Everything about John Smyth 1570-1612 totally explained
John Smyth (
1570 - c.
August 28,
1612) was an early
Baptist minister of England and a defender of the principle of religious liberty. Many historians consider John Smyth as a founder of the modern Baptist denomination (see
Baptists).
Early life
Smyth was born in Lincolnshire in 1570, and educated locally at the grammar school in
Gainsborough.
Ordination
Smyth was ordained as an Anglican priest in
1594 in England. Soon after his ordination, he broke with the
Church of England and left for Holland where he and his small congregation began to study the Bible ardently. He briefly returned to England and Baptists become known as Separatists.
Believer's baptism
In 1609, Smyth, along with a group in Holland, came to believe in
believer's baptism (as opposed to
infant baptism) and they came together to form one of the earliest Baptist churches.
Baptists believe that baptism is a sign of obedience to God. Baptists also believe that baptism represents these following spiritual acts 1.death 2. burial 3. 4.resurrection of the (body)flesh.
Evolving views
In the beginning, Smyth was closely aligned with his
Anglican heritage. As time passed, his views evolved.
First, Smyth insisted that true worship was from the heart and that any form of reading from a book in worship was an invention of sinful man. This rejection of
liturgy remains strong among many Baptists still today. Prayer, singing and preaching had to be completely spontaneous. He went so far with this mentality that he wouldn't allow the reading of the Bible during worship “since he regarded English translations of Scripture as something less than the direct word of God.”
Second, Smyth introduced a
twofold church leadership, that of pastor and deacon. This was in contrast to the Reformational trifold leadership of Pastor-Elder, Lay-Elders, and Deacons.
Third, with his newfound position on baptism, a whole new concern arose for these “Baptists”. Having been baptized as infants, they all realized that they'd have to be re-baptized. Since there was no other minister to administer baptism, Smyth baptized himself and then proceeded to baptize his flock.
Mennonite influence
Before his death, Smyth moved away from his Baptist views and began trying to bring his flock into the
Mennonite church. Although he died before this happened, most of his congregation did join themselves with the Mennonite church after his death.
This brought about a separation between Smyth and a group led by
Thomas Helwys. The churches that descended from Smyth and Helwys were of the
General Baptist persuasion.
Further Information
Get more info on 'John Smyth 1570-1612'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://john_smyth__1570-1612.totallyexplained.com">John Smyth (1570-1612) Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
