New Independent Fundamentalist Baptist churches (also known as the New IFB) or officially the New Independent Fundamental Baptist Movement are an association of conservative, King James Bible–only,

independent Baptist Independent Baptist churches (some also called Independent Fundamental Baptist or IFB) are Christian congregations, generally holding to conservative (primarily fundamentalist) Baptist beliefs. Although some Independent Baptist churches refuse af ...

churches. The New IFB began with

Steven Anderson Steven James Stuart Anderson (born 19 December 1985) is a Scottish people, Scottish Association football, footballer who plays for Berwick Rangers F.C., Berwick Rangers. Anderson plays in Defender (association football), central defence. Career ...

Faithful Word Baptist Church Faithful Word Baptist Church is a New Independent Fundamentalist Baptist church in Tempe, Arizona, that was founded by Steven Anderson. The church describes itself as "an old-fashioned, independent, fundamental, King James Bible-only, soul-win ...

in response to perceived

liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...

in other independent Baptist churches. The New IFB does not consider itself to be a denomination, but it requires affiliated churches to follow a set of core doctrines. As of 2019, the New IFB listed 32 affiliated congregations on its website, most in the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

with some in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. New IFB churches have caused controversy on several occasions, because of their extreme opposition to

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

. They are described by the

Anti-Defamation League The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), formerly known as the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, is an international Jewish non-governmental organization based in the United States specializing in civil rights law. It was founded in late Septe ...

(ADL) as "a loose network of independent churches concentrated in the U.S. connected by their belief in certain religious doctrines and a shared brand of deeply anti-LGBTQ and antisemitic teachings." According to the ADL "Anti-LGBTQ bigotry and antisemitism are fundamental to New IFB ideology, as demonstrated by the doctrinal statements on their websites and the content of their sermons."

History

The New IFB was formed by Anderson and other Baptist pastors in 2017 in an attempt to revive what they perceived older independent Baptist churches once represented. A split in the New IFB occurred in January 2019, after Donnie Romero, pastor at Stedfast Baptist Church-

Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

(SBC), resigned after it was revealed he had hired

prostitutes Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

, smoked

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

and gambled. Adam Fannin, the lead preacher at SBC's

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

satellite campus, refused to acknowledge the authority of Jonathan Shelley, another Texas New IFB pastor who took over SBC–Fort Worth following Romero's resignation. Anderson, Fannin and Shelley traded accusations of financial wrongdoing and running a

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

. Fannin was later ejected as the lead preacher of SBC-Jax. In 2021, the NIFB-affiliated First Works Baptist Church in

El Monte, California } El Monte (Spanish for "The Mountain") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city lies in the San Gabriel Valley, east of the city of Los Angeles. El Monte's slogan is "Welcome to Friendly El Monte" and is historically ...

was bombed with an

improvised explosive device An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mechan ...

. The explosion caused property damage but no injuries or deaths. First Works had previously been the site of protests by local residents opposed to its anti-LGBTQ teachings, but police said there was no evidence linking the protesters to the bombing.

Size

The New IFB currently lists 30 affiliated congregations on their website. 22 of the congregations are in 16 U.S. states, one in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, three are in the Philippines, two are in the Australian states of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, and one congregation is located in the South African town of

Middelburg Middelburg may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Europe * Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...

Beliefs

The New IFB website states that it is not a denomination and that New IFB pastors have differing views over minor theological issues. However, the churches are united by a number of doctrines. The New IFB's website lists its core doctrines as salvation by faith alone,

once saved always saved Perseverance of the saints (also called preservation of the saints) is a Christian teaching that asserts that once a person is truly "born of God" or "regenerated" by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, they will continue doing good works and bel ...

, King James Bible-only, the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

, soul-winning, "hard"

preaching A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. El ...

prewrath The rapture is an eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all Christian believers who are alive, along with resurrected believers, will rise "in the c ...

post-tribulation rapture The post-tribulation rapture doctrine is the belief in a combined resurrection and gathering of the saints (Post-tribulation believers believe the "rapture" for the event) coming is after the Great Tribulation. Doctrine The post-tribulation ga ...

, and opposition of worldliness,

Calvinism Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Cal ...

dispensationalism Dispensationalism is a system that was formalized in its entirety by John Nelson Darby. Dispensationalism maintains that history is divided into multiple ages or "dispensations" in which God acts with humanity in different ways. Dispensationali ...

, and

Zionism Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a Nationalism, nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is ...

. Despite the website's claims that each church is independent, some followers and former followers of the New IFB have accused Anderson of having complete control over the organization and ejecting anyone who has a minor disagreement with him.

Controversies

New IFB pastors have been the subjects of controversy on numerous occasions. The New IFB is strongly opposed to

, with several pastors advocating the belief that homosexuals should be executed by the government. Anderson and other New IFB pastors have praised the Orlando gay nightclub shooting. On the weekend of the third anniversary of the shooting, the New IFB held a "Make America Straight Again" conference at an

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

-area New IFB church. Also in June 2019, Grayson Fritts, pastor at New IFB-affiliated All Scripture Baptist Church and a former detective for the

Knox County, Tennessee Knox County is located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 478,971, making it the third-most populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Knoxville, which is the third-most populous city in Tennessee. K ...

, Sheriff's Office, delivered a sermon calling for the execution of gays. The New IFB considers the modern nation of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

to be a fraud and it also teaches that Christians rather than Jews are God's chosen people. Anderson has also produced videos in which he attacks the

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

and questions the official account of the Holocaust.

Auckland, New Zealand 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 ...

, New IFB pastor Logan Robertson was deported from Australia in July 2018 after being accused of harassing

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...

at two

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

mosques. Robertson had previously attracted media attention after he stated that

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

people should be shot and New Zealand prime minister

Jacinda Ardern Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern ( ; born 26 July 1980) is a New Zealand politician who has been serving as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand and leader of the Labour Party since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the member of ...

should "go home and get in the kitchen".

Tarrant County, Texas Tarrant County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, it had a population of 2,110,640. It is Texas' third-most populous county and the 15th-most populous in the United States. Its county seat is Fort Worth. Tarrant County, one of 2 ...

preacher Dillon Awes attracted considerable controversy for advocating that "every single homosexual" in America be lined up against a wall and shot in the back of the head. This led to calls to evict Stedfast Baptist Church from its location at a strip mall in

Watauga, Texas Watauga () is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Fort Worth. The population was 23,497 at the 2010 census. The city's businesses and retail markets are generally located on Highway 377. Geography Watauga is locate ...

. Landlord Cody Johnson later agreed not to evict Stedfast Baptist from the Watauga location after communicating with Stedfast's lawyer.

References

{{Authority control 2017 establishments in the United States Baptist organizations established in the 21st century Late Modern Christian anti-Judaism Anti-Zionist organizations Anti-Zionism in the United States Organizations that oppose LGBT rights in the United States Anti-LGBT and Baptist churches King James Only movement Christian organizations established in 2017 Independent Baptist denominations

History

Size

Beliefs

Controversies

See also

References