**Short answer:** No, Baptist successionism does not match up accurately with historical evidence. Most scholars conclude that Baptists originated in the 17th century from English Separatists, not through an unbroken chain of earlier sects. Successionist theories rely on selective or inaccurate connections to groups whose beliefs often diverged sharply from Baptist doctrine. --- ## 📖 What Baptist Successionism Claims - **[Unbroken lineage](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Unbroken%20lineage)**: Baptists descend directly from New Testament churches, bypassing Catholic and Orthodox traditions. - **[Groups included](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Groups%20included)**: Montanists, Paulicians, Waldenses, Albigenses, Cathari, and Anabaptists are often cited as “proto-Baptists.” - **[Key advocates](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Key%20advocates)**: James Milton Carroll (*The Trail of Blood*, 1931), John Spittlehouse, Jesse Mercer, Charles Spurgeon. - **[Landmarkism](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Landmarkism)**: A related 19th-century movement emphasizing Baptist exclusivity and succession. --- ## ⚖️ Scholarly Assessment - **[Historical criticism](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Historical%20criticism)**: Many of the groups successionists claim as ancestors (e.g., Cathari, Montanists) held doctrines far removed from Baptist beliefs. For example, Cathari were dualists who rejected marriage and material creation, which is incompatible with Baptist theology. - **[Mainstream view](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Mainstream%20view)**: Baptists emerged in early 1600s England, influenced by Puritanism and Separatism, rediscovering believer’s baptism and congregational polity. - **[Problems with successionism](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Problems%20with%20successionism)**: Historians like Wendell Rone and James Duvall note that successionist works (e.g., *The Trail of Blood*) oversimplify history, misrepresent sects, and lack credible documentation. --- ## 🧩 Why It Matters - **[Identity](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Identity)**: Successionism gave Baptists a sense of being the “true church,” reinforcing denominational pride. - **[Exclusivity](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Exclusivity)**: It fueled Landmarkist tendencies, leading some Baptists to reject cooperation with other denominations. - **[Modern relevance](guide://action?prefill=Tell%20me%20more%20about%3A%20Modern%20relevance)**: While largely discredited academically, successionism still influences conservative Baptist circles today. --- ✅ **Conclusion:** Baptist successionism is more theological myth than historical reality. It reflects a desire for continuity with the apostolic church but does not withstand critical historical scrutiny.

3 Video Comments

↓

To comment, this group.
1. 

   1

   1

   TheDeafGeorgeShow

   3 days ago

   ReplyTo:   TruthHurts