A Texas Baptist History Sourcebook

A Companion to McBeth's Texas Baptists

Joseph E. Early Jr.

Publication Year: 2004

From the days of Z. N. Morrell and James Huckins to Bill Pinson and Charles Wade, Baptists have played and continue to play an important role in the religious, secular, and political life of Texas. Over the previous one hundred and fifty years several Texas Baptist histories have been written, but not until now have the documents used in the development of these texts been made available in one resource. In A Texas Baptist History Sourcebook, Joseph E. Early, Jr., has provided the most complete collection of Texas Baptist sources ever issued in one volume. This work consists of church minutes, state and association convention records, denominational newspaper articles, records of Baptist universities, and myriads of other resources. Included in this work are George Washington Truett’s sermon Baptists and Religious Liberty delivered on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., James Milton Carroll’s Trail of Blood, J. Frank Norriss railings against the Baptist General Convention of Texas, and countless other sources depicting the many years of Texas Baptist history. This book is designed as a complementary work to Harry Leon McBeth’s Texas Baptists: A Sesquicentennial History. Students can follow McBeth’s chapter divisions, headings, and subheadings for greater ease in studying the documents. Whether used independently or as a companion to McBeth’s work, A Texas Baptist History Sourcebook is a must for an in-depth study of Baptists in Texas. “This is a definitive collection of primary sources in Texas Baptist history and of great significance as a complementary volume to Leon McBeth’s classic work, Texas Baptists. I can see both of these volumes being required in courses for seminary and graduate students. Recognizing the limitations of space, Early has done a remarkable job for the amount of material that is included.”--M. Vernon Davis, Dean of the Logsdon School of Theology, Hardin-Simmons University

Published by: University of North Texas Press

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Any serious study of history requires a scrutiny of primary sources, a statement equally true of both secular and religious history. Dr. Joseph Early, Jr., has provided the most complete and comprehensive collection of sources related to Baptists in Texas ever issued in one volume. ...

Preface

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pp. xix-xxii

Texas Baptists have a rich heritage of faith and work. From the early days of Z. N. Morrell and R. E. B. Baylor to the modern era of Bill Pinson and Charles Wade, Texas Baptists have moved forward with what they deemed their most important task, that of fulfilling the Great Commission. Many wonderful histories ...

List of Abbreviations

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pp. xxiii-xxiv

Chapter 1. CHANGING FLAGS OVER TEXAS

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pp. 1-11

The first Christians in "New Spain"â which included modern Texas, were certainly not of the Baptist or even Protestant faith. These men were known as conquistadores, or the Conquerors, and claimed to be devout Catholics. Three conquistadores, Hernando Cortez (1460 - 1521), Francisco Vasquez Coronado (1510 - 1554), ...

Chapter 2. BAPTIST BEGINNINGS IN TEXAS, 1820 - 1840

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pp. 12-41

Zacharius N. Morrell (1803 - 1883) was born in South Carolina, but spent most of his early years in Tennessee. Though he considered himself sickly, Morrell earned the nickname "Wildcat" because of his fervent desire to serve God and his ability as an Indian fighter. In 1835 Morrell and his family moved to Texas. ...

Chapter 3. EMERGING BAPTIST STRUCTURE, 1840 - 1848

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pp. 42-85

A New Englander by birth and educated at Brown University, James Huckins moved to Georgia in 1838 where he became friends with Jesse Mercer. Huckins then felt the call to Texas in 1840 and was appointed a missionary by the American Baptist Missionary Society of New York. First, he moved to Galveston ...

Chapter 4. PROGRESS AMIDST PROBLEMS, 1848 - 1868

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pp. 86-109

With victories realized in the advent of the Union Association and Baylor University at Independence, the Baptists of Texas began to believe that they needed a larger organizational body to accomplish their ministerial goals on a statewide level. These desires led to the first Baptist Association of Texas in 1848, ...

Chapter 5. DIVIDED WE STAND, 1868 - 1886

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pp. 110-126

Texas Baptists have always wanted a proper education for their students on Texas soil. With the birth of Baylor University at Independence in 1845, Texas Baptists had a school that they could call their own. Due to frequent differences between Baylor President R. C. Burleson and Horace Clark, the principal of the ...

Chapter 6. THE SEARCH FOR UNITY, 1886 - 1900

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pp. 127-158

Despite the fact that the Baptist State Convention and the Baptist General Association had consolidated on all fronts, hard feelings still existed between the main leaders within each former group. It appeared as if the powerful BGA had all but swallowed the weaker BSC. The BGA had achieved victories in ...

Chapter 7. INTO A NEW CENTURY, 1900 - 1914

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pp. 159-218

Perhaps the most famous Texas Baptist pastor in either the nineteenth or twentieth century, George Washington Truett pastored the First Baptist Church of Dallas from 1897 until 1944. Known for his stirring sermons and beautiful voice, the First Baptist Church of Dallas became the most famous church in the ...

Chapter 8. GOOD TIMES AND BAD, 1914 - 1926

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pp. 219-258

Under the watchful eye of J. B. Gambrell, Texas Baptist missionary endeavors had proven to be quite successful. By the time of his death in 1910, the Baptist influence could be felt in all four corners of the Lone Star State. A mere five years later, missionary optimism could hardly be contained. ...

Chapter 9. DEPRESSION AND DELIVERANCE, 1929 - 1945

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pp. 259-309

The Depression of the 1930s severely impacted the ministries of the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The Sunday School and Baptist Training Union were forced to make 50 percent staff reductions and the WMU reduced its staff by a third. In addition, the Home and Foreign Mission Boards were in debt. ...

Chapter 10. READY TO GO FORWARD, 1945 - 1953

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pp. 310-356

The Five-Year Plan was an outgrowth of the "Centennial Convention" of 1948. In an attempt to determine future endeavors for the BGCT, it was decided that the following areas of ministry should be significantly advanced: evangelism, missions, Christian education, benevolence, hospitals, and finances. ...

Chapter 11. NEW DIRECTIONS, 1953 - 1960

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pp. 357-393

Following the resignation of J. H. Williams as Executive Secretary in 1953, Forrest Feezor, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Waco for the previous seven years, was elected Executive Secretary on the third ballot. During his seven-year tenure, the most important survey in the history of the BGCT, the Booz, ...

Chapter 12. ONWARD AND (SOMETIMES) UPWARD, 1960 - 1973

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pp. 394-453

For the first time in the history of the BGCT, the general growth of the organizations began to fall stagnant. Giving was on the decline, the Training Union was becoming more secular, there were not enough teachers for Vacation Bible School, and even the memberships of the local WMUs were falling. Television was ...

Chapter 13. FOCUS ON TEXAS, 1974 - 1982

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pp. 454-501

Following the retirement of T. A. Patterson, James Landes was chosen as the next Executive Secretary of the BGCT in September of 1973. Landes believed that more emphasis should be placed on Texas missions rather than on foreign missions. In particular, Landes and the majority of his staff were not advocates ...

Chapter 14. CONTINUITY AMIDST CHANGE, 1982 - 1998

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pp. 502-587

In 1982, Bill Pinson, Jr., replaced James Landes as Executive Secretary of the BGCT. In the history of the BGCT, Bill Pinson may have been the most qualified man to hold the office. After receiving his M. Div. and Ph.D. from Southwestern Seminary, he had been a professor of Christian Ethics at Southwestern Seminary, ...

Chapter 15. CHANGE AMIDST CONTINUITY, 1982 - 1998

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pp. 588-654

While the Southern Baptist Convention warred against itself on the national level, the Baptists of Texas girded themselves for the inevitable battle for BGCT entities. The first battle began on September 21, 1990, when Baylor University amended its charter so that trustees could elect their own successors. ...

Index

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pp. 655-676

E-ISBN-13: 9781574414172
Print-ISBN-13: 9781574411768

Page Count: 704
Publication Year: 2004