Snapshots from my Library – Jim Curran – Baptist Church History

James Ireland – When the 21 year old Baptist preacher went to Culpeper County, Virginia in the fall of 1769 he was told he would be imprisoned.

rogerfulk — Thu, 21 Jan 2021 16:48:36 +0000

Jim Curran Admin 01/21/2021

James Ireland

In a world that wants us to sit down and shut up we need to speak out for the Lord ever more so. Sometimes there can be a tendency to retreat in fear or disgust but we can not.

When the 21 year old Baptist preacher went to Culpeper County, Virginia in the fall of 1769 he was told he would be imprisoned. He would state as he went “I counted the cost, freedom or confinement, liberty or a prison; it admitted of no dispute. Having adventured all upon Christ I determined to suffer all for Him.” He would indeed would be arrested. As he stood before the magistrates they would delare that they would hear no more of his ““vile, pernicious, abhorable, detestable, abominable, diabolical doctrines, for they were naucious to the whole court.”, for they were naucious to the whole court.” He was remanded to the Culpeper County Jail. It first he became discouraged but the Lord strengthened him and he began to preach through the bars. Huge crowds would gather much to the gall of his captors. They did everything to discourage the crowds and the preacher. The African Americans coming to hear the message of hope were whipped. Ruffends attacked the crowd and even urinated in Ireland’s face. They would try to poison him, burn sulfur and pepper in a bid to asphyxiate him, and even use gunpowder to try to blow him up. Yet this did not discourage him.

In another attempt they decided to place in the same cell a big drunken Irishman. He was angry and antagonistic and initially threatened the preacher’s life. Ireland though befriended him even giving him his bed. God began to work in the man’s heart and Ireland led him to Christ. As Ireland would preach through the grates the ruffends outside would try to slam his face against them. The Irishman saw enough and declared that if the preacher would not defend himself he would. the next attempt it was not the preachers face that was against the bars. (Guess those Colonial ponytails were good for something) The abuse stopped. As James Beller would put it “God give us more big Irishmen” To which I would add- Give us more James Irelands-

The lock and key are in the Virginia Baptist Historical Society. The site is a bit more of a story- the courthouse grounds were originally laid out by a young surveyor by the name of George Washington. Later on approximately the site of the old jail Culpeper Baptist Church was built. (They later moved and the site is now an Assembly of God Church.)

Let us stand and not retreat when our world thinks that what we believe are “vile, pernicious, abhorable, detestable, abominable, diabolical doctrines” we must proclaim the truth of the Scriptures even louder no matter the political situation. And yes that goes for the forums before us- even though the political situation may make us mad our hope is not in politics but in Christ. We can not retreat- we have read the end of the book and we win.

Snapshots from my Library – Jim Curran Archives – Earnestly Contend For The Faith Jude 3

rogerfulk — Wed, 20 Jan 2021 20:54:13 +0000

HERE IS A LINK TO 29 POSTS FROM THE PAST FEW WEEKS THAT HAVE SOME GREAT SOURCES OF BAPTIST CHURCH HISTORY RESOURCES PUT TOGETHER BY …. ADMIN JIM CURRAN. (PLEASE EXCUSE SOME OF HE POOR FORMATTING) DUE TO A RUSH TO GET THEM ARCHIVED AND SAVED!

https://awarningministry.com/index.php/category/baptisthistory/snapshots-from-my-library-jim-curran/

Snapshots from my Library – Jim Curran Archives – Earnestly Contend For The Faith Jude 3

What used to be vs: what is!

rogerfulk — Sun, 17 Jan 2021 22:44:08 +0000

Jim Curran Admin 01/17/2021

What used to be vs: what is
I think it is important to note as we study Baptist History that what we can study from the past may not reflect the current condition. Sometimes we may look at an abandoned building and wonder what it used to be and what may have happened there in the past. God may have moved in a tremendous way, people were saved, and the Spirit of God moved. Yet today it is abandoned and rotting.
An even worse fate is that of a church that although its pews may be occupied and it’s pulpit filled yet the Spirit of God and the Word of God are no longer there. It has strayed far from its Biblical moorings and drifted off into the treacherous seas of modernism or charismaticism or on the jagged rocks of some other false doctrine far from where it started. So many historic Baptist Churches met this fate. The most liberal “church” in America is Riverside Church in NYC- now non-denominational and so liberal it would make a communist proud. Yet there was a day when it was pastored by none other than Thomas Armitage who wrote a voluminous Baptist History. What happened- they brought in a liberal- William Herbert Perry Faunce. He may have been polished and even president of a college- but he was a rank liberal and from that point on the church went in a theologically liberal direction. Let that be a lesson- every church is one pastor away
When we give the history of a church what they were does not mean that they are that now. To note their history is not to acknowledge their present state as right. So many have went down wrong paths and the pattern is only getting worse. The reason why this happened is because they did not obey the Scripture and disregarded their doctrine. They stand every bit as much a forlorn relic as does an abandoned building.

Snapshots from my Library 21 – Jim Curran – 1/15/2021

rogerfulk — Fri, 15 Jan 2021 19:48:13 +0000

Jim Curran Admin

Snapshots from my Library 21

Forty Years of Pioneer Life- Memoir of John Mason Peck (Edited by Rufus Babcock)

John Mason (JM) Peck is a figure that should be studied in Baptist history. He began as a missionary in the then far frontier town of St. Louis. As time went on he became a tireless advocate of missions in the face of great opposition. He would also face off with Daniel Parker in this controversy. This book is a little different in that it is neither a biography nor autobiography. Instead is a journal detailing his diverse travel, preaching and evangelization. It shows the hardships as well.

This was originally printed back in 1864 and edited by Rufus Babcock. Strangely enough my copy is a reprint in the Sociology series from Southern Illinois University Press. They do not appear to have made any changes to the book itself. There are however a couple of academic introductions that really do not fit our ideas… In any event this is the major reprint run of this book and that was clear back in 1965. Fortunately online copies are at archive, as before you can either read it online or download in multiple formats including PDF and Kindle. https://archive.org/…/fortyyearsofpion…/page/n9/mode/2up

Added by Admin Team

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Snapshots from my Library-20 – Jim Curran 01/14/2021

rogerfulk — Thu, 14 Jan 2021 17:31:37 +0000

Jim Curran Baptist Church History 01/14/2021

Snapshots from my Library-20

Massacre at Montsegur- Zoe Oldenburg

Today’s selection is quite different. This is actually a secular history book that details the crusades against the Albigenses. Details of the era are generally hard to come by and most all history was written by the Catholics. This in turn has carried over to most secular history books- they are decidedly pro-Catholic and tend to vilify the Albigenses. What sets Oldenberg’s work apart is that she is decidedly sympathetic to them and their plight. While she does repeat some of the (in all likelihood false) Catholic accusations against their doctrine she does so much less than others and is balanced in her approach. I do realize that of all groups that have been linked in Baptist heritage the Albigenses are probably the most controversial largely because of Catholic accusations of Manichean dualism. (which could be explained as a Catholic reaction to being accused as satanic.) One point that Oldenburg makes is that there were Waldenses scattered among the Albigenses areas. She also portrays very clearly the Catholic barbarism in the crusades. As with any secular history book you need to filter and as such I would recommend this to those that had already read some works such as DB Ray to get some context before. It is certainly not intended as a Baptist history book but as a fairly neutral secular history book that is useful in research.

I became aware of this book as I was browsing through a used bookstore history section and thought it looked interesting and might be worth a read. I went into this with low expectations and was surprised that it was helpful. It just goes to show you that many things can be found in secular history books. I have found much on local churches in local history books. One can think of this as a broader version of this idea.

This book is recently in print so you will need to get a hard copy from one of the usual book sources such as Barnes and Noble, Amazon etc- Kindle copies are only 4 and about 20 for a new paperback. There is one way to read it online free. Archive has electronic copies that you check out- this is different from regular books on Archive. Think of it kind of like a virtual library book. You must be a registered user and you check it out one hour at a time and renew it. It is subject to availability (unsure how many can do it at a time though)

https://archive.org/details/massacreatmontse00olde_0