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To: B-Chan
most Baptists do not consider their denomination to be Protestant

As someone raised Baptist and now belonging to the Disciples of Christ denomination, I'm curious to know where you picked up that little tidbit. Respectfully, I think you are wrong. The Southern Baptist Convention (I believe the largest single grouping of that denomination) is most definitely Protestant in outlook and practice. And some of them even like to dance.

As far as Ms. Rice's views on abortion are concerned, I believe she struggles with the issue as many people do. It may take her a lot of time and much prayer, but I for one am not going to condemn her for this.

As a Roman Catholic you may have a different view since, correct me if I'm wrong, your task is to submit to church teaching and just push all doubts aside. For us it is much more a personal struggle and journey, and I would vote for Condoleeza Rice for any office she might choose to run for in a second.

37 posted on 11/08/2002 3:21:59 PM PST by katana
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To: katana
As someone raised Baptist and now belonging to the Disciples of Christ denomination, I'm curious to know where you picked up that little tidbit. Respectfully, I think you are wrong.

I very well might be. Most non-Baptist sources (including the Catholic Encyclopedia) class the Baptists as a Protestant movement, but of the Baptist sources I've read almost none of them claims kinship with or descent from the Protestant movement started by Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli. Here's just a small sampling of Baptist denials of Protestantism I've found on the Web:

Flamingtorch.org: "The Christian Flag is a Protestant flag, not a Baptist flag!"

Pastor Martin Lamb of the Landmark Missionary Baptist Church, Bedford, Indiana: "Baptists are not Protestants and never have been."

Pastor Steve Sparks, Victory Independent Fundamental Baptist Church, Loganville, Ga.:"Baptists are not Protestants! The name Protestant was given to those churches which came out of Roman Catholicism during the Reformation which began in the 1500's. It originally applied through the 1700's to Lutherans, and Anglicans. Later Presbyterians, Episcopalians and Methodist were added to the lists of Protestants denominations. Though many people including Webster's Dictionary refers Baptists as being Protestants, it is not correct to refer to them as such or to lump all non-Catholic denominations in one group and label them Protestant. Historically, Baptists were never a part of the Roman Catholic Church or the Protestant Reformation and therefore can not be correctly called "protestors" or Protestants... Baptists, basing their beliefs solely on the Bible, have never held to these teachings and see them as heresy. Thus, history and the doctrines of Protestantism clearly show that Baptists are not Protestants. "

Are Baptists Protestants? I don't think so; like the mainstream Protestants, they are reformed in theology and congregational in structure, but they do not claim descent from the "reformers" of the 16th Century. In fact, most of the Baptist sources I've read claim that "Jesus was a Baptist" as well as all of the Apostles and saints of the early Church!

I only hope they don't realize that Jesus' first miracle was turning water into wine. Then we're all in trouble.

39 posted on 11/08/2002 4:07:41 PM PST by B-Chan
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To: katana; B-Chan; lonestar
B-Chan:
most Baptists do not consider their denomination to be Protestant

katana:
As someone raised Baptist and now belonging to the Disciples of Christ denomination, I'm curious to know where you picked up that little tidbit.


      Most Baptists don't spend a lot of time or words on the subject, but consider their churches to have preceded, and to be older than, both the Roman Catholic denomination and the Protestant reformation. 

lonestar:
I also think there are many different denominations that are called "Baptists." Missionary Baptists are quite different from Southern Baptists. I thought "Baptist" referred to those who believe in immersion baptism.

      Close.  There are a number of different Baptist groups.  I have belonged to GARBC and BBF Baptist churches.  But not all churches which restrict baptism to immersion call themselves Baptist - e.g., Disciples of Christ, Church of God (Anderson, Ind.), Brethren, Assemblies of God, ...
78 posted on 11/08/2002 10:18:36 PM PST by Celtman
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