I love American Baptists!

Question: Where will I start? How much will it cost? Will it be an endles cycle of organizing and payments?

Answer: No.

Your organizing needs will be met. I have never had an unsatisfied client. Bringing in an organizer provides vision, patience, and light at the end of the tunnel. It can be done, economically and it won't last forever.

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Howdy; I'm John. I'm a minister of the Gospel as a part of the Celtic Anabaptist Communion. My 3GGF was a circuit rider with the NBC which I believe was a precursor to the ABC. His circuit was in Licking County Ohio. His sponsoring church was Licking Baptist Church which was formerly known as the Beaver Meeting House. Another ancestor of mine was John Rhodes (Roads, Rhoads) who was an anabaptist minister who settled in the Shenandoah Valley. He and his family were martyred by a Native American attack at the very beginning of the hostilities which was eventually called the French and Indian war.

I was raised American Baptist. Many people lump them in with the Southern Baptists, but they're quite different. AB, I found, was quite liberal. And it was an American Baptist pastor who helped me come out as a gay man in college (discussing the other Biblical interpretations of the verses churches use to demonize gay people). I have fond memories of my AB days.

I'm Presbyterian now. Definitely a more liturgical and formal church than the AB church. But they accept my husband, our kids and me as we are. I imagine many AB churches are that accepting as well.

I had never heard of the denomination before, so I asked my potential colleagues whether the college would require me to sign doctrinal statements or supervise my personal life. I have heard of Southern Baptist colleges that do both.

Fortunately, the answer in both cases was "no."

We American Baptists focus first and foremost on having an individual relationship with God, and firmly believe that that relationship is intensely personal and is not subject to church inquiry, scrutiny or forced observance . Furthermore, as you discovered, your personal life is personal, within the bounds of common decency and the law.

You're not alone in not having heard of us: we are much smaller than the SBC, who most people think synonymous with the word 'Baptist'. We are FAR more progressive and, as such, not very interesting to today's MSM.