More than a Baptist: The British Baptist Recovery of Baptismal Sacramentalism

by Stanley K. Fowler, Stanley K. Fowler

Jesus's words in John 17 represent one of the church's highest values "May they all be one as you and I Father are one." Yet divisions occur from the highest levels of the church to street level projects often neutralizing effectiveness and undercutting the credibility of Jesus's message. This book helps any believer turn the ideal of John 17 into reality. It provides solid grounding in the principles of partnership abundant case histories and empowering "how to" suggestions for lay person and ministry leader alike.

Genres: Religion, Christian

294 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1969

Reviews

[Joshua · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first volume in an expedition I am embarking on to attempt to fully and correctly define the Biblical meaning of baptism. It was a highly effective book for diving into the deficiencies of the modern Baptist view of the sacrament correcting them. The issue, as it was presented in the book, is that we have spent far too long and far too much theological effort in defining what baptism is not rather than what it is. The result of this misplaced effort has been a severe diminishing of the weight and importance of baptism. The vast majority of credobapatists today do not seem to look any farther than what they have been told, which is that baptism is a mere symbol that tangibly indicates faith in Christ. While this is not entirely incorrect, it is seemingly a much too shallow interpretation of what baptism really is. When fully laid out, the language that the Apostles used in scripture speaks of an efficacious and sacramental act that incorporates divine action. The texts that support a stronger view were very well laid out and interpreted utilizing Greek syntax, reaching back to the language that was used by the authors. Fowler does not make this case singlehandedly, but he calls back a historical Baptist sacramentalism starting with early 17th century Baptists and then working his way up the centuries quoting many different Baptist thinkers. While he shows much variation in the overall theology of sacramentalism, the force of his argument comes not from a perfect unity of these sacrametalists, but from the fact that there is a strong history of their existence within the denomination. There is much work to be done within the Church if we are to restore a stronger view of baptism, but I believe that this book is a very good place to start. While it does lean in a more scholarly direction, I feel, as a layman myself, that the language is perfectly accessible for any Christian that desires to understand the depth and beauty that is found in the sacrament of baptism.

[Christian Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a worthwhile study as Fowler undergoes an intense study to illustrate an array of positions concerning baptism by Baptists historically. This provides a thoughtful biblical and theological overview of the important Christian rite. Worth a read if you are interested in the mystery concerning the sacraments within Protestantism.