help this newbie out

[NewFollower]

hey i'm new and willing to learn.
what's a baptist ?
what do they do?

[DeaconDean]

There is a sicky on the opening page with links to the various Baptist confessions of faith.

Read these for starters.

Then if your still in doubt, ask again.

God Bless

Till all are one.

[edb19]

hey i'm new and willing to learn.
what's a baptist ?
what do they do?

do you have more specific questions?

The reason I ask is because Baptists cover a fairly wide area of doctrinal tenets from very conservative to fairly liberal - the major commonality is in their name - Baptists - they recognize that baptism is ordained (commanded) by Christ and practice credobaptism (believer baptism) as defined in Scripture.

[TimRout]

If you are referring to Baptists with a capitol "B", most are evangelical Calvinists of some variety. Most are congregational (meaning the specific leading of God is discerned by a vote of the members in a local church). All are Protestant and as such recognize no religous authority other than the Bible. Most vehemently espouse the separation of church and state. Most are directed by a group of Deacons, though some have both Deacons and Elders with various authorities and responsibilities. And most are cessationistic regarding spirtual gifts -- especially the sign gifts.

I have served my entire career as a Baptist minister, and while this might not be a particularly popular statement among some of my colleagues, I should mention that there is very little practical difference between most evangelical Baptist churches and other baptistic evangelical groups. Baptists are by no means the only group who are faithful to the Scriptures, or who practice believer's baptism by immersion.

Hope this helps.