National Missionary Baptist Convention of America

• Formation: 1988

The National Missionary Baptist Convention of America is a Protestant church body in the Baptist faith tradition and made up predominantly of Black Americans. Its estimated 400,000 members worship in around 300 congregations around the United States. The Convention was originally headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Its headquarters has moved several times since then because the home congregation of the current president is generally treated as the Convention’s headquarters.

The Convention was formed after a split in the National Baptist Convention of America, Inc. The decision to form a new Convention occurred during a national meeting of Baptists held at People’s Missionary Baptist Church in Dallas on November 14–15, 1988. The Reverend Shadrach Meshach Lockridge served as its first president.

History

The Convention is part of the Baptist tradition, the origin of which is subject to some theological disagreement. Some experts trace its beginnings to John the Baptist, a relative of Jesus Christ who conducted baptisms in the area around Jerusalem. According to the Christian New Testament of the Bible, John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan River at the start of his ministry. Other experts place its origins in the English Dissenters or Separatists movement from the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries. In either case, the first church formally acknowledged as Baptist was established in Amsterdam in 1609.

Europeans seeking religious freedom in the New World brought Baptist traditions and beliefs to America shortly thereafter. Roger Williams established the first Baptist Church in America in 1638 in the area now known as Rhode Island. One hundred and fifty years later, there were about sixty thousand Baptists and 550 Baptist ministers worshiping in about 650 congregations across the continent.

The early American Baptists differed on some points of belief but held in common a desire for religious freedom. This helped the denomination to grow into one of the largest Protestant denominations in the twenty-first century, and it was a crucial factor in the establishment of the United States. The principles that allowed the Baptists to coexist despite their differences were a strong influence on the drafters of the First Amendment of the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion.

The key area of agreeing to disagree for Baptists is in their beliefs about eternity. Some are followers of John Calvin, who believed in predestination, or that a person’s place in eternity was already established and was not changed by a person’s actions on Earth. Others adhere to the Arminian tradition as proposed by Jacobus Arminius. Arminians believed in free will and that a person can determine their own fate for eternity by their actions while on Earth.

The Baptist presence in America continued to grow and was strong at the time of the American Civil War (1861–1865). When the war was over, and many enslaved Americans were freed from slavery, they joined the many free Black Americans who were part of the Baptist Church. These Black Americans had a strong desire to carry the message of Jesus’s life and ministry to Africa and wanted to establish a missionary presence there. In November 1880 at a gathering of more than 150 Baptist ministers held in Montgomery, Alabama, the decision was made to form the Baptist Mission Convention. In 1886, more than 600 ministers met in St. Louis, Missouri, and established a group with a larger focus, the National Baptist Convention of America. Knowing that education was the key to economic and personal prosperity, the Baptists formed another group, the National Baptist Education Convention, in 1893.

All three groups struggled, however, and a decision to merge was made in 1895. The new, larger group was called the National Baptist Convention of the United States of America. In 1915, a disagreement over authority between the Convention and the group’s publishing board resulted in a split. Part of the Convention separated to become the National Baptist Convention of America, while the original group incorporated and became the National Baptist Convention of the United States of America, Inc.

In 1988, another disagreement over the authority of the National Baptist Publishing Board versus the authority of the larger convention resulted in a second split. This led to the formation of the National Missionary Baptist Convention of America. Around ten years later, the group split further when an unsuccessful candidate for its presidency formed the Institutional Missionary Baptist Convention of America.

Beliefs and practices

Baptists are Christians who believe the Bible is the supreme authority in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. They believe that the human writers of the Bible received their inspiration from the Holy Spirit, and what they wrote accurately recorded the words of God. They, therefore, look to the Bible as the ultimate authority in all matters of faith.

The Baptist tradition has long held that being baptized is a public act of faith and obedience. It is undertaken by a person who is of sufficient age and maturity to make a personal commitment to follow and obey the teachings of Christ. As a result, Baptists do not generally baptize infants or small children as many other Christian denominations do. Baptism is generally by full immersion in water, which is viewed as a symbolic cleansing of sins. This is seen as a biblically correct act, as it replicates the type of baptism received by Jesus and by many of his followers as described in the New Testament.

While baptism is an important ritual act of faith in the Baptist tradition, it is not viewed as essential to salvation. Neither is the reception of communion. Communion is a ritual reenactment of the Last Supper shared between Jesus and his disciples before he was crucified. He blessed and broke bread and shared it and wine with his followers. While Baptists partake in communion, it is not generally a regularly scheduled part of every worship service and is not seen as essential to salvation. Baptists allow all who wish to receive communion to do so when it is offered.

Contemporary Baptists continue to hold varied views on eternity. Some remain Calvinists, while others hold the Arminian viewpoint. The National Missionary Baptist Convention of America also places significant emphasis on sharing their beliefs through mission efforts and evangelism in the United States and elsewhere.

Bibliography

"About." National Missionary Baptist Convention of America, www.nmbca.org/who-we-are. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.

Anderson, Meg. "National Baptist Convention (1895– )." Black Past, 29 Mar. 2009, www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/national-baptist-convention-usa-inc-1895. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.

"Baptist." Patheos Religion Library, www.patheos.com/library/baptist. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.

Casanova, Amanda. "13 Things to Know about Baptist Beliefs and Faith." Christianity.com, 28 Oct. 2024, www.christianity.com/church/denominations/the-most-well-known-protestant-denomination-10-things-everyone-should-know-about-baptists.html. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.

“National Missionary Baptist Convention of America.” Baptist World Alliance, baptistworld.org/member/national-missionary-baptist-convention-of-america. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.

Neusner, Jacob. World Religions in America: An Introduction. John Knox Press, 2009.

"Our History." American Baptist Churches USA, www.abc-usa.org/what-we-believe/our-history. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.