Baptists form a major branch of evangelical Protestantism distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers, and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul competency, sola fide, sola scriptura and congregationalist church government. Baptists generally recognize two ordinances: baptism and communion.
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), alternatively the Great Commission Baptists (GCB), is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. In 1845 the Southern Baptists separated from the Triennial Convention in order to support slavery, which the southern churches regarded as "an institution of heaven". During the 19th and most of the 20th century, it played a central role in Southern racial attitudes, supporting racial segregation and the Lost Cause of the Confederacy while opposing interracial marriage. In 1995, the organization apologized for its history. Since the 1940s, it has spread across the United States, having member churches across the country and 41 affiliated state conventions.
The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a Baptist Christian denomination established in 1907 originally as the Northern Baptist Convention, and from 1950 to 1972 as the American Baptist Convention. It traces its history to the First Baptist Church in America (1638) and the Baptist congregational associations which organized the Triennial Convention in 1814.
The Central Baptist Association is an association of churches located from South Carolina to Indiana, with most of the churches being in eastern Tennessee and southwestern Virginia. In 1956, some churches of the Eastern District Primitive Baptist Association separated and formed the Central Baptist Association. The churches entering this new organization desired to be more progressive and to provide a home for homeless and destitute children. They adopted the name Central Baptist "as an indication of our acceptance of the Holy Scriptures in their entirety, varying neither to the right or left". In 1996 there were almost 4000 members in 34 churches located in five states. Currently they have headquarters in Jasper, Virginia, including a tabernacle, a children's home and a youth Bible camp.
Primitive Baptists – also known as Regular Baptists, Old School Baptists, Foot Washing Baptists, or, derisively, Hard Shell Baptists – are conservative Baptists adhering to a degree of Calvinist beliefs who coalesced out of the controversy among Baptists in the early 19th century over the appropriateness of mission boards, tract societies, and temperance societies. Primitive Baptists are a subset of the Calvinistic Baptist tradition. The adjective "primitive" in the name is used in the sense of "original".
The Second Baptist Church, located at 441 Monroe Street within Greektown in Detroit, Michigan, is the oldest African-American church in the Midwestern United States. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974 listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
The Progressive National Baptist Convention (PNBC), incorporated as the Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc., is a mainline Baptist Christian denomination emphasizing civil rights and social justice. The headquarters of the Progressive National Baptist Convention are in Washington, D.C. Part of the Black church tradition, since its organization, the denomination has member churches outside the United States, particularly in the Caribbean and Europe. It is a member of the National Council of Churches and the Baptist World Alliance.
The Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), more commonly known as the Texas Baptists, is a Baptist Christian denomination in the U.S. state of Texas. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention and the Baptist World Alliance. Texas Baptist offices are located in the city of Dallas, though convention staff are located across the state. According to a denomination census released in 2023, it claimed 2,038,53 members and 5,375 churches
The National Baptist Convention of America International, Inc., more commonly known as the National Baptist Convention of America or sometimes the Boyd Convention, is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is a predominantly African American Baptist denomination, and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. The National Baptist Convention of America has members in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and Africa. The current president of the National Baptist Convention of America is Dr. Samuel C. Tolbert Jr. of Lake Charles, Louisiana.
Theodore Judson Jemison, better known as T. J. Jemison, was the president of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. from 1982 to 1994. It is the largest African-American religious organization. He oversaw the construction of the Baptist World Center in Nashville, Tennessee, the headquarters of his convention.
The black church is the faith and body of Christian denominations and congregations in the United States that predominantly minister to, and are also led by African Americans, as well as these churches' collective traditions and members. The term "black church" may also refer to individual congregations, including in traditionally white-led denominations.
Approximately 15.3% of Americans identify as Baptist, making Baptists the second-largest religious group in the United States, after Roman Catholics. Baptists adhere to a congregationalist structure, so local church congregations are generally self-regulating and autonomous, meaning that their broadly Christian religious beliefs can and do vary. Baptists make up a significant portion of evangelicals in the United States and approximately one third of all Protestants in the United States. Divisions among Baptists have resulted in numerous Baptist bodies, some with long histories and others more recently organized. There are also many Baptists operating independently or practicing their faith in entirely independent congregations.
William J. Simmons was an American Baptist pastor, educator, author, and activist. He was formerly enslaved person, who became the second president of Simmons College of Kentucky (1880–1890), for whom the school was later named.
Joseph Harrison Jackson was an American pastor and the longest serving President of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
Richard Henry Boyd was an African-American minister and businessman who was the founder and head of the National Baptist Publishing Board and a founder of the National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.
The Joint National Baptist Convention, also known as the Joint Black National Convention, or National Baptist Joint Board Session, was initially a joint meeting in 2005 of the four predominantly African American Baptist denominations operating under the derivatives of the name "National Baptist Convention." Its participants—the National Baptist Convention, USA; National Baptist Convention of America; Progressive National Baptist Convention; and National Missionary Baptist Convention of America—represented over 17 million African American Baptists in the United States in 2004. The latter three organizations have either originated from or traced their origin to the National Baptist Convention, USA—or the mother church.
The history of the Baptist movement in the state of Alabama predates Alabama statehood.
The National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., more commonly known as the National Baptist Convention, is a Baptist Christian denomination headquartered at the Baptist World Center in Nashville, Tennessee and affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance. It is also the largest predominantly and traditionally African American church in the United States and the second largest Baptist denomination in the world.
Progressive Primitive Baptists are a Christian denomination comprising 95 churches located in nine US states and one church in Haiti. The denominational name consists of three parts. They are identified with the Baptist tradition as they baptize only believers who have made a profession of faith and they only baptize by immersion. The word Primitive in the name refers to their adherence to the original principles of their Baptist ancestors, the Particular Baptists of England. Their articles of faith are based on the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. The word Progressive refers to their inclusion of musical instruments, bible studies, youth camps, mission and charity organizations that are rejected by other factions of Primitive Baptists, often referred to as "old line" or "old school".
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