BAPTIST WORLD ALLIANCE,

JULY 2009

In July 2009, I attended the Amsterdam meetings of the Baptist World Alliance and participated in the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Baptist tradition's roots in Amsterdam.  My third BWA trip came about thanks to the vision of Dr. David Coffey, current BWA President and British Baptist leader, who has a vision for Baptists cultivating the next generation of leadership.  In response to his vision, the BWA executive leadership began a program: the "Emerging Leaders Network" (ELN).  Participants are drawn from the many denominations, unions, and conventions affiliated with the BWA.  I attend on behalf of Dr. A. Roy Medley and the Office of the General Secretary, for the American Baptist Churches/USA.  A full news summary and other BWA Annual Meeting press releases can be found via the BWA website.  Click here to go to the dedicated newspage.

CELEBRATING OUR HISTORY

This year's event spotlighted the past and future of the Baptist movement.  Two new books debuted at this year's events to celebrate the 400th anniversary:  Ian Randall's Communities of Conviction, a wonderful introduction to early European Baptist origins and Baylor University Press' stunning new commentary on Baptist interpretations of the Book of Acts, a one-thousand page exploration of Baptist interpreters across the four centuries of the tradition.  (I am delighted to note one of the 21st century contributors is my mentor: the Rev. Dr. Molly T. Marshall, whose 2003 Judson Press title, Joining the Dance: A Theology of the Spirit of God, is featured in this collection.)

EXPLORING THE FUTURE OF THE CHURCH THROUGH "ELN" EYES

The Church Health and Effectiveness Workgroup invited six members of the Emerging Leaders Network to presenthis or herthoughts on the future of the Church and the ways in which the past, present, and future shape one's missional context. I served as a North American voice, sharing the story of First Baptist, Bennington, as paradigmatic for what has happened to mainline Protestants in North America and the creative and transformative ways that the congregation has dealt with living out the faith in a new context.

I enjoyed hearing the stories of fellow young adult Baptists, though our contexts differed. Panelists shared of their ministries: in South America, where the Baptist movement is strong and vibrant, in Macedonia, where Christianity is now reflowering, in Africa and India where Christians deal with hard economic challenges and incredible growthin adherents. The panel was convened by Canadian Baptist leader Dr. Gary Nelson, and the morning-long event was well attended. Indeed, the "front row" kept growing closer as the room kept adding attendees and people moved forward towards the front to accomodate more people. In true Baptist fashion, everyone wanted to sit in the back row!

As part of the panel discussion, I recorded part of the remarks of a fellow ELN member, Mauricio Esteban Droguett Saez of Chile, who shared a thoughtful word about the challenges of his context and the need for the church to become more responsive to the changing culture around them.

Thursday was our "road trip" day as the BWA members were loaded onto buses and taken into Amsterdam. (The less expensive venue of Ede was selected for the majority of the event). The BWA delegates made their way to a Mennonite congregation thought to be a likely place where John Smyth and his fellow dissidents found a friendly worshiping community.

During the worship service, the former BWA General Secretary and retired ABC/USA missionary Dr. Denton Lotz brought the sermon as well as surprise greetings by letterfrom Billy Graham, who added his word of support for the occasion, despite being unable to attend the BWA events due to his health. (Dr. Graham attended BWA meetings in the past, and Dr. Lotz's brother is married to Dr. Graham's daughter, Anne.) To read more about Dr. Lotz's sermon, which called out for a renewed Baptist witness and the quest for religious liberty, click here to read the BWA's press release.

REFLECTIONS ON ENCOUNTERING HISTORICAL LANDMARKS

I wrote an essay for the local newspaper about the Thursday visit to "#137 Bakkerstraat". Here is the article:

 What Happened at #137 Bakkerstraat? 

In late July 2009, Baptist leaders from around the world gathered in the Netherlands for the annual meeting of the Baptist World Alliance. The BWA serves as a global network of Baptist denominations, conventions, and organizations. It is a miracle that so many Baptists are represented in this international effort. If you have hung around Baptist congregations long enough, you will hear the old joke: “If there are three Baptists in a room, there are probably also four or five opinions as well.”  

Despite the contrary-minded nature of its adherents, the Baptist movement is filled with many wonderful people, who are convictionally and globally diverse. The face of the Baptist family is multi-hued and graced with a blessed variety. Baptists are known for their commitments to believer’s baptism, mission, humanitarian work, and the defense of religious freedom. In recent years, the BWA has created the platform for Baptists to respond to global issues such as human trafficking. The BWA serves as the “Baptist” voice in Christian/Muslim dialogue taking place in various parts of the world. In North America, American Baptist leaders have led the way creating Baptist/Muslim engagements. Together, we Baptists do more than we can apart or under our own auspices. We are different, yet through the BWA, we embrace the common belief in “one Lord, one faith, and one baptism”.

This year, the BWA assembled in the Netherlands to remember our roots. The Baptist movement started in Amsterdam, where in 1609, a pastor named John Smyth and his congregation began practicing baptism by immersion and articulating beliefs we now identify as the first “Baptist” congregation. Smyth’s congregation found safe haven in Amsterdam, which had become a place for religious toleration by the late 16^th century. The congregation would later immigrate back to England in 1612, under the leadership of Thomas Helwys, establishing a church in Spitalfields, an area then outside the city of London.

The BWA held a celebratory service on the Thursday portion of the official program. We worshiped at a Mennonite church in Amsterdam, among whom Smyth’s group found friendly and likeminded folk. Some Baptist historians claim Smyth’s group was influenced by the Mennonites, placing Baptists and Mennonites together in the Anabaptist family of Protestantism. Indeed, we felt quite welcome as delegates entered the front entrance where the church sign told passersby this place was a “doopsgezinde” church. This word was used to describe Mennonites as their movement began. The word means “baptism-minded”.

After the service, a walking tour of Amsterdam was offered, touring sites significant to early Baptists. At #137 Bakkerstraat, the BWA tour met two Dutch Baptists dressed in period clothing. The exact history of the early Baptists is a bit of a puzzle, however, from the best records, it is thought the early Baptists enjoyed the hospitality and friendship of the Mennonites, including permission to use space at a local bakery owned by a Mennonite. The re-enactors told of the Smyth congregation’s activities here, where the group is thought to have worshiped and perhaps had living quarters. In the modern day, the bakery is long gone, now a quiet residential side street.

Standing at #137 Bakkerstaat, I felt a kinship with the Catholic going to Rome and the Anglican pilgrim on the way to Canterbury. For my Baptist heart, the simple setting of #137 Bakkerstraat seems befitting for a place where my faith tradition began. Here at this place, the Baptists began as “church” (lowercase ‘c’). I was quite moved to stand at the place where the divergent, wide river of Baptist convictions and spirituality began its course.

I said a little prayer of thanksgiving there at #137 Bakerstraat. In 1609, a small group of English dissidents worried about what the future held, safe for now, but yearning to return home. Four hundred years later, Baptists are the largest Protestant movement. Standing at #137 Bakkerstraat on this side of history, I behold the Baptists of 2009 as the many gathered from around the world, saying together the Lord’s Prayer in dozens of languages, working together on common ground issues, and gathering for table fellowship. (We Baptists are “well rounded” from our meals together.) For that little congregation, lost in the midst of the anxiety of what the future held, they persevered. They believed in the Christ who supplied their needs and gave them spiritual strength. The many who gathered in 2009 serve as testimony to the witness and legacy of these early forbears. While estranged from comfort and societal acceptance, they labored not in vain. Indeed, Christ was with them all along the pilgrim way.

The Rev. Jerrod H. Hugenot serves as coordinating minister of the First Baptist Church of Bennnington, Vermont (ABC/USA).