Some even ask what is the difference between Baptists and Christians. Unfortunately, the atheistic propaganda of the Soviet Union left its mark on the hearts and minds of people, and very little attention is paid to issues of faith. That is why such questions arise. Who are Baptists, and how do they differ from Christians... It’s funny for any knowledgeable person to hear such questions. Because Baptists are Christians. Because a Christian is a person who believes in Christ, recognizes Him as God and the Son of God, and also believes in God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Baptists have all this and, moreover, they share a common apostolic creed with the Orthodox, and the Baptist Bible is no different from the Orthodox Bible, because the same synodal translation is used. But there really are differences, otherwise they would not be called Baptists.

The first difference between Baptists and Orthodox Christians lies in the very name of this branch of Christianity.

Baptist - comes from the Greek baptizo, which means to baptize, to immerse. And Baptists, based on the Holy Scriptures, perform baptism only at a conscious age. Infant baptism is not performed. Baptists take the basis for this from the following texts of the Bible:

“So now we also have a baptism similar to this image, not the washing of carnal uncleanness,
but the promise of a good conscience to God saves through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” - 1
Pet. 3:21.

“Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. Who will believe and
be baptized, he will be saved” - Mr. 16:15-16; Acts 2:38, 41, 22:16.

Water baptism according to the Word of God is performed on those who believe in Jesus
as his personal Savior and experienced being born again. You can read what being born again is in the Gospel of John in the third chapter. But the point is that a person must believe in God and then be baptized. And not the other way around, as is done in Orthodoxy. Because Baptism, according to Baptists, is not only a sacrament, but also a promise, which is also written about in the Bible Pet. 3:21. .

“Behold, water: what prevents me from being baptized?.. If you believe with all your heart, you can. He answered and said: I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he ordered
stop the chariot: and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water; and baptized him” - Acts. 8:36-38, 2:41, 8:12, 10:47, 18:8, 19:5.
Baptism is performed by ministers through immersion in water in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
“Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” - Matt. 28:19.
The believer's baptism symbolizes his death, burial and resurrection with Christ.
“Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, so that, like Christ,
raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also walk in newness of life. For if we are united with Him in the likeness of His death, then we must also be united
likeness of the resurrection” - Rom. 6:3-5; Gal. 3:26-27; Col. 2:11-12. When performing baptism, the minister asks questions to the person being baptized: “Do you believe,
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God? Do you promise to serve God in a good conscience?” - Acts 8:37; 1 Pet. 3:21. After an affirmative answer from the person being baptized, he
says: “According to your faith, I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” The person being baptized pronounces the word “Amen” together with the minister.

The second difference between Baptists and Orthodox. Icons and saints.

If you have been to Baptist Houses of Prayer, you have probably noticed that there are no icons there. The walls may be decorated with gospel paintings, but no one prays to them. Why?

Theological debates in this area have been going on for centuries. But the most reasonable argument of the Baptists is that the icons depict saints. Saints are not God, but people. People cannot be omnipresent like God, who fills the entire Earth with the Holy Spirit. And when a person turns to another righteous person who has lived a righteous life and even performed miracles and may be in heaven, then how does the prayer get to the saint? God, who is Omnipresent, will hand it over to a saint, so that this saint, for example, Nicholas the saint, will then hand it over to God again!? Not logical. But few people think about how prayer gets to the saint. Also, few people think about whether prayer to a saint is communication with the deceased, which is prohibited in the Bible. The Orthodox respond to this by saying that everyone is alive with the Lord. Well, yes, they are alive. and those who are alive in hell, and those who are alive in heaven. Why did the Lord give the ban then?! It turns out that the Orthodox are violating God’s prohibition. This is the difference. Therefore, Baptists do not pray to the saints who are depicted on icons. Baptists pray only to one God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and there is no sin in this, even from the point of view of the Orthodox.

The third difference between the Orthodox and the Baptists.

Baptists do not drink alcohol. There is no direct prohibition on this in their teaching. But such a tradition has developed, in order to differ from the sinful world and not allow the possibility of sin, Baptists preach abstinence from alcoholic beverages, smoking, drugs and other addictions. “Everything is permissible for me, but nothing should possess me,” said the Apostle Paul. And the Baptists are great in this regard.

The fourth difference.

Baptists do not perform funeral services for the dead. And they believe that if a person died and did not repent, then only God decides his future fate. In Orthodoxy, in this regard, the mentality of the Russian people is very well reflected, where God can send even a sinful person to heaven if the priest prays. Baptists are inclined to personal responsibility in their worldview and, again, based on the Holy Scriptures, the story of the thief on the cross and the story of the rich man and Lazarus, they conclude that God instantly decides the fate of the human soul and no funeral service will help if the person himself has not repented , then no amount of nepotism will work.

The fifth difference between Baptists and Orthodox Christians.

Community.

Baptists are more inclined than Orthodox to establish close church ties and communication. Brothers communicate in brotherly communication, sisters in sisterly communication, youth in youth communication, children in children's communication, and so on. Staying in fellowship is one of the characteristics of Baptists, which helps them learn about each other’s needs and help them solve everyday and spiritual problems that arise. A Baptist church is somewhat similar to an Orthodox monastery. Any believer in Christ who joins the Baptist church can join and become part of the community, find friends, serve God and support from brothers and sisters.

The sixth difference is Divine service.

For Baptists, worship, meaning Sunday worship, is held differently than for Orthodox Christians.

Of course there is also prayer, singing and preaching. Only now the prayer to God is made in understandable Russian, and not in Old Church Slavonic. The singing is almost the same, maybe choral, maybe universal. But it can be solo or trio. And maybe during the service a poem is recited or a testimony from life is told about how God works. Special attention is paid to the sermon so that a person does not leave the church empty. Baptists do not make the sign of the cross, although they have nothing against it.

The seventh difference between the Orthodox and the Baptists is the veneration of relics.

Baptists respect the dead righteous, but do not make their remains objects of worship, because they do not find examples of such worship in the Bible. Yes, they say, there is a case in the Bible when, during the death of Christ, a young man who died was resurrected from contact with the bones of the prophet. But Christ resurrected 2000 years ago. And nowhere is there a commandment to worship the bones of dead people. But it is written that only God should be worshiped and served. Therefore, Baptists refrain from such dubious practices, considering them to be relics of paganism that entered the church from ancestors who were forcibly baptized.

These are the main differences that immediately catch the eye; there are others, but they are less interesting for the common person. And if anyone is interested, you can look at the Baptist or Orthodox website.

Who are Baptists

Who are Baptists? Baptists are Protestant Christians. The name comes from the Greek word words“βάπτισμα”, which is baptism from βαπτίζω - “I immerse in water,” that is, “I baptize.” Literally, Baptists are baptized people.

Christianity has many faces, just like the many faces of the people living on earth. Only in the time of Jesus Christ was there no disagreement between people among his followers. Or rather, they were, but Jesus resolved them with his word. Then the time came for Christ to leave the earthly world and ascend to the Father. But Jesus did not leave Christians alone and sent the Holy Spirit, who lives in the hearts of believers. For the first three centuries, Christianity held on. There were no baptisms of children, there were no icons, there were no statues. Christianity was persecuted and was not up to the splendor of the poor wounded church, which kept the faith and the Word of the Lord. Through the centuries the church has carried the undistorted Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. God kept his word.

How did the Baptists appear?

But people remain people. People are different from people. And Christianity, spreading across the face of the earth, absorbed the customs and traditions of peoples who believed in Christ, but did not completely abandon their former customs and rituals. And they came up with something that was not in the Bible. In the West, indulgences, a kind of pass to heaven, were sold for money. The Pope was mired in debauchery and burdened himself with secular power. In the east, as well as in the west, the Word of God became far from the language of the people to whom it was spoken. Hebrew, Latin and Greek were considered sacred languages; the Russian Orthodox Church won the right to serve in Old Church Slavonic. But he was also incomprehensible to people. People's ignorance and ignorance of God's word allowed the priests to retain the right to read and interpret the scriptures as they pleased, which led to the emergence of something that was not in the Bible. This went on for a long time. Until one monk, having studied the languages ​​in which the Bible was written, decided to resist the desecration of the church. He wrote down as many as 95 outrageous points on which the church departed from the Bible. And he nailed them to the doors of the church, believed to be in Witenberg. He translated the Bible into German. People outraged by the impunity of the official church followed him. Thus began the reformation of the church. Then the Bible was translated into English and French. The state church brutally resisted people's desire to read the Bible in their native language. In each state, churches essentially reminiscent of Baptists arose. in France, they were called Huguenots. Have you heard about St. Bartholomew's Night? 30,000 Protestants were killed for their faith. In England, persecution of Protestants also began.

Baptists in Russia

But everything comes to Russia late. Peter was the first to try to translate the Bible into Russian. But the Pastor who translated the Bible died under mysterious circumstances. And the translation matter was frozen. Alexander the first resumed translation. Several books of the New Testament and several books of the Old Testament were translated. The translation became popular among the people and was banned for fear of shaking the political atmosphere in the country, since the translation of the Bible could lead to people moving away from Orthodoxy, which was the connecting element of Russian statehood. Translation in other countries occurred several centuries ago. For example, Luther, in Germany, translated the Bible in 1521. In 1611 in England it was translated into English by King James. In Russia, translation was not allowed to develop. Alexander II resumed the translation. And only in 1876 the people received the Bible in Russian!!! Friends, please think about these numbers!!! 1876!! It's almost the 20th century!! The people did not know what they believed in! The people did not read the Bible. Keeping people ignorant for so long was stupid and sinful. When people began to read the Bible, Russian Protestants naturally arose. They were not brought from abroad and were first called “Orthodox living according to the gospel,” but they were excommunicated from the church. But they organized themselves into communities and began to be called Evangelical Christians. The evangelical movement grew, people turned to God. And as in other countries, the official church was outraged that someone was pointing out its shortcomings and, with the support of the state, began persecuting Russian Protestants. They were drowned, sent into exile, and imprisoned. It is sad. People who believe in God, no matter what their denomination, should not persecute other Christians who believe in the same God, even if they differ in some ways. In the south of Russia, the evangelical movement is gaining momentum among ordinary people. In the North of Russia - among the intelligentsia. In England, Protestants received the name “Baptists”, from the Greek and English word “baptizo”, “bapize” - which means to baptize. Because one of the differences between Baptists and Orthodox Christians is that Baptists are baptized at a conscious age.

About the Baptists.

Baptists do not baptize infants. Evangelical Christians did not baptize them either. Then these two churches merged and became known as Evangelical Christian Baptists. The emergence of this church was predetermined by the emergence of a translation of the Bible into Russian. What did the Baptists find in the Bible that prevented the translation of the Bible for so long and kept the people in the dark? But the Russian people were not established in their faith, were not a thinking people, and the revolution, with its promises of freedom, equality and brotherhood, quickly changed the attitude of the Orthodox towards their faith. But it did not change the faith of Baptists and Evangelical Christians, who passed through the Soviet Union and carried their faith despite stupid accusations of debauchery and sacrifices. Of course, the Baptists did nothing of the kind. Baptists are Christians who preach a chaste life according to God's word. It is the Bible, as God’s word, that is the authority and foundation of their faith for Baptists. Baptists believe that just as Jesus Christ answered questions with his word, the Bible has answers to questions that arise in the life of a believer. Baptists reject what came into the church after the Scriptures were written.

And that’s why our Russian Protestants try to imitate Christ in everything. Christ did not strive for wealth and pomp, and Baptist worship does not require gold and expensive attributes. Christ did not wear luxurious clothes and Baptists do not strive for luxury. But they do not strive for poverty, they work with their own hands, run their own business if they can, as the Apostle Paul taught. Baptists have large and strong families. Secular education is encouraged, and musical education is also encouraged. Therefore, Baptist services are full of music and sermons. At a worship service, a choir can sing, music can be played, performed solo or by a musical group of believers. Baptists are not conservative when it comes to serving God and can bring in a variety of creative elements. Baptists have a positive attitude towards the state. They serve in the army. They pay taxes. Because the Bible says that all authority is established by God and must be respected. Among all Protestants, Baptists are theologically closest to Orthodoxy, and believe in Christ as the Son of God and God. They believe in God the Father and the Holy Spirit. They believe in the resurrection of the dead and the forgiveness of sins thanks to the atoning sacrifice of Christ. Therefore, the differences lie in some moments of the service, external attributes and what came to the church after the Bible was written, the differences are in what is not in the Bible. You can read it at the link below.

Social life of Baptists

What else can you tell about Baptists? As people, they are kind and sympathetic people. Hardworking. Baptists call a priest a pastor or elder; usually, in addition to serving in the church, he also works at work. Therefore, Baptists cannot be accused of doing nothing for society. Baptists, like many believers of other denominations, feed the hungry and are engaged in healing society, working with alcoholics and drug addicts, with God's help returning them to work and normal social life. In general, the attitude towards Baptists among those who have encountered them is positive, and their teaching evokes respect and surprises with its logic and simplicity. You can attend their services by going to the House of Prayer at the appointed time and sitting in an empty seat to get to know them better.

We often hear about religious movements, but not at all we understand their essence and significance. For example, almost everyone has probably heard about Baptists in their life, but they cannot give an exact description of them, what their faith is and what their activities are.

Some condemn Baptists, others follow their teachings. But in order to understand the situation, you should not show anger towards them without knowing what the basis of their faith is. But it is necessary to objectively consider all the information about this movement, find out for yourself all the advantages and disadvantages in staying in this faith, and only then draw your own conclusions, which will determine your personal attitude towards Baptists.

Baptistism is considered one of the movements of Protestantism. The first mentions of Baptists in Europe were seen in the seventeenth century, and then their influence expanded to America. According to some estimates, by the 2000s there were more than one hundred million Baptist adherents around the world.

It is known that in the first years of Soviet power, Baptists freedom of choice of religion was allowed on the territory of the union. But then, when Stalin came to the leadership post, the religion of Baptists was banned, and everyone who considered themselves to be Baptists was persecuted. Now the situation has improved again, because all democratic countries give their citizens complete freedom to choose their religion. At the same time, the right to completely refuse it is respected.

According to the beliefs of Baptists, a person cannot be assigned to any faith until he himself consciously chooses it. Freedom of action in self-knowledge and independent choice is a key concept for Baptists. They value and respect a person’s acceptance or, conversely, renunciation of what is alien to him. So Baptists are completely peaceful about recognizing their faith and do not condemn people for rejecting it. They are extremely are tolerant and respectful.

But this is only one of the moral values ​​of Baptists. To fully understand a faith, you need to learn about the worldview of its adherents and understand whether you share the same views on life. First of all, the important information is that in Baptistism there is no intimate relationships before marriage are encouraged, divorces, adultery and abortions.

People who call themselves Baptists, according to their beliefs, refuse to drink alcohol, they do not smoke and do not use obscene language. Those who have betrayed these principles of Baptistism are first tried to be returned to order. But with further violations, they are expelled from the church and renounce their religion. The family values ​​that are inherent in Baptists should be highly valued.

They mainly marry those who share their faith. Then, in such a union, they lead a sober, healthy lifestyle, often not limiting themselves to raising just one child, attending services together and also together perform other rituals.

They provide both religious and secular education to their children. Baptist parents instill in their children the values ​​and moral principles of religion, but at the same time they try not to limit the children’s circle of contacts with peers who do not adhere to Baptists.

A distinctive fact is that, unlike representatives of other faiths, each of the Baptists belongs to a specific church, or, in other words, a community. Each of these communities is a single team that attends services together and in equal conditions are responsible for the life of the team.

Baptists pay special attention to prayer. They read the Christian prayer “Our Father” at the beginning and end of the day, before meals, and also at their own request during the day. Sunday worship can also be called an integral part of the Baptist faith. For them, it also constitutes a separate ritual, which must be adhered to.

Holidays for Baptists are the same as those common to all Christians. Baptists also consider marriages that they perform in their churches to be sacraments. During infancy, they perform rituals to bless children. This is significantly different from traditional baptism, since it is believed that they do not have the right to decide for another person what faith to accept. Therefore, the rite of baptism takes place at an older, conscious age, having independently chosen this faith.

Baptists are not isolated, and the doors of their churches are always open to new parishioners. They are tolerant of both followers of their faith and adherents of other religions, being tolerant and showing respectful attitude towards the environment.

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Over the vast period of its existence, Orthodoxy has split into quite a large number of different denominations, each of which, no matter how strange it may sound, calls itself a “church.” As for competitors, a variety of names are often used in relation to them. The attitude towards Baptists in the Orthodox religion is clear and unambiguous: this is not a church, but just one of the Protestant sects. And the entire number of believers is neither more nor less – more than forty million. And this fact casts doubt on the true meaning of this trend. How Baptists differ from Orthodox Christians, and how these differences influenced this attitude towards them, later in the article.

How do Baptists relate to Orthodox Christians?

The world-famous religious tolerance of the United States became the environment in which Baptistism began its heyday. The ideas of so-called social justice attracted more and more followers to the community. Thus, their numbers gradually but significantly increased. By the way, today almost 25 million adherents of this religious movement live in North America alone.

Another interesting fact is that Africa has the second largest number of such adherents - more than 10 million people. The last in the “three leaders” are Oceania and Asia – about 5.5 million.

The attitude of Baptists to Orthodox Christians can be determined by the provisions of their faith, namely:

• recognition of the virgin birth of Christ;
• understanding the unity of God;
• belief in the bodily resurrection of Jesus;
• the concept of the Trinity - as God the Father, Son, Holy Spirit;
• dogma associated with the need for salvation;
• awareness of divine grace;
• acceptance of the Kingdom of God.

How does the Orthodox Church relate to Baptists?

The attitude of the Orthodox Church towards Baptists is quite ambiguous and lies in the following aspects:

• Orthodox Christians use the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, while Baptists use the Apostolic Creed, which differ quite greatly;
• Baptists, unlike Christians, believe that it needs to take place at a conscious age, when a person can consciously make a decision regarding his religious beliefs. In addition, it is worth noting that baptism among Baptists is performed by immersion, while among the Orthodox, instead of such immersion, ordinary sprinkling is allowed;
• Orthodox Christians do not accept the Baptists' interpretation of the Bible, which they interpret in their own way; the same applies to reading prayers;
• Baptists can confess their sins either publicly or internally, which among the Orthodox has a clearer frame;
• Christians do not accept the complete lack of priesthood among Baptists
• Orthodox services are much more colorful and meaningful; Baptists are sparse.

The differences between Orthodox and Baptists are and will always be a “stumbling block” in matters of understanding and accepting each other’s religions, and such a choice depends on the person himself.

Baptists are a sect of peculiarly lost people, which has nothing to do with the Church of Christ and the salvation of God. They, like all sectarians and heretics, study the Bible incorrectly, falsely and erroneously. Turning to them and communicating with them is a sin that causes grave harm to the soul. This is what is considered in Orthodoxy. Why? Let's try to answer this question.

Baptists are a Protestant sect that appeared in 1633 in England. Initially, its representatives were called “brothers”, then “baptized Christians” or “Baptists” (Baptisto from Greek means immerse), sometimes “Catabaptists”. The head of the sect, at its inception and initial formation, was John Smith, and in North America, where a significant part of the followers of this sect soon moved, was Roger William. But here and there the heretics soon divided into two, and then into several factions. The process of this division continues to this day, due to the extreme individualism of the sect, which tolerates neither obligatory symbols and symbolic books, nor administrative tutelage. The only symbol recognized by all Baptists is the apostolic symbol.

The main points of their teaching are the recognition of Holy Scripture as the only source of doctrine and the rejection of the baptism of children; Instead of baptizing children, blessing them is practiced. Baptism, according to the teachings of Baptists, is valid only after the awakening of personal faith, and without it it is unthinkable and has no force. Hence, baptism, according to their teaching, is only an external sign of confession of a person already “internally converted” to God, and in the action of baptism the divine side of it is completely removed - God’s participation in the sacrament is eliminated, and the sacrament itself is relegated to the category of simple human actions. The general character of their discipline is Calvinistic.

According to their structure and management, they are divided into separate independent communities, or congregations (hence their other name - congregationalists); moral restraint is placed above doctrine. The basis of their entire teaching and structure is the principle of unconditional freedom of conscience. In addition to the sacrament of baptism, they also recognize communion. Although marriage is not recognized as a sacrament, its blessing is considered necessary and, moreover, through the elders or generally officials of the community. The moral requirements from members are strict. The apostolic church is set as a model for the community as a whole. Forms of disciplinary action: public admonition and excommunication. The mysticism of the sect is expressed in the predominance of feeling over reason in the matter of faith; in matters of doctrine, extreme liberalism predominates. Baptistism is internally homogeneous.

His teaching is based on the doctrine of Luther and Calvin about predestination. Baptism differs from pure Lutheranism by its consistent and unconditional implementation of the basic tenets of Lutheranism about the Church, the Holy Scriptures and salvation, as well as hostility towards Orthodoxy and the Orthodox Church, and an even greater tendency towards Judaism and anarchy than in Lutheranism.

They lack a clear teaching about the Church. They deny the Church and the church hierarchy, making themselves guilty of the judgment of God: Matthew 18: 17 If he does not listen to them, tell the church; and if he does not listen to the church, then let him be to you as a pagan and a tax collector.

So, historians date the emergence of Baptistism to the beginning of the 17th century. At this time, part of the radical wing of the Puritans, representatives of English Calvinism, came to the conclusion that infant baptism “does not correspond” to the New Testament and therefore one must be baptized at a conscious age. The head of this community, John Smith, baptized himself (by pouring water on his forehead), and then his supporters. It is curious that Roger Williams, the founder of the first Baptist community in the USA, also baptized himself (although, according to another version, he was first baptized by a member of the community, who was obviously not baptized himself, and only then Williams baptized everyone else). These facts can be used for polemics with Baptists - is it possible to justify self-baptism with the Bible? In this regard, we can also use the fact that the most popular Baptist preacher of the 20th century, American Billy Graham, was baptized three times! He was first baptized as a child in the Presbyterian Church, then Baptist as an adult, but then he became a member of the conservative Southern Baptist Convention, and according to the rules of that denomination, even those baptized in other Baptist groups are baptized. Ask Baptists to clarify whether baptizing the same person three times is justified by the Bible? Let's say that baptism in childhood is invalid for Baptists, but Graham was baptized twice consciously in different Baptist groups! At first, Baptistism was not particularly popular, since the Protestant world was dominated by representatives of “liturgical Protestantism” - Lutherans and Calvinists. In essence, Baptistism was a radical wing of Calvinism, and on most fundamental issues adhered to strict Calvinist positions. For example, they adhered to the doctrine of double predestination - the dogma that God, even before the creation of the world, without any reason, decided to save some people and send others to hell. In our country, Baptists appeared at the end of the 19th century and were often associated with the activities of foreign missionaries.

The first surge in the popularity of Baptists occurred during the years of Soviet power - 1917-1927, which Baptists themselves call the “golden decade.” At this time, the Soviet government was trying with all its might to destroy Orthodoxy, but Baptists were treated noticeably more liberally, since it was considered to have suffered from the “tsarist regime.” However, from the late 20s, persecution of Baptists also began. The next surge of Baptist activity in our country occurred in the late 80s - early 90s. The Protestant missionary expansion of the 90s increased the number of Baptists in our country several times.

Controversy with Baptists

Baptists, like other neo-Protestants (Adventists and Pentecostals), like to emphasize their own religiosity and spirituality, in contrast to the Orthodox, who, in their opinion, are for the most part non-believers and generally lost sinners. Here we must immediately make a reservation that in our country in post-Soviet times a specific situation has developed when the vast majority of people call themselves Orthodox, but in reality they are not, therefore it is completely incorrect to judge Orthodoxy by them. Any religion must be judged by the people who actually profess it. Yes, the Orthodox have many sins, and one cannot help but see this, but we do not propose to judge Baptists by pop singers, alcoholic Britney Spears and drug addict Whitney Houston, or by presidents, adulterer Bill Clinton, who actively lobbied for gay rights, or Harry Truman, who ordered the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which immediately killed about 200,000 people. But all these people were raised in the Baptist spirit and never (at least publicly) renounced their faith. So let's compare those who are considered models of piety in one or another confession.

Note that Baptists, like American evangelicals in general, read several chapters from the Bible every day, and usually know at least several hundred verses by heart. Consequently, the Orthodox must not yield to them in this. Here it is worth recognizing that reading the Holy Scriptures in the Orthodox environment, alas, is often not a daily activity - although this is not prohibited by the Church, but, on the contrary, is approved by it. Of course, for the Orthodox, the interpretation of Scripture is mediated by Tradition, and Baptists believe that they interpret the Bible directly, and in this case there is a reason to talk about the status of Scripture in Orthodoxy and neo-Protestantism. Baptists often say that the Bible alone is sufficient for salvation - in which case, ask them how this is justified by the Bible itself? The words of Christ “man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,” which Baptists usually cite as evidence, do not prove anything, and the thesis “Scripture alone” cannot be accurately derived from them.

After all, the Baptists did not take their interpretations directly from the Bible; Jesus did not appear to each of them face to face and dictate which interpretation of Scripture was true. Baptists borrowed their interpretations from the sermons of the pastor, certain books of their own tradition, as well as from their own experience and the experience of their fellow believers. If we go to any Baptist bookstore, most of the books there will not be editions of the Holy Scriptures, but books reflecting the spiritual experience of American evangelicals, or their Russian brethren (the latter, however, are much smaller). Consequently, Baptists also have their own sacred tradition, only it covers not the experience of the Church over 2000 years, but the experience of radical Protestants over the last 400 years. Thus, the difference between Orthodoxy and Baptistism is not the difference between Tradition and Scripture, but the difference between Tradition and traditions.

As a rule, Baptists agree that they have tradition, but at the same time they say: but the Scriptures are more important than tradition. It all depends on what you mean by tradition. Of course, the Orthodox do not equate the status of the books of Scripture with, for example, the status of the works of the Church Fathers. The Bible as the word of God is infallible. However, for the Orthodox, Scripture is part of Tradition, i.e. continuous church experience of communion with God. The Church's communion with God existed even when there were no books of Scripture. But even now, when there are books of Scripture, communion with God exists not only on the pages of the Bible, it is characteristic of the Church everywhere and always. Otherwise, where would Scripture itself and its true interpretations come from? Baptists often say that the Church is not needed for salvation - Scripture alone is enough, which supposedly gave birth to the Church. But who created the Scriptures? Obviously, members of the Church. Ask Baptists: How do we know that the Bible should include exactly the books that are included in it today? Why do the Orthodox include 77 books, and the Baptists - 66?

Did Christ or the apostles say anything about this? No. We will not see in the Bible itself any list of canonical or non-canonical books. Some books of the Bible are not quoted anywhere else in its other books, or never mention the Name of God (eg, Song of Songs). What are the rational criteria for recognizing certain books as biblical? It is clear that there are no such criteria - the criterion here is only in the inspiration of the Church of Christ. In the same way, it can be shown to Baptists that all their external criteria for the correct interpretation of the Bible are easily destroyed: for example, the principle that the darker passages of the Bible are interpreted by means of the “clearer” ones. But who will decide which parts of the Bible are clear and which are not? Different confessions address this issue in different ways: for Catholics it is obvious that the Bible speaks of purgatory, for Calvinists it is clear that salvation cannot be lost, and for Pentecostals there is no doubt that the Bible “permits” speaking in tongues. After all, neither the prophets, nor Christ, nor the apostles said which fragments of the Bible are “clear” and which are “dark” - it all depends on the subjective choice of one or another Protestant denomination. This means that the true interpretation of the Bible is not ensured by compliance with certain logical rules - grace is necessary, poured out by God through the Church.

Otherwise, we will get the “chaos of interpretations” that we see in Protestant confessions. Ask your interlocutor - where does this chaos of opinions come from, often on very important issues? This only demonstrates that quotations from the Bible by themselves do not prove anything - fragments from the books of Holy Scripture can be cited to support many, even completely opposite positions. And vice versa, the same verse can be interpreted in exactly the opposite way, say, the words of Christ “let the children come to me” for the Orthodox serve as an argument in favor of infant baptism, i.e. children are not alien to the action of grace, but for Baptists this is an argument that children, even without baptism, are not alien to God, since they have a different view of the meaning of baptism. Of course, an Orthodox Christian should know those quotations from the Bible that are cited in defense of Orthodox teaching (they can easily be learned from books like the “Anti-Sectarian Catechism” by the priest Nicholas of Varzhansky), but it should be remembered that these quotations as such will not be so conclusive for Baptists. At best, they will convince your opponent that you are as familiar with the Bible as he is.

It must be borne in mind that, despite good knowledge of the biblical text, the vast majority of Baptists have a poor understanding of the history of the Church, or even, for example, the history of the Reformation. That is why among Baptists they want such fakes as, for example, the film “For the Orthodox about Orthodoxy”, which in terms of the level of lies is quite comparable to Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code”, and in its intellectual narrowness is somewhat reminiscent of Soviet atheistic propaganda. In this situation, it is necessary to remind Baptists that Christ promised that His Church will always exist, its existence in history is continuous (see Matt. 16, 18). However, Baptistism appeared only in the 17th century, and many of its doctrines were not known during the first 15 centuries of Christian history - was the Church, contrary to Christ's words, mistaken in fundamental matters of faith for 1500 years?! Your interlocutor will most likely say that the Church was not mistaken in the dogmas about the Trinity and the God-manhood of Christ, and the rest, they say, does not matter. But how does it matter when Baptists accuse the Orthodox of idolatry and paganism? If they are “serious”, then how can one trust such a Church at all? But it was the Church that approved the New Testament canon, it was she who defended the truth of the Trinity of God and the doctrine of the Incarnation in the fight against heretics. How could the “pagans and idolaters” do this?! Conclusion - the Church remained the Body of Christ all this time.

Finally, Baptists profess the doctrine of salvation by faith alone, but it was not known to Christians until Martin Luther, i.e. until the 16th century. Luther himself considered it the most important dogma of Christianity. It turns out that the Church of 15 centuries did not understand at all how a person is saved? So, the gates of hell defeated her? And here you can draw the attention of your interlocutor to the person who first began to talk about salvation by faith. As you know, Martin Luther was far from a saint - he constantly cursed his opponents in the most obscene terms, proposed exterminating Jews and killing German peasants. Can we believe that it was this man who, for the first time in 15 centuries, correctly understood the doctrine of salvation? Another leader of the Reformation, Calvin (and Baptistism grew out of his teachings and still adheres to many doctrines associated with Calvin), persecuted dissenters in Geneva as best he could, not even stopping at the death penalty. Of course, many crimes could also be committed in the name of Orthodoxy. But here we are talking about people who laid the fundamental foundations of Protestant dogma - after all, all Protestants, despite many disagreements, still believe in salvation by faith. And if the people who “discovered” this dogma are like that, then how can you continue to listen to their opinion, passing it off as evidence of Scripture?

The defense of the Orthodox doctrine of salvation in a dispute with Baptists can be structured as follows:

1. Emphasize that the words of St. Apostle, beloved by Protestants. Paul about “justification by faith” (Rom. 3:28) mean that a person is saved independently of “the works of the law,” i.e. Old Testament law. The apostle speaks only against “earning salvation”, relying on works, but he nowhere claims that a person does not participate in his salvation. Ap. James, on the contrary, emphasizes that faith without works is dead.

2. Christ's parable of the sower insists that although people can believe in Christ, they regularly fall away from the faith and do not bear fruit, i.e. salvation depends on man, and he can either accept it or reject it. But even after accepting this gift, he then often rejects it, therefore, there can be no talk of guaranteed salvation.

3. Christ’s words that the believer is saved are spoken by him either after healing, and therefore do not have the meaning of eternal salvation, or it is implied that the believer is a person living by Christ, and not just mentally accepting Him, i.e. salvation depends on works.

4. The Bible (both the Old and New Testaments) is full of calls to constantly repent, consider yourself a sinner and keep the commandments. What would be the point if salvation were immediately guaranteed without the possibility of losing it?

5. Russian Baptists admit that salvation can still be lost, but ask them - are you sure that you are saved? They will say “yes, let’s go to heaven right now.” This means that they are sure that, despite their sins, they will still be in heaven, i.e. You can sin, but this does not affect your guaranteed salvation and does not lead to falling away?

6. Baptists claim that at the very first moment of turning to God, when they accepted Christ as a “personal Savior” (pay attention to this expression - the Church has nothing to do with it, God saves everyone one by one), God forgave them all their sins, and therefore, although they sin, their sins are not such for God. The question arises: firstly, how can all sins be forgiven in advance? Of course, nothing is impossible for God, but the doctrine according to which you are forgiven sins that have not yet been committed, for which you have not repented, looks very strange! It turns out that God forgives in advance uncommitted murders, thefts, and adulteries? But then you can safely sin! Of course, Baptists will not be able to draw such an absurd conclusion, but does this not mean that their original doctrine is incorrect? If a student is told before starting his studies that he is guaranteed a diploma with honors, and his studies will have virtually no effect on this, will he study with full diligence?

7. If salvation does not depend on man (and this is what the doctrine of salvation by faith advocates), then Baptists, like other Protestants, have only one way out - the doctrine of strict predestination. This means that God does not want to save everyone for reasons incomprehensible to us. Can Baptists believe in a God who is love, but not for everyone, but only for the elect?

It is important for the Orthodox to clarify that the Church has never believed that salvation can be “earned.” Orthodoxy has never believed that a person can have “merits” before God. The Roman Catholic Church was inclined towards this, but in Orthodoxy, for example, there were no indulgences. Orthodox Christians do not believe in merit, but in the fact that a person interacts with God in the process of salvation and freely participates in his own salvation. And therefore, you cannot be sure in advance that you will be in heaven - a person can fall away from God at any moment. Yes, salvation is by grace - Orthodox and Baptists agree here, but mercy is always unobtrusive and non-violent, and it does not save if you don’t want it. And in order to dispose a person to grace, to drive out sin, certain “exercises” are necessary, which in themselves do not save, but with the help of God they turn out to be useful (hence fasting in Orthodoxy and other “asceticism”). The Baptist does not need this, since the doctrine of instant salvation believes that sin has already been cast out and will no longer annoy you. The Orthodox remember the words of the Apostle: “if we say that we have no sin, the truth is not in us.”

Baptists often raise the issue of venerating saints and icons, accusing the Orthodox of paganism and idolatry. In this case, the Orthodox should immediately ask: has the Baptist read in at least one Orthodox book calls to worship wood and pray to paints? Does he seriously think the Orthodox are so stupid? Make a reservation that we are arguing about the actual position of Orthodoxy, and not about the “opinions of grandmothers.” It is also necessary to clarify that the commandment “thou shalt not make for yourself an idol” also presupposes that one must not make “any images,” but for some reason Baptists easily violate this clause and depict Christ or biblical events.

Here it is necessary to explain how the Orthodox differentiate between veneration, which belongs to the icon (image) and worship, which is due only to God (the prototype). We wait only for God for salvation, but He gives it to us through the Church, through His saints and His shrines. He doesn’t need this type of salvation—we need it. In the Bible we see that people are saved through people. Don't Baptists read the Scriptures that have come down to us through His saints—God didn't dictate the Gospel to them directly. In the same way, we see God saving people through material shrines, such as the ark and the temple, as in the Old Testament. Baptists say: “But in the New Testament there are no direct commands to paint icons!” Not really. But there are also no direct commands to celebrate Easter and Christmas, and there are also no hymns from the Baptist collection. It’s just that all Christians understand: what is acceptable is what is not prescribed by letter, but corresponds to the spirit. So the veneration of shrines corresponds to the Christian spirit. Man consists of soul and body, therefore it is natural for him to be sanctified through material shrines. Hence the temple, icons, water in baptism, bread and wine in communion, hence the ritual - through material things we show the beauty of the Heavenly Kingdom. Where rituals have been abandoned, the service is simply boring. It's like New Year without a Christmas tree, sparklers and gifts - in black suits and with gloomy faces.

In the Old Testament, believers knelt before the ark and the temple; today Christians kneel before icons. When Baptists ask, isn't this idolatry? - ask them, if a young man knelt in front of a girl, declaring his love for her, is this idolatry? Are American Protestants who kneel before their country's flag and kiss it committing idolatry? Or do they just love their homeland? Why is it possible to kneel in front of the US flag, but not in front of the icon of Christ?

As for prayers to the saints, Baptists must immediately be told that the Orthodox do not believe in certain “merits” of saints, they do not deify them, and do not put them on the same level as Christ. Any prayer to the saints is a prayer to Christ. We ask the saints to pray to our Lord so that He will help us with His grace, and not the saints help us with some of their own magical powers. Let's ask the Baptists - do you ask your fellow believers to pray for you, realizing that your prayers alone are not enough, because you are far from being as holy as Christ? In the Church, everyone prays for each other, and everyone asks each other for prayers. The Orthodox simply claim that this prayerful connection between members of the Church is not interrupted even when the saints find themselves in heaven - thanks to Christ, thanks to the fact that we are one body in Christ, the saints pray for us in heaven, and can hear our prayers addressed to him on earth, which is confirmed by the entire history of the Church. If Baptists are confident that a mother’s prayer for her children has great power before God, and they ask their mothers to pray for them, then why do they deny this to the Mother of Christ Himself? These are the ones whose prayers are strong before God, stronger than any mother on earth.

It is very important to discuss the issue of the Sacraments with Baptists. You can limit yourself to only baptism and communion. The main disagreement is this: Baptists do not need the sacraments for salvation. This is their delusion. After all, if baptism and communion are not necessary for our salvation, then why should we be baptized and receive communion at all? Christ commanded us to baptize all nations and give communion to everyone, but according to Baptism we can easily do without this. Does this mean that Christ commanded nonsense? Baptists say that the main thing is faith. Yes, faith, but faith presupposes that we believe that Christ commanded us to perform baptism and communion for our sanctification and salvation, otherwise it turns out that our faith is absurd. Believe that baptism and communion will not affect your salvation in any way, believe that they are only signs - this is the Baptist creed! In connection with this understanding, it is difficult for Baptists to understand why we baptize children, because a child cannot “indicate” that he is already saved. But the Orthodox have a different meaning - in baptism a person is given grace for liberation from sin, giving birth to eternal life. Baptists will not argue for long that children are not strangers to God’s grace and need salvation, but then why not baptize them with a baptism of grace? For Orthodox Christians, baptism is a healing medicine. Would Baptists be willing to give their child medicine when he is sick, even though the child does not know what he is sick with or how the medicine works? This is why the Orthodox advocate infant baptism.

Likewise with the sacrament. Just eating bread and drinking wine, remembering the suffering of Christ - this is important, of course. Only then is it better to read the Gospel. But to commune with Christ Himself is necessary for salvation, because if we are not one with Christ, then how will we enter heaven with Him? Simple bread and wine will not save anyone - only the Body and Blood of the Lord Himself. So communion is appropriate only if it is a saving sacrament, and not just a “rite of breaking bread,” in which Christ, in fact, is not present. Where the saving sacraments have disappeared, we see a dull service, pop music and very bad poetry. Did the Lord really come down to earth to give birth to only this?

1. Prot. Nikolai Varzhansky. Anti-sectarian catechism. - M., 2001.
2. Spiritual sword. – Krasnodar, 1995.
3. Deacon Andrey Kuraev. Protestants about Orthodoxy. Heritage of Christ. 10th edition. – Klin, 2009.
4. Priest Daniil Sysoev. A Protestant's walk through an Orthodox church. – M., 2003.
5. Deacon Sergius Kobzar. Why can’t I remain a Baptist and a Protestant in general. – Slavyansk, 2002.
6. Deacon John Whiteford. Scripture alone? – Nizhny Novgorod, 2000.

The rector of the Temple of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, Sergius Tretyakov, answers readers’ questions.

— Father Sergius, what is the difference between the Christian faith and the Baptist faith?

A slightly incorrect question: Baptists are Christians. But there are many different Christians, and their religions differ. The Orthodox Church is very ancient; all the main dogmas of its doctrine were formulated long before the advent of Baptistism.

So, Baptists are one of the oldest and most established Christian sects (you shouldn’t compare them with any Pentecostals, New Apostles or Evangelists, and even more so with Jehovah’s Witnesses). Why a sect? This is a traditional classification: Lutherans, Anglicans, Calvinists and Reformed churches are usually called Protestant churches, and other Protestant denominations are called sects.

Baptistism originated in England in the first half of the 16th century. The reason was a dispute about the form of performing the sacrament of Baptism: the Anglicans (among whom the Baptists appeared) baptized by sprinkling with water, they inherited this custom from the Catholics. But during the Reformation, interest in the language of writing the Bible became widespread, and in it the verb “baptize” comes from the Greek “baptizo” - to completely immerse in liquid. Baptists began to baptize by full immersion, and not only baptize, but also re-baptize those who had already been baptized by sprinkling.

So how, exactly, do Baptistism and Orthodoxy differ? Baptistism, like all Protestant sectarianism, is a religion of external piety, its entire aspiration is aimed at transforming society according to the social gospel commandments (such as “do not steal”, “honor your father and mother”, “do not envy”, “help your neighbor” and etc.), but there is absolutely no desire for internal transformation, the “deification” of a person. The Baptist ideal is the good citizen who lives by the commandments. And the ideal of Orthodoxy is Holy. For Baptists, it is unthinkable to withdraw from the world into the desert, seclusion, silence, the desire for poverty and lack of amenities. Such a person for them is an asocial type, a renegade. Therefore, Baptistism has not given birth to a single Saint in the entire history of its existence. But Orthodoxy, meanwhile, cannot be imagined without its Saints; they are its pillars and teachers, starting with Christ Himself, and further through the Apostles to Ambrose of Optina, John of Kronstadt and the ascetics of our times.

A saint is the fruit of Orthodox piety, and the fruit of Baptist piety is a respectable burgher. Don’t think, I’m not against a respectable person - that’s wonderful, but Orthodoxy teaches that no integrity is durable until the soul is cleansed by repentance and crowned with deep humility, and this is something that is not in Baptistism. Baptists read, but do not understand, the words of Christ that “He came to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” They are the righteous, already saved by Christ, as they themselves claim. But in Orthodoxy - alas: no one can consider himself saved until death, as the greatest among the Holy Ascetics said.

The main task for Baptists is evangelization (attracting more and more new members to their community), they are multiplying their ranks. So, since the understanding of Christianity in Baptistism is external, it knows nothing about the deep life of the spirit, Baptists do not even have an interest in such a life, and hence the denial of most of the manifestations of the Spirit of God, such as the Sacraments. For them, Baptism is not a sacrament, but a rite of admission into members of the community, Communion is simple bread and wine, pastors are leaders from among the members of the community, and not priests appointed by the Grace of God, the temple is not the temple of God, but a house for prayer meetings, like Jewish synagogue, etc. And icons for them are just pictures, even moreover, pagan idols. They consider the Orthodox to be idolaters and are proud of the fact that they fulfill the commandment, but for some reason they do not notice that at the same time as the commandment, Moses was given the command to build a Temple and decorate it, including with images of Angels, before whom worship was to be performed (veil and Ark Covenant). And in general, the theological teaching of Baptists is very fragmented: some places (especially those relating to the biblical text) are worked out very scrupulously, constantly being researched, but somewhere there are solid blank fields that elude the attention of researchers; there is no coherent worldview. For them, it is as if the entire first millennium after the Nativity of Christ, the era of the Ecumenical Councils, never happened. A sort of lapse in memory: the era of the Apostles immediately passes into the era of Baptistism, and only the Bible is left from the sources of doctrine.

Baptist worship is also more of a school than a service itself. If at an Orthodox service they mostly pray (and the prayers themselves are the fruit of the spiritual experience of the Psalmist David and the Holy Fathers), then Baptists mostly read the Bible, interpret and study its texts, listen to the pastor’s sermons, and sometimes even watch films on a religious theme. Their spiritual singing is mostly self-composed hymns like “let us follow Christ as a friendly, joyful family...”, and their prayers, although sincere, are spontaneous, arbitrary and very superficial (let the Baptists not be indignant, for, excuse me, I have heard more than once in my own ears). In general, the prayers of most Protestants are formal, short, and do not occupy a central place in their spiritual life.

T. Karpizenkova

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What is the difference between the Christian faith and the Baptist faith?: 88 comments