The Baptist Churches of New Zealand is a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worsh ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It is affiliated with the

Baptist World Alliance The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is the largest international Baptist organization with an estimated 51 million people in 2022 with 246 member bodies in 128 countries and territories. A voluntary association of Baptist churches, the BWA account ...

. The headquarters is in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

History

Several Baptists settled in New Zealand in the 1840s, but the first Baptist minister, Decimus Dolamore from

Yorkshire, England Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, did not arrive until May 1851. Dolamore settled in Nelson and was involved in the formation of the first Baptist Church in New Zealand - Nelson Baptist Church - that same year. He was instrumental in obtaining a change in the law to allow Baptist ministers to perform marriage ceremonies; until 1854, only

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priests were allowed to do so. Dolamore later went to

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

and was the first minister for that congregation. The Canterbury Baptist Association was formed in 1874. This association started the ''New Zealand Baptist'' magazine, which has been published monthly since January 1881. The Baptist Union of New Zealand was formed at Wellington in October 1882. At that time, there were 22 Baptist churches, with 1,890 members. The New Zealand Baptist Missionary Society was formed at the 1885 conference of the Baptist Union. At the 1891 conference, the Union established a plan to divide the country into four districts - "Otago/Southland" (org. 1892), "Auckland" (org. 1892), "

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

Westland Westland or Westlands may refer to: Places *Westlands, an affluent neighbourhood in the city of Nairobi, Kenya * Westlands, Staffordshire, a suburban area and ward in Newcastle-under-Lyme *Westland, a peninsula of the Shetland Mainland near Vaila ...

" (org. 1892), and "Central" (org. 1896). Central District was later divided into the Central District Association and the "

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

" Association, and "South Auckland" was formed in 1939. South Auckland was later divided into the "

Waikato Waikato () is a Regions of New Zealand, local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton City ...

" Association and the "Bay of Plenty" Association (now Bay of Plenty & Eastland). The "Top of the South" Association was formed in 1990. Some groups were called "auxiliary" and some "association", but in 1957, the term "auxiliary" was dropped in favor of the term "association". There are currently 9 associations. According to a denomination census released in 2020, it claimed 243 churches and 21,284 members.

Beliefs

Theologically, the Baptist Union member churches are deeply influenced by the charismatic renewal movement, though there is no official position regarding the movement. A study in 1989 indicated that 69% of churches belonging to the Baptist Union identified with the charismatic movement. A smaller portion of member churches are

Reformed Reform is beneficial change Reform may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine *''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...

in doctrine.

Education

The Union supports education through Carey Baptist College in Penrose, Auckland, and Te Whare Amorangi, designed for Māori men and women, in

Papatoetoe Papatoetoe is a suburb in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest suburb in Auckland by population and is located to the northwest of Manukau Central, and 18 kilometres southeast of Auckland CBD. Papatoetoe has the unofficial title of Auckland ...

, Auckland. The Baptist National Centre is the registered office of the Baptist Union of New Zealand, the New Zealand Baptist Missionary Society and Baptist Care Limited, and is located in Penrose.

Prominent New Zealand Baptists

*Decimus Dolamore - first Baptist minister in New Zealand *

Thomas Spurgeon Thomas Spurgeon (20 September 1856 – 17 October 1917) was a British Reformed Baptist preacher of the Metropolitan Tabernacle, one of the fraternal twin sons of the famous Charles Spurgeon (1834–92). Life Thomas and his twin brother were bor ...

- successful evangelist and son of famous English Baptist preacher,

Charles Haddon Spurgeon Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of various denominations, among whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers". He wa ...

*Charles Dallaston - "the Father of the Baptist Union" *

John James North John James North (26 July 1871 – 14 July 1950) was a New Zealand Baptist minister, editor and the first principal of the New Zealand Baptist Theological College. He was born in Dukinfield, Cheshire, England, in 1871. He was appointed an Off ...

- the first principal of the New Zealand Baptist Theological College *

Hopestill Pillow Hopestill Harland Pillow (28 June 1857 – 28 May 1895) was a Baptist missionary to India. Early life Pillow was born in 1857 in Lewisham, Kent, England. She was the third child of Thomas Pillow and Ann Aspin. New Zealand Pillow emigrated wi ...

- Baptist Missionary in the

Zenana Missions The zenana missions were outreach programmes established in British India with the aim of converting women to Christianity. From the mid 19th century, they sent female missionaries into the homes of Indian women, including the private areas of h ...

to India. *

Charles Henry Carter Charles Henry Carter (29 October 1828 – 6 July 1914) was a Baptist missionary to Ceylon. Son of Thomas Carter, a stonemason, and his wife Anne (née Thomson), Charles Carter was raised near Leicester, UK. While working as a miller for an unc ...

(29 October 1828 – 6 July 1914) - a Baptist missionary to Ceylon. Literary Works - Translations. Carter translated directly from the Greek and Hebrew texts, rather than the English. The Sinhalese work was done in vernacular language, that it could embody the message in a dialect that was understood by the people everywhere. His works include: **Sinhalese New Testament 1855 **Sinhalese Book of Psalms 1863 **Sinhalese Old Testament 1869 **English – Sinhalese Dictionary 1881 **Sinhalese – English Dictionary 1889 Towards the end of his life, Carter became Pastor of the Ponsonby Baptist Church in New Zealand. He was the first president of the Baptist Union of New Zealand. Bishop Coppelstone, Anglican Primate of India is said to have described Carter as the "foremost Sinhalese scholar of this age".Lapham, H.A. Public Speech to Bible Translation Society (NZ) 27 April 1903.

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Baptist denominations in Oceania Evangelicalism in New Zealand Religious organizations established in 1882 Baptist Christianity in New Zealand