04-25-2008, 12:21 AM
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 | Puritanboard Doctor | | Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Mandeville, LA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DMcFadden  Quote:
Originally Posted by joshua I will say, as I have said in the past, it should be no insult to Baptists to not call themselves Reformed, and instead call themselves the same as the historical Baptists did: Particular Baptists. I honestly don't see why so many Baptists find it insulting that they don't get to share (in in an unqualified sense) the moniker Reformed. If I were a 100% convinced Baptist, I'd be much more energetic in calling myself Particular than Reformed. | Frankly, judging the words in terms of their "branding" potential, "particular" has always sounded old fashioned, fussy, and too much like a crankly old bachelor in his fastidious apartment. "Reformed" is a much better term for conveying what Calvinistic baptists want to say about themselves. Still, your suggestion has great merit, Josh. I'm not offended or insulted to be merely a Calvinistic baptist.
I would ask you TRs to remember, however, that when the presbys abandoned Calvinism in the 18th century (opting for Socinianism and unitarianism), the baptists kept TULIP alive. Most early baptists were "particular" not "general." Our early confessions were all abridgements of, or strongly influenced by, the WCF. And, when the "Reformed" brethren deserted Dortian Calvinism, we kept it alive. | This is what happened in England and in parts of Europe as well as New England but not so much elsewhere. (I will note that in many cases these were Congregationalists, not Presbyterians, and the Presbys in England erred in merging with the Congregationalists, as did the New School Presbyterians in the USA). Unfortunately many of the Baptists there went over into hyper-Calvinism although some like Spurgeon, Carey, Fuller etc. bucked the trend.
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Chris
OPC member
Now attending Grace Community Baptist Church
Mandeville, LA
"Faith alone saves, but it is a faith that works." - S. Lewis Johnson
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