Baptist History, Heritage & Distinctives – German Baptists did not originate with the Munster Riot – Part FOUR of SEVEN

Thomas E Kresal Admin · April 28, 2020

Baptist History, Heritage & Distinctives – German Baptists did not originate with the Munster Riot – Part FOUR of SEVEN

Thus it is shown by Mr. Evans that if the Baptists are liable to censure, simply because some of the Munster fanatics rejected infant baptism, then, on the same principles, the Pedobaptists are chargeable with all the crimes committed by their Catholic ancestors.

For instance, who instituted the Inquisition? Pedobaptists. Who preached up the crusades against the ancient Waldenses, Pedobaptists. Who are guilty of the blood of sixty millions of the saints for conscience sake? Pedobaptists. But these things are passed over lightly by our accusers; and because some deluded Anabaptists of Germany joined in a death struggle for liberty, the Baptists, as a denomination, are stigmatized as originating the Munster riot!

The injustice of these charges is shown by Mr. D’Anvers, as follow : “That take it for granted, that things were so as to matter of fact, that many Anabaptists did prove so horribly wicked, as Spanhemius, Sleiden, Osiander, and others do report, yet how unreasonable and uncharitable would it be to render all this people, either in those times or since, to be such persons also; and to judge an error in the principle from the error in conversation of some that have professed it; for by the same rule may not the purest state of the church, both in the Old and New Testament, be censured and judged; who had their Chorals, Judas’ and Diotrephes’ among them? But that others that owned that principle, were men of another spirit, both in that as well as former and latter times, you have most ample and authentic testimony from their greatest enemies.” D’Anvers on Baptists, p. 322

Point 6 Continues tomorrrow

Presented by Thomas E. Kresal: Excerpt from 1870 Edition of “Baptist Succession” By D.B. Ray pg. 95-96