Catholic or Orthodox churches. Baptism's ordinances imply holding prayer meetings with the reading of sermons, fragments of Holy Scripture, the singing of psalms and hymns by all members of the community. Sometimes it is used musical accompaniment... The main service takes place in Sunday although additional meetings may be held on weekdays.

Baptists pay great attention to missionary work to attract new adherents to your church. The founder of missionary work is considered William Carrie who went to preach baptism to India in 1793... Having virtually no education, Carrie, thanks to her brilliant mind achieved great success in missionary work, translated Bible in 25 languages.

Among famous people who professed Baptism can be called: a writer John Bunyan, whose book inspired Pushkin's poem "The Wanderer", the great English poet John Milton, the writer Daniel Defoe- the author of the novel about the adventures of Robinson Crusoe, Nobel laureate, fighter for the rights of blacks in the United States Martin Luther King.

In Russia Baptist congregations emerged in the second half of the 19th century, and by the early 20th century, there were 20 thousand people practicing Baptism.

In the 70s of the 20th century in the USSR there were three independent Baptist organizations:

• Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists;
• Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists;
• Autonomous Evangelical Christian Baptist Churches.

There are currently 75 million Baptists Is one of the most numerous Protestant movements... Moreover, about two thirds Baptists live in USA.

βαπτίζω - immerse, baptize in water], one of the largest Protestants. denominations that arose in England in the 1st half. XVII century Accepting the basic tenets of the Reformation - the recognition of Holy. The Scriptures are the only authority in matters of faith, justification only by faith, the priesthood of all believers - B. added to them their own: the so-called. baptism by faith (only adults who are able to testify their personal faith in Christ through immersion), adherence to the principle of separation of the Church from the state, complete independence of communities. The first B. were often called Anabaptists (re-baptized), since they were opposed to the baptism of children and, not recognizing its reality, baptized those who entered the community anew. This attitude towards baptism was the only unifying feature of the rather heterogeneous Anabaptist movement that emerged in continental Europe in the early 20th century. XVI century; one pole of it was the doorman. Anabaptists, after. who became known as the Mennonites and Amish and rejected not only military service, but even just carrying weapons, and others - German. Anabaptists, such as T. Müntzer, J. Mathis and John of Leiden, who by force of arms established the "Kingdom of God on earth." Nevertheless, the followers of both those and others, both Catholic and Protestant. countries were sentenced to death (including in England in 1536). B. stated that they have nothing to do with the Anabaptists: in the first Baptist. Confessing the faith of 1644, they call themselves "those churches that are universally mistakenly called Anabaptists"; in the appendix to the Confession, which came out in 1646, they call themselves "baptized believers"; in the Confession of 1688 - “a congregation of Christians baptized by the proclamation of their faith” and “baptized by congregations”; later self-names "baptized churches", "baptized Christians", "churches of Christ", etc. appear. Presbyterians and Independents, dissident but legal denominations.

History of Baptism

The Reformation in England can be called a "reformation from above", since the main driving force was the secular authorities. The process was initiated by Cor. Henry VIII, to-rogo November 3. 1534 Parliament proclaimed the head of the Church of England. Anglican doctrine. The churches were a fusion of Catholicism, Lutheranism and Calvinism, combining, for example, the doctrine of justification by faith and predestination of the elect for salvation, on the one hand, and the preservation of the church hierarchy (episcopal structure), headed by a king, and others. Soon in the country a movement of Puritans (Latin purus - pure) appeared, advocating the continuation of reforms and the cleansing of the Church from the remnants of papism, as well as demanding the replacement of the episcopal system with the Presbyterian, under which local Churches would be governed by elders chosen by the parishioners. The Presbyterians, the moderate wing of the Puritans, were strict Calvinists and supporters of the state. control over the Church; radicals, separatists, or independents, advocated the separation of the church from the state and for the complete independence of local congregational communities (hence their other name - Congregationalists). They believed that the Church should not be identified with the entire baptized population, since its members can only be those who have repented of their sins and sincerely believed in Christ. The separatists organized their parishes from the end. XVI century, but a special Church was not created and eventually disappeared. Separatism was a breeding ground for Brownists, Barrowists, Quakers, Antitrinitarians, Presbyterians and B.

The founder of the 1st community of B. is considered J. Smith, a graduate of Cambridge un-that, to-ry in 1606 joined first to the Puritans, then to the Lincolnshire separatists-Brownists. In 1606, the separatists, fleeing from religions. persecution, were forced to flee to Amsterdam. One of the separatist groups, under the hands. J. Robinson, moved to Leiden and later. formed the core of the "Pilgrim Fathers", who in 1620 went to America on the ship "Mayflower". Smith and his supporters, including T. Helves, settled in Amsterdam and, under the influence of the teachings of Arminius and the Dutch Mennonites, became a supporter of the Arminian doctrine of Christ's atonement for all people by His death and a convinced opponent of infant baptism. In the book. "Seal of the Beast" (The character of the Beast, 1609), he explains his departure from the Brownists by the fact that they retain the practice of infant baptism, and refers to the Anabaptists, who “did not introduce a new covenant, but established a new, or apostolic, baptism by whom the Antichrist was cast down. " Smith argued that all of Christ's institutions were lost and people must restore them. Having united, 2 or 3 people can create a church and baptize themselves, but baptism must be preceded by repentance and faith, which is not found either in the Church of England or among the Puritans. In the same year, Smith baptized himself and 36 of his supporters by pouring a shower, for which he received the nickname "self-baptizer" (English the se-baptist, self-baptizer). Together with his followers, he was expelled from the Brownist community and created an independent community in Amsterdam, which is considered the 1st Baptist. In aug. 1612 Smith died in Amsterdam and the community soon fell apart.

After Smith's death, his "Declaration of Faith" was published; it consists of 27 articles and gives a complete picture of his views, eg. Section 2 says: "We believe that God created and redeemed the human race in His own image and prepared all people for life." Baptism is called "an external sign of the forgiveness of sins, death and resurrection, and therefore cannot refer to infants" (n. 14); “The Lord's Supper is an external sign of communion in Christ, the fullness of faith of the members of the community on the basis of faith and love” (p. 15), that is, a sacrament, v. Sp. Smith is not.

Shortly before the death of Smith, due to disagreements that arose, B.'s group, led by Gelves, returned to London (late 1611 - early 1612). In 1612 Gelves was imprisoned for publishing his book. "The Mystery of Iniquity", where he demanded complete freedom of religion. he sent a copy of the book to Cor. Jacob I. In 1616 Gelves died in prison, but B. did not cease to exist.

General B.

Followers of Smith and Helves began to be called after. general B., because they adhered to the Arminian view of the atoning sacrifice of Christ, arguing that He redeemed all people, and not just the elect. By 1626 there were 5 Baptists in England. communities, in 1644 - 47. Between 1640 and 1660. B. as a result of long discussions came to the conclusion that baptism should be performed only by immersion. General B. officially declared the obligation of this method of baptism in their first confession, published in 1660.

Until 1689, B. was subjected to constant repression, and only the "Act of Tolerance" eased their situation by allowing them freedom of prayer meetings. In the XVII-XVIII centuries. among general B. the views of antitrinitarians were widespread. From 1671 to 1731, at meetings of the Baptist General Assembly, the anti-Trinitarian heresy was regularly discussed, edges were known in England from the beginning. XVII century thanks to the Socinian (see. Socinian) literature, brought from Europe, and became widespread among the separatists. By 1750, many of the general B. became Unitarians (see Unitarianism). In 1802 the General Assembly of general B. was divided into those who joined the private B., and those who went over to the Unitarians. Those who did not adhere to either one or the other founded a missionary society in 1816. To the end. XIX century. contradictions in the teachings of general and particular B. were smoothed out, and in 1891 they united.

Private B.

The overwhelming majority of the present. B. call themselves private, or particular, trace their origin from dissenters (independents) - consistent Calvinists who put forward the idea of ​​a church, gathered by the Spirit of God (eng. Gathered church - assembled church), and not an individual person or state. Anyone who realizes himself as a true, born-again Christian should seek his fellow believers and form a special church, not limited by geographical boundaries (for example, parishes). The Independents, although they were convinced that Christ. the congregations must follow the Congregational principle of organization, but did not insist on a complete break with the Church of England. This position did not suit the radical members, who did not see the point in waiting for the continuation of the reforms of the Church of England. Among them was Pastor G. Jacob, who led the Congregation of Independents in London. In 1616, he, together with his followers, founded a community, a cut after. led by Pastors J. Lathrop and G. Jesse, so the congregation was often called "JLJ Church" by their initials. In 1633, a discussion began in the community about the meaning and meaning of baptism, and as a result, a group broke away from it. J. Spilsbury, edge was re-baptized in 1638 (baptism in the community was performed both by pouring and sprinkling). By 1640 there were at least 2 Baptists in London. communities that have come to the conclusion that only baptism by immersion can be true baptism. This baptism was practiced by the Gaul. the Mennonites, to whom representatives of the London B. were sent. After their return, 56 members of both communities were baptized by immersion. In 1644, private Baptists officially declared in the "First London Confession" of the faith of private Baptists (signed by 7 congregations), which consisted of 15 points, that baptism should be performed only by immersion, since “this is a sign that must be answered .. the interest that the saints have in the death, burial and resurrection of Christ; with the same certainty with which a body immersed in water appears again, the bodies of the saints will be exalted by the power of Christ on the day of resurrection to reign with the Savior. "

The number of private B. grew rather slowly, since, believing in the salvation of only a select few, they did not engage in missionary work. The situation changed after 1750, when, under the influence of Methodism, private B.'s interest in missionary work increased and their numbers grew sharply. During this time, such Baptists as E. Fuller (1754-1815), R. Hall (1764-1831), and W. Carey (1761-1834) became famous. In 1779, The Baptist Home Mission Society was founded. In 1792, J. Carey founded the English Baptist Missionary Society, which marked the beginning of the modern. missionary movement in English-speaking countries, and became its first missionary in India. B. retained great influence in religion. and the political life of Great Britain in the XIX century. In 1813, The Baptist Union of Great Britain and Ireland was formed. In 1891, a part of general B. joined the union. Private B., to-rye remained faithful to "strict Calvinism", were called "strict Baptists" and formed 3 regional associations. In 1976 they joined the Baptist. communities adhering to the Calvinist doctrine of "sovereign grace" and formed the "Grace" assembly.

Non-community structures

Between 1640-1660, when there was a particularly rapid growth of Baptists. communities, there was a need to create structures that unite them. The oldest and most viable of these is the Association of Local Communities. General B. met in London in 1624 and 1630. for discussing religious issues, but official. the structure was not created. Various branches and associations of English. B. convened general assemblies usually in London. In 1653, general B. was the first to approve the General Assembly as a permanent body. They insisted that its decisions were binding on all congregations, since “the church is one” (eg, in the Confession of 1678), and that the congregations should be controlled by the assembly; private B. never allowed their assemblies and general assemblies to claim the role of "church" and issue acts that are binding on all communities. In the "Second London Confession" of private B. of 1677 it is said that to resolve difficult cases, communities can convene assemblies, but no one can impose their opinions and decisions on local communities and interfere in their affairs, violate their freedom. In the 90s. XVII century among the English. B. a discussion arose about the use of music in worship. In previous years, this issue was not discussed, because the first B. considered singing as one of the types of "fixed" prayer. Then the singing of psalms (but not hymns) without muses began to spread everywhere. accompaniment. Only the influence of the Methodists finally consolidated the muses. performing psalms and hymns during prayer meetings.

Baptist organizations and congregations

(history and modern state).

North. and Yuzh. America

As a result of the regularly arising persecutions, B. from 1638 began to immigrate to the English. colonies in the North. America, but even there they were harassed by local Congregationalists. B. fled to Nov. Amsterdam (modern. New York), which was under the control of the Dutch, known for their religious tolerance, and Rhode Island. At the same time, many of the "persecuted" Puritans and their descendants who came to America became adherents of Baptism, for example. Roger Williams (1603-1683), one of the "pioneers of religious freedom" in America. A graduate of Cambridge (1627), he was ordained in the Church of England and became chaplain of Sir William Masham, who introduced him to O. Cromwell and T. Hooker. Under their influence, Williams' nonconformist convictions developed completely, he went over to the separatists, adopted Calvinist views on the Church and decided to leave England (1631). He resolutely rejected the Puritan "theocracy", insisted on the separation of the church from the state, and adhered to the principle of "freedom of the soul." He was convinced that every person is responsible to God and does not need a church or a priest, since he himself is a priest (Heb. 4.15-16; 10. 19-22). Following his trial in Boston, Williams was expelled from the colony for "going astray and spreading new and dangerous opinions against the authority of the magistrate." But his associates believed that he was expelled for upholding religions. freedom and the belief that only NT is the only source of faith and religion. practice. Williams headed to the separatist colony in Plymouth, where there was a conflict over property ownership. Williams was convinced that only the purchase of land from the Indians, and not a patent signed by the King of England, gives the right to own this land. In addition, he argued that the magistrate has no right to interfere in matters of religion. The authorities considered these views of Williams dangerous, and he had to leave for Salem, where in 1634 he became a pastor, but was soon forced to leave this city too. In 1636, he bought land from the Indians and founded the colony of Providence (Rhode Island) on it, which became a refuge for Quakers, Anabaptists and all those who were not accepted by officers. authorities in other colonies. In 1639 he christened himself and 10 more people. and founded the first Baptist. community to Amer. earth, although he did not call himself B.

The next pastor of the church in Rhode Island was T. Olney, after him J. Clark, who finally formed the Williams congregation as a Baptist. (no written evidence of the formation of other communities has survived). In 1652 it was reorganized on the platform of general B. In 1643 and 1651-1654. Williams visited England to obtain from the king a charter for land ownership, cor. Charles II approved the legality of the existence of the colony and secured freedom of religion on its territory. From this time onwards, the general B. settled mainly in Rhode Island. In 1670 they formed an association, but nevertheless they never played a large role in religion. life of Amer. colonies.

In 1665 a Baptist was founded. community in Boston, its members for several. years were persecuted, but it was here that the first Baptist appeared. confession of faith in Amer. colonies. Oldest Baptist. the congregation in the South was organized at Kittery, Maine in 1682 by William Screven. Although Rhode Island preserved their traditions, Philadelphia became their center. In 1707, 5 churches in the colonies of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware created the Philadelphia Baptist Association by correspondence, which began to carry out active missionary work and contributed to the spread of Baptism in all colonies. The first missionary program was adopted by the association in 1755. In 1751, with the participation of the Philadelphia Association, an association was organized in Charleston, South Carolina, since that time a Baptist. associations began to arise in different parts of America.

Amer. B. showed great interest in the development of education. The Hopewell Academy was founded in 1756, and the first Baptist was formed on Rhode Island in 1764. un-t - Brownovsky. After 1800, many educational institutions of various levels appeared, including the University of Chicago.

The growth of the number of B. was promoted by the so-called. The "Great Awakening" that gripped the North. America in the middle. XVIII century It gave birth to the Revivalist B.-separatists, to-rye entered into a coalition with the first Baptists. communities of New. England. In the south, the separatists maintained their independence and independence for a long time. In 1755, the separatist Shubael Sterns founded a community in Sandy Creek and other cities. In 1758, these communities united into an association. Doctrinally, the separatists did not differ in any way from private B., but their rejection of the rigid church organization and discipline gave rise to conflicts between separatists and “regular” ones. In 1787, reconciliation was achieved, and the pastors, the guides of Revivalism, rushed through the south. borders in different colonies, laying solid foundations for increasing the number of B. in the XIX century. The South of the United States remains one of the centers of Baptism to this day.

Dr. a factor that contributed to the spread of Baptism was the patriotism of Byelorussia, which was openly manifested with the outbreak of the War of Independence of the North American colonies (1775-1783). B. made a demand for religions. political freedom and supported P. Henry, T. Jefferson, J. Washington, thereby earning their gratitude. B. South took part in the creation of the Bill of Rights, which guaranteed religion. freedom for everyone. As a result, in the end. XVIII century the number and influence of B. in the North. America have grown significantly. By 1800, there were 48 Baptists. associations, to-rye were created to solve common problems, and not to guide the communities that were part of them. Nevertheless, some communities did not enter into associations, fearing to lose their independence; to expand their influence, they used the experience of the Baptist Missionary Society, based on an individual mission in collaboration with others, but without subordination to each other. Similar, so-called. public, the method made it possible to create independent foreign and domestic missions with the financial participation of their members. In 1812 Congregational missionaries A. and E. Judson and L. Rice went to India. During the trip, all three were baptized in Calcutta and decided to become a Baptist. missionaries outside the United States. The Judsons went to Burma, and the Rice returned to the United States to set up a missionary organization to preach overseas. May 18, 1814 33 Baptist delegates. America's congregations met in Philadelphia and created a general Baptist convention. denomination in the United States for a foreign mission, the so-called. "Three-year convention of foreign missions" (its meetings were held every 3 years). Although the convention planned, in addition to the mission abroad, to take part in solving internal problems, over time its activities were limited only to the foreign mission. In 1826 it was renamed the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society; the structure of the organization was built "according to the social method": for each ministry there was a separate society. In 1824, Mr .. B. created a society in America for the publication and distribution of their literature (American Baptist Publication Society), in 1832 organized the Society of the internal mission (American Baptist Home Mission Society).

In 1840, at a meeting of 3 national Baptists. on-in there were debates on the issue of slavery, the right of southerners to organize their missionary society for work abroad, the boundaries of the interference of intercommunal organizations in the internal affairs of communities and the South's neglect of internal mission. In 1844, Mr .. B. in Georgia turned to the Internal Mission Society with a request to appoint a slave owner as a missionary. After much debate, this appointment did not take place, and then the Overseas Mission Society refused a similar request to the Alabama Convention.

May 10, 1845 293 Baptists. head from the south. states, representing 365 thousand believers, gathered in Augusta (Georgia) and created the Southern Baptist Convention (Southern Baptist Convention), which meant a break with the northerners. And although their charter stated that the activities of the convention would be aimed at solving educational programs, as well as the tasks of the internal mission, the convention was mainly concerned with the problems of the foreign mission. After the Civil War (1861-1865), both the Internal Mission Society and the American Baptist Publishing Society continued to operate in the South, although some communities in the South. B. constantly protested against the instructions coming from these general Baptists., And actually sowing. baptist. structures.

After the end of the Civil War, sowing. B. offered to reunite, but the southerners did not want to return to the form of existence, which they rejected in 1845 Society of the internal mission of sowing. B. continued to work very successfully with educational programs in the South, among the Negro population, thereby creating serious competition for the South. B. In the 80s. XIX century. Southern convention announced south. states by their territory. The opening of the Council of Sunday Schools in 1891 marked a new era in the history of the south. B., as it became apparent that the South was moving further and further towards the formation of its denomination. Now everything is south. communities were supplied with educational literature from one center. After the Second World War, the Southern Baptist Convention, due to the growth of its members in the north and west of the country, abandoned regional restrictions. In the 2nd floor. XX century she became the largest Protestant. unification in the USA. At the same time, this convention became more and more separated from other Christ. denominations, seeking to centralize government. Thus, south. The B., who once made up a small part of the population of Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, and especially Texas, gained influence on a national scale. A significant increase in the south. B. was observed between 1940 and 1980. The members of this convention are distinguished by active missionary work, revivalist zeal in helping the poor, tireless preaching and rigid centralization of the activities of all structures.

The Southern Baptist Convention is the only major denomination in America that is not a member of the National Council of Churches of Christ (NCC) and the World Council of Churches (WCC). In the 50s. XIX century. Landmarkism was born in Tennessee. The ideologists of this movement claimed that only a Baptist. congregations are true churches and that they have existed throughout the history of Christianity. The Landmarkists proclaimed the existence of a special and only true Baptist. "Apostolic succession". In 1854 J.M. Pendleton published the book. "Restoration of old landmarks" (An Old Landmark Reset), in which he argued that in the NT there is no mention of the "universal church", traces. Local communities are absolutely independent and are the true heirs of Christians of the apostolic times. In 1905, Landmarkists and Independent Baptists. the congregations formed the American Baptist Association in Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas.

Caribbean Basin Countries

The first B. in the Bahamas was the slave F. Spence, who arrived there in 1780 together with his masters - Brit. loyalists from the North. America. Spence began preaching to the local population and founded a congregation in Nassau. In the present. At the time, the Bahamas National Baptist Missionary and Educational Convention has 55,000 members (over 200 congregations) and is the largest denomination in the country. J. Leal, slave, freed Brit. army and left with her North. America in 1782, created by a Baptist. community on the island of Jamaica (1783). In 1814, Brit. The Baptist Missionary Society sent the first mission to the island to help the Baptists. movement. In 1842, the Baptist Missionary Society of Jamaica was created, a cut began to send missions to Africa and the Caribbean Islands. In 1849 the Baptist Union of Jamaica was founded; in the present time it consists of 40 thousand people. (300 communities) and is one of the largest in the country. There are other Baptists on the island. groups with a total number of approx. 10 thousand people The American W. Monroe founded a community of English-speaking Burmese in Port-au-Prince in 1836, in the 20th century. representatives of the American Baptist Internal Mission and other missionary organizations appeared on the island of Haiti. In the present. At the time, the Baptist Convention of Haiti has 125,000 members. (90 communities), the total number of Bolivia on the island exceeds 200,000, that is, Bolivia are the largest denomination in the country. In 1826 W. Hamilton founded a Baptist on Trinidad Island. community among the Amer. Settlers - Church of the Fifth Company. Afro-Amer. B. were the first to start work on the island of Barbados and from 1905 to 1907 founded 3 communities there. Later, missionaries from the Free Will Baptists from the Sowings appeared. states of the United States, the Free Baptist Association and the Southern Baptist Convention. The Baptist Convention of Barbados was established in 1974 (currently 421 people, 4 congregations), the National Baptist Mission (black congregations) unites 1500 people. (9 communities). First Baptist. English speaking community in Dominican Republic was founded in 1843. The Dominican National Baptist Convention (since 1968) has 1,400 members. (23 communities); the rest of B.'s groups, united in 8 different org-tions, - approx. 5 thousand people (over 100 communities). On the island of Cuba missionary work was carried out by the Baptist Missionary Society of Jamaica, sowing. and south. B. (USA) and Free Will Baptists. In the present. time on the island approx. 34 thousand B. (400 communities). In Puerto Rico, the Baptist Association (now a convention) was established by the Sowing. B. (USA) in 1902; in the present time it includes 27 thousand people. (82 communities); in 1965 south. B. (USA) created the Baptist Association of Puerto Rico (4,200 people, 59 communities). Small communities also exist in Trinidad, Guyana and Suriname. Most of the big Baptists. unions are members of the regional Caribbean Baptist Federation, which is a member of the Baptist World Alliance.

Countries in Asia and the Pacific Islands

In 1793 the Baptist Missionary Society of England sent W. Carey and J. Thomas to Bengal, where they established the first mission. Later, missionaries from the United States began to work in the country. In the present. time in India lives 1 million 850 thousand B., to-rye are united in 40 conventions and associations. Ind. B. in number is second only to B. USA. In 1813, the first Amer. missionary A. Judson. In the present. time baptist. The country's convention brings together 16 different Baptists. unions (630 thousand people, 3600 communities) and is the largest Christ. denomination. In Thailand, in Bangkok, W. Dean founded in 1831 the first Chinese Baptist Church in Asia. In the present. time in the country approx. 36 thousand B. (335 communities). There is intense Baptist work in Cambodia. missionaries began in 1991, and in the present. time the number of B. reached 10 thousand people. (about 200 communities). Vietnam today is home to approx. 500 B. (1 officer community in Ho Chi Minh City and 3 underground). There is no single national Baptist in China. convention, there are 6 independent Baptists in the southeast of the country. groups, the number of which is unknown. Baptist. conventions in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan have 56 thousand and 26 thousand people respectively. In 1994, the first Baptist was registered. community in Mongolia. Baptist. community in Japan was organized by Amer. missionaries in Yokohama in 1873, but B.'s expansion into this country began after the end of the Second World War. In the present. time in the country approx. 50 thousand B., united in several. independent unions. In the South. Korea in 1949 Christ Church in Vost. Asia, which grew out of the Baptists. The congregation, founded by the Americans in 1889, became the Baptist Convention of Korea. In the present. At the time, the convention unites 680 thousand members (2145 congregations), and one of its leaders, Pastor B. Kim, is the president of the Baptist World Alliance. In the Philippines, where the first Amer. missionaries appeared in 1898, the number of B. reaches 350 thousand people. (4100 communities). In Indonesia, in 1956, the Australian was the first to start working. B .; today in the country approx. 140 thousand B. (about 800 communities). The Baptist Union of Kazakhstan unites over 11 thousand members, the Baptist Union of Kyrgyzstan - over 3 thousand people. Baptist Union membership Cf. Asia, which includes B. Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, 3800 people. In addition, there are communities of Korean B. in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan - 1950 people. and Independent reformed B. in Kazakhstan - c. 3600 people In Australia, English. Baptist J. Saunders organized the first Baptist. the congregation in Sydney in 1834; in 1891 an Association of 26 communities appeared; in the present At the time, the Baptist Union of Australia has 62,579 members. (823 communities). In New. Zeeland's first community appeared in 1854, its head was D. Dolomor; baptist. the union was created in 1880, and in the present. time its number - 22456 people. (249 communities).

African countries

Oldest Baptist. the congregation, which has survived to this day, is the Regent Road Baptist Church in Freetown, Sierra Leone, founded in 1792 by D. George. However, B.'s activities in Zap. Africa was unproductive until the 30s. XX century, when intensive missionary work began. In the present. time in Zap. Africa, there are over 1 million B., communities are organized in all countries of the region, except Mauritania. There is a Baptist in Equatorial Africa. communities are not created only in Gabon. Baptist. the missionary society (London) together with B. Jamaica founded in 1843 a mission on the island of Fernando Po (Bioko), which the Spaniards destroyed in 1858. In 1845 J. Merrick from Jamaica settled in Vost ... Cameroon and began to translate Sacred. Scripture for the locals. At the same time, Brit. missionary A. Seiker began work in Vost. Cameroon and 4 years later founded the first Baptist. community. In the present. time in Cameroon more than 110 thousand B., united in 4 Baptists. convention. In 1818 in Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo) there was an internal mission to them. Livingstone (Livingstone Inland Mission), later Amer., Swede began to work. and norv. missionaries. In the present. time at 13 Baptist. communities unite 2 thousand communities with more than 800 thousand people. In the South. In Africa, W. Miller founded the first Baptist in Grahamstown in 1823. community among the English. settlers, later - among the black population, in 1888 - among the "colored", in 1903 - among the Asian emigrants. (mostly ind.) origin. The South African Baptist Union was formed in 1877; in 1966 black B. founded the Baptist Convention of the South. Africa, which replaced the Bantu Church, which was under the rule of the white community. In Angola, the first mission appeared in 1818 (Baptist Missionary Society, London), in the present. time there approx. 100 thousand B.C. Baptists in Malawi. the community was founded by the Englishman J. Booth in 1892. time in the country approx. 200 thousand B. In Mozambique, missionaries of the Free Baptist Union of Sweden (1921) and the South African General Mission (1939) preached Baptism. In 1968, they created the United Baptist Church, edged in the present. nursing time approx. 200 thousand people In Vost. Africa missionaries-B. appeared late, ex. first dates. B. in Burundi - in 1928, in Rwanda - in 1939, Amer. south B. in Kenya and Tanzania - in 1956 Missionaries from the Baptist General Conference (USA) in 1950 were the first to work in Ethiopia. Today in Vost. Africa approx. 900,000 Baptist adherents. nominations, of which 400 thousand in Kenya. B. is practically absent in the North. Africa and Sudan. In Egypt there is a community of approx. 500 people, founded in 1931 by S.U. Girgiz.

Continental European countries

History of Europe. Baptism begins with I. G. Onken, who is often called "the father of continental Baptism." He's kind. in England in a Lutheran family. After moving to Scotland, he began attending the Presbyterian Church. In 1823 he joined the Methodists and was sent to preach in Hamburg. On the first one. meeting Jan 7. 1827 there were 10 Germans, and February 24 - several. honeycomb Onken, unlicensed to preach and not a Hamburg citizen, was arrested for breaking the law. Once freed, he became a "wandering" preacher. In 1828, Onken obtained citizenship in Hamburg, having bought a bookstore for this. He began to trade Christ. lit-swarm and distribute the Bible. Lutheran. The church offered Onken to return to the faith of the fathers, but he refused, entered into correspondence with Amer. B. on the issue of baptism and in 1834 was baptized in Elba with his wife and 3 closest friends American B. Sears. Onken took an active part in the activities of the American Baptist Society overseas mission and, fulfilling his instructions, continued to preach Baptism there. state-wah and throughout Europe. Baptist. community in Hamburg was officially allowed only in 1857, and in 1866 the Senate and the city council recognized the equal rights of B. with the Lutherans. Onken went to preach in Scandinavia, Russia (1864, 1869) and Vost. Europe and everywhere was founded by a Baptist. communities. In 1849 he set up a six-month missionary course, which soon became a seminary, which in 1888 received academic status, acquired a huge house, and continued to send out the Bible and Baptist. books to all parts of Europe. Onken was supported by Europ. Bible Societies, Mennonites, Moravian Brethren, Lutheran Inland Mission, Christian Alliance and leaders of various pietist movements in Germany, and American Baptist Mission Society, Philadelphia Baptist Association and British Private Baptist Overseas Mission. In the present. time Germany is one of the centers of continental Baptism, the number of parishioners exceeds 100 thousand people. In recent years, the number of them. Baptists increased markedly due to immigration from Russia. The main part of it. Bulgaria is a member of the Union of Evangelical Free Congregations - 88,000 people. B. appeared in Austria in 1846; in the present At the time, the Baptist Union unites 1130 people. in 19 communities. in Switzerland B. since 1847, at the present. time 1291 people. in 15 congregations it is united into the German-speaking Baptist Union. In the Netherlands (since 1845) the number of the Baptist Union is at the present. time 12 thousand people (89 communities), 3 other Baptists. groups are approx. 15 thousand people in 130 congregations; in Poland (from 1858), when it was still part of the Russian Empire, B. were few in number. In the present. time there are 65 communities, uniting approx. 4 thousand people In the Czech Republic - 2300 people. and 26 congregations; in Slovakia - 2 thousand people. and 17 congregations. In Sweden, Baptism was preached by the sailor F. Nilsson, baptized by Onken in 1847, and G. Schroeder, baptized in New York in 1844. date of B.'s appearance in Sweden. In the present. At the time, the Swedish Baptist Union consisted of 18 thousand people. The rest are divided into groups, the Free Baptist Union (1872) and the Orebro Mission (since 1892) united with the Baptist holiness movement, close to Pentecostals, and formed their own movement (20 thousand members). In Denmark (from 1839) and Norway (from 1860) - approximately 5 thousand B. In Norway, Sweden and Denmark the decline of the Baptists is observed. movement. The total number of members of the Baptist Unions of Sweden and Finland on the territory of the latter is approx. 2 thousand people In Latvia (since 1860) - 6,300 people, in Estonia (since 1884) - 6 thousand people, in Lithuania - 500 people. Work him. B. in Hungary began in 1846 G. Mayer. The division between the German-speaking and Hungarian-speaking communities led to the creation of 2 Baptists. unions, their unification took place in 1920 In the present. At the time, the Baptist Union of Hungary had 11,100 members. in 245 congregations. In Romania, the first B. appeared in Bucharest in 1856, later, in 1875, B. came to Transylvania from Hungary, nevertheless a Baptist. union in Romania was formed only in 1909. At the time, there are 2 Baptists in Romania. Union: Romanian - 90 thousand members in 1500 congregations and Hungarian - 8500 people. in 210 congregations. The first B. on the territory of the present. Serbia was baptized by the same Mayer in 1875 in Novi Sad (5 people). The Yugoslav Baptist Union was created in 1924, but due to the disintegration of the SFRY it ceased to exist in 1991. time for her ex. territory, there are 6 independent unions, of which the largest is in Croatia (4500 people), the smallest (139 people) was created in 2000 in Bosnia and Herzegovina... In total on the territory of the former. Yugoslavia lives approx. 7400 B. and there is approx. 100 congregations. In Albania, the Baptist Union was established in 1998, and in the present. time its number is 2100 people. in 5 congregations. In 1880, Russian. German I. Kargel baptized the first Baptist in Bulgaria. In the present. time there are 61 congregations and 4100 members. Least fertile ground for Baptists. mission turned out to be Greece. The first Greek Baptists appeared in 1969, in the present. their time was 184 people. in 3 communities. In addition, there is an English speaking International Baptist. community in Athens.

In lat. countries, France, Spain and Italy, with a predominantly Catholic. population, Baptism took root with difficulty, despite the efforts of the Amer. missionaries who began their activities there in the 20s. XIX century. In the present. time B.'s number in these 3 countries - apprx. 35500 people in 600 communities, the activities of which are completely dependent on foreign missionaries. In France, the first Amer. missionaries appeared in 1832, and by the beginning. XX century 30 communities were organized, bringing together 2 thousand people. Theological differences led to the fact that by 1921 there were 3 independent Baptists in the country. org-tion. After the end of the Second World War, the missionary activity of Amer. Baptists led to the emergence of numerous small Baptists. groups. In the present. time more than 10 thousand people in 200 communities they are members of 8 national organizations. In Belgium, where missionaries came from France, the preaching was carried out mainly among the French-speaking population. In 1922, the Baptist Union was created there, numbering 917 people, united in 30 communities. In the present. time, including independent B. from the USA, in Belgium - approx. B. 1500 in 45 communities. Similarly, through France, Baptism entered the French-speaking part of Switzerland in 1872; in the present time the Evangelical Union unites approx. 560 people in 15 communities. First Baptist. community in Italy ("Mission La Spezia") was organized in 1867 by English. Baptist E. Clark. In 1871, Amer. missionary W. N. Cote (Southern Baptist Convention) organized a congregation in Rome. In 1956, the Evangelical Baptist Union was formed. time it includes approx. 6500 people, united in 100 communities. In 1947, conservative Amer. B., who created the Evangelical Baptist Assembly (507 people in 6 organizations). In 1870, the American W. I. Knapp created the first community in Madrid (Spain), later his work was continued by the Swede. missionary E. Lund. In the beginning. 20s XX century The Southern Baptist Convention opened several in Spain. missions. In 1929, the Baptist Union was formed (at present, 8,365 people in 73 communities). In 1957, the Federation of Evangelical Independent Churches (4400 members in 62 organizations) spun off from the union. There are also foreign Baptists in the country. congregations. The total number of B. - 14 thousand people. in over 150 communities. In 1888, J.C. Jones created the first Baptist. community in Portugal. In 1911, a mission was sent to the country from Brazil under the hands of. J.D. Oliveira. In the present. time Portuguese Baptist Convention consists of 4379 people. (63 congregations), Association of Portuguese Baptist Churches (belongs to the US Baptist Missionary Association) - 315 people. (21 congregations), Association of Baptists for World Evangelism - 350 people. (7 communities). In addition, there are a number of independent Baptists in the country. congregations. In Malta, the Bible Baptist Church was established in 1985, in the present. there are 48 people in it, in the Evangelical Baptist Church (since 1989) - 60 people.

Most are Baptists. unions in Europe are members of the European Baptist Federation, founded in 1949 in Switzerland. The first Federation Council took place in 1959 in Paris. It includes 50 national unions from 46 countries of Europe, Eurasia and Wed. Asia. Albania and Malta are associate members as no alliances have yet been formed in these countries. The European Federation is the largest regional member of the Baptist World Alliance, the most numerous unions in its composition are the organizations of Great Britain (152 thousand people) and Ukraine (120,500 people).

Lit .: Nuttall G. F. Visible Saints: The Congregational Way, 1640-1660. Oxf. 1957; Maring N. H., Hudson W. S. Baptist Manual of Policy and Practice. Chicago; Los Ang., 1963; Torbet R. A History of the Baptists. L., 1966; Vedder H. A Short History of the Baptists. Valley Vorge, 1967; Lumpkin W. L. Baptist Confessions of Faith. Valley Forge (Pa.) 1969; Some Early Nonconformist Church Books / Ed. H. G. Tibbutt. Bedford, 1972; Association Records of the Particular Baptists of England, Wales and Ireland to 1660: In 3 vol. / Ed. B. R. White. L., 1971, 1973, 1974; The Records of a Church of Christ in Bristol, 1640-1687 / Ed. R. Hayden. Bristol, 1974; Estep W. R. The Anabaptist Story. Grand Rapids, 1975; Tolmie M. The Triumph of the Saints: The Separate Churches of London, 1616-1649. Camb. 1977; Watts M. The Dissenters from the Reformation to the French Revolution. Oxf. 1978; The English Baptists of the 17th Cent. L., 1983; Brown R. The English Baptists of the 18th Century. L., 1986; MacBeth H. L. The Baptist Heritage: Four Centuries of Baptist Witness. Nashville, 1988; Belcher R., Mattia A. A Discussion of the 17th Cent. Particular Baptist Confessions of Faith. Southbridge, 1990; Association Life of the Particular Baptists of Northern England, 1699-1732 / Ed. S. Copson // English Baptist Records. L., 1991. Vol. 3; Waldron S. E. Baptist Roots in America. Boonton (N. J.) 1991; Exposition of the Parables. Grand Rapids, 1991r; Preaching from the Types and Metaphors of the Bible. Grand Rapids, 1992r; Haykin M. A. G. One Heart and One Soul: John Sutcliff of Olney, His Friends and His Times. Darlington, 1994; McGoldrick J. E. Baptist Successionism: A Crucial Question in Baptist History. Metuchen (N. J.) 1994; Baptists around the World: A Comprehensive Handbook / Ed. A. W. Wardin. Nashville, 1995; History of Baptism. Od., 1996; We Baptists. Franclin (Tenn.) 1999.

In the Russian Empire

The main territory of B.'s distribution became the Tauride, Kherson, Kiev, Yekaterinoslav, and Bessarabian provinces, as well as the Kuban, Don, and Transcaucasia. 80s XIX century - the province of the Volga region, that is, places of compact residence of him. colonists and Russian. sectarians (mostly Molokans). In the end. XVIII century to the invitation of the imp. Catherine II to populate vacant land in the south. regions of the country responded to the Mennonites and Lutherans from Prussia and Danzig. They received from the Russian. governments a number of benefits and privileges: exemption for 10 years from all taxes and military service, financial and material assistance; Mennonites received freedom of religion, and upon accepting citizenship they took an oath without an oath.

In the period from 1789 to 1815, Mennonite communities were organized into Khortitsky (18 colonies) and Molochansky (40 colonies) districts. Each community was headed by a spiritual foreman, who was elected by the community and ordained by other foremen. He performed baptism and the breaking of bread, and also confirmed deacons and preachers. Military service for the Mennonites was replaced by alternative service in forestries in southern Russia. The legislation of the Russian Empire attributed the Evangelical Lutheran Church to the "foreign confessions", which gave it, like all other "protected confessions", the right to freedom of worship and financial support of the state, but prohibited proselytism among the population that did not belong to the Evangelical Lutheran. confession. By 1890, 993 colonies existed in 8 provinces and regions in southern Russia and 610145 colonists lived. In the south, land plots were also distributed to nobles who wanted to engage in agriculture, military settlements were created; Khlysty, Subbotniks, Dukhobors and Molokans were resettled there from the central provinces; there fugitive peasants found refuge there, to-rye did not have their own land and became tenants on enslaving terms. Many of them went in it. colonies for work, but we are not aware of a single case of proselytism. The colonists lived in a rather closed manner, preserving national customs and language within the community.

The situation changed after the arrival of the Baptists in the colonies. missionaries, whose sermons lay on the ground already prepared by the Stundists (see Stundism). In Russia, there were two types of shtunda: pietic and novopietic, which later received the name "Baptist stunda." The Pietic Stunda entered the life of the colonies together with the Württemberg Pietists, who settled in the colonies of Rohrbach and Worms in 1817-1821. They, remaining members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church and regularly attending services, gathered for special classes - “hours” (German: Stunde - hour) for studying the Bible and for joint prayers in the homes of believers. They themselves called themselves "the brotherhood of the friends of God." The most famous figures of the pietic stunda were father and son Johann and Karl Bonekemper. From t. Sp. There was nothing illegal in the activities of the pietic shtunda, since everything took place within the framework of the Evangelical Lutheran Church and did not provoke any protest from its side. The Novopieticheskaya stunda appeared already in Ukraine both among the Mennonites and among the Lutherans much later than the Pietic one and existed initially in the form of "Wüst circles" or Mennonite NewPietic groups, which called themselves fraternal Mennonites. These Stundists almost immediately declared their rejection of the officers. Churches as "fallen" and about their desire to create special communities where they could "live by faith." Fraternal Mennonites of the Khortitsa environs. in 1854-1855 tried to separate from the officers. Mennonite communities. At the request of the Mennonite elders, the secular authorities applied punishments of varying severity to the secessionists, up to and including arrest, in order to secure their reunification with the communities. In 1860, a group of Mennonites in the Molochansk environs. left the community, demanding "baptism by faith" over the repentant and converted, as well as participation in the breaking of bread only converted. Molochansky church convention excommunicated all members from the church, after which the adm. oppression of the excommunicated, since they lost the privileges of the Mennonites and went into the category of sectarians. After repeated petitions to various authorities, up to the king, in 1864 the New Mennonites were officially recognized as a Mennonite community with the preservation of the corresponding privileges. Until a certain time, the Stundists did not attract the attention of the authorities, since everything that happened in the colonies was an "internal German affair", but then the Stundists of both directions began to appear among the Ukrainians, which was a violation of the laws of the Russian Empire, in which it was said that “Clergy and secular persons of other Christian confessions and gentiles are strictly obliged not to touch the conviction of the conscience of those who do not belong to their religion; otherwise, they are subject to certain penalties in criminal laws ”(Code of Laws of the Russian Empire. T. 11. Part 1.P.4).

The first Little Russian Stundists appeared in the village. The basis of the Odessa u. Kherson lips. According to J. Brown, the author of the book. "Stundism" (1892), the first Stundist in 1858 was F. Onishchenko, who joined the sect it. colonists who called themselves brothers but did not practice rebaptism. M. Ratushny, a friend and neighbor of Onishchenko, joined him in 1860, and gradually a community began to form (from the end of 1861 to the beginning of 1862), which by 1865 consisted of 20 people. under the arms. Town Hall. At the same time, communities appeared in the villages of Ignatievka, Ryasnopol, Nikolaevka. The community leaders were in close contact with him. brothers from the colony of Rohrbach, which was located nearby. Until 1867, the Stundists were closely watched, they tried to force them to attend the parish church, and then the fellow villagers, led by the headman, organized lynching, beat the main Stundists with rods; they arrested Ratushny, Balaban, Kapustyan and Osadchy and sent them to the Odessa prison. When the case was taken apart on the lips. level, they were released, not finding anything sectarian in their actions, since no one is prohibited from reading the Gospel at home. In Elisavetgrad u. (the villages of Karlovka and Lyubomirka) and in the Tavricheskaya lips. (Ostrikovo farm) Stundists-Ukrainians of the new Piety direction appeared after the emergence of this movement in 1859 in the colony of Starodanzig, which was located nearby. At first, Ukrainian. Stundists attended meetings there. community, and later created their own, which included E. Tsimbal and 9 more people, but had ties with him. the community was not interrupted. In the village. I. Ryaboshapka became the first Stundist in Lubomirke, who was converted by M. Gübner, a colonist from Starodanzig. Meetings ukr. Stundists consisted of reading and commenting on NZ, singing hymns from Sat. "Offering to Orthodox Christians", etc. "Unlearned" prayers, that is, they practically copied him. "Shtund", which was the reason for the name of them stundists. In addition, they criticized Orthodoxy. The Church and the way of life of their Orthodox Christians. neighbors as non-gospel, calling them idolaters. The spread of Baptism is associated with the activities of such mute. missionaries like A. Unger, G. Neufeldt and G. Viller. June 11, 1869 E. Tsimbal received a second baptism from G. Viller in the r. Sugaklee with him. colonists, and then became the first Ukrainian. presbyter. Ryaboshapka received "baptism by faith" from Tsimbal, and from him Ratushny and other Ukrainian. B., to-rye immediately began missionary work in the Kherson and Kiev provinces. By officer. data, the number of B. in the Kherson province. by 1881 it reached 3363 people. , and in only one Tarashchansky district. Kiev province-1334 people Baptism began to spread to the region. Don troops in Minsk, Bessarabian, Chernigov and other provinces.

In 1881 Ryaboshapka, in a letter to the Minister of Internal Affairs, asked for permission to open houses of worship, elect mentors, keep his own registers and officers. the name “community of baptized Christian Baptists”; with the same request Ratushny turns to the governor of Kherson. He calls the community "a society of Christian Baptists" or "a society of Christian Baptists of Russian nationality." Attached to the letter was "A Brief Catechism, or Statement of the Confession of Russian Baptists, that is, adult Christians." Its main provisions: salvation can only be from Jesus Christ, the baptized person immerses himself in the water once, only those who have been baptized are allowed to break the bread, the local church chooses the ministers from among those who have already been ordained (History of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in the USSR. P. 73) ... At the same time, Baptism began to spread in Transcaucasia, where the Molokan sect lived compactly. 20 Aug 1867 M. Kalveit baptized in the waters of the river. Chickens Molokanin N. Voronin, laying the foundation for the history of Russian. baptism. In 1871, 17-year-old V.G. Pavlov was baptized, 4 years later, by the decision of the community, he was sent to the Hamburg Seminary to receive missionary education, and already in 1876 Onken ordained him and sent him to Russia as a missionary. Pavlov translated The Hamburg Confession of Faith of the Baptists. The Tiflis community, reorganized by Pavlov, became a model for the creation of other communities.

In 1879, the "Opinion of the State Council on the spiritual affairs of the Baptists" was published, according to which B. received the right to freely conduct their services in specially designated premises, to have both Russian and foreign subjects as spiritual mentors (the latter after swearing an oath of allegiance) approved by the governor; keeping records of marriages, births and deaths of B. was transferred to the civil authorities. In 1882, it was clarified that the law did not apply to those who converted to Baptism from Orthodoxy. confessions, since the article on the prohibition of the transition from Orthodoxy to other confessions was not canceled (“Both those who were born in the Orthodox faith and those who turned to it from other faiths are forbidden to deviate from it and accept a different faith, even Christian ".- Charter on the prevention and suppression of crimes. Ch. 3. Item 36). In the same year, at the initiative of the New Mennonites I. Viler and P. M. Friesen, the first joint conference of fraternal Mennonites and B. took place in the Rickenau colony, attended by representatives of the communities of the Tauride and Bessarabian provinces, Elisavetgrad and Yekaterinoslavsky districts, Vladikavkaz and Tiflis. The main topic of the conference was missionary work, for its organization ministers were elected, to-rye received a certain amount of money for the time of work, and for their leadership - "Committee for the conduct of the mission" headed by Wheeler.

In May 1883, the "Opinion of the State Council on the granting of the schismatics of all religions the right to worship" was published, which allowed the activities of Russian. B. In May 1884, at the congress of representatives of the Russian. baptist. communities in with. Novovasilyevka Tavricheskaya lips. the Union of Russian Baptists of South Russia and the Caucasus was created, and Wheeler became its chairman. At the congress, new areas for missionary activity were identified and ministers were appointed to them, issues of the structure and activities of communities were discussed. Bp. Alexy (Dorodnitsyn) wrote that “the Russian Baptists, as a theoretical basis for their communal structure in the form of the rules of communal life, received from the German Baptists, and in the practical application of these rules they always used their own guidance and instructions” ( Alexy (Dorodnitsyn), bp... P. 395).

In 1884, the Cathedral of the Archpastors of the South-West. the edge of Russia discussed the state of affairs and measures to combat sectarianism, including against Baptism, and called for the strengthening of missionary work. At that time, the Odessa Missionary Brotherhood was formed in the name of St. ap. Andrew the First-Called, parish missionary committees were active in the Ekaterinoslav diocese. In 1887, 1891 and 1897. congresses of Orthodox Christians were held. missionaries, who also discussed the issue of work among B. The ecclesiastical authorities instructed the parish priests not to incite hatred of sectarians in Orthodox Christians, instilling in them “quiet sorrow” (Ushakova, p. 25), which in practice is not always succeeded. The wording of the 1883 law made it possible to interpret it differently. For example, Art. 10 (“Preceptors, mentors and other persons who fulfill spiritual requirements of schismatics are not subject to persecution for this, except for those cases when they are found guilty of spreading their delusions between Orthodox Christians or are caught in other criminal acts”) made it possible to find a pretext for the liquidation of the community, the closure of a prayer house, or B.'s exile in the Transcaucasus, and later in Siberia.

On Sept. 1894 B.'s position worsened, since a new circular from the Ministry of Internal Affairs removed the Stundists and B. from the law of 1883 and defined them as followers of "especially harmful trends", without the right to benefits and privileges. During this period, pl. B. moved to Siberia and Wed. Asia, seeking to avoid repression, and others were exiled there, which led to the emergence of the Baptists. communities where they did not exist before.

Almost simultaneously with B. in St. Petersburg, in aristocratic circles, the first communities of Evangelical Christians appeared, which arose as a result of the missionary activity of the English. Lord G. Redstock, who first visited St. Petersburg in 1874. His followers were gr. M. M. Korf, gr. A.P. Bobrinsky, princesses N.F.Liven and V.F. Gagarin. After Redstock, the community was headed by retired Colonel V.A.Pashkov, who provided his house for holding prayer meetings. Members of the community at their own expense maintained orphanages, opened free shelters, canteens, reading rooms, where, in addition to providing social assistance, they were engaged in promoting their views. From 1875 Evangelical Christians (often called "Pashkovites") began to publish in St. Petersburg g. "Russian worker", in 1876 founded the "Society for the Encouragement of Spiritual and Moral Reading" and began to distribute books and brochures of spiritual and moral content, the bulk of which were translated from English. or it. languages. In 1884, by the Highest order, the society was closed, and the propaganda of Pashkov's teachings was prohibited throughout the empire. Pashkov and Korf were expelled from the country. However, the preaching of evangelism did not end there, and by 1905 there were approx. 21 thousand evangelical Christians. In 1907, I.S.Prokhanov drew up a draft charter of the Russian Evangelical Union, on May 13, 1908 it was approved by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and in September. In 1909, the 1st All-Russian Congress of Evangelical Christians took place, Prokhanov was elected chairman of the conference. After the 2nd Congress (Dec. 1910 - Jan. 1911) the Union became part of the World Baptist Union, in 1911 Prokhanov was elected one of the vice-presidents (he held this post until 1928).

The teachings of Evangelical Christians contain 3 basic principles: all those who believe in Christ are saved; salvation is a gift and is given by God without efforts on the part of man; a person is saved by faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ, realizing himself as a powerless sinner. Unlike B., Evangelical Christians practice "open bread-breaking", that is, they admit other Christians to him, and not only those baptized according to the evangelical rite, in addition, any member of the community on its behalf can perform bread-breaking, marriage, and baptism.

In the end. 1904 - early. 1905 Evangelical Christians and B. jointly prepared "A Brief Note on the Origin, Development, and the Present Situation of the Evangelical Movement in Russia and on the Needs of Evangelical Christians, known by various popular nicknames: Pashkovites, Baptists, Novomennonites, etc." along with proposals to amend the legislation, Prokhanov submitted it on January 8. 1905 in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Apr 17 1905 the law “On strengthening the principles of religious tolerance” appeared, October 17. In 1906, the law “On the order of formation and action of Old Believer and sectarian communities and on the rights and obligations of followers of Old Believer consents and sectarians who separated from Orthodoxy” came into force. These laws made it possible for B. to own movable and immovable property, keep registers of births in communities, organize prayer meetings in any public place and invite Orthodox Christians there. Christians, to create their own schools and print literature. In 1905, a delegation of Russian B. (D.I.Mazaev, V.V. Ivanov, and V.G. Pavlov) attended the First World Congress of B. ... “Seven Fundamental Principles of Faith” (see sections “Belief B.” and “Worship”). In the same year at hand. Prokhanov, the Council for Upbringing and Education was created, to-ry held the first 6-week courses for missionaries (including B.), after. these courses were held regularly. In Feb. In 1913, two-year Bible courses were opened in St. Petersburg, which existed until the outbreak of the First World War. In 1907, the Baptist missionary society was formed, Pavlov (deputy Mazayev) was elected its chairman, and regional departments of the Union of B. - Siberian and Caucasian were created. At the All-Russian Congress of Byelorussia in 1911, the question of uniting churches by district and appointing senior elders "to serve them" was considered, whose duties would include control over the communities of the districts, which gave the union the opportunity to create a more rigid and centralized structure. Mazayev actively opposed this proposal, but it was accepted by a majority of votes (History of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in the USSR. Pp. 146-147).

In 1914, after the outbreak of the First World War, B.'s activities were sharply limited due to the fact that they were suspected of sympathizing with Kaiser's Germany; many of the famous elders were exiled to Siberia. After the February revolution, B.'s position in the state changed, and initially for the better. Published in Apr. In 1917, P. V. Pavlov and M. D. Timoshenko formulated the most important requirements of Baptist in the work "Political Demands of the Baptists": the separation of the Church from the state; freedom of assembly, association, speech, press; equality of all citizens, regardless of their religion; state Marriage registration; freedom of worship and preaching, if they do not contradict universal human morality and do not deny the state; the abolition of laws punishing crimes against religion and the right of a legal person to join a religion. communities and unions. Legislative acts of the Provisional Government, which retained the primacy of Orthodoxy. The churches and the post of Chief Prosecutor of the Synod did not justify the hopes of Russian B. The victory of the October Revolution introduced more serious corrections to their situation. 23 jan. 1918 The Council of People's Commissars issues a decree "On the separation of church from state and school from church", in which most of B.'s political aspirations found their expression. In addition to the separation of the Church from the state, freedom of religion was declared, "non-confession of any faith" was allowed (the strictest prohibited by the legislation of the Russian Empire); all punishments for religion have been abolished. convictions, an indication of the religion of citizens was withdrawn from all officers. documents; allowed the free performance of religions. ceremonies, if they do not violate public order and do not violate the rights of other citizens; the keeping of acts of civil status was transferred to the departments of registration of marriages and births; private teaching of religion was allowed. The only clause of this decree, which did not suit B., was the prohibition on the ownership of private property by religions. org-tions and denial of the rights of a legal entity. In his address to the Soviet government at the All-Russian Congress of Evangelical Christians in December. 1921 Prokhanov said: “Dear friends, we wish you success in all areas of your construction, but we must point out that all your reforms have collapsed before our eyes and will collapse further until you bring the real foundation - a person who bears the image and the likeness of God. Here you need the Gospel - the teaching of Christ, without it you cannot do anything ”(quoted from: Mitrokhin, p. 364). “Complete religious freedom has been declared. The constraints that occur are not systematic and are explained by conditions. .. civil war ... The central authorities are especially jealous of the protection of believers from oppression in the field of religion, "- V. G. Pavlov said in 1923 at the 3rd World Congress of Baptists in Stockholm (History of Evangelical Christian Baptists in the USSR . P. 173). Complete loyalty to the Soviet regime was demonstrated by the decisions of the 25th All-Union Congress of Baptists of the USSR (1923) about “inadmissibility for Baptists of anti-government activities through agitation and propaganda ... Any Baptist, if he is found guilty of these acts, thereby excludes himself from the Baptist brotherhood and is solely responsible before the laws of the country ”(Mitrokhin, p. 370).

B. in the USSR

In the 20s. XX century the number of B. and evangelical Christians began to grow rapidly, replenishing mainly at the expense of the rural population, and the middle peasant gradually became the main figure, whose share was 45-60%. The cities were dominated by handicraftsmen, artisans, hired workers, watchmen, servants - mostly former. peasants. As early as 1918, the first Baptists arose. agricultural communes: Priluchye in Novgorod province, Vasan in Yenisei province, Gethsemane, Bethany, Sigor in Tver province. and others. In 1921, under the People's Commissariat for Land, a special commission was even created to settle free lands and the former. landlord estates by the communities of Byelorussia, Evangelical Christians, Old Believers, etc. By 1924 there were 25 communes of Byelorussia in Russia, which, however, did not last long.

At the beginning of the civil war in Russia, pl. B. and the Evangelical Christians refused to take up arms, although back in 1905 they accepted a confession at their congress, where it was written that B. in their confession, published in 1910, they recognized military service as a quitrent, but noted that they did not break off communication with those "who think differently." 4 jan. 1919, the Decree was issued on the exemption from military service for religion. convictions, and the decision of each specific case was entrusted to the Joint Council of Religious Societies and Groups, whose members attended recruiting offices and made petitions to the people's courts. By a court decision, there was a complete or partial (service as an orderly) exemption from military service; the council included representatives of B. and evangelical Christians. In 1923, Evangelical Christians, and in 1926, B. at their congresses recognized the need for members of their communities to serve military service. Archival documents and memoirs of eyewitnesses of these events claim that this was done under rough pressure from the GPU.

After the congress of 1926, a part of the B. Moscow organization, disagreeing with the adopted decision, separated from the Union and created an independent community (about 400 people), which received the name "Krasnovorottsy" at the place of prayer meetings. Chairman of the Union of Baptists of the USSR I. A. Golyaev at the end. 1925, this is how the religion was assessed. the situation in the country: "Religious difficulties in the preaching of the Gospel of Christ and the consolidation of the kingdom of God in our fatherland, which were in tsarist times and are now abolished by the Soviet regime, were even more eliminated in the past 1925, and we had a wide open door for us to the gospel of Christ." ... The plenum of the Baptist Union decided that “in 1926 the Union's Board should focus its activities on further expanding the field of missionary activity, strengthening work among foreigners living on the territory of the USSR, supplying them with books of the Holy Scriptures and spiritual literature, centers of support missionary posts with permanently residing representatives of the Union, who are supported by the Union. "

Dec. In 1925, at the Plenum of the Union, the following figures were promulgated: the Union includes "about 3200 communities, 1100 houses of prayer, 600 elders and 1400 other ministers of churches." According to B.'s data for 1928, the number of members was distributed according to the districts of the so-called: All-Ukrainian Union of Baptists - 60 thousand people, Caucasian department - 12192, Transcaucasian - 1852, Central Asian - 3 thousand, Far East - 7 thousand, Siberian - 17614, Crimean - 700, Belarusian - 450, Center. Russia, the Volga region and the Leningrad region - 300 thousand people. The total number of B. - apprx. 400 thousand people (Mitrokhin, p. 384). The Union supported over 500 missionaries. In 1923-1924. in Petrograd, joint 9-month Bible courses were opened for B. and Evangelical Christians, which existed until the middle. 1929 and released approx. 400 missionaries. In 1927, Baptists opened in Moscow. Bible courses with a 3-year program.

In March 1929, the All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions sent out circular No. 53 "On the strengthening of anti-religious propaganda", in which it was emphasized "the need to strengthen the ideological struggle against the religious worldview, in particular with the development of Baptism, the teachings of the evangelicals, etc." and it was also claimed that the Church and various religions. sects "serve as a cover for the anti-Soviet work of the kulak and capitalist elements in the country and for the international bourgeoisie." In the resolution of the Second All-Union Congress of Militant Atheists (April 1929), B., evangelicals, Adventists, and Methodists are directly included in the category of religions. org-tions, the top of which are "political agents ... and military-espionage organizations of the international bourgeoisie." 8 apr. In 1929, a resolution of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the RSFSR "On Religious Associations" was issued, in which the rights of religions. org-tions were significantly reduced in comparison with the 1918 decree. So, for example, they began to require compulsory registration. In May of the same year, an amendment was made to the Constitution of the RSFSR: “freedom of religious propaganda” was replaced by “freedom of religious confession”. In accordance with subsequent officers. clarifications "the preaching of the Gospel and activities involving new converts among believers is considered a crime against the state." Since 1929, massive repressions began among the leaders of Baptism and Evangelical Christianity, both in the center of the country and in the periphery. Regional unions ceased to exist. Since 1928, the publication of "Christian" is discontinued (f. "Word of Truth" and the newspaper "Morning Star" were closed in 1922), at the end. 1928 - "Baptista of Russia", from the middle. 1929 - "Baptista". Any doctrinal statements of B. about the absolute authority of God, about the "revolution of the spirit", about the principles of non-violence and brotherly love were equated with anti-Soviet activity. According to the estimates of GS Lyalina, in the 10 oldest communities of the North. In the Caucasus and southern Ukraine, over the five-year period, the number of believers decreased from 1872 to 663 people. (Lyalina, p. 109). By 1931, most of the communities of Byelorussia and Evangelical Christians officially ceased their activities. By 1936, almost all local communities were deregistered, houses of worship were taken away, and elders were repressed. At the same time, the reduction in the number of communities in the areas of tradition. distribution led to the formation of new, most often illegal, in places of exile. For example, in 1930 a Baptist. the community in Frunze (now Bishkek) numbered 150 people, and in 1933 - 1850 people. In 1929 Bible courses and the Federal Union of Baptists of the USSR were closed. It was soon restored, but after the arrest of its leaders in March 1935. completely disintegrated. The All-Union Council of Evangelical Christians, despite periodic arrests of the leadership and interruptions in work, continued to exist.

In May 1942, the Provisional Council of Evangelical Christians and Baptists was created, which addressed the believers with an appeal: “Let every brother and every sister fulfill his duty to God and to the Motherland in the harsh days that we are going through. We believers will be the best warriors at the front and the best workers in the rear! The beloved Motherland must remain free ”(History of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in the USSR. P. 229). B. raised funds for the front, voluntarily worked in hospitals and orphanages. In 1944, for example, they donated 400 thousand rubles to the needs of the country. In May 1942 M. I. Golyaev and N. A. Levindanto on behalf of the Baptist. brotherhoods approached ALL with a proposal to take on the custody and care of B.'s communities. In 1944, at a meeting of representatives of both churches, a decision was made to unite them and resolve controversial issues. Back in 1884, V. A. Pashkov tried to "unite all believers so that they could get to know each other and then work together." Since then, this topic has arisen at almost every congress, but doctrinal disagreements each time hindered the unification. In 1885, the issue of "the inadmissibility of introducing open bread-breaking and washing of feet in those communities where it was not previously practiced" was discussed, and the Evangelical Christians-Zaharievites were unanimously refused to hold congresses together with B. At the congresses of 1887-1888. identified the need to “further ordain elders, preachers, and deacons,” that is, they confirmed the practice of private B. On Baptists. Congress of 1898 Pashkovites were invited, and the participants came to an agreement "on further joint work for the Kingdom of God." Finally, in 1905, a month after the manifesto on religious tolerance, a Joint Congress of Baptists and Evangelical Christians took place. At this convention, the common name "Evangelical Christians-Baptists" was adopted, but it took root rather slowly. At the congress of B. in 1911, a letter from Evangelical Christians was considered with a proposal for rapprochement and unification for joint work, as well as the creation of a Joint Committee. The congress decided to treat Evangelical Christians "like brothers", not to impose the name "Baptists" on them, not to accept excommunicated Evangelical Christians into their communities, but rejected the proposal to create a Joint Committee. The unification activities carried out after 1917 did not yield significant results. At the 6th All-Russian Congress of Evangelical Christians in St. Petersburg (October 1919), an agreement was reached with the representatives of B. on the formation of the Provisional All-Russian General Council of Evangelical Christians and Baptists, then at a meeting in January. 1920 it was decided to make every effort to unite Evangelical Christians and B. into one union. It was established that baptism, bread-breaking and marriage in B. can only be performed by ordained elders, and among Evangelical Christians - a member of the community, the same power of baptism with the laying on of hands and without it was recognized, breaking bread first into large pieces, and then into small pieces (like this was with B.) and immediately into small ones (among the Evangelical Christians), were equalized in the rights of excommunication of that and other churches. In May-June 1920, a joint congress of Evangelical Christians and B. took place, at which a decision was made to merge them into one union. But on June 4, when the technical issues of merging the unions were discussed, serious disagreements emerged, and the merger process was stopped. B. proposed a collegial management system (without a chairman), evangelical Christians insisted on management under the leadership of the chairman, which was supposed to be I.S.Prokhanov. Even the intervention of the World Baptist Union failed to achieve reconciliation and unification. Plenum of the Council of the Union of Baptists of the USSR in December. 1925 noted the increasing frequency of "misunderstandings" between B. and Evangelical Christians. The reasons for the "misunderstandings" were the acceptance by Evangelical Christians into their communities of those who had been excommunicated by B., the spread of slander against B. and the work aimed at separating Baptists. communities. The plenum considered the issue "About the attitude towards IS Prokhanov and his union" and decided to recommend the Baptist to everyone. communities not to allow preaching and speaking in meetings of preachers who call themselves Evangelical Christians, "who have not yet broken with the Leningrad Center headed by Prokhanov." In 1928 Prokhanov left for America to receive financial support and never returned to Russia.

The conditions for the unification of 1944 basically repeated the agreement of 1920: all communities should, if possible, have ordained elders who perform baptism, baptism and marriage. But in the absence of such, such actions can be performed by non-ordained members of the community, but only on its behalf. It was also decided that baptism and marriage, whether performed with or without the laying on of hands on those who are baptized or spouses, have the same effect. In the same spirit, the issue of breaking bread was resolved: "The Lord's Supper, or the breaking of bread, can be performed both by breaking bread into many small pieces, and by breaking it into two, three or several large pieces." The unification, which took place under the control of the relevant authorities, if not at their submission, has benefited both sides. “The Baptists acquired the status of a legal ('registered') religious organization and the ability to rebuild their destroyed structures. The leaders of Evangelical Christians, who in their number and organization were always significantly inferior to the Baptists, significantly strengthened their leadership positions, which was already manifested in the fact that the chairman of the All-Union Council of Evangelical Christians-Baptists - Ed.] (Ya. I. Zhidkov), and the general secretary (A. V. Karev) were selected from among them ”(Mitrokhin, p. 400).

In 1954, after the visit of the President of the World Baptist Union, T. Lord, to the USSR, the activity of Russian Baptists in the international arena intensified. AUECB resumed its participation in the work of the World Baptist Union (1955), and its leaders were repeatedly members of the executive committee and the general council (A.I. Mitskevich, Zhidkov, I.I. Motorin, A.N. Melnikov, A.M. Bychkov, Ya.K. Dukhanchenko, V.E. Logvinenko); at the 9th, 10th and 13th congresses of the World Baptist Union, Zhidkov was elected one of the vice-presidents. Since 1958 the AUECB has participated in the activities of the European Baptist Federation; from Feb 1963 was a member of the WCC (until 1990), and representatives of the AUCCB were elected members of the central committee of the WCC (KS Veliseichik, AM Bychkov); since 1958 the AUECB took part in the activities of the Christian Peace Conference, and its representative A. N. Stoyan was a member of the international secretariat of this organization for many years; in 1960 the AUECB becomes a member of the Conference of European Churches (in different years Mitskevich, VL Fedichkin, SN Nikolaev were members of its Advisory Committee), from ser. 70s XX century actively collaborated with the United Bible Society.

The AUECB took an active part in interfaith peacekeeping conferences in the USSR, the first of which took place in May 1952 in Zagorsk (now Sergiev Posad) on the initiative of the Russian Orthodox Church, and also itself conducted international seminars-consultations on the problems of Christ. ministries in the struggle for peace: 1979 - Seminar "Choose Life"; 1981 - "Building Trust - Choosing Life"; 1983 - "Life and Peace".

The union of 2 unions into the Union of Evangelical Christians and Baptists (from January 1, 1946 the Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists) meant the creation of a multi-stage and branched Protestant, centralized throughout the country. org-tions with a staff of senior elders (at first they were called authorized by the AUECB) and elders who governed local communities. Since 1945, the journal began to be published. "Bratskiy Vestnik". After the decree of the Central Committee of the CPSU on the intensification of atheistic work (1954), half of the existing local communities of Byelorussia were, as it were, outside the law and were constantly persecuted. Gradually, internal disagreements were brewing, since the AUECB became a rather formal association, which included, in addition to B. and Evangelical Christians: Christians of the Evangelical faith (Pentecostals); churches of "free Christians" (Darbists) of Transcarpathia, which did not recognize either baptism or the breaking of bread; evangelical Christians in the spirit of the apostles who denied the dogma of the Holy Trinity; Evangelical teetotal Christians and the community of the Union of Churches of Christ from Zap. Ukraine and Belarus, and since 1963 - Mennonites. All R. 50s arose the so-called. pure B., to-rye opposed the agreement of 1944-1945, defending the severity of the Baptists. traditions (laying on of hands on the baptized, "closed communion", etc.). Similar groups arose among evangelical Christians, for example. t. n. “Evangelical Christians-perfect”, headed by Kornienko. But these were isolated cases, as a rule, did not spread beyond one region.

In the end. 50s The CPSU, which has set the task of a quick transition from socialism to communism, in which there is no place for religion, announced a course towards the elimination of religions. associations and reduction in the number of believers. In 1959, at the plenum of the ECB, on the "recommendation" of the Council for Religious Cults, the "Statute on the Union of the ECB in the USSR" and "Instructional Letter to Senior Presbyters" were adopted, which limited the rights of Baptists. communities. The Council of the AECB had to remain permanent, that is, new members were elected only instead of those who left; congresses of local communities were not envisaged; services could not be held outside the registered meetinghouse; recitation and choral performances accompanied by an orchestra were prohibited. Elders were charged with the duty of curbing "unhealthy missionary manifestations" and "eliminating the unhealthy practice of chasing new members," as well as "strictly adhering to religious laws." It was proposed to limit the baptism of persons between the ages of 18 and 30 as much as possible and not allow children to attend services, as well as calls to repentance. After these documents were sent to the senior elders, it turned out that most of the congregations did not agree with them and perceived them as a deviation from the covenants of Christ. In aug. In 1961, a group of ministers headed by G. Kryuchkov and A. Prokofiev created an initiative group for the preparation and conduct of the All-Union Extraordinary Congress of the ECB Church, and offered to publicly discuss all controversial issues. 13 Aug the initiative group sent a letter to Nikita Khrushchev with a request to authorize the holding of the congress, but was refused. In Feb. In 1962, the initiative group was transformed into the Organizing Committee, to-ry June 23 of the same year declared the leaders of the AUECB excommunicated from the church, and they, in turn, instructed the communities to excommunicate the “actively persisting”. 1960-1963 was arrested approx. 200 "Initiators", but the movement continued to develop, and new Baptists joined it. communities. The authorities, dissatisfied with the growing unrest among Byelorussia, allowed the AUECB congress to be held in the fall of 1963. He adopted the new charter of the ECB, the "initiators" refused to take part in it, not considering it sufficiently representative.

OK. For 2 years they tried to get the authorities to recognize the results of this congress as invalid and convoke a new congress, but, not finding support, they created the Council of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (SC ECB), which included communities that did not agree with the AECB. G. Kryuchkov became the Chairman of the Council, and G. Vince became the secretary. In the end. 1965 SC ECB already numbered approx. 10 thousand people (300 communities); since 1962 they have been published clandestinely. "Herald of Salvation" and gas. "Fraternal Leaf". 30 nov. 1965 The Organizing Committee published the "Charter of the Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians-Baptists of the USSR", where the most important tasks of the Union were the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people; reaching a higher level of holiness and christ. the piety of all the people of God; achieving the unification and cohesion of all churches and all believers of the ECB on the basis of purity and holiness into a single brotherhood (Mitrokhin, p. 417). Despite all the attempts of the AUECB leadership to restore unity, the split continued. In 1964, the "initiators" began a campaign of "consecration", the main idea of ​​the cut was that the true B. should be separated from the life and values ​​of the "world", surrender himself to the God of everything without reserve and be ready to suffer the same way, how Christ suffered from his persecutors. At community meetings, each believer had to testify to his sanctification by public confession of sins and repentance, but if members of the community saw in him a lack of sincerity, then the consequences could be serious, up to excommunication. In May 1966, in Moscow, a demonstration of B.- "initiators" (about 400 people) took place in front of the building of the Central Committee of the CPSU, who protested against persecution and interference in the internal affairs of communities, and also demanded the right to religion. training, recognition of the ECB SC and the convocation of a new congress. After the demonstration was dispersed, Khorev, Kryuchkov and Vince were arrested in November. 1966 sentenced to three years in prison. Ordinary "initiators" were also persecuted, who were usually accused of violating Art. 142 and 227 of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR ("violation of the law on the separation of the church from the state" and "the performance of rituals that harm believers"). Elders were often arrested for parasitism, and the owners of houses where services were held (since prayer houses had only registered congregations) for "resistance to the police" or "hooliganism." In 1964, an association was created, the Council of Relatives of Prisoners of Evangelical Christian Baptists, headed by G. Vince's mother, L. Vince. Since 1971, the initiators have organized the Christianin publishing house, which operated illegally.

In the end. 60s - early. 70s the authorities began to pursue a softer policy in relation to the "initiators": autonomous registration of communities was allowed if the believers were loyal to the state, but did not want to obey the AECB. So, for example, in 1970 a community was registered in the town of Uzlovaya (Tula region), a member of which was G. Kryuchkov. However, pl. the communities of B.- "initiators" deliberately refused to register. Since 1986, the repressions against members of the Council of Churches have stopped, and in 1988 its activities were legalized.

B. in Russia after 1991

After the end of the existence of the USSR, the composition of the AUECB began to change rapidly. In 1992, 26 communities of Evangelical Christians organized the Union of Churches of Evangelical Christians of Russia. In the beginning. 90s Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania proclaimed the independence of their states, and the Baptist. the associations of these countries left the AUECB, after which the Union ceased to exist. In nov. In 1991, on its basis, the Euro-Asian Federation of Unions of Evangelical Christians-B was created. In the present. time the Federation includes 11 autonomous unions: Russia - 90 thousand people. (1400 communities), Ukraine - 141338 (2600), Belarus - 13510 (350), Moldova - 21300 (430), Georgia - 4700 (54), Armenia - 2 thousand (70), Azerbaijan - 2 thousand (25) , Kazakhstan - 11605 (281), Kyrgyzstan - 3340 (121), Tajikistan - 410 (22), Uzbekistan - 2836 people. (31). The total number is 293,039 people. (5384). The Union of ECB of Russia has 20 educational institutions, such as the Moscow Theological Seminary, the St. Petersburg Christian University, the Moscow Theological Institute (with branches in Chelyabinsk, Samara and Yekaterinburg), the Novosibirsk Biblical and Theological Seminary, as well as a number of Bible Colleges and Schools. In total, approx. 1000 students. In 1993, the Union established a missionary department, which has been producing gas since 1996. Missionary News. Baptist. missionaries are actively working in prisons (in 485 colonies) and have established 14 rehabilitation centers for prisoners; there are programs for working with children, youth, among small nations, among the deaf. The Association of Christian Doctors and the Christ Association are working. entrepreneurs. 56% of the Union's budget is spent on missionary service annually, and 24% on charity. The union has a publishing house "Christian and Time", produces the gas of the same name. and f. Moreover, since 1945, the "Christian Word" has been published. "Bratskiy Vestnik".

Since 1994, the Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists has taken part in interfaith conferences organized by the ROC, and its chairman is a member of the Christian Interfaith Coordination Committee; in 1998 the Council of Evangelical Christian Churches of Russia was created, which also included Evangelical Christians - B .; in March 2002 with the aim of coordinating the activities of the Protestant. Churches in Russia, an Advisory Council of Heads of Protestant Churches in Russia was organized, it included the chairman of the Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists P. B. Konovalchik (after the XXXI Congress of the RSECB - Yu. K. Sipko).

B.

In 1905, at their 1st World Congress, B. declared the Apostolic Creed most adequately reflecting their faith and adopted the "Seven Basic Principles of Faith" or "Seven Baptist Principles," which contain the basic doctrinal provisions of B. throughout the world : 1. Sacred. Scripture, that is, the canonical books of the OT and NT, are the only authority in matters of faith and practical life. 2. The Church should consist only of spiritually reborn people (ie, baptized "by faith"). 3. Baptism and the Lord's Supper are taught only to regenerated people. 4. The independence of local communities in spiritual and practical matters. 5. Equality of all members of the local community, universal priesthood. 6. Complete freedom of conscience. 7. Separation of the church from the state.

The wording of these principles in various Baptists. editions differ from each other, but their meaning does not change from this. Proceeding from the first principle, all symbols and confessions of faith of B. are of an auxiliary character and are studied mainly in theological educational institutions. Unlike the Holy. Scripture knowledge of them for private B. is optional. Nevertheless, in the history of Rus. Baptism is known for several. confessions of faith, to-rye enjoyed authority among believers, were accepted as officers. documents at congresses and can be used as auxiliary materials "for the spiritual education of believers" (History of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in the USSR. P. 449). These include: The Confession of Faith and Organization of the Baptist Community, or the Hamburg Confession (1847) by I. Onken; Confession of Faith by Christians-Baptists FP Pavlov (1906 and under the editorship of NV Odintsov 1928); IS Prokhanov's Statement of the Evangelical Faith, or the Belief of Evangelical Christians (1910, reprinted in 1924); Brief exposition of the doctrine of Evangelical Christians I. V. Kargel (1913); Confession of Faith by Evangelical Christians-Baptists (1985); Confession of Faith at the Odessa Theological Seminary (1993); The Doctrine of the Union of Churches of Evangelical Christian Baptists (1997).

Teaching about God. B. believe in the Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, who are perfect, eternal, equal and inseparable; in Jesus Christ - God the Son, who was born to the Virgin Mary through the immaculate conception from the Holy Spirit, who united in himself two natures, the Divine and the human, but without sin (cf. 1 John 3. 5), and therefore He could become a sacrifice for the sin of the world. Before the creation of the world, God the Father predestined His only begotten Son as a propitiation sacrifice for the redemption and salvation of the human race; Christ is the only Savior of the world and mediator between God and man; whoever believes in Him has eternal life (cf. John 6:47); He will judge the universe. The Holy Spirit is the Creator of the universe together with the Father and the Son; He inspired the prophets and apostles, was sent down on the Day of Pentecost for a testimony of Christ and the creation of the Church. The Holy Spirit leads a person to repentance and revives him; He takes possession of the repentant, converted and obedient to God and endows him with gifts of grace for ministry in the church.

Teaching about the Word of God. B. admit that the canonical books of the Old (39) and New (27) Testaments are the true word of God, written according to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to show mankind the way to salvation. With the help of the Holy Spirit, Holy. Scripture becomes for man the source of the knowledge of God and the only source of Christ. faith.

The doctrine of man. God created man in his own image and likeness sinless, with free will, for an eternal, holy and blessed life in constant communion with Himself. Having succumbed to the temptation of Satan, man fell into sin, which shared him with God. Man began to do evil, he is not able to return to a righteous life without outside help. Sin entered the world as one person and passed on to all the descendants of Adam, all became children of the wrath of God, and all the retribution for sin awaits - death.

The doctrine of redemption and salvation. God loves man and does not want him to perish, and therefore He sends His only-begotten Son into the world, so that He, by His blood shed on the cross, accomplishes the redemption of all people. Jesus satisfied the requirements of God's holiness (cf. Rom. 3:25-26), and now salvation by grace is given to all people. Faith is needed to receive salvation.

The doctrine of the church. The Creator and Head of the Church is Jesus Christ, it is built on the Word of God. There is an ecumenical (invisible church) and a local church (visible). The universal church consists of people who are born again, who have in themselves the testimony that they are children of God (cf. 1 Jn 5:10-11; Rom 8:16), both the living and the departed. The local church (community) consists of those baptized by faith who come together to glorify God and spread His Word, as well as to perfect themselves into Christ. life and helping your neighbor. Any person who believed in Jesus Christ, repented, experienced revival and received water baptism (baptism by faith) can become a member of the church; through baptism, a person makes a covenant with the Lord. According to the Holy. According to Scripture, the local church must elect ministers: elders, evangelists (evangelists) and deacons, who are supplied through ordination. In the event of a grave sin, the church may decide to withdraw the ordination. Elders should take care of the flock, perform sacred rites, instruct church members in sound doctrine (cf .: 2 Tim 2.15), denounce, forbid, exhort with longsuffering and edification (cf .: 2 Tim 4.2; Titus 1. 9) ... Evangelists (teachers) preach the gospel and can also perform sacred rites. Deacons help elders and teachers in their ministry. Church discipline requires ministers to be an example for believers and impeccably observe all the commandments of God, to be vigilant (cf. 2 Tim. 4. 5) and to expose those who oppose the truth (cf. Titus 1. 9). Church members should take care of each other, accept admonitions and exhortations with love, and watch that no one from the community is deprived of the grace of God (cf. Heb. 12:15). At the prayer meeting, women are present with their heads covered (cf. 1 Cor. 11. 5-10). The measures of church influence are exhortation, denunciation, reprimand and excommunication. Excommunication occurs in cases of falling away from the faith, deviation into heresy, and committing a sin. The excommunicated person can be accepted into the church after sincere repentance, forgiveness of sin and the presence of “the fruits of repentance” (cf. 2 Cor. 2. 6-8).

The doctrine of baptism. Water baptism (baptism by faith) is a commandment given by Christ and a testimony of faith and obedience to the Lord, a promise to Him of a good conscience. Those who are born again, who have received the Word of God and Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, are baptized.

Teaching about the Lord's Supper. The Lord's Supper is a commandment of Jesus Christ, given to remember and proclaim His suffering and death on the cross. Bread and wine only indicate the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 11. 23-25).

The doctrine of marriage. Marriage is ordained by God. A husband can have only one wife, and a wife can have one husband. Divorce is permitted as a last resort. After the death of one of the spouses, remarriage is possible. Christians can only marry members of the church of their own denomination (cf. 1 Cor. 7. 1-5).

Teaching about the attitude of the church to the state. The existing authorities are established by God, in matters that do not contradict the commands of the Lord, church members must obey the authorities and pray for them. The church should be separated from the state and keep itself from interference by the state in its internal life and ministry. Church members should live according to the principle proclaimed by Christ: “Give what is Caesar's, God's things to God” (cf. Matt 22.21).

Teaching about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. B. believe in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ in power and glory on the Day of the Lord, the resurrection of the dead and the Last Judgment, after which the righteous will receive eternal bliss, and the wicked will receive eternal torment.

Divine service. “The order of worship does not have a strictly established canon, as was the case in historical churches - Catholic and Orthodox; rituals are absent ”(History of Evangelical Christian Baptists in the USSR. p. 292). But in practice, rituals exist, and in Baptist. in the community they are usually referred to as "sacred rites." The center of worship (prayer meeting) in B. is a sermon or several. sermons, to-rye consist of the reading and explanation of the Holy. Scripture, "unlearned" prayer, the singing of psalms and hymns both by all believers and by a special choir or other muses. collective ("music ministry"). The number of prayer meetings per week may vary.

B. recognize the holidays: the Nativity of Christ, the Baptism of the Lord, the Meeting, the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, the Annunciation, Easter, the Ascension, the Trinity, the Transfiguration; celebrate the Feast of the Harvest, or Thanksgiving (Ex. 23.16), which takes place on the last Sunday of Sept. and is accompanied by prayers of thanks to God for sending down the fruits, as well as prayers blessing the farmers (on this day, donations are usually collected for the needs of the community).

Rejecting the sacraments, B. practice the following "sacred rites": baptism, the Lord's Supper (breaking of bread), marriage, blessing children, prayer over the sick, ordination, consecration of houses of prayer, burial.

Baptism is a ceremony testifying to the entry into the Church of Christ, which is a testimony of faith and obedience to God. The ceremony is performed only on those who have reached a conscious age, after repentance, a probationary period (usually 1 year) and a successful interview; at this time in the community several. announcing the proposed baptism so that members who know the candidate can give their opinion. The ceremony is performed in a natural reservoir or in a baptistery, the baptized person is usually dressed in a white robe prepared for him by the community. The minister (called the Baptist) asks, "Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God?" (cf .: Acts 8:37). The one who is baptized answers: "I believe!" Amen ”(cf. Mt 28. 19), a single full immersion of the baptized person in water is performed. Then the minister prays over the baptized one (depending on the accepted practice with the laying on of hands or without), after which the breaking of bread is performed.

The Lord's Supper, or breaking of bread, is a rite established for the commemoration of the sufferings of the cross and the death of Jesus Christ, which must be performed before His coming for the Church (cf. 1 Cor. 11. 23-26). Bread and wine "point to the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ." The participants in the Supper testify to their unity with the Lord and with each other, therefore, there are only "regenerated souls" who are "at peace with the Lord and with the church." Before the breaking of the bread, the presbyter in most cases reads the chapters from Matthew 26; Mk 14; Luke 22 and from 1 Cor. 9, says several. prayers, believers sing chants. Then the presbyter takes the bread and prays over it, after which he breaks it for several. pieces, he tastes himself and passes it through the servants to the flock, takes a cup of wine, drinks it and also passes it on to everyone present at the Supper. The breaking of bread usually takes place once a month - on the 1st Sunday of the month. At the request of the patient, the Lord's Supper can be held at home.

The marriage takes place after a mandatory interview with the presbyter and the state. registration. The rite itself begins with a preaching by a presbyter or one of the ministers of preaching and reading the Gospel, most often about marriage in Cana of Galilee and from the Epistle to St. Paul to the Ephesians. After answering questions about whether they acknowledge that their marriage is blessed by God, and whether they make a promise of fidelity to each other, the bride and groom kneel and prayers are performed over them. First, the parents pray, and then the presbyter, who invokes God's blessing on them, laying his right hand on the groom, and his left hand on the bride.

Blessing children carried out without K.-L. preliminary interviews and is not regulated in any way. An elder can pray for a baby, holding him in his arms, and lay hands on an older child.

Prayer for the sick performed by a presbyter (cf. Mark 16:18) with the laying on of hands and ends with anointing the head or sore spot with oil.

Ordination to priest and deacon should be performed over the ministers elected by the community. The ordainers present the candidates, and after the instruction given to them before the community, each one is ordained separately. The presence of the ordained wife is recommended, she is the first to pray over the husband, then he himself and, finally, the elders (2-3 persons) with the laying on of hands.

Consecration of the meetinghouse occurs at the meeting of the entire community and consists of quoting the relevant passages from the Holy. Scriptures (selected by elders) and prayers.

The burial is preceded by a mourning service in the house of the deceased. At the cemetery, a short word about the deceased is pronounced, chants are sung and a prayer is performed. Then the relatives say goodbye to the deceased. Days of remembrance of the deceased B. are not practiced.

Lit .: Ushinsky A.D. Belief of the Little Russian Stundists. K., 1886; Rozhdestvensky A., priest South Russian Stundism. SPb., 1889; Nedzelnitskiy I. Stundism, the reasons for its appearance and analysis of its teachings. SPb., 1899; Alexy (Dorodnitsyn), bishop South Russian neoaptism known as shtunda. Stavropol-Caucasian, 1903; he is. Materials for the history of the religious-rationalist movement in the south of Russia in the second half of the 19th century. Kaz., 1908; he is. Religious-rationalist movement in the south of Russia in the 2nd half. XIX Art. Kaz., 1909; Prugavin A.S. Schism and sectarianism in Russian. folk life. M., 1905; T. Butkevich, prot. Review of Russian sects and their interpretations. H., 1910; Klibanov A.I. The history of religious sectarianism in Russia: 60s. XIX century - 1917 M., 1965; Bourdeaux M. Religious Ferment in Russia: Protestant Opposition to Soviet Religious Policy. L., 1968; Kalinicheva ZV The social essence of baptism. L., 1972; Lyalina G. S. Baptism: Illusions and Reality. M., 1977; Rudenko A.A. Evangelical Christians Baptists and Perestroika // On the Way to Freedom of Conscience. M., 1989; History of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in the USSR. M., 1989; Prokhanov I. S. In the cauldron of Russia. Chicago, 1992; Grachev Yu.S. In the Herod's Abyss. M., 1994; Kolesova O.S. Sieve reasonable, kind, eternal. SPb., 1996; Martsinkovsky V. Believer's Notes. SPb., 1995; I. V. Podberezsky To be a Protestant in Russia. M., 1996; Popov V.A. M., 1996; History of Baptism. Od., 1996; Mitrokhin L. M. Baptism - history and modernity: Philos.-Sociol. essays. SPb., 1997; Ushakova Yu. V. History of Russian Baptism in the Works of Orthodox Missionaries: Ist.-analyt. sketch // IV. 2000. No. 6 // http://mf.rusk.ru [Electr. resource].

E. S. Speranskaya, I. R. Leonenkova

Who are Baptists?

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

The word "baptist" comes from "baptizo", which literally means "immersion" in Greek. The word "Baptism" refers to the baptism that Baptists experience in adulthood by immersing their whole body in water.

Baptism originated from English Puritanism. It is based on the principle of voluntary baptism of people in adulthood who have strong convictions and do not accept the commission of sins.

Baptism: General Principles

In London in 1905, the Apostolic Creed was adopted as the basis of Baptism and the following principles were formulated:

• The church should be composed exclusively of spiritually reborn people. In Baptism, it is believed that there is a single universal church.
• The Bible is the authoritative book for man: it teaches how to live and how to keep faith.
• Only regenerated people have the right to teach the Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
• Communities are independent of each other for spiritual and practical issues.
• All believers in the community are equal.
• Believers and unbelievers have freedom of conscience.
• The church is separated from the state.

Private and general baptism are distinguished. They differ from each other in their understanding of cleansing from sins and methods of salvation.

Private Baptists believe that Christ died for sins exclusively for the chosen people. This or that person can be saved or not, depending on how the will of God wishes. General Baptists believe that Jesus, by his death, redeemed all people. Their salvation requires the joint work of God and man.

Baptism has its own leaders. Among them, five main ones can be distinguished:

• WBA President - David Coffey;
• President of the EAF ECB - Viktor Krutko;
• Chairman of MSC ECB - Nikolay Antonyuk;
• Chairman of the RS ECB - Alexey Smirnov;
• WBA Secretary General - Neville Callam.

The history of the development of Baptism

The first congregation was organized in Amsterdam in 1609 by the English Puritans, led by John Smith. They adopted a doctrine that prescribes the refusal of infant baptism. In 1612, part of the Baptists created the first English community, where the doctrine took shape and Baptist dogmas were created.

Baptism found its greatest development on the North American continent. The first associations included exiles from the Puritan colonies. In 1638, several Baptists established a colony called Rhode Island, where they proclaimed religious freedom.

In Europe, Baptism hardly developed until the mid-19th century. The first associations emerged in Germany and France in the 1920s and 1930s. XIX century. Later, Pastor I. G. Onken helped proclaim Germany the center of Baptism in European states. In 1905, the Baptist World Alliance was formed at the First Baptist Convention in London. Today there are 214 communities there.

Baptism in Russia

In Russia, it began to spread in the second half of the 19th century. The center of the Baptist associations includes the Caucasus, as well as the east and south of Ukraine. In 1944, Baptists and Evangelical Christians were united to form the Baptist Christians.

The largest association of Baptists in the Russian Federation is called the Russian Union of Evangelical Christian Baptists. There is also the International Union of Evangelical Christian Baptist Churches.

Now you know who Christian Baptists are. You can find out about other religious terms from the articles in the section.

One of the most widespread religious movements around the world calling themselves "Christian" is BAPTISM.

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

Although Wycliffe's teachings did not go beyond church reforms, he was condemned by Pope Gregory XI and in 1428, after his death, his remains were removed from the grave and thrown into the fire.

More radical were the speeches of his followers from among the so-called. poor priests or Lulaties ... This movement was heterogeneous in religious conviction and most of its followers adhered to the teachings of Wycliffe, to which they added the doctrine of a universal priesthood and that the pope exercised excessive power in the church.

Another factor that influenced the development of the English Reformation was the Anabaptist ideas brought to England by Anabaptist settlers from mainland Europe.

The most numerous settlers were the followers of Melchior Hoffmann, as well as the Mennonites - i.e. people who professed opposite views. The Lolard movement and reformist ideas influenced religious life in England, but did not define it to the same extent as on the continent. Along with the religious, a powerful impetus in the development of the Reformation came from the secular government. And largely thanks to the measures taken by her, religious life took shape in England. English kings earlier than other rulers of European countries began to protest against the absolutist claims of Rome.

And as a result of this confrontation in 1534, the Parliament of England proclaimed the king the only earthly primate and head of the Church of England, and the pope was deprived of the right to appoint an archbishop and bishop in England.

Since the reformation was carried out from above, it did not embody the ideas of those who aspired to a complete restructuring of the Catholic Church. The government's half measures sparked a movement to further purge the church of papism. Supporters of this movement demanded a change in liturgical practice and church structure. Namely, they demanded the abolition of the masses, the abolition of the veneration of icons and the cross, a change in the rite, the replacement of the episcopal system of government with a Presbyterian one, under which the church would be governed by elders elected in the communities.

Soon the reformers were persecuted by the Anglican Church, they were forced to leave England. In continental Europe, they saw the embodiment of their reformist aspirations in the teaching and practice of the Protestant churches of Zurich, Strastburg, Frankfurt am Main, etc. As well as in the doctrines of Zwingli, Luther, Calvin and other Protestant theologians. In the 40s of the 16th century, when the reaction in England from the Anglican Church against radical reformers was weakened, Luther's disciple Melanchthon arrived in England, and a Presbyterian Calvinist community was formed, although the English were forbidden to attend. In October 1555, in Geneva, with the direct participation of Calvin, the first Anglican Calvinist community was created from among the emigrants. English Calvinists began to be called puritans ... This contemptuous nickname was given to them for their often repeated demand for the cleansing of the Church of England of papal filth.

The Puritan movement was heterogeneous and consisted of presbyterian - Calvinists and the radical wing - Congregationalists or separatists. Presbyterians adhered to Calvinist views and recognized the right of secular authorities to oversee the life of the church, support and protect it through legislation, financial policies, and persecute heretics who opposed the institutionalized church.

The separatists believed that a true church could be created only outside the state, they put forward the requirements for the granting of full independence and independence to each community or congregation only in religious matters, in all other respects the secular authorities should support them and be responsible for the state of the church.

These two directions in Puritanism differed between the doctrine of the church and the view on church-state relations.

Presbyterians believed that all believers who lived in a given area and were baptized as infants were members of the local parish church. The separatists also recognized the baptism of babies, however, in their opinion, they can become members of the church later, when they consciously turn to Christ. For adults, according to the separatists, it is possible only after conversion and subsequent baptism. Only after these conditions are fulfilled can they (infants and repentant adults) be admitted to the breaking of bread.

Further development of the principles of separatism led to the emergence of Baptism. Baptism differed from separatism by requiring baptism for all at a conscious age.

Separatists differed from Presbyterians in their attitude to the state.

Calvinists are supporters of theocracy, as a result of which they suffered persecution in England.

The history of the emergence of Baptism is associated with the activities of the Anglican priest John Smith. He graduated from theological college in Cambridge, then was a preacher in Lincoln, but was soon dismissed from this position because he was unrestrained in his statements against the state religion. After doubting the doctrine of the Church of England, he joined the separatist community in 1606. Government persecution forced Smith and 80 supporters to seek refuge in Holland. In 1607 they settled in Amsterdam. Here, Smith's religious views were formed under the influence of the teachings of Armenia and the Mennonites.

Armenii criticized the Calvinist doctrine of salvation (doctrine of predestination). Armenia taught that Christ atoned for the sins of all people, and not just the elect, as Calvin taught. According to Armenia, Christ provided an opportunity for every person to be saved, but God knew from the very beginning who would take advantage of this opportunity and who would reject it. Subsequently, the supporters of this view in soteriology began to be called general Baptists (general - because they believed that all people would be saved, that Christ accomplished general salvation). Under the influence of Mennonism, Smith came to believe that the Church is a group of believers, separated from the world, united with Christ and with each other through baptism and confession of faith. Although great importance is attached to baptism, it was viewed by Smith as an outward sign of the forgiveness of sins, and only people who repented and believed were allowed to it.

This visible church is a form of the true, spiritual, invisible church, which is formed by the souls of only righteous and perfect people. (Anabaptist influence is noticeable).

Smith believed that apostolic succession is manifested not through hierarchical and historical succession, but only through true faith - succession in faith. Since this continuity was interrupted by Catholicism and Anglicanism, the true church must be rebuilt, so in 1609 Smith baptized himself by sprinkling, and then his assistant Helvis and the other 40 members of his community. Thus, Smith inherited ecclesiology from the Mennonites - a view of baptism, and from Armenia - the doctrine of salvation, but soon Smith came to the conclusion that self-baptism was wrong, and recognized the Mennonite baptism as true and expressed a desire to join the Mennonites. Smith's latest decision created a rift in his community.

His former supporter Helvis with a small group of supporters accused Smith of the sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit, which was expressed in doubting the effectiveness of self-baptism, and in 1611 Helvis with a small group of followers returned to England, and Smith died in Holland in 1612.

Upon their arrival in England, Helvis and his followers organized the first Baptist congregation, in which baptism was performed by sprinkling. The new trend that emerged was in opposition to all confessions that existed in England. General Baptists were not widespread and did not have a noticeable impact on the development of world Baptism. So, in 1640 in England there were about 200 people. Another branch of Baptism became much more influential, called private or particular Baptists. Their predecessors were members of the separatist community organized in 1616 in London by Henry Jacob. They descended from the separatists.

In this community, there were two splits due to different attitudes towards issues - who can be baptized and who can be baptized. Some separatists did not recognize baptism performed in the Church of England, while others believed that only adults could be baptized. Subsequently, a congregation came out of this community, which adhered to the Calvinistic direction in soteriology. The followers of this group began to be called private Baptists because they adhered to Calvin's teaching that salvation extends only to a fraction of the people.

The second distinctive feature of private Baptists was the baptism by full immersion. This was a feature that distinguished them from Anglicans, Catholics, Mennonites, and the Smith Helvis community. The first "correct" baptism was performed, as the Baptists themselves believe, by self-baptism.

The name Baptists did not immediately take hold of the new movement, because after the peasant war in Germany, the name Anabaptism became synonymous with rebels and bandits, so the representatives of the new movement rejected it in every possible way. Only at the end of the 17th century this term began to come into use. In 1644, private Baptists accepted the confession of faith. Baptism, like all new trends, during its formation was not homogeneous in nature. Depending on its doctrine of salvation, Baptism is divided into Calvinist and Armenian. In turn, general and private Baptists accepted only the very concept of redemption - Calvin or Armenia, but did not follow them literally in everything. Therefore, even within the general and private Baptists, theological views may differ.

Common Baptists in the 18th century were dominated by the Unitarians, who taught that the Trinity was a one-hypostatic Deity. The question of the continuity of Anabaptist ideas by Baptism was themselves resolved by the Baptists at different times in different ways. Until the end of the 17th century, Baptists tried in every possible way to fence themselves off from Anabaptism, and Smith condemned the theory of Thomas Müntzer. But the further and the more the horrors of the popular reformation were erased in memory, the more liberal the view of Anabaptism became, they began to distinguish between accidental and negative phenomena like Thomas Münzer and Jan Mathies and the true religious movement, which was subsequently perceived by the Dutch Mennonites, which can be considered as the predecessors of Baptism. This opinion was expressed by the President of the World Council of Baptism Rushbuk.

For Baptists, such statements were meant to be evidence of the continuity of Baptism. Then the Baptist theologians went this way - they began to track in the history of the church those groups that demanded the re-baptism of babies. The Baptists think so. their spiritual predecessors, the Novatians, Novatians, Montanists, where there was a practice of re-baptism. The same ideas were found among representatives of medieval Western sects, and in particular Anabaptism - with it one could trace a successive connection.

The spread of Baptism in England, Europe and the USA *)

The growth of the Baptist congregations in England and the need for communication between them were the incentives for holding annual meetings, assemblies of representatives of the Baptist congregations. In 1650 a general assembly of general Baptists was organized, and in 1689 a general assembly of private Baptists was organized. Baptism in Great Britain did not become widespread, and it spread even more slowly on the European continent (the memory of the Anabaptists was still alive). Baptism is most widespread in the United States and Canada. The American version of Baptism became widespread in the 18th century in Russia. American Baptists are primarily British in origin, and they were both general and private in doctrine, but by 1800 Calvinistic theology had become predominant.

Baptism in the United States finally developed its doctrine, governance structures, and missionary societies. Thanks to their efforts and means, Baptism began to spread throughout the world.

Baptism was brought to France from America. The first mention of it dates back to 1810. In 1832, a missionary society was formed there, after which it began to spread in this country.

Baptism in Germany and Russia is also indebted to the work of American missionaries. In Germany - Gerhard Onkin (1800-1884).

In 1823 he accepted an appointment as a missionary to the Anglican Reformed Church in Hamburg. But reading Scripture on his own convinced him of his desire to accept Baptism. And in 1829 he turned to the English Baptists with a request for baptism, but he managed to realize his intention only in 1834, when he, his wife and 5 others were baptized in Elba by the American Baptist Sears, who was traveling in Europe.

Thanks to the tireless work of Onkin, who declared that every Baptist is a missionary, Baptism began to spread rapidly throughout Europe and Russia. Baptism in Germany was persecuted by the Lutheran clergy and secular authorities, their meetings were dispersed, and they were prevented from performing services. The police denied them protection, and many Baptists were imprisoned. The children were taken away from their mothers and forcibly carried to the Lutheran church for baptism. This persecution continued until the mid-1850s.

In 1849, the Baptists of Germany and Denmark united in a union of associated churches, baptized Christians in Germany and Denmark, which began active missionary work in neighboring countries.

*) See Glukhov's synopsis - the history of Baptism in Russia, the views of Baptists regarding the Orthodox teaching about the sacraments.

In 1863, there were 11,275 Baptists in Germany. The growth of the number was facilitated by the opening of a seminary in Hamburg and a publishing house in Kassow. In 1913, the number of German Baptists increased to 45,583. Missions from Germany were sent to the Scandinavian countries, Switzerland, Holland, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Africa and Russia. International Baptist missionary activity has been strengthened by the organization of the World Baptist Union. In 1905, at the Baptist World Congress in London, the Union united 7 million Baptists, of whom 4.5 million were Americans.

In 1960, there were 24 million Baptists in the world, of whom over 21 million were Americans. In 1994 - 37.300.000; of these 28,300,000 are Americans and Canadians. By 1997, according to the Baptists, their number was close to 40 million.

Although Baptists exist in all European countries, according to Baptist sources, they play a significant role mainly in England, Sweden, Germany and possibly Russia (USA).

Baptist historiography on the origins of Baptism

Depending on the apologetic tasks, Baptist historians have put forward three theories of the origin of Baptism in succession. The very first is the version, which is called the Jerusalem-Jordanian, Joanite, according to this hypothesis, Baptists have existed since the time of John the Baptist. This theory, which arose in the second quarter of the 18th century, was intended to emphasize the apostolic continuity of the Baptist congregations by faith.

The second version is the theory of Anabaptist kinship. It aims to show a spiritual connection with a number of sects that have practiced secondary baptism. These sects include German, Dutch and Swiss Anabaptists, some medieval sectarians (Waldensians), as well as sectarians and heretics from the history of the first three centuries of Christianity, in particular, Novatians and Donatists. Recognizing the difficulty of establishing historical continuity, its supporters insist on continuity in the issue of baptism. This theory originated in the middle of the 19th century.

The third theory is the English separatist legacy theory. This theory appeared at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The supporters of this version are divided into two parts. Some argue that Baptism traces its origins to private Baptists, excluding general or general Baptists, since most of them degenerated into Unitarianism (Socialism) and the Baptists did not maintain contact with them after that.

Others believe that there has been an unbroken succession of Baptist congregations since 1610, i.e. they believe that Baptism began with the Smith-Helves group, which was organized in Amsterdam, Holland.

The latter theory was the most widespread and is now the working theory of Baptist historians.

Baptism in Russia

Baptism penetrated into Russia in the 60-80s of the XIX century in four isolated regions - in the south of Ukraine the cities of Kherson, Dnepropetrovsk, Kiev, in the Tauride province - in the south of the left-bank Ukraine, in the Transcaucasia and St. Petersburg.

Baptism in Ukraine followed the paths paved by Stundism, i.e. in congregations where Scripture was intensively studied, mission. Also, the spread of Baptism was facilitated by the emergence of New Mennonite or fraternal communities of church Mennonites.

The main reasons for the spread of Baptism in Russia were:

- the presence of foreign colonists;

- the presence of free people who were fleeing from financial and economic problems, from being drafted into the army, from the harsh treatment of landowners (the abolition of serfdom in 1861 contributed to the increase in free people);

- the difficult economic situation of the Russian peasants forced to hire themselves to the colonists (according to Catherine's decree, the colonists were put in more favorable economic conditions than the local residents); in addition, the south of Russia was a place of expulsion of sectarians from the central provinces;

- dissatisfaction with the spiritual state of the ROC;

- the Baptists themselves say that the translation of Scripture into modern Russian contributed to the spread of Baptism.

Baptism in Russia was represented by two trends and directions: on the one hand, it was represented by American Baptism, which penetrated into Russia from Germany; it was a fairly strong and powerful current in the south of Ukraine, and the second trend, known as evangelism, developed in the northwest and in St. Petersburg. And these two directions were very close dogmatically to each other, almost identical, but for a long time they could not come to the formation of a single church structure and there was fierce competition between them for human souls.

The first attempts to unite were made in the 80s of the XIX century, but they also failed. Then, after 1905, before the revolution, a number of attempts were made, which ended unsuccessfully. After the Great October Revolution, it was as if they had already agreed on unification, but persecution and repression by the Soviet government buried this idea. It seemed that everything was already final, and only in 1944, with the help of the Soviet state, it was possible to achieve the unification of these two streams of Baptism.

We study the entire period of the history of Russian Baptism from 1860 to 1944 according to Glukhov's notes.

In 1944, with the permission of the Soviet government, a congress of Baptists and Evangelists was held, at which it was decided to merge these movements into one union of Evangelical Christians and Baptists with the governing body of the All-Union Council of Evangelical Christians and Baptists (AUECB) - it was the governing body of the Baptists of the USSR with a center stay in Moscow.

At this meeting in 1944, a regulation on SEKHB was developed. To manage the affairs of the Union, a system of authorized officials of the All-Russian Union of Chemists and Bodies was created, later it was renamed into the system of senior presbyters.

The new management system was different from the previous one developed in 1910-1920. Firstly, the union council received the status of a governing body, whereas before it was an executive body in the inter-congress period. Secondly, according to the regulation, it was not envisaged to hold congresses of the union of communities.

Thus, under the supervision of the authorities, a pyramidal system of church administration of Baptism was built, at the top of which was the AUECB, and in many cases, candidates for the positions of presbyter and higher were not elected, but appointed. Baptists strictly adhered to the principle of separation of church and state; for the position of presbyter, the candidate was elected by the community itself - that is, the community selected a candidate and invited elders from other communities to ordain (approve) him. After this provision was adopted, the state received a mechanism for internal interference in the internal affairs of Baptism, since the candidates had to be coordinated with the secular authorities, and if the authorities were not satisfied with it, they could block the nomination for presbyter. The secular government could appoint members to the AECB, he was not elected, he was appointed by the secular government.

Thus, the Baptists completely departed from their fundamental principle - about the separation of church from state.

In 1945, the All-European Union of Chemists and Bodies decided to change the name of the Council, and since then it has been called the All-European Union of Chemists - such is the dissonant name.

Until 1948, there was a rapid growth and registration of the ECB in the USSR, but since 1948 the authorities began to refuse registration to communities that did not want to follow their instructions and to agree with them candidates for leadership positions in the community. In addition, with the approval of the authorities, authorized and then senior presbyters of the AUECB were appointed to managerial positions.

Control over the activities of the Baptist congregations by the secular authorities was all-encompassing. From overseeing the election of elders, to editing articles in Baptist journals and agreeing on chant repertoires in meetings. Being under the influence of the state power, the AUECB could not provide assistance to communities and individual Baptists and protect them from pressure on the local level by the secular authorities.

This situation aroused the indignation of the Baptists and created the preconditions for internal corruption in the communities. In the mid-1950s, murmurs and discontent began to be heard with the actions of the elders, appointed with the approval of the authorities. The Baptists began to be irritated by their lust for power, commanding tone, and administration, which thereby infringed upon the rights of believers. The Baptists began to form a hierarchy from elders to the highest body of the AUECB, the formation of which was under the supervision of the authorities. Until 1944, the elder was elected by the community, and there were no big problems with the elder, since the elder could always be complained about to a higher authority, and this elder could be removed and re-elected by the decision of the community. Now this situation did not seem possible, since the candidacy of the presbyter was coordinated with the local authorities, and an act against the presbyter was an act against the local authorities. The appeal to the superiors was also unsuccessful, since those people were also appointed by the secular authorities. Thus, freedom of religion within the community itself was infringed upon, and this caused an internal murmur.

The Baptists have always fought against the Soviet regime and were constantly persecuted. Starting from the 60s of the XIX century, they were constantly resettled, evicted to sparsely populated places of the Russian Empire. And here it turned out that they voluntarily surrendered to the Soviet regime. In 1959, the plenum of the AUECB adopted the provisions on the union of the BECB in the USSR and an instructional letter to the senior presbyters of the AUECB. These documents caused a split in the Baptist movement in the USSR. Many provisions of these documents caused indignation on the ground, but the greatest dissatisfaction was expressed on the following points:

- the composition of the AUECB remains unchanged, i.e. not re-elected;

- no congresses of community representatives were envisaged;

- senior elders, when visiting communities, should be limited to observing the observance of the established order;

- according to the decision of the AECB, it was proposed to limit the baptism of young people between the ages of 18 and 30 as much as possible. Only a presbyter was allowed to preach and, more rarely, members of the auditing committee. Elders were instructed to avoid calls to repentance.

Choral performances accompanied by an orchestra, etc. were prohibited. All rights for publishing, opening biblical courses, relations with foreign organizations, opening new congregations, and appointing new ministers were transferred to the AECB. This situation actually turned the local communities into powerless parishes, and the central governing body of the AUECB into a general church Synod with legislative, judicial and executive powers.

Baptists in opposition to these documents refer to the communities that accepted and submitted to these decisions as Soviet Baptists or Soviet Baptism.

After reviewing these documents on the ground, the Baptists began to demand the convocation of an emergency congress of community representatives. On the initiative from below, an initiative group or organizing committee was created. Since 1961, due to the disagreement of the leadership of the AUECB to support the initiative group for convening the congress, a movement arose in Russian Baptism to get out of the care of the AUECB. After repeated and persistent petitions of the organizing committee to government bodies for permission to hold a congress and appeals on this issue, the AUECB, the latter received permission to hold an all-Union meeting or congress held in 1963.

In 1963, the charter of the AUECB was approved; the convention was attended by three observers from the organizing committee, who stated that the charter contained "a more sophisticated network for our brotherhood."

By 1965, after unsuccessful attempts to restore the integrity of the Baptist movement in the USSR, the seceded Baptists formed their own center, which was called the Council of Churches of the ECB, with which about 10,000 Baptist congregations departed from the AUECB - a fairly significant number.

Under the leadership of the Council of Churches, an illegal publishing house was formed, which regularly published information sheets, spiritual literature, collections of spiritual songs, and so on.

The SCEKHB stated that the AUECB does not recognize the principles of the doctrine of Christian Baptists, in particular about the separation of church and state. According to the Council, the observance of this principle determines whether the Church belongs to Christ - as its only leader, or whether it belongs to the state, in connection with which it will cease to be a church and enter into an adulterous union with the world - i.e. with atheism.

Proving that the Church must obey the state, AUECB repeatedly referred to texts from Scripture, in particular (John 19; 11), but the representatives of the organizing committee saw in this a desire to show the superiority of secular authority in the leadership of the Church.

Under illegal conditions, end-time rumors began to spread among the Baptists. Appeals were heard for a final and decisive battle with disbelief.

The next Baptist convention held in 1966 did not lead to the desired results either. In its address to this congress, the SCEKHB stated the following: “to cooperate with the ACEKHB means to cooperate with atheists, therefore, the SCEKHB considered and will consider all activities carried out under the supervision of the ACEKHB invalid. Moreover, by rejecting evangelical Baptist principles and accepting new documents, the AUECB has cemented its break with both the doctrine and the SCEKHB. "

Contemporary Baptist Situation

After the collapse of the USSR in 1992, the Eurasian Federation of the Christian-Baptist Union was formed, which united over 3,000 congregations with more than half a million believers. The Federation with the rights of autonomy included the Union of ECB of the Russian Federation. The Russian SEKHB includes 45 regional associations headed by senior elders, representing 1200 communities with 85,000 believers.

If we estimate how many communities there are and how many believers, it turns out that there are about 80 people in each community. On average, urban communities are about 200 people, and rural ones - 50.

The supreme body of the Russian SEKhB is the Congress. The last 30th Congress was held in the spring of 1998. He proclaimed a priority program for the evangelization of Russia. He paid special attention to working with youth; appropriate structures for the mission among youth were formed. In Russia, in addition to the SEKHB, there is currently the Council of Churches of the ECB, which unites more than 230 communities. And at the same time there is the Union of Churches of the ECB, which represents more than 1000 communities - these are newly created organizations at the expense of unregistered communities. In addition, there is an association of independent Churches - more than 300 communities. Thus, we have about 2,730 Baptist congregations in Russia.

The doctrine of the ECB

One of the arguments in favor of their doctrine of salvation, Baptists refer to the sinfulness of human nature, as a result of which the human mind is limited and subject to error, from this they conclude that a person needs an infallible and accurate source of theological truth, which, in order to meet these requirements, must have supernatural origin. Any doctrine that is not based on Scripture is called false by Baptists.

They reject everything that cannot be said, "Thus says the Lord." Apart from the Holy Scriptures, Baptists say, God has not given the Church any other source of revelation. Not a single Baptist textbook in the section on the knowledge of God mentions a word about tradition, no attempts are made to explain the words of the Apostle John the Theologian about the impossibility of describing all the acts of Christ (John 21:25) and the statements of the Apostle Paul about the importance of keeping the Tradition.

Thus, according to the teachings of the Baptists, the Scripture contains all the teachings of Christ and the apostles necessary for salvation.

In support of their opinion, they refer to the following verses (John 20:31), (2 Tim. 3,15-16), (Acts 1,1). Moreover, for salvation, they claim that Scripture itself forbids anything to be added to it and to follow Tradition (Gal. 1: 8-9), (Col. 2.8), (Matt. 15.2-3.9 ); (Mark 7.5).

Despite the abundant quotations from biblical texts, the doctrine of Baptism about Scripture as the sole source of theology does not agree with the history of the formation of the New Testament canon and does not stand up to criticism within the framework of biblical theology.

Historical evidence of the failure of the Baptist doctrine of Scripture as the only source of truth necessary for salvation

If we accept the point of view of Baptism about the written source of knowledge of God, then we will have to admit that from the apostolic time to the end of the 4th century in the west and until the end of the 4th century or the 7th century in the east, most Christians could not be saved, for the canon of Scripture was formed in the well-known Baptist composition not earlier than the specified time limits. According to biblical data, the first recorded text of revelation was the Gospel of Matthew, compiled in the period from 42 to 50 years. Next is the Epistle to Galatians, which appeared in 54-55, and the last canonical texts date from the late 90s of the first or the beginning of the second century. However, this does not mean at all that all Christians of this time had the complete canon of Scripture. By the end of the 1st century, the overwhelming majority of Christians were not familiar not only with everyone, but with most of the New Testament texts, since the canon as such had not yet taken shape. According to modern science, including Protestant, the Gospel of Mark, the third in chronological order, probably compiled in Rome in 62-63, could become available to Christians no earlier than 70-80s of the first century.

Thus, about 40 years after the Resurrection of Christ, the Church was not yet able to fully read all three Gospels. Until the first half of the second century, only a few local churches had most of the Pauline texts and probably not all of the Gospels. And only towards the end of the second century, according to the evidence of the monuments of church writing, attempts were made to draw up a New Testament canon.

Let us cite some of them, especially those that date from the beginning of the declaration of Christianity as the state religion, for from that time, according to the Baptists, the Church began to apostatize, which ended in the distortion of its doctrine.

From the first letter to the Corinthians of St. Clement of Rome, written in the years 95-96, it follows that he knew certain words of the ap. Paul, he also refers to the words of Christ, but does not call them the gospel.

The Hieromartyr Ignatius of Antioch (+ 110) wrote to the churches of Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralia, Rome, Philadelphia, Smyrna, and to Saint Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna. As follows from these letters, he knew most of the letters of the Apostle Paul, namely - 1 Corinthians, Ephesians, Romans, Galatians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians. It is possible that he knew the gospels of Matthew, John and Luke. However, there is not enough evidence for him to consider any gospel or message as Holy Scripture in the modern sense of this concept.

V Didache , the origin of which scholars tend to date to the first half of the 1st century and where the life of the Christian community of Syria and Egypt is reflected, the author quotes the words of the Gospel of Matthew, but he does not consider the Gospel itself a reliable source of utterances about Christ, but only a convenient collection of his sayings.

The testimony of Papias of Hierapolis, who lived in Phrygia in 70-140 years, is also important. He wrote the book "The Interpretation of the Words of the Lord." According to this text, he recognized two sources of Christianity. One was oral tradition, and the other was written testimony, but he preferred the former. He has testimonies of how the gospels of Matthew and Mark are composed.

In another monument, the Epistle of Barnabas (first half of the 1st century), scientists find a hint of acquaintance with the Gospel of Matthew, as follows from the Epistle of Polycarp of Smyrna to the Philippians (135). He had the 8 Epistles of the Apostle Paul, knew about the existence of other Epistles, including conciliar ones. He quotes the words of the Lord that can be identified with the gospels of Matthew and Luke.

The Book of Hermas "The Shepherd" rarely cites New Testament sources, although it has much in common with the Epistle of James. The “shepherd” himself testifies how unevenly that in the II century the process of the formation of the New Testament canon was going on.

In the second Epistle of Clement of Rome, the New Testament texts are first called Scripture, along with the Old Testament. There are different opinions about the dating of this message, but in this case it is dated to the first half of the first century. This is the opinion of Protestant scholars who always underestimate dates. But it is clear that Clement is not familiar with the gospels of Luke and John, as well as with his message. Thus, by the middle of the 2nd century there was still no canon of the books of Holy Scripture, and they were not distributed in the church. Some local churches, mainly those of Asia Minor, had more Epistles at their disposal than others. It is also important to note that not all Christians were familiar with all four gospels.

The motives for compiling the canon of Scripture were the activities of heretics who compiled their own canons to substantiate their own false teachings. The Gnostics Valentin and Marcion (second half of the 2nd century), as well as the Montanist movement, which arose in Phrygia in Asia Minor during the period from 156-172.

The Montanists considered the recorded revelations of their soothsayers along with the Savior's words, and thereby expanded the New Testament revelation.

By the end of the 2nd century, lists of books began to be compiled, which began to be perceived as Christian Scripture.

Among the more complete lists, the most ancient Muratorian canon is from the late 2nd century and is believed to be of Western origin. It attempts to divide famous books into two categories. The first are the books recognized by the church. From the canonical books it lacks: 1 and 2 Epistles of Peter, Epistle of James and Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Hebrews. Another similar code is the classification of the New Testament books of Eusebius of Cessaria (260-340) in his work "Church History" (first quarter of the 4th century). He did not include the Epistles of James, Jude, the 2nd Epistle of Peter, as well as the 2nd and 3rd Epistles of John among the books accepted unanimously by the whole church.

Thus, in the east, even at the beginning of the 4th century, they doubted the authority of all the conciliar epistles and the book of the Apocalypse of John the Theologian.

During the IV century, a number of fathers and writers - Cyril of Jerusalem, Athanasius of Alexandria, Gregory Nazianzin, Amphilochius of Iconium, Epiphanius of Cyprus, Didim the Blind compiled their lists of books.

Cyril of Jerusalem (315-386) in his catechumens (c. 350) lists the books that make up the canon, which do not include the Apocalypse.

In 367, St. Athanasius of Alexandria gives the composition of the Old Testament and New Testament canons in his 39th Passover Epistle. His list of books completely coincides with the current canon, but St. Gregory of Nyssa (+ 389) omits the Apocalypse in his catalog.

The list of the books of St. Amphilochius of Iconium († after 394) does not include the 2nd Epistle of Peter, the 2nd and 3rd Epistles of John, the Epistle of Jude and the Apocalypse.

In the writings of St. John Chrysostom (347-407) there are no references to the Epistles of Peter, the 2nd and 3rd Epistles of John, the Epistle of Jude and the Apocalypse.

Canon 85 of the Council of Trul (691) determined the composition of the canon, in which, as in the decree of the Council of Laodicea, there are no epistles of John and the Apocalypse, but two epistles of Clement of Rome were included, which most of their predecessors did not accept.

Protestant scholars, trying to explain this glaring inconsistency in the council's decision, believe that the participants in the council did not read the texts that they claimed, i.e. in the 4th century we meet the established NT canon, after 300 years another canon is compiled, according to the opinion in the east in the 10th century there were at least 6 different copies of the NT canon. The composition of the canon was different in different local churches.

In the West, the canon was finally formed under St. Augustine in his book on Christian doctrine 396-397. he lists the texts according to the modern canon. This list was approved at councils in 393 in Iponia, in 397 and 419 in Carthage, but the decisions of these councils were not immediately included in all existing manuscripts, and over the next centuries incomplete book codes were still found in the West.

Thus, the final composition in the west was formed by the end of the 4th century and in the east in the period from the 4th to the 10th centuries - formally, according to dates, in fact, not in all.

Scientists believe that there is every reason to think that for a long time, before the final formation of the canon, only one gospel was used in some churches - for example, in Palestine only the Gospel of Matthew was widely known, in Asia Minor - from John, this gives reason to consider the Baptist the doctrine of Scripture as the only recorded authoritative source of salvation erroneous and unfounded.

The Baptist view of the source of theology raises a number of questions about the feasibility of the Church's mission in the world. If the Church did not have the New Testament books until the end of the 4th century, then how could she fulfill the commandment of Christ to preach the gospel to all creation (Mark 16:15). Is it possible that the Lord, having accomplished our atonement, did not take care of the proper number of copies of the Bible, but left our salvation to a coincidence. We do not find in the acts of the apostles, or in the literature of the post-apostolic time, evidence of the work of the workshops of the Bible scribes, but the Church, although it did not possess sufficient written Revelation, had and has all the means to carry out its saving mission in the world.

The debate around the meaning of recorded revelation dates back to the 2nd century. Saint Irenaeus of Lyons (+ 202) who lived then asks his opponents - what if the apostles would not have left us their writings? Should it not follow the order of the tradition handed down to those to whom the apostles entrusted the Church? And in support of his opinion about tradition, as a source of Revelation, he refers to the fact, apparently known to his contemporaries, that many barbarian tribes believing in Christ have their salvation without a charter and ink, written in their hearts by the Spirit, and carefully observe the Tradition. (5 books exposing false knowledge of the book 3 paragraph 4 paragraph 2).

Other aspects of the groundlessness of the Baptist doctrine of Scripture as the sole source of theology.

Since Baptists claim that Scripture is the main source of theology, they have the right to investigate whether everything that Christ and the apostles taught and did these texts come down to us in full?

The Apostle John the Theologian gives a negative answer to this question - not everything created by Christ is written down in the books (John 21:25).

Acts says that Paul taught the Ephesians everything useful for the kingdom of God (Acts 20,20,25) at the same time we do not know the text of his sermon, where, according to Luke's testimony, all the will of God was announced to them to the Ephesians (Acts 20, 27).

The Epistle of Paul to Laodicea (Col. 4:16), which the apostle ordered to be read among the Colossians, did not reach us. Thus, we do not have a complete record of all the words and deeds of Jesus Christ and the apostles.

Some Baptists admit that the apostle wrote a number of letters that were not included in the New Testament, since not everything written by Paul is inspired by God. But such an explanation is unconvincing for the following reasons - at present, the fact of discrepancy in the texts of the surviving manuscripts of the New Testament is well known to everyone, then the question arises - which manuscript should be considered canonical?

In addition, it has been established that the last 12 verses of the Gospel of Mark are absent in the most ancient Greek, Latin, Syrian, Coptic and Armenian manuscripts. On what basis is the current text of the Gospel of Mark recognized as canonical?

A similar question can be posed with regard to the texts of the translation of Scripture into national languages. The text from which the translation is carried out cannot serve as a guarantor of reliable transmission into national languages, because the original records of the apostles have not survived and there is a problem of the reliability or canonicity of the manuscripts.

In addition, the likelihood of unintentional distortion of the text during translation work is not excluded. Thus, the canonicity of the text does not depend on its authorship or the professionalism of the translator, the canonicity of the text does not depend on the inspiration of Scripture, but only on the reception, on the correspondence of the content of the book to the faith of the Church, only on the acceptance by the Church of this or that book, therefore, as a source of theology is not biblical texts can appear, but only the tradition and faith of the Church.

Baptist Teaching About the Canon of Scripture

As a criterion for canonicity, all Baptists consider the principle of inspiration, only for conservatives the canonicity of the biblical text is canonical, and for liberals - the inspiration of each Baptist, or the subjective opinion of each Baptist. Thus, Baptism, as it were, transfers the properties and functions of the Church to every believer.

This liberal view is based on the Baptist view of the nature of the Church. They believe that the believer in the act of repentance and conversion receives the Holy Spirit, i.e. independently of the Church, and even then the believer participates in the rite of baptism, i.e. the rite of baptism has nothing to do with salvation.

According to Orthodox teaching, the Holy Spirit dwells in the Church and is communicated through the Church. You must first become a member of the Church and then receive the Holy Spirit. The ecclesiology of Baptism has, as it were, a mirror, reverse perspective in relation to the Orthodox.

They teach about the saving action of the Holy Spirit outside the Church. Most Baptist pastors and members of Baptist congregations are conservative. A smaller group includes Baptist seminary graduates from the 1990s. “Ecumenically oriented,” when they meet you, they will talk about points of contact, about common views on the source of salvation, but they will not talk about disagreements. Whereas conservatives are the opposite.

There are quite a few Orthodox priests among the Baptists.

The Orthodox view on the criterion of the canonicity of Scripture

This teaching was formulated by church writers as early as the 2nd century. This was largely facilitated by the activities of heretics, who flooded the Church with their books and created their own lists of New Testament texts to prove the truth of their false teachings.

The first to compile his own list of biblical texts was the Gnostic Valentine. The second heretic Marcion, who appeared in the second half of the 2nd century, selected 10 epistles of the Apostle Paul from the New Testament books known to him, revised them, deleted everything related to the Old Testament, and made his own canon out of them. In 156 or 172. in Phrygia in Asia Minor, Montanism appeared. Montanism placed the recorded divinations of its prophets alongside the Old Testament texts and sayings of the Savior. The collection of Montanist texts was constantly replenished with new revelations.

Opposing heresies, the main criterion that allows one or another book to be ranked as Scripture was its compliance with the Rule of Faith or the Rule of Truth (Irenaeus of Lyons, Hippolytus of Rome, Clement of Alexandria, Tertulian). Another similar expression was the rule of the Church - it was used only by the fathers of the Eastern churches.

We find evidence of this in the muratorial canon, where only books read in the Church and those read during divine services were considered canonical. Eusebius of Caesarea refers to the canonical books those books that were unanimously accepted by the whole church, i.e. the criterion of canonicity was the principle of reception - the acceptance of a text corresponding to the faith of the Church.

Blessed Augustine and Blessed Jerome adhered to the same opinion - "it doesn't matter who wrote the letter to the Jews, for in any case it is a work that is read in churches."

As you can see, the divine inspiration of Scripture, which, according to the Baptists, was supposed to guarantee the immutability of the teachings set forth in it, is not a criterion for canonicity. Inspiration is not a criterion for canonicity - the Orthodox position.

Scripture is divinely inspired, since a specific text is recognized by the Church. The criterion of truth and canonicity is agreement with tradition, not the inspiration of the text.

Therefore, in the writings of church writers, we do not find reference to the inspiration of biblical texts as a criterion for canonicity. That. only the Church can bear witness to the New Testament, since the spread of the New Testament took place within herself. The conscience of the church is the only criterion of faith, and not the decisions of Councils, which by themselves are not always and with everything an expression of tradition. Indicative in this respect is the decision of the Council of Trul with respect to the canon of Scripture, when the 1st and 2nd Epistles of Clement were included in the canonical books and the Revelation of John the Theologian was not included.

The inviolability of the canons of Scripture rests not on the canons, but on the evidence of tradition. The Baptist misconception about the role of councils in the formation of the canon is that they view their activities as institutions that claim to be the ultimate truth. Thus, the canon of Scripture was established by the Church, it was preserved by it, and therefore only the Church has the right to an authoritative interpretation of Scripture, she can make a judgment that this or that interpretation of Scripture corresponds to her dogmatic consciousness.

By the 16th century, the doctrine of the Pope as the supreme authority in matters of faith had developed in the Catholic Church. Thomas Aquinas proclaimed the principle of papal infallibility, according to which the Roman high priest is the source of the Church's infallible judgments. The reformers saw this teaching as distorting the saving gospel. However, they overthrew the pope, replacing his authority with the infallibility of the biblical texts. Figuratively speaking to the question: "who to believe?" the Catholic answers - to the Pope, and the Protestant - to the Scriptures.

The Baptists have two views in understanding the authority of Christianity - conservative and liberal. If conservatives believe that the origin of Scripture gives Scripture infallibility, infallibility, and for this reason Scripture is the absolute authority for all Christians and the only source of authority in the Church. But Baptists understand that such a statement is in clear contradiction with Scripture, where the Church is called the pillar and statement of truth (1 Tim. 3,15), therefore, recognizing the importance of the opinion of the church people, they attribute this statement of the Apostle Paul to the invisible Church, the invisible Body Christ. In their opinion, the Holy Spirit imparts to every believer the ability to understand Scripture (1 John 2: 20-27) "You have the anointing of the Holy ...". Thus, they argue that Scripture, together with an internal revelation that is consistent with it, is the true guide in the work of human salvation.

But this fact of recognizing the importance of inner revelation makes the text of Scripture dependent on subjective opinion. By doing so, Baptists seem to acknowledge that they are preaching their own understanding of Scripture. But in this case, there can be no talk of the absolute authority of Scripture, but one should talk about the authority or importance of the personal subjective opinion of the Baptist. They are inconsistent, and they have no consensus on this matter.

And then the question arises about the criterion of the truth and or authenticity of this revelation, because the Scripture says that Satan can take the form of an angel of light.

Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that the teachings of the Baptists about Scripture as an absolute authority are inconsistent due to the internal inconsistency of this teaching.

The Baptist view of authority in the Church is similar to that of the Catholic. In the dogmatic constitution of the Second Vatican Council, it is noted that "The Pope's determinations are immutable in themselves, but not from the consent of the Church." The Baptists endowed themselves with the qualities of a pope. Ernst Troeltsch, at the beginning of the 20th century, called Protestantism a modification of Catholicism, in which the problems of Catholicism remained, but other solutions were proposed to these problems. He repeated the statement of the Pietists 70-80 years after the death of Luther.

A Liberal Baptist View of the Authority of the Church

Baptist liberals believe that the attitude to Scripture in the ancient Church was significantly different from that of today. The ancient creeds clearly reflect the basic principles of the Christian faith, but none of these creeds contain a provision on the authority of Scripture in the form in which it is prevalent among modern Protestants. And liberals recognize that tradition, tradition, preceded Scripture.

From this it is concluded that no guaranteed institutions - neither the Church, nor the Bible itself, have the absolute authority of the Church, since Christ created both, therefore, only God Himself has absolute authority.

Orthodox view

According to Orthodox teaching, the authority of Scripture is based not on the infallibility of Scripture, but on the Church's testimony about it. Scripture is a faithful record of divine truth. The message is Divine, because it comes from God, but the Church accepts the word of God and testifies to its truth, and only she communicates the infallibility and authority to Scripture. The Church says that Scripture is sacred because what is stated in it is identical with her faith.

It is known from the history of the Church that the desire to confirm any provisions of faith exclusively by Holy Scripture is the favorite method of heretics, in this connection Vikenty Levitsky wrote: “When we see that some cite apostolic or prophetic sayings about the advancement of the universal faith, we should that the devil speaks through their mouths, and in order to sneak up on the simple-minded sheep more imperceptibly, they hide their wolfish appearance, without abandoning their wolfish ferocity, like a rune they envelop themselves in the sayings of Divine Scripture, so that, feeling the softness of their wool, no one is afraid of their sharp teeth. "

Therefore, in relation to Scripture, the Church adheres to the principle that can be expressed in the words of St. Hilarius of Pictavia: "the essence of Scripture is not in reading Scripture, but in understanding it."

Bible Evidence for the Baptist Doctrine of Scripture as the Only Source of Doctrine of Salvation

Baptism cites a number of New Testament passages to support its teaching that Scripture contains everything necessary for salvation (Acts 20:20). Addressing the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul says that for three years he continuously taught everyone day and night with tears, did not miss anything useful, proclaiming the will of God. Hence the Baptists conclude that Scripture contains everything needed for salvation. But as follows from the text of the Acts, the apostle taught them orally and did not leave this teaching written down, in any case we do not know it. If we take this expression literally, then the Baptists should have accepted the tradition that the apostle bequeathed to his disciples.

The next text is (John 20; 31) "This is written so that you may believe that Jesus is Christ - the Son of God and by believing you have life in His name." However, as follows from the context (v. 30), the apostle speaks only of his book, and not all of the scriptures. If you take this passage literally, then you will have to reject not only tradition, but all Scripture, except for the Gospel of John.

This approach to the analysis of texts by Baptists is purely formal, but the Baptists themselves do the same - they take the New Testament texts, reveal them to us, and point to a quote taken out of context.

Sectarians also refer to (2 Tim. 3; 15-16) "You know the Scripture from childhood, which can make you wise, all Scripture is divinely inspired and useful for teaching, for reproof, for instruction in righteousness." The Apostle Timothy, who was born around the age of 30, could have known in childhood only the Old Testament Scripture, which he had been taught by his grandmother and mother. Because his first meeting with the Apostle Paul took place during his first missionary journey - about 45 years old, and the first gospel was written between 45 and 50 years old. Therefore, there is no reason either to deny or to assert that the Apostle Timothy was familiar with the New Testament Scriptures. But with complete reliability it can be argued that here we are talking about the Old Testament scripture.

Reminding Timothy of enlightenment by faith, Paul points out the source from which Timothy drew knowledge about the Messiah and prepared for his coming. Knowledge of the Old Testament could be beneficial, because it foreshadowed the economy of Christ. Thus, referring to the Old Testament writings, the Apostle Paul wanted to show Timothy that his faith is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies, and they could strengthen him in saving faith from the temptation of heretics (Timothy 3; 1-2,8-9). From the context it follows that the Epistle to Timothy is an indication of the Old Testament Scripture, made by Paul in connection with the intensification of the activities of heretics. Paul is referring here to the foundation of faith.

If you follow the logic of the Baptists, you will have to admit that the Old Testament Scripture is sufficient for salvation, as for the 16th verse, it means all of Scripture. Paul wrote the Epistle to Timothy in 64-65, before his martyrdom in 67. In this message, one can already feel the farewell speech. The Apostle seems to say that up to this moment he taught him, but in the future he should be guided by the faith that he was taught by the Apostle Paul and to seek instruction in Scripture himself. Investigate the Scriptures from the perspective of tradition. In addition, by that time the New Testament canon had not yet taken shape, so there is no reason to literally understand the words of the Apostle Paul, otherwise all the scriptures written after 64-65 will have to be rejected. Those. can be divided into 3 groups of objections - 15 verse - an indication of the Old Testament, the second - an instruction to study the Scriptures, the third - the acceptance of the Baptist sending leads to the rejection of all the scriptures written after 64-65 years.

Further, the Baptists cite a passage from Acts 1, 1 where the Apostle Luke informs Theophilus that in the first book he wrote he collected everything “that Jesus did, what he taught from the beginning,” but the first book of Luke is the Gospel. If it exhausts everything necessary for salvation, then why are other books needed? In addition, the Apostle Luke was not an eyewitness to the deeds of Jesus Christ and could not describe all of His words and deeds, since this, even in principle, is not possible to do.

Further, the Baptists claim that the Scripture itself forbids adding anything to it (Gal. 1; 8-9) "even if we or an angel from heaven began to preach the gospel to you other than what we preached to you, then let it be anathema." The tradition of the Church, according to the Baptists, is another gospel, which they anathematize, but the content of the epistle does not provide a basis for such an interpretation. This epistle was written against the Jews who taught that the Gentiles needed to be circumcised. The Apostle Paul writes to them that the teaching that he preached is not human teaching, for he received it not from people, but through revelation through Christ (Gal. 1; 11-12).

The next text is Rev. 22; 18: "if anyone adds anything to them (words), God will put plagues on him, about which it is written in this book." Baptists regard the tradition of the Church as these additions. But the apostle John is not talking about the whole Bible here, but about a specific book that he wrote. Otherwise, you would have to reject the gospel and the epistles of John himself, which are not included in this book.

Often Baptists refer to the prophet Isaiah, who threatened the Jews with punishment for introducing their commandments and traditions (Isa. 28; 9,11,13). As can be seen from the context, the prophet denounces the Jews not for their introduction of commandments and traditions, but for ridicule of his teachings. Derived from patience by the constant reminders of the prophet about the need to fulfill the commandments of God and his instructions to deviate from the law, the Jews said: whom does he want to teach? Rejected from the mother's nipple? - after all, we have our prophets, our teachers, scriptures, and he takes us for babies, ignorant of the law. They believed that the prophet addressed them as little children, but for this the prophet threatened that they would speak to them in a foreign language, and then they would have to heed and obey all orders, which was fulfilled when the Israelites were captured by the Assyrians.

They refer to 1 Cor. 4; 6: "so that you learn from us not to philosophize beyond what is written and not to be exalted before one another." But the words of the Apostle Paul in this case have nothing to do with the Bible. They are written about the division in the Corinthian community into parties, which were exalted one above the other. For the Lord increased everything, one planted, the other watered.

Baptism and Tradition

The Baptists, having declared Scripture to be the rule of faith and conduct, rejected the Tradition of the Church. Depending on the level of erudition and education, among them there are different opinions about what this Tradition is.

Baptists, who hold the most extreme views, reject anything useful in the Tradition and claim that the essence of the tradition lies in the oral transmission of some non-inspired, unenlightened information from the life of the Church and Christians. They include definitions of councils, works of the fathers, liturgical texts, and everything that Baptists do not have to such non-inspired teachings. Baptists call the Tradition of the Church dry rot.

Others acknowledge the existence of the Tradition in certain periods of the New Testament in oral form, but now this Tradition is available in printed form, it includes scripture texts, definitions of councils, canons, liturgical texts. Of all this volume, only the oral apostolic tradition did not contradict Scripture (2 Thess. 2:15). Concerning the traditions that appeared after the apostolic time, the Baptists write that they are difficult to combine with the spirit and letter of the gospel and “build around the commandments of God a fence of human commandments and rules”, which the prophet Isaiah spoke about (Isaiah 28; 10). As an example of such human commandments, they point to the introduction of the liturgical rule under Constantine the Great, which, as it were, replaced the freedom of the Gospel with a uniform service. In theology, this concerns the use of philosophical language. All this led, in their opinion, to the complication of the early form of Christian teaching. The introduction of new traditions, Baptists believe, turned Christianity from a life with Christ into a life according to the law, according to the letter, which does not correspond to the basic principle of worship, based on the words of Christ himself that God is a Spirit and that He must be worshiped in the Spirit of Truth.

Reasons for the sectarian attitude towards the tradition of the Church

The attitude of the Baptists to Tradition was inherited by them from the Anabaptists and Puritans, who strove to cleanse the Catholic Church of papism. Since Tradition was considered by the reformers to be a source of error in Catholicism, it was rejected from the very beginning of the polemic with the Catholic Church. Such an understanding of Tradition, together with a set of polemical arguments, was brought to Russia, but recently, with the development of biblical theology, the Baptist view of Tradition has been corrected, nevertheless, Tradition continues to be perceived by Baptists at best as a fact of church history, a historical archive that contains definitions, canons, creations of the fathers and other texts that have nothing to do with the salvation of man. Such an understanding proceeds from the fact that the Tradition is built on a natural foundation, subject to change and impermanence, and in support of this opinion the Baptists use the relevant facts, which were mentioned above.

In polemics with Baptists, it is necessary to focus attention, firstly, on the Divine nature of the Tradition of the Church, secondly, it is necessary to show how the catholic consciousness of the Church relates to church definitions, canons and other forms of revealing the truth that the Church possesses, and, thirdly, , it is necessary to indicate what in the Tradition of the Church is eternal and unchanging, and what is temporary and permissible change.

Orthodox teaching on Tradition

According to the Orthodox understanding, Tradition is the fulfillment and real expression of the Divine economy, in which the will of the Holy Trinity is manifested. As the Son is sent by the Father and does His work by the Holy Spirit, so the Holy Spirit comes into the world, being sent by the Son to testify about Him. This teaching is based on the teaching of Christ Himself (John 14; 26, John 15; 26). On the eve of the sufferings of the Cross, Christ promised his disciples that the Father would send in the name of His Comforter, Who would teach them everything and remind them of everything that He said to them (John 14:26) and on Pentecost, according to the promise, the Holy Spirit comes into the world so that to testify about Him according to the word of Christ Himself (John 15:26). This is what Christ says: "The Comforter, whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth, which proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me ...". The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth, He will testify to the Truth. The coming into the world of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost does not mean expanding the scope of Christ's teaching, His task is to remind and teach the apostles and all who believed in everything that Christ taught. That. Since Pentecost, the Church possesses that which was orally transmitted to her by Christ Himself and the Holy Spirit, i.e. the power that is able to perceive the teaching of Christ, the power that accompanies everything that is transmitted.

Parallel to the verbal expression of truth, the grace of God, the Holy Spirit, was communicated with words. And in tradition it is necessary to distinguish what is transmitted from the only way in which this transmission is perceived. These two points are inseparable. The term "Tradition" has two aspects - how the Church relates to truth and how this truth is communicated.

Therefore, any transmission of the truths of faith presupposes the grace-filled communication of the Holy Spirit. If we try to free the concept of Tradition from everything that can serve as external and figurative expressions of truth, then we can say that Holy Tradition is a way to perceive the truth, it is not the content of revelation, but the light that permeates it, it is not truth, but the message of the Spirit of Truth, outside of which the truth cannot be cognized. “No one can call Jesus Lord except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 12: 3).

Thus, Tradition is the transmission of the message of the Holy Spirit, who is the only criterion of truth, perceived and expressed in various forms. Tradition has a Divine origin, therefore it is invariable and unmistakable, based on the foundation of the Holy Spirit. Thanks to the presence of the Holy Spirit in the Church from the day of Pentecost to the end of the age (John 14:16), she has the ability to recognize the revealed truth and distinguish true from false in the light of the Holy Spirit. Thanks to this, at each specific moment in history, the Church gives its members the ability to cognize the truth, teaches them everything and reminds them of everything that Christ taught the apostles (John 14:26).

Tradition, therefore, does not depend, according to the word of the Apostle Paul (Col. 2: 8), on any philosophy, nor on everything that lives according to human traditions, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ. And unlike the only way of perceiving truth, there are numerous forms of its expression and transmission. Originally, the transmission of the truth was carried out in the form of oral preaching. Then part of the apostolic oral tradition was written down and is the Holy Scripture. An important form of expressing the truth that the Church possesses are the definitions of the Ecumenical Councils and the decisions of local Councils, the works of the Fathers, iconography and liturgy.

Basil the Great talks about the sign of the cross, rituals related to the sacraments of blessing of the oil, the Eucharistic epiclesis, the custom of turning to the east when praying, etc. These legends do not need and cannot be written down, for in relation to them the words of John the Theologian can be applied: "It is impossible to describe everything." Tradition, therefore, is not another source of the expression of truth in comparison with other ways of its manifestation (Scripture, iconography, liturgy). Their presence presupposes the existence of Tradition for their rational perception, as Scripture is the word of God about the salvation of the human race in Jesus Christ. And to comprehend this mystery (Col. 1, 26), hidden from centuries and generations, is possible only in the Church through the sacrament, as initiation into this mystery, through which the Holy Spirit is given, thanks to which only knowledge of the mysteries of Scripture is possible (2 Peter 1, 20-21).

"No prophecy can be resolved by oneself, for the prophecies were never uttered by the will of man, but the holy men of God spoke it, being moved by the Holy Spirit." So, Tradition and Scripture are not two distinct realities, but different forms of cognition and expression of truth.

The decrees of Councils, iconography, liturgy are related to tradition in the same way as Holy Scripture. But here it is necessary to clarify - in this case nothing is said about the hierarchy. Scripture is the most authoritative source. Since apostolic times, the Church has recognized the divine origin of tradition and has considered it the foundation of her faith. John says that Christ passed on to the disciples the word of his Father (John 17:14). “I have given them Thy word,” therefore the Apostle Paul urges Christians to be attentive to what they hear, so as not to fall away from salvation (Heb. 2: 1-3) Because what he heard at the beginning was preached by the Lord, “then it was who heard from Him ”and was considered by the apostles on a par with Scripture (2 Thess. 2:15). "Brothers, stand firm and keep the Traditions which you have been taught either by our word or by our message." Disregard for Tradition was an obstacle to church communion. The apostle admonished to shy away from such brethren (2 Thessalonians 3.6). "We command you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to depart from every brother who walks disorderly, and not according to tradition." At the same time, the apostle praised those who followed his instructions (1 Cor. 11: 2). "I praise you brothers that you remember everything of mine and keep the traditions as I have passed on to you."

The knowledge of the truth in Tradition grows in a Christian as he perfects in holiness (Col. 1.10). “We do not stop praying that you will act worthy of God, pleasing Him in everything, bearing fruit in every good deed and bearing in the knowledge of Him”, ie for the apostle, progress in holiness and piety was related to the knowledge of God. Therefore, the Tradition is not some kind of external guarantee of the truths of faith, their infallibility, but reveals their inner reliability.

Referring to the elements of tradition, Baptists say that the Orthodox see tradition as a kind of guarantor of the truths of faith, which are a product of the intellect, regardless of the inner life, it is based on the human factor, which in itself cannot be the guarantor of the immutability of the transmitted information.

Teaching about God and his relationship to the world

This is one of the most important differences with Orthodoxy and Protestantism in general.

Baptists, in general, accept the Christian teaching about God, but they deny the possibility of the natural in energies or by the grace of the union of man with his Creator, they deny the possibility of energetic communication between the creature and the Creator.

The Baptists' fallacy stems from their understanding of God's relationship to the world. According to the sectarians, God is present everywhere and in everything in His essence, and they are right to distinguish this presence from pantheism, referring to the biblical teaching on the difference between the nature of the Creator and the creation, but their mistake is that they absolutize this statement. On the other hand, Baptists say that the essence of God cannot be communicated in any way to creation, in no way can a creature participate in the divine nature.

Thus, the teaching of the Baptists about the relationship between God and the world is dualism or is ontological Nestorianism, God dwells in the world as in the prophets, in the saints, i.e. penetrates into humanity, but in no way humanity is not part of this Deity.

This is confirmed by the teaching of the Baptists about the so-called "properties of God", in which they distinguish categories of moral and general qualities of the Divine nature. Baptists attribute holiness, love, wisdom to moral qualities, and note that these attributes are exclusively moral qualities of God, which He possesses as a kind of lord, sovereign, moral ruler. So, for example, the holiness of God lies in the fact that He is completely free from sin in thought, word and deed. Baptists hold a similar opinion in their view of the so-called “general properties of God,” such as the good, grace and glory of God. Grace, according to the teachings of the Baptists, is a gratuitous act that does not imply any reward or payment. Grace is a semblance of human goodness, the synonyms of which are compassion, pity, loving tenderness. The Baptists' ideas about the glory and majesty of God are reduced exclusively to the description of aesthetic experiences, in the discussion of sectarians about these properties of God.

The God of the Baptists, by nature, cannot be accessed by creatures in any way, he is transcendental. Hence the dualism and the abstract understanding of the Divine as a kind of abstract concept, hence the transformation of dogma into an abstract philosophical system that depends on personal initiative. The doctrine of God influenced the Baptist sacramental doctrine.

Baptist rites only indicate the ideas indicated by this rite, but do not impart grace to the participants in the rite. For example, the breaking of bread is only a symbol of the Last Supper, meditation on which can strengthen Baptism, but no more, participation in the Last Supper has nothing to do with salvation. It can be useful to a Baptist only to the extent that he delves into the ideas that are expressed by this rite.

According to Orthodox teaching, in the sacraments the uncreated nature of the Divine is communicated by grace or energetically to the perishable creature, transforming and adoring it. The Baptists have no need for this, since their doctrine of salvation is reduced to the doctrine of deliverance from the judgment of God.

Baptist soteriology also defines the purpose of their theology. For Baptists to know God means to have theoretical knowledge, to have a certain amount of knowledge about God. By their own admission, the study of theology has the task of establishing a system of Divine values, in accordance with which life will be evaluated and with which one must coordinate one's thoughts and actions.

Cognition of God is dictated by the need to build correct legal and moral relations with God, it is dictated by the need for moral likeness to the Creator.

This issue is considered in a completely different context in Orthodox theology - to know God means to enter into perfect union with Him, to achieve the deification of one's being, i.e. enter into the Divine life and become "partakers of the Divine nature" (2 Peter 1: 4) to become gods by grace. This is the highest meaning of theology.

Therefore, in anticipation of potential opposition from Baptists, we need to base our teaching on the evidence of the scriptures. We find confirmation of the doctrine of the difference between essence and energy in the biblical testimony of the real vision or sight of the invisible nature of the Divine in its manifestations. This vision is twofold - one vision is the comprehension of the manifestation of God's power, wisdom and providence, hidden in natural things, through which we comprehend God as the creator of the world. (Rom. 1:19). His text about the invisible God, His eternal power and Deity, who became visible from the creation of the world, is interpreted in the sense of energies as the actions of God manifested in creation, interpreted in the sense that one can know about God from observing the icon of God, i.e. for the world. From these words, we can conclude that the invisible Deity, the unknowable essence is opposed to His visible and real manifestation in energies. The comprehension of these energies in natural things is available to everyone, i.e. it is a providential manifestation of energies, an invisible unknowable being of God in order to attract people to Himself.

Another manifestation is the comprehension of the glory of the Divine nature, there is the comprehension of grace, this is a mystical vision, which the Lord gave only to his disciples, and through them - to all who believed in Him (John 17:24, 5). "I want to be with me, that they see my glory ...". "Glorify Me with the glory that I had before the world was." It follows that the Lord gave the glory of His Divinity to human nature, but did not communicate his Divine nature, therefore, the Divine nature is one thing, and its glory is another, although they are inseparable from each other. Secondly, although glory is different from Divine nature, it cannot be counted among things that exist in time, because it was before the existence of the world. Thus, the essence of God and His glory are inseparable. God bestowed this glory not only on humanity co-hypostatic with Him, but also on the disciples (John 17:22). "The glory that You gave Me, I gave them, that they may be one as We are one."

This glory is whereby we truly have union with God. The acquisition of the glory of God, according to Christ's words, is comparable to the ontological unity of the Son with the Father. “We are called to be partakers of the divine nature” (2 Pet. 1, 4). But this unity of the saints with God should be distinguished from the unity by nature of the Divine hypostases, otherwise God from the Trinity will turn into a multi-hypostatic God. This unity and oneness is not hypostatic for the human nature of Christ, since it is inherent only in God, who became Man and remains God. Here, it is also necessary to exclude from the interpretation of this unity the presence of God in the saints by virtue of his omnipresence, since by virtue of the quality of omnipresence he is present in everything and everywhere.

Therefore, only the doctrine of the difference between essence and energy can explain the true meaning of the texts of Scripture. If we reject this teaching, then we will have to admit that the whole world is co-consubstantial and consubstantial with God with all the conclusions that come from this teaching. But to avoid this accusation, Baptists use primitive exegesis to explain the nature of their fellowship with God.

Acceptance of Christ as a personal savior - a person must believe that Christ died in his place on Calvary, according to this faith, the sinner is forgiven of sins.

1 John 1,9: if we confess our sins, then God will forgive us ...;

Acts. 10:43: All the prophets testify to Him that everyone who believes in Him will receive salvation.

They give evidence of the miracles of Christ over those who believe in Him, and the words of Paul (Heb. 11.6): without faith it is impossible to please God. Thus, the faith of the Baptists replaces the function of the Church as a mediator of salvation. Since the Baptists have no reliable evidence of the salvation of their teachings, other than Scripture, the place of these testimonies is taken by faith in the truth of their teachings. In Orthodoxy, this place is occupied by the saints as a visible confirmation of the fulfillment of the saving mission of the Church. Therefore, in Baptism, saving faith presupposes belief in the efficacy of saving faith, just as the Orthodox believe in the teachings of the Church. In other words, they have a kind of faith in faith, a belief that through faith his sins will be forgiven, and he will be taken out of sin.

The Baptist Understanding of Justification

Justification is a trial in which God acts as a judge over those who believe in Jesus. In this legal act, the believer is freed from the feeling of guilt of the posthumous and general judgment and is considered to have entered the kingdom of God. From that moment on, God declares the sinner to be righteous, absolutely pure, as if he had never committed a sin. The essence of justification boils down to a change in God's attitude towards a repentant person. Before repentance, this man was the object of the wrath of God, after that - with the same nature, damaged by sin, he is declared innocent and just as sinless as Christ Himself. Thus, justification has nothing to do with the fallen, but only changes the very attitude of God towards man. Baptists emphasize that justification is accomplished only by a person's faith, by grace. Neither the sacraments of the Church, nor fasts, nor prayers, nor the fulfillment of the commandments, contribute to salvation. They refer to Scripture, which says that no one can be justified by the law of Moses:

Gaul. 2.16 By the works of the law no flesh can be justified;

Rome. 3.28 people are justified by faith regardless of the works of the law. With this view, deeds are only the result of one who has been revived from sin. However, judging by other, but less common sayings, they are justified through the merits of Christ through faith shown in works. Or, the evidence of following Christ is not only faith in his teaching, but also full surrender to Him. That is, works are considered by Baptists almost on a par with faith in Jesus. This further underlines the controversial nature of Baptist soteriology.

Analysis of Bible passages cited by Baptists as evidence

in favor of their teaching on salvation by faith and justification of sins

In the texts of Acts 10.43; Acts. 26, 18, we are not talking about the forgiveness of sins, but about the conditions for the forgiveness of sins. Christ said that the remission of sins is accomplished by the Holy Spirit through the apostles, who received special authorization from them for this (John 20: 21-23). The apostles passed on this authority to their successors (1 John 1, 7). Most of the references cited are from Romans and Galatians written for the Gentiles. The Jews believed that salvation is possible only through the fulfillment of the law, while the pagans were proud of their knowledge through philosophy and believed that the salvation accomplished by Christ was their property. To put an end to these disputes, Paul shows that both of them violate the law, that the pagans perverted all their laws based on conscience and reason (Rom. 2: 14-15) and as a result began to worship the creature instead of the Creator. The Jews did not keep the law (Rom. 3,20; Rom. 7,17). The Old Testament prepared for the coming of the Messiah, says that both Jews and Gentiles followed their laws. The Apostle says that one cannot be saved by works, for everything is under sin and there is not one righteous one (Rom 3: 10-12). Therefore, no one will be justified by the works of any law, but only by faith in Jesus Christ (Gal. 2.16; Gal. 5.6). Because without good works, faith is nothing (1 Cor. 13:20). So, according to the Apostle Paul, the essence of faith does not consist only in the recognition of Christ as his personal savior (Matt. 7:21). Not everyone who speaks Lord, Lord ... Faith is not reduced to the fulfillment of the commandments. Faith and good deeds by themselves do not save a person, but are considered as conditions for the acquisition of grace that cleanses us from sins, for nothing unclean will enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Rev. 21:27).

Baptists cite many texts, it is impossible to disassemble them all.

Teaching about the meaning of good deeds and synergy in human salvation

Baptists reject synergy, i.e. cooperation, and replace it with the doctrine of the Divine and human side of salvation. The divine side lies in the fact that God accomplished salvation, and human participation is reduced only to the acceptance of the atoning sacrifice of Christ. In this context, works are the fruit of faith, but no more, thus. active participation of man in the work of salvation is rejected by them. Salvation is accomplished by God alone, while man is assigned the role of a passive being who can only accept this gift.

Baptists' criticism of the Orthodox teaching about the meaning of works is based on initially incorrect premises. Sectarians believe that Orthodox Christians, like Catholics, teach how to earn salvation by good works, while Scripture speaks of two sides of justification. The Baptists chose only those texts that speak only of salvation by faith. The one-sidedness of the approach is evident in James 2, 4, which says that we are not justified by works, not just by faith. Baptists arbitrarily interpret this passage to mean that the apostle is trying to view salvation from a human point of view. Works are not the basis of salvation, but the outward expression of faith. According to the Orthodox teaching, salvation is accomplished through the synergy of grace and human efforts, realized in following the commandments. All along the path leading to salvation, the grace of God helps us to overcome sin and achieve deification. On the other hand, unity with God can only be achieved through love for the Divine commandments:

Jn. 14:23: Whoever loves Me will keep My word.

The fulfillment of the commandments is not only a condition for receiving grace, but a necessary, free assistance of a person to salvation. The grace received in baptism is the forgiveness of sins, adoption, the beginning of the rebirth and deification of a person.In order to serve us for salvation and to be effective, it must be realized in our actions, and only the goodwill of a person is capable of making a person such. Through good deeds, a person's responsibility for his salvation is manifested, i.e. good works are a means to salvation, not a result of salvation or a way of expressing gratitude to God for your salvation. A person takes responsibility for his own salvation, and this responsibility rests with a person, i.e. in Orthodoxy, a person is assigned an active role in his salvation.

Teaching about the possibility of losing salvation

Many Baptists believe that once they are saved by faith, they will receive complete salvation. Since faith, according to Jacob, does not allow wavering, sectarians should always be in constant confidence and not doubt (Rom. 8.24; Ephes. 2.8). We are saved by hope, We are saved by faith ... But the sectarians themselves admit that such a statement is not consistent with real life, and a huge number of Baptists do not have firm assurance of salvation and do not know what is in their souls - love or fear takes the first place. For apologetic purposes, sectarians declare that the Bible indicates only the ideal state of faith, to which one must strive. However, such an explanation raises doubts about salvation. It is solved in different ways: the Baptists-Calvinists, within the framework of the doctrine of predestination, developed a theory of eternal security, according to which those who believe in their election will in any case achieve salvation no matter what a person does, no matter what he does.

Among the Armenian Baptists, there are two opinions: some admit the possibility of a one-time, others - multiple loss of salvation and its subsequent acquisition. The latter point of view is not seriously considered by anyone, although it is biblically justified, and she agrees with Orthodoxy - salvation is not some kind of static state, but a dynamic one. Since the beginning of the 40s, the Armenian language prevailed in Russia, but in the early 90s of the XX century, when a wave of imported literature surged, Calvinist views began to spread.

The Armenians, admitting the possibility of losing salvation, argue that salvation cannot be lost through one fall, even the most difficult one, but should not remain in sin for a long time. Here a contradiction is revealed - Baptists deny the significance of works, but by works they judge the possibility of salvation. If deeds are the criterion of salvation, then they, at least, should be a condition of salvation, for the effect cannot be less than the reasons, otherwise logic must be abandoned altogether.

Baptists view works as evidence of salvation only in relation to their denomination. They believe that only Baptists can do good deeds. Orthodox and other Christians, although they retained external piety, did not experience spiritual rebirth, therefore, their good deeds cannot be considered salvific, this is only external piety.

Doctrine of the Priesthood and Apostolic Succession

According to the Baptists themselves, this question is the most dangerous weapon of their opponents. This teaching is based on their teaching on justification. Every Baptist is forgiven of sins in an act of repentance, and from that moment on, all constitute a renewed race, all are priests and have an equal position, but for organizational purposes, the fulfillment of this universal right is granted to individuals through election and ordination to a presbyter or deacon. Baptists understand apostolic succession as the succession of apostolic written instruction in faith through which they receive the Holy Spirit. Sectarians claim that the gifts of the Holy Spirit have been communicated to them continuously from the day of Pentecost directly from God the Father without any human intermediaries.

Baptists make no distinction between the degrees of church ministry — deacon, presbyter, bishop. For them, these are different names for the same pastoral ministry. They come to this opinion by comparing the texts that speak of various degrees of church ministry (Acts 1,17; Tit. 1,7; 1 Peter 5,1,2). The duties of the presbyter include the performance of water baptism, the Lord's supper, preaching, care for the spiritual well-being of the members of the community, and the deacons are responsible for taking care of the material needs of the members of the sect.

BAPTISTS: A Malignant Sect or a Recognized Church?

Recently, a number of publications have been observed in the Tver press, the authors of which have expressed their preconceived opinions about the Baptists. This prompted me to prepare this article, in which an attempt is made to objectively illuminate this issue.

Who are they?

Here is what the Great Soviet Encyclopedia says about Christian Baptists: "Baptists (from the Greek baptizo - I dip, baptize by immersion in water). Adherents of one of the varieties of Protestantism. According to the Baptist doctrine, human salvation is possible only through personal faith in Christ, and not through the mediation of the church; the only source of faith is Holy Scripture. "

Formally, Baptism arose during the Reformation at the beginning of the 17th century. However, to assert that Baptism as a doctrine originates at this time is fundamentally wrong. Christian Baptists did not come up with anything new, but only returned to the principles of the Christian faith, clearly stated in the Holy Scriptures. In doctrine and preaching, the main place is occupied by moral and edifying problems. The main focus of the divine services is on the sermon, which is delivered not only by elders, but also by preachers from among ordinary believers. Great importance in the divine services is attached to singing: choral, general, solo. General and individual prayers are an important part of the liturgical meeting. The main acts of the rite are water baptism by faith and the breaking of bread (communion). Baptism is performed by Baptists by immersing the baptized person in water. This act is given a spiritual meaning: when receiving baptism, the believer "dies with Christ", and, coming out of the waters of baptism, "resurrects with Christ" for a new life. In addition, weddings, prayers for the blessing of children, and burials of the dead are carried out. All this is free of charge.

Baptists in Russia

The beginning of the Evangelical-Baptist movement in Russia is considered to be 1867, when N.I. Voronin was baptized in the Kura River in Tiflis (Tbilisi), who later became one of the famous and active preachers of the Gospel. In the 60s and 70s, Baptism spread to Ukraine, the Caucasus, and the Volga region. In 1884 the Union of Russian Baptists was formed. In 1874, the English Lord G. Redstock and the retired colonel, Prince V.A. Pashkov began preaching the Gospel in St. Petersburg. Through their efforts, the ideas of Evangelical Christians spread among the St. Petersburg nobility. By 1912, there were 115,000 Baptists and 31,000 Evangelical Christians in Russia. By 1927, the number of Evangelical Christians and Baptists reached 500 thousand. However, in 1928, repressions began, which subsided only by the mid-40s. In 1944, the Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists was formed.

Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists today

The Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (ECB) is today the largest Protestant Christian association in Russia, both in terms of the number of communities and followers, and in terms of spread across the country. It is built on the principle of the autonomy of local churches and the coordination of the goals of joint ministry. Coordination is carried out by 45 regional ECB associations, headed by senior elders (bishops) and the elders' councils existing under them, which include the elders of all local churches in the region. The union unites over 1,100 local churches.

The ECB Union has a system of spiritual and educational institutions. Among them are the Moscow Theological Seminary, the Moscow Theological Institute, a number of full-time and correspondence Bible schools in many regional centers of Russia. Almost every local church has Sunday schools for children.

The ECB Union and many regional associations have their own publishing base, and also carry out work on the air (for example, the programs "Round and round" on the "Radio-1" channel).

The spiritual, educational and charitable work of Evangelical Christians-Baptists was highly appreciated by the President of the Russian Federation. In March 2002, the senior presbyter for the Samara region Viktor Ryaguzov was awarded the Order of Friendship of Peoples. Earlier, senior presbyters N.A. Romanenko were awarded government awards. and Abramov G.I.

The Church of Evangelical Christian Baptists in the city of Tver is preparing to celebrate its 120th anniversary. So the Baptists in Tver are not a product of the "era of perestroika" or "expansion of Western preachers," but a historical reality. Tver Evangelical Christians-Baptists hold services in two prayer houses: at 35/68 Griboyedov Street and at 14 1st Zheltikovskaya Street.

Relations between the Russian ECB Union and the Russian Orthodox Church

There were different periods in the relationship between Baptists and Orthodox Christians. Since the appearance of Baptism in Russia, the Russian Orthodox Church, relying on the help of the state, has fought against the Baptists. Some relief came after the Manifesto of October 17, 1905, which proclaimed the principle of religious tolerance. In the 30s of the XX century, ministers of Baptist churches were with Orthodox ministers in the same prison cells and camp barracks and together praised God in prayers and chants, to which there are still living witnesses.

Are Baptists heretics from the perspective of Orthodox Christians? What do the official documents of the Russian Orthodox Church say about this? In the book "Orthodoxy and Ecumenism. Documents and Materials 1902-1997" (Moscow: MIPT Publishing House, 1998) it is written: "Anglicans and Protestants were the product of the Reformation; they were never condemned by either the Ecumenical or Local Councils in communion with the Orthodox Church. ... the Church conciliarly and officially did not declare them heretics.Officially and canonically they are our brothers in Christ who are mistaken in the faith, brothers in unity in baptism and in their participation in the Body of Christ (that is, the Church as the Body of Christ) due to baptism, the reality of which they have as the Sacraments we acknowledge "(pp. 19-20).

Perhaps the most striking event that sheds light on the modern level of relations was the Jubilee International Interfaith Conference dedicated to the 2000th anniversary of Christianity, which took place on November 23-25, 1999 in Moscow. It was organized by the Christian Interfaith Consultative Committee (KMKK), which is co-chaired by: from the ROC - Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad; from Roman Catholics - Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz; from Protestants - Chairman of the Russian Union of ECB Konovalchik P.B.

In his welcoming speech, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II said: "This conference, organized by the KMKK, serves as a vivid example that Christians clearly understand the need to jointly promote the establishment of Christian values ​​and guidelines in the public consciousness."

In his plenary report, Metropolitan Kirill noted several important aspects of interfaith relations:
"Cooperation in peacemaking and in social service of representatives of various Christian confessions seems to me extremely important in this regard. We, followers of Christ, should set a good example for our politicians."
"Despite the well-known historical difficulties in interfaith relations, on the whole, we can talk more about cooperation and peaceful coexistence than about enmity."
"Of course, I am far from representing the relations of Christian confessions in pre-revolutionary times in rosy tones. Undoubtedly, the state status of the Orthodox Church in Russia and the fact that the absolute majority of citizens belonged to Orthodoxy led to a certain marginalization of other Christian confessions."
“Entering the 21st century, all Christians are called to testify to the world about this, preparing, like John the Baptist, the“ way of the Lord ”in the hearts of people. that we and our children may live (Genesis 43: 8) ".

And here is what was recorded, in particular, in the final document of the Jubilee Conference:
"The anniversary should become an occasion for even more fruitful inter-Christian and inter-religious cooperation, contribute to the creation of a basis for their further development. Our Churches and church communities should set an example to society and the world in the matter of mutual understanding and cooperation."
"In order to successfully fulfill their duty to God and people, Christian Churches must themselves reveal to society the experience of reconciled cooperation."

How are these good intentions practically implemented? One of the most significant joint programs was the celebration of the 2000th anniversary of Christianity and the meeting of the third millennium. The secular authorities also took part in the organization of the celebration of this jubilee, in particular, the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation was issued (No. 1468 of 4.12.98). The committee for preparing for the celebration of the anniversary included, along with the leaders of the Orthodox Church, representatives of other Christian confessions, including the chairman of the Russian Union of ECB P.B. Konovalchik.

The mistakes of the past are also being corrected. One of the practical steps was a letter from the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate to the chairman of the Russian Union of ECB Konovalchik P.B. (out. No. 3551 of 09/11/96), in which regret was expressed about the publication of the brochure "Baptists - the most harmful sect" and said that "the publishers, the courtyard of the monastery of St. Panteleimon, were warned for unauthorized placement of links to the blessing of the Patriarch."

As for Tver, here the celebration turned out to be separate. First, the Tver Diocese and the City Administration held joint events. And only in 2002 a group of Christian non-Orthodox churches (two Tver ECB churches and eight churches of other Christian confessions) held a festive screening of the film "Jesus", although the organizing committee submitted an appeal to the city administration back in 2001. In this joint work, both pastors and ordinary believers of these churches have noticeably drawn closer and made friends.

During the screening of the film "Jesus", publications appeared in which the Baptists were accused of pursuing "hidden" goals. Our goal, like all Christians, is one, and it is commanded by the Lord Himself: "So go, teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you." In fulfillment of this commandment, we not only participated in the screening of the film "Jesus", but also conduct spiritual and educational conversations with those who show an interest in the Holy Scriptures. For example, in the Tver House of Officers (garrison) on Sundays from 4 pm. We do not "lure" Orthodox Christians, since they go to churches on Sundays and they have spiritual shepherds; but we want to serve those people who, in the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, "are like sheep that do not have a shepherd."

Yuri Zaika, Deacon of the Church of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in Tver