Middle East Information Resource
Religions/Belief Systems - Baptists
The Baptists are a Christian denomination. Members can only be received by baptism `upon the confession of their faith and sins.` In contrast to other Christian groups, Baptists practice the total immersion of adults but do not apply the practice to infants as other Christian groups do.
Modern Baptists base their doctrines upon the teachings of the Apostles. Some consider the Albigenses to have been the preservers of the true faith during mediaeval times, but do not make any historical connection with them. Baptists agree with the Arminians that redemption is open to all and not with the Calvinistic view of predestination.
The Anabaptist movement began in Switzerland in 1525. Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, and Jörg Blaurock, worrying over their failure to live according to the Gospels, decided to devote their lives to following Christ’s teaching. The movement spread and many of its members suffered martyrdom.