BAPTISTS IN EUROPE ;n@* First Baptist Church at Gelsenkirchen, Germany AMERICAN BAPTIST FOREIGN MISSION SOCIETY 276 Fifth Avenue New York Baptists in Europe A Survey of Baptist progress in Europe in (fountries with the Baptists of which Northern Baptists in the United States maintain cooperative relationships B APTISTS from every continent on earth gathered at Toronto, Canada, in June, 1928, to attend the Fourth World Congress of the Baptist World Alliance. The attention of that great company of 6,000 delegates was drawn in a particular way to Europe during the past year, when through a world-wide petition they supported Dr. J. H. Rushbrooke as he carried to successful completion the task of securing religious liberty for the persecuted Baptists of Roumania. The year 1928 was marked by another event, staged in Europe, but having significance for every Baptist, in whatever country he may live. On March 10, at Vienna, Austria, the four hundredth anniversary of the martyr¬ dom of Balthazar Hubmaier and his wife was fittingly celebrated. The great Anabaptist reformer was burned at the stake for his faith, and three days later his wife was drowned in the Danube River. Among the people throughout the world who claim these martyrs as their spiritual ancestors in a special sense are nearly a million and a half of Baptists on the continent of Europe. Dr. J. H. Franklin, of New York, Rev. J. Bystrom, of Stockholm, Dr. J. H. Rushbrooke, of London, Rev. C. Handiges, of Berlin, and Rev. F. C. Fullbrandt, of Vienna, zvith memorial wreaths on the site where Balthazar Hub¬ maier zcas burned at the stake. 3 American Baptists and European Baptists Within the last hundred years groups have emerged in many sections of Europe, usually plain people with the New Testament as their inspiration, who have dared to fight for those principles for which our own forefathers sufifered in England and in Amer¬ ica. These small bands in Europe, who took the name Baptist, often found themselves persecuted by the government or the state church, or by both. The stories of imprisonment, exile, and other forms of persecution of those who fought for religious freedom and other principles dear to our people moved the heart of the denomination. Beginning in 1832, American Baptists, first through the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society and later, also, through the American Baptist Publication Society and the Foreign Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, began to have fellowship with the Baptists of Europe and have gladly helped to pour oil into the torches of the indigenous and autonomous bodies of Europe who are standing bravely for principles essential to mankind’s truest progress. Baptist Growth in Continental Europe A few figures to illustrate the remarkable numerical growth of the denomination in continental Europe will be of interest. These refer only to the mainland; the British Isles are not included. The figures are, of course, merely approximate: In the year of Waterloo (1815) there was no Baptist church on the mainland of Europe. In 1850 there were about 4,000 church members. In 1900 the number had risen to about 220,000. In 1928 members of Baptist churches number at least 1,300,000 and perhaps more, for the membership is growing rapidly. Such figures, with the accelerated rate of growth in recent years, amply justify the description of the Baptist movement in Europe as “the most significant spiritual fact of our time.” Baptists in Sweden Sea captain G. W. Schroeder and seaman F. O. Nilson were among the first of the Swedish people who began to voice in Sweden the doctrines which the Baptists believe to be according to Bible teachings. Both had been converted in America. The former was baptized in 1844 in the Baptist Mariners’ Church in New York, while the latter was baptized in 1847 by Rev. |. G. Oncken in Hamburg. The first Baptist church in Sweden was organized in 1848, and F. O. Nilson became its pastor. Persecution was severe against the first Swedish Baptists. In 1850 Pastor Nilson was sentenced to banishment and lived mostly in America till 1860, when he was permitted to return to Sweden. 4 During the first decade after Pastor Nilson had been exiled, Baptists in Sweden received much sympathy from believers in other lands, and especially from England, where Dr. Edward Stearne, Secretary of the Evangelical Alliance, was much inter¬ ested in the cause of Swedish Baptists. Soon the Baptists of America, through the American Baptist Publication Society and the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society, came to help the work in Sweden. A special instrument in the hand of God to promote the Baptist cause was Rev. A. Wiberg, formerly a priest in the state church. One of the chief reasons why Swedish Baptists grew so rapidly was that, at the very beginning, the denomination was fortunate in having several well-educated, consecrated leaders. Another important reason was that they early established a good theological school, “Betelsemi- nariet”, in Stockholm. Since 1866 that school has educated many hundreds of Swedish Baptist ministers. The late Dr. K. O. Broady was its founder and one of its tutors for more than 50 years. At the present time Dr. N. J. Nordstrom is the president. The denomination has its own Publication Society. Several papers are published, among them Wecko-Posten, the official organ of the Swedish Baptists. One hundred and twenty-seven mis¬ sionaries from Sweden are at work in six different countries. The Young People’s Union is growing and now has a membership of 31,493. Junior societies are proving successful. In 1856 there were 21 Baptist churches in Sweden, with 986 members, and there were 339 Sunday school pupils. By 1896, the numbers had increased to 555 churches, 38,094 members and 40,924 Sunday school pupils. In 1927 there were 685 churches, with 62,085 members, and there were 61,925 pupils in the Sunday schools. Statistical Survey 685 organized churches 835 church buildings 62,085 church members 501 ordained and unordained preachers 1,316 Sunday schools 61,925 Sunday school pupils 3,352 baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Norway A Danish sailor, F. L. Rymker, was converted and baptized in Mariners’ Temple Baptist Church in New York City. In 1857 he came to Norway from Denmark as a colporter, and, in 1860, organized the first Baptist church near the city of Skien. A Nor¬ wegian sailor, G. Hubert, was converted and baptized in the Seamen’s Bethel, Boston. After service in the Civil War of the United States, he returned to Norway, and began to preach in the southern and, later, in the western part of the country, where he organized a church at Bergen. Several years later, he went to 5 Teachers and students at the Oslo Baptist Seminary, Norzvay England and persuaded the Baptist Missionary Society to support the cause of Baptists in Norway. In more recent years, the Amer¬ ican Baptist Foreign Mission Society has furnished assistance. In 1863 a blacksmith, O. B. Hansson, came from Sweden. After several years of work with Olaf Larsson, also of Sweden, the first Baptist church north of the Arctic Circle was organized in 1870. There are now twelve Baptist churches north of the Arctic Circle, with a membership of over 1,100. The total Baptist mem¬ bership in Norway is now 5,021. Between 1876 and 1884, Nor¬ wegian preachers were trained at the Bethel Seminary in Stock¬ holm. From 1884 to 1910 they received their training in the United States, while, since 1910, the Theological Seminary at Oslo, organized in that year, has been sending out its graduates into the churches. This institution now has two instructors and eighteen students. Norwegian Baptists have established a Sea¬ men’s Home for deep sea fishermen at Honningsvaag, north of the Arctic Circle. This contains a chapel, restaurant, hospital, social rooms and accommodations for a missionary family and several nurses. Statistical Survey 46 organized churches 56 places for regular meetings 5,133 church members 37 ordained and unordained preachers 51 Sunday schools 4,405 Sunday school pupils 229 baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Denmark In 1839 a Danish-speaking Baptist missionary came from Ham¬ burg, Germany, to Copenhagen, and there found a small group of believers, who already, by reading the Bible, had become ready for baptism. In that same year the first Baptist church in Den¬ mark was organized in Copenhagen. At once a storm of opposi¬ tion and persecution broke out. Baptists in England and America 6 made representations to the Danish government—the English by sending Rev. T. E. Giles of Leeds and Rev. H. Dowson of Bradford and the Americans by sending Dr. Hockett and Dr. Conaut as a deputation to Copenhagen. It was not until several years later, in 1845, that the Danish people secured a new consti¬ tution with religious liberty. This was of tremendous value to Baptists. The established state church is very strong in Denmark and, in the past, Baptists have had to struggle with great opposi¬ tion from that church. Nevertheless, the Baptist cause has grown rapidly. In the last five years the little group of Baptists in Den¬ mark has baptized more than 1,400 believers. The American Bap¬ tist Foreign Mission Society assists in education. Statistical Survey 31 churches 190 places for regular meetings 5,659 church members 34 ordained and unordained preachers 103 Sunday schools 5,962 Sunday school pupils 160 baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Esthonia The Baptist Mission in Esthonia is one of the most recent in Europe. It is only about fifty years ago that the first Baptist church was organized. During this half century, Baptists in this little country have been constantly persecuted and without rights in the world. Scarcely any of the leading men have escaped the chains of imprisonment, banishment or some other punishment for the sake of the gospel. As a result of the Russian Revolution, Esthonia secured her existence as a free state, with complete President Adam Podin and students at the Baptist Theological Seminary at Kegel, Esthonia. Note the portrait of President Harding religious liberty a governing principle of the new administration. English, Canadian and Northern Baptists came to the aid of Esthonian Baptists in their deep need, and have helped support the seminary, which was opened at Kegel in 1922. Sixteen students were enrolled at the seminary in 1926, and 18 graduates were at work in different parts of the country. N tatistical Survey 40 organized churches 58 places for regular meetings 5,358 church members 40 ordained and unordained preachers 50 Sunday schools 2,246 Sunday school pupils 335 baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Latvia The first baptism in Latvia took place secretly on the night of September 9, 1861. Rev. A. Gaertner, one of the Lettish pioneers, who had traveled to Germany and had there been baptized, per¬ formed the ordinance in the river Sirjen. On this occasion 72 One of the Baptist churches in Riga, Latvia 8 persons were baptized. Following the ordinance in the river, these new Baptists celebrated the Lord’s Supper. This encouraging beginning brought on much persecution, as Latvia was then a part of the Great Empire of Russia. In 1879 the Baptists of the Baltic States were recognized by the government as an independent religious community. The printing of literature for Baptists of Latvia first became a successful enterprise under Rev. J. A. Frey, the leader, also, in a remarkable development of evangelization. Foreign mission work was systematically undertaken at the begin¬ ning of this century. The war brought disaster. In 1916, meet¬ ings were forbidden and Baptist leaders were banished. In the days of rebuilding since the war, Baptists of the Northern Con¬ vention, of Britain and of Canada have helped, and their assistance has made it possible to open the Seminary at Riga, which, in 1926, enrolled 18 students. In four years the Seminary Church at Riga grew in membership from 28 to 213. Statistical Survey 89 organized churches 133 places for regular meetings 9,288 church members 130 ordained and unordained preachers 112 Sunday schools 4,498 Sunday school pupils 354 baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Czechoslovakia The pioneer founder of the Baptist mission in Czechoslovakia was Henry Novotny, born in 1846, in the east of Roumania. Originally a Roman Catholic, he came into contact with Protes¬ tants in their secret meetings when he was a boy of twelve. He was converted at the age of twenty and then went to Switzerland and New College, Edinburgh to study theology. The first Baptist church was organized at Hledsebe, near Prague, in 1885, with sixteen members and with Henry Novotny as its pastor. From this city the movement spread throughout the country. So long as Czechoslovakia was part of Austria-Hungary, Baptists were persecuted and the movement carried on very slowly. Baptisms took place at night, members were imprisoned and Bible distribu¬ tion was not permitted. The political freedom of Czechoslovakia following the war, and its accompanying religious liberty, has been followed by a widespread religious movement. Multitudes of Czechoslovaks who remembered that the nation was originally Protestant (John Hus), but Romanized by Austria, left the Roman Church. This presents a great opportunity for evangelical Christianity. Assistance is now furnished the Baptist cause by the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society and the British Baptist Continental Committee. Before the war, German, Scottish and English Baptists, as well as the Northern Convention in America, had rendered help. A Seminary was established in Prague in 1921. 9 A recent Baptist conference at Miloslava, Czechoslovakia Statistical Survey 25 organized churches 159 places for regular meetings 2,621 church members 27 ordained and unordainecl preachers 64 Sunday schools 1,500 Sunday school pupils 120 baptisms in 1926 Baptists in Germany The mission work of the German Baptists was started in 1834. On April 22 of that year Prof. Barnas Sears of Hamilton College, now Colgate University, baptized the first seven Baptists in the Elbe River near Hamburg, and on the next day the first Baptist church in Hamburg was organized, with Rev. J. G. Oncken as its pastor. Besides Pastor Oncken, the work soon had excellent leaders in Rev. J. Ivobner and Rev. G. W. Lehmann. Under the blessings of the Lord the churches grew rapidly. Severe persecu¬ tions on the part of the public authorities and of the state church could not hinder their development. It was not until 1848 that the Baptist churches were recognized by the authorities. An active missionary zeal has characterized all the churches. Besides a staff of well-trained workers, there are hundreds of voluntary helpers in the churches. The work in Germany became the starting point for Baptist missions in Denmark, Holland, Sweden, Poland, Austria, Hungaria, the Baltic Provinces and Switzerland. The foreign mission field of the German Baptists, especially in the Cameroons, made excellent progress, and was abundantly blessed by God. The work of the Sunday schools, the Young People’s Association and the Deaconess Homes has been another fruitful 10 development. For many years the work was helped by the Ameri¬ can Baptist Foreign Mission Society, which is now aiding students in the Hamburg Seminary. Sixty students were here enrolled in 1926. The war naturally interfered seriously with Baptist develop¬ ment. While revolution brought greater religious liberty, economic conditions following the war have made rapid progress difficult. The first Baptist hospital was opened in Hamburg in 1926. Statistical Survey 282 organized churches 970 places for regular meetings 63,165 church members 320 ordained and unordained preachers 758 Sunday schools 34,783 Sunday school pupils 3,213 baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Lithuania In 1860, several Lithuanians living on the German side of their frontier were baptized and received into the fellowship of a German Baptist church in Memel. Efforts to extend the work into Lithuania proper, under the leadership of Albrecht, met with such opposition that Memelland continued to be the scene of greatest development for Lithuanian Baptists. Since the war, Memelland has been transferred to Lithuania. A German-speak¬ ing Baptist church developed in the capital city of Ivowno. Mission work was commenced there in 1879 and an independent church was organized in 1889. Among the refugees and released prisoners who returned to Lithuania after the war were a number of Bap¬ tists who had been converted in central Russia or in German prison camps. Rev. Th. Gerikas is engaged in evangelistic work in Lith¬ uania, with the support of the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society. Work is carried on among Lithuanians, Letts, Germans and Russians. A missionary society has been formed. German Baptists of America make possible the employment of two col- porter-evangelists. Statistical Survey 11 organized churches 37 places for regular meetings 1,035 church members 5 ordained and unordained preachers 17 Sunday schools 568 Sunday school pupils 36 Baptisms in 1927 Baptists in Poland Baptist progress in Poland is an outgrowth of the movement which began with the baptism of J. G. Oncken and others in Ger- 11 many in 1834. In 1851 evangelistic efforts were made by German Baptists on behalf of their fellow countrymen, who had settled in the south and west of Russia, especially in that area which now comprises the Republic of Poland. On November 28, 1858, nine persons were baptized at Adamow. Most of tbe organized Baptist 12 churches in Poland have come into existence since 1905, when the Government Edict of Toleration went into effect, the prin¬ ciples of which, in so far as it relates to freedom of worship, have been continued by the new Polish Government. The largest Baptist church in Poland is at Lodz. The first small groups of graduates from the Seminary at Lodz began this work in 1926. Since 1924 a separate Slavic Baptist Union has been maintained. The work is aided by Northern Baptists and German Baptists in the United States. There are about 14,000 Baptists in Poland. About 7,000 of these are German-speaking, organized in two asso¬ ciations. About 7,000 are Slavs. Lew of the Slav churches have buildings. Statistical Survey 30 organized churches 5 places for regular meetings 2,266 church members 18 ordained and unordained preachers 19 Sunday schools 487 baptisms in 1926 The recently erected Baptist church at Lens, France Baptists in France Lrance is a land of exceptional interest to Baptists. It has numerous baptisteries, some of which date back to the fourth cen¬ tury, and it can also boast of having given birth to the Waldensian and Albigensian movements, of having witnessed the labors and sufferings of precursors like Henri de Lausanne and Peter Bruys, and of having lent the protection of its eastern mountains to per¬ secuted Anabaptists. Baptist views were in the trend of the Lrench Reformation and stern repression alone averted the ulti¬ mate results involved in that great movement. The earliest modern 13 Baptist movement appeared in French Flanders. Some 25 years afterwards, American Baptists began to cooperate financially. The history of the work has been one of quiet heroism in the face of Romanist and governmental persecution, and of faithful labor amidst extraordinary practical difficulties. No field in the world has suffered greater havoc through the war. Because of their community of language and interests, the frontier Baptist fields of Belgium and Switzerland were incor¬ porated in the French Baptist Associations, and have been included in the statistics. Baptist churches were pioneers in Daily Vacation Bible School work in France, maintaining six schools in 1926. Statistical Survey 25 organized churches 50 places for regular meetings 1,235 church members 26 ordained and unordained preachers 42 Sunday schools 1,200 Sunday school pupils 87 baptisms in 1926 Baptists in Russia The Baptist movement in Russia is also an outgrowth of the movement which began with the baptism of J. G. Oncken and others in Germany in 1834. Many difficulties were encountered in the early years, and the first Baptist church of worship in Russia was not built until 1872. In 1888, when the regulations of the Russian Government prohibited the carrying on of religious work in the name of foreign organizations, the Baptists in Russia with¬ drew from the German Baptist Union and formed an organization of their own. The first movement originated among the peasants in the south. Another movement, under English influence and later labelled “Evangelical Christian” first appeared in Petrograd. Though the two groups formed separate organizations, they held to the same principles and form of church government, and are now united in the All-Russian Baptist Union. Owing to conditions in Russia, it is not yet possible to state definitely the progress made by Baptists in that country in recent years. In 1923, however, according to a Russian statesman’s declaration, baptized believers made up a community of at least three and a half millions. Bible distribution has offered a fruitful form of cooperation in the Russian work for American Baptists. An event of great sig¬ nificance took place in 1927. In May of that year a permit was granted to the Baptist Union to establish a preachers’ school in Moscow. An old building in the center of the city was found and leased from the Government for forty years. Here on December 1, 1927, the preachers’ school was opened with about fifty students. 14 Baptist church in Lipt. Sv. Mikulas, Czechoslovakia \ 15 Published by THE BOARD OF MISSIONARY COOPERATION OF THE NORTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION 276 Fifth Avenue New York City