Baptist General Conference
Encyclopedia
The Baptist General Conference (BGC) is a (US) national evangelical Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...

 body with roots in Pietism
Pietism
Pietism was a movement within Lutheranism, lasting from the late 17th century to the mid-18th century and later. It proved to be very influential throughout Protestantism and Anabaptism, inspiring not only Anglican priest John Wesley to begin the Methodist movement, but also Alexander Mack to...

 in Sweden and inroads among evangelical Scandinavian-Americans, particularly in the American Upper Midwest. From its beginning among Scandinavian immigrants, the BGC has grown to a nationwide association of autonomous churches with at least 17 ethnic groups and missions in 19 nations. The current president of the BGC is Dr. Jerry Sheveland.

In 2008 the Baptist General Conference adopted the new movement name of Converge Worldwide.

History

The Baptist General Conference grew out of the great revival
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening was a Christian revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1800, had begun to gain momentum by 1820, and was in decline by 1870. The Second Great Awakening expressed Arminian theology, by which every person could be...

 of the 19th century, but its roots can be traced back to Swedish Pietism
Pietism
Pietism was a movement within Lutheranism, lasting from the late 17th century to the mid-18th century and later. It proved to be very influential throughout Protestantism and Anabaptism, inspiring not only Anglican priest John Wesley to begin the Methodist movement, but also Alexander Mack to...

. In 1852, Gustaf Palmquist emigrated from Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Forty-seven days after his arrival, he and three others organized a Swedish Baptist church in Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 40,884 at the 2010 census. Located on the Mississippi River, it is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Moline, East Moline, and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The Quad Cities...

. Frederick Nilsson, who was instrumental in leading Palmquist to Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...

 views, arrived in America the next year with 21 immigrants. Some of these united with the Rock Island church, while others organized a church at Houston, Minnesota
Houston, Minnesota
Houston is a city in Houston County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 979 at the 2010 census.-History:The community was named after Sam Houston, first president of the Republic of Texas....

. Nilsson traveled widely, founding and strengthening churches. Anders Wiberg was another pioneer among these churches from 1852 until 1855, when he returned to Sweden as a missionary.

Christian experience was a major emphasis among these Swedish Baptists, and they prospered from the awakenings in the 19th century. Immigration, aggressive evangelism and conversion through revivals brought rapid growth to the denomination. John Alexis Edgren
John Alexis Edgren
John Alexis Edgren was a Swedish-American Baptist Minister. Edgren began what eventually evolved into Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota.-Background:...

 founded the Swedish Baptist Seminary in Chicago, Illinois in 1871.

In 1879, when the Swedish churches had grown to 65 in number, they formed a General Conference. The members of these churches assimilated into American society and gradually lost their separate ethnic identity. By 1940, most churches were English-speaking. In 1945, the Swedish Baptist General Conference dropped "Swedish" from its name and became the Baptist General Conference of America. Swedish Baptists had maintained an alliance with the American Baptist Publication Society, American Baptist home and foreign missions, etc., and later the Northern Baptist Convention. Some Swedish Baptists expected to merge with that body, but the groups moved toward different developments of theological emphasis. The conservative Swedish Baptists pulled back from growing liberalism of the Northern Baptists, and in 1944 formed their own Board of Foreign Missions. This moved them toward independent existence, which they have maintained to the present.

Current

The Baptist General Conference operates the Bethel Theological Seminary and Bethel University
Bethel University (Minnesota)
Bethel University is a Christian higher education institution with approximately 6,000 students from 36 countries enrolled in undergraduate, graduate, seminary, and adult education programs...

 in Arden Hills, Minnesota
Arden Hills, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,652 people, 2,959 households, and 2,228 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,087.3 people per square mile . There were 3,017 housing units at an average density of 339.9 per square mile...

 near St. Paul, Minnesota, and maintains business offices in Arlington Heights, Illinois
Arlington Heights, Illinois
Arlington Heights is a village in Cook and Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it lies about 25 miles northwest of the city's downtown. The population was 75,101 at the 2010 census....

. The primary headquarters are now in Orlando, Florida. The official periodical is Converge Point, and Harvest Publications offers a wide range of Christian education material. The Conference labors in national and world missions, with missionaries in Central America, South America, southern Europe, former Eastern Bloc nations, Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and the Asian Pacific rim. Greg Boyd, pastor of Woodland Hills Church, and John Piper
John Piper (theologian)
John Stephen Piper is a Christian preacher and author, currently serving as Pastor for Preaching and Vision of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota...

, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church and leader of Desiring God Ministries, are perhaps two of the most well known BGC ministers in the 21st century. Bethlehem Baptist Church was organized as the First Swedish Baptist Church of Minneapolis in 1871.

In 2006, the BGC had 194,000 members in 950 churches in the United States. These churches are also organized into 11 regional bodies: Northwest, Southeast, Great Lakes, Heartland, Minnesota-Iowa, MidAtlantic, Converge MidAmerica, PacWest, Northeast, Rocky Mountain, and Southwest. There are a further 105 churches in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 organized into 5 district bodies. These congregations cooperate together nationally through the Baptist General Conference of Canada
Baptist General Conference of Canada
Baptist General Conference of Canada is a national body of evangelical Baptist churches introduced to Canada by Swedish Baptists late in the 19th century....

.

The BGC cooperates with the National Association of Evangelicals
National Association of Evangelicals
The National Association of Evangelicals is a fellowship of member denominations, churches, organizations, and individuals. Its goal is to honor God by connecting and representing evangelicals in the United States. Today it works in four main areas: Church & Faith Partners, Government Relations,...

 led by President Leith Anderson
Leith Anderson
Leith Anderson is the President of the National Association of Evangelicals. He has served as senior pastor of Wooddale Church, in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, since 1977.-Biography:...

 (who also pastors the BGC Wooddale Church
Wooddale Church
Originally known as "The Wayside Chapel", Wooddale Church is a large evangelical Christian church in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. The large success of the Wooddale Church led to the formation of many other similar churches in Minnesota...

), the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty
Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty
The Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty is an education and advocacy association in the United States with a number of Baptist denominations. It states that it seeks to promote religious liberty for all and to uphold the principle of church-state separation...

, and the Baptist World Alliance
Baptist World Alliance
The Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...

, and was a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability
Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability
The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability is an accreditation agency to promote fiscal integrity and sound financial practices among member organizations. Founded in 1979, it comprises over 2,000 evangelical Christian organizations which qualify for tax-exempt, nonprofit status and...

.

External links

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