CONTACT US
GIVING
Home
Homepage
Address Book
About
About
Who are Baptists?
Vision and Values
President
General Secretary
Our structure
Baptist Assembly
Governance
Praying Together
Ministerial Rules Consultation
Home Mission
Ministry
Mission
Project Violet
Other Baptist Groups
Children, Young people and Families
18 - 35s
Safeguarding
Larger Churches Network
Smaller Churches
Online Directory
Latest Updates
Latest Updates
Latest
Events
Ukraine
Beacons of Prayer
Together magazine
Social Media
YouTube videos
The Baptist Times
The Baptist Times
Latest News
Features
Opinions / Reflections
Book Reviews
Baptists Together magazine articles
Jobs
Letters
Obituaries
Archive
Write for the Baptist Times
Resources
Resources
Resources and Guidelines
Video, Webinar and Podcast Library
Home Mission
Online Shop
Contact Us
Contact Us
Banner Image:
About-Us-banner
Template Mode:
About Us
Site Search
The Baptist Union
>
About
>
Who are Baptists?
> Declaration of Principle
Post
Tweet
Declaration of Principle
A three-part 'Declaration of Principle' forms the basis of understanding for all who belong to the Baptist Union. It was introduced in 1873 with the intent of holding in Union Baptists with widely different theological understandings, and progressively refined (1904, 1906, and 1938).
It is rooted in Jesus’ Great Commission (
Matthew 28:18-20
) with its threefold pattern of authority, baptism and mission. The first clause of the Declaration focuses on the absolute authority of Jesus Christ, with clause two on baptism into the life of God. Clause three is all about mission.
In 1996 the then principals of the four England-based Baptist colleges produced a study guide called
Something to Declare
in an attempt to make the Declaration better known and understood.
They concluded that the Declaration “still has a great deal to offer,” describing it as “notably theological… an authentic expression of Baptist ecclesiology… much more than a statement of organisational policy pragmatically to achieve certain ends.”
“Something important is here for our present and future life,” they continued. “By Christ, in the Spirit, we come to the Father. We are baptised into the life of the triune God and live to share God’s mission.”
Declaration of Principle
The Basis of the Baptist Union is:
1. That our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, is the sole and absolute authority in all matters pertaining to faith and practice, as revealed in the Holy
Scriptures, and that each Church has liberty, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to interpret and administer His laws.
2. That Christian Baptism is the immersion in water into the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, of those who have professed repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ who 'died for our sins according to the Scriptures; was buried, and rose again the third day'.
3. That it is the duty of every disciple to bear personal witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to take part in the evangelisation of the world.
The Declaration of Principle can be downloaded as a PDF here
Download
Something to Declare
, a study of the Declaration of Principle, here
Post
Tweet
Who are Baptists?
Declaration of Principle
Login