| Missionary Baptist Conference, USA (Missio Dei Baptists) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Classification | Evangelical |
| Orientation | Baptist (Ethiopian Baptists of Jamaica) |
| Polity | Congregationalist |
| General Minister & President | John Harris |
| Associations | North American Baptist Fellowship, Baptist World Alliance |
| Region | United States |
| Headquarters | Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Merger of |
|
| Congregations | 59 |
| Members | 10,000 |
| Official website | mbcusa |
Missionary Baptist Conference, USA, commonly called Missio Dei Baptists (MBCUSA) and Baptists Followers of Jesus, is an Multi-ethnic Baptist Christian denomination in the Black Baptist Church Tradition in United States and Internationally, built on the missionary preaching and ministry of George Lisle, Hagar Simpson, and the Ethiopian Baptists of Jamaica that emerged in missional Baptistic Revivalism late in the 18th century.[1] It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance and the North American Baptist Fellowship. The headquarters is in Charlotte, North Carolina. The current general minister & president of Converge is John Harris, and the current associate general minister & vice president for intra-Baptist relations is Jill Awuni.
History edit
Historically, a departure from the Six-Principle Baptists with a Augustinian and Calvinistic theological framework; and Negro Baptists who used the “Four Emblems of the Gospel”, (Crown, Chalice, Dove, and Cross). The Six-Principles are: Repentance, Faith, Baptism, Laying on of Hands, Resurrection of the Dead, and Final Judgement. Based on Hebrews 6:1-2.
The denominational movement has planted churches and ministry contexts in the United States and Canada, Africa, Solomon Islands, the Greater Antilles, the Lesser Antilles, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean. MBCUSA credentials ministers, endorses chaplains, and supports missions.
The Missionary Baptist Conference, USA, traces its heritage and initial founding to the Ethiopian Baptists of Jamaica and the missionary and prophetic work of George Lisle, Hagar Simpson, Hannah Williams and other former enslaved Blacks that took the Baptist message to Jamaica and created a Baptist cooperative. The cooperative was short-lived due to the growth of the ministry of George Lisle and the Baptists in Jamaica by the hands of Colonial opponents as well as the Baptist Mission Board.
Following in the footsteps of The Rev. George Lisle, The Rev. Hagar Simpson, and the Ethiopia Baptist of Jamaica of Savannah, Georgia, MBCUSA is unapologetically Black, unashamedly Jesus followers, and intentionally Black multi-cultural. The MBCUSA being an outgrowth of the Lisle and Hagar movement was established 1995 as the Baptist Partnership. Network, an earlier merger of the Baptist Brotherhood and Sisters Union, and the Missionary Baptist Association of Churches; the movement is now the leading Black Baptist entity that sends global service apostles to the mission-field, partners with indigenous peoples to serve their own lands, and plants churches.
The Missionary Baptist Conference, USA is a national and international body of Baptist followers of Jesus Christ, individuals and autonomous congregations who bear witness to the gospel of Jesus the Christ through cooperative resources, ministry, and missions, as well as answering God’s call for reconciling this fragmented world.
Statistics edit
According to a denomination annual report released in 2021, it claimed 59 churches and ministry contexts and 10,000 members. [2]
Beliefs edit
The Movement has a Baptist confession of faith.[3] It is a member of the Baptist World Alliance. [4]
Educational Institutions edit
Missionary Baptist Conference, USA operates it's flagship seminary the Wayland Baptist Theological Seminary Richmond, Virginia, Oneco, Florida, and owns two temporarily closed undergraduate schools Lott Carey Baptist College in Rock Hill, South Carolina, Baptist Union College Alabama, and maintains business offices in Wilmington, Delaware.
References edit
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
BaptistWitnesswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Baptist World Alliance, Members, baptistworld.org, USA, retrieved July 20, 2022
- ^ Mission Baptist Conference, USA, [1], www.waylandbaptistedu.org, USA, retrieved July 20, 2022
- ^ Baptist World Alliance, Members, baptistworld.org, USA, retrieved July 20, 2022
Sources edit
External links edit
- [2] - official website