Missionary Baptists and Wikipedia

I recently wrote a discussion article for Wikipedia. It was my first, and, maybe, last.

I wrote it because, although the article was accurate in many ways, the author made the error of assuming things about Missionary Baptist doctrine that simply aren't true.


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A non-prejudicial look into Missionary Baptist history will quickly demonstrate that pre-millennial teaching had been unprecedented until very modern times. Pre-millennialism has crept slowly into Missionary Baptist eschatology in the latter half of the twentieth century.

Southern Baptists, who are made up of what were originally Missionary Baptist churches, were devoid of such teaching until very recent years. Many Baptist "Associations," upon witnessing the onslaught of what had been a completely foreign teaching, even went so far as to write into their by-laws that should a local church hire a pre-millennial pastor, fellowship would be removed between the offending church and the local Association.

The point being, this teaching has not been a traditional part of Baptist orthodoxy. I understand that this doesn't necessarily address whether or not this view is true, but it, hopefully, sheds some light on the common assumption today that as it is now, is how it has always been.

Change can be good, but not just for the sake of change. If you change what you or your fellows believe and have believed for a very long time, make sure that this new direction isn't just enticement, but enlightenment.