Birth of the Anabaptists

Michael Haykin  |  Features  |  history
Date posted:  1 Aug 2017
Share Add       
Birth of the Anabaptists

Andreas Bodenstein von Karlstadt| image: Wolfgang Merklein

There are Roman Catholics and Protestants.

One of the legacies of the Reformation is the emergence of these two main religious groups in Western Europe claiming to be Christian. And though they disagreed with each other on key matters that this column has already noted – issues like the nature of salvation and the question of religious authority – it is important to recognise that both groups were agreed that the state had a vital role to play in the life of the church. Like their RC opponents, most 16th-century Protestants could not envision a world where state and church were not working together for the cause of Christ.

Rejecting a state church

There were, however, a small number of individuals who refused to identify themselves with this way of thinking. These men and women rejected the idea of a national church to which every individual in the state belonged, along with its support in infant baptism. In other words, they rejected the idea of Christendom and repudiated what Canadian historian Ken Davis once described as ‘all attempts at political coercion of human conscience or a coerced Christianisation of culture’.

Share
< Previous article| Features| Next article >
Read more articles by Michael Haykin >>
Features
Daniel McPhail: The  reluctant pastor of Osgoode

Daniel McPhail: The reluctant pastor of Osgoode

It was during the Ottawa Valley revival of 1834–1835, which was narrated in last month’s column, that the Scottish-Canadian, Daniel …

Features
Daniel McPhail: A man of continual prayer

Daniel McPhail: A man of continual prayer

It was in the depths of a Canadian winter – on 17 February, 1836 – that various delegates from six …

Need to advertise?

We can help you reach Christians across the country

Find out more

Subscribe

Enjoy our monthly paper and full online access from just £18/year

Find out more