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Baptists have always made Scripture their first source of guidance for belief and practice. They have also depended on the power and presence of the Holy Spirit to help them read and interpret Scripture in such a way that it is a living word for their time.

Walter B. Shurden, a Baptist scholar has identified what he calls “Four Fragile Freedoms” that are the identifying pillars of Baptist life and the principals that have shaped our heritage. They are:

Bible Freedom: The historic Baptist affirmation that the Bible, under the Lordship of Christ, must be central in the life of the individual and the Church and that Christians, with the best and most scholarly tools of inquiry, are both free and obligated to study and obey the Scripture.

Soul Freedom: The historic Baptist affirmation of the inalienable right and responsibility of every person to deal with God without the imposition of creed, the interference of clergy or the intervention of civil government.

Church Freedom: The historic Baptist affirmation that local churches are free, under the lordship of Christ, to determine their membership and leadership, to order their worship and work, to ordain whom they perceive as gifted for ministry, male or female, and to participate in the larger Body of Christ, of whose unity and mission Baptists are proudly a part.

Religious Freedom: The historic Baptist affirmation of freedom OF religion, freedom FOR religion and freedom FROM religion, insisting that Caesar is not Christ and Christ is not Caesar.

Taken from: Shurden, Walter B. The Baptist Identity: Four Fragile Freedoms. Smith and Helwys Publishing, Inc. Macon, Georgia. 1994.