Particular Pilgrims

"Roger Williams worked strenuously and at great personal expense to put his belief in freedom of conscience into practice. In his mind, liberty was not an Englishman’s right only, but belonged to everyone, including the Indians."

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"Roger Williams’ most important work on liberty of conscience caused a sensation when first published in London in 1644 and has had an enduring impact in the debate on that subject ever since. It was entitled “The Bloudy Tenent of Persecution, for Cause of Conscience, Discussed."

"Williams deeply hated the idea of forced conversions or government-imposed religious rituals, like infant baptism, which placed the name Christian on people. He likened pressuring unconvinced men to worship God to a man forcing a woman into bed. He said in the true religion, Jesus Christ compels by the mighty persuasion of his preachers, but that he never used earthly weapons to compel a conscience."

"Williams had been convinced for some time from Scripture that the church was to consist of regenerate members only. He shared this view with many of the Puritan and Separatist ministers in England and New England. But he pushed this to its logical and Biblical conclusion and applied the principle without compromise. And this is where the Baptist teaching began to convince him. If the church was to be made up of believing saints, then they alone had a right to baptism. And if the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches were corrupt and not true churches, then their baptism was invalid. If their worship was false, so must their baptism be. And so he embraced believer’s baptism."

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"Roger Williams was one of the most important formative figures for the doctrine of religious liberty in the 1600s. Williams believed in the absolute authority of the Word of God and it was his source book for faith and life. He did not ground his views of soul liberty in Enlightenment ideals or a general liberalism, like Thomas Jefferson would do in the next century. He was not a rationalist or utilitarian but a man possessed by the Scriptural doctrine of a regenerate church, headed by Jesus Christ."

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"We don’t follow Murton in his Arminianized theology. But all who believe in a regenerate church, including Particular Baptists, have been rightly influenced by his arguments for freedom of conscience and liberty of religious belief and practice."-Ron MillerFor more information about CBTS visit: https://cbtseminary.org

"Baptist churches arose in a 17th century England where church was joined to state. The governmental and religious institutions were not separate but existed as one establishment. The king acted as the supreme governor of both spheres. He headed the government and the Church of England, the officially established religion of the nation, and so he held both political and religious authority. The result was a fusion which declared religious dissent to be treasonous, enforced uniformity in religion, and penalized non-conformists."

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"The Particular Baptists were orthodox, Protestant, Reformed, and Puritan Christians. But they were also more than that. They were distinguished from other churches by a set of distinctives, a number of interconnected doctrines and practices that set them apart."

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"Hann’s pastorate in Loughwood ran from 1730 to 1758, during which time he had several helpers. Fifteen people are recorded as being baptized by him. His helpers sometimes did the baptisms, perhaps because of his absence or old age. At the end of his time there, the membership was 34, a few more than when he came."
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"This study of the Loughwood Baptist church has brought to our attention a number of interesting early members. But the Hugenots, Fifth Monarchy men, and woman author weren’t the entire congregation. There were in fact several hundred believers making up the church even in its earliest years."

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