Baptist Union of Romania

Baptists in Romania (2002 census)

The first modern-era Baptists in Romania were of German extraction. Karl Scharschmidt came to Romania from Hungary in 1856 and settled in Bucharest.[2][3] Scharschmidt, a carpenter by trade, had been baptized by Johann Gerhard Oncken in Hamburg in 1845. By 1863 enough converts had been made to form a church, and Oncken sent August Liebig to serve them as pastor. This church, the oldest Baptist church in Romania, in still in existence and meets on Popa Rusu Street (Bethany Baptist Church). Russian Baptist immigrants, mostly from the southern Ukraine, came to Dobruja around 1862 and founded a church in Cataloi in 1869. Hungarian Baptists formed a church in Transylvania in 1875.

Baptist witnesses did not enter Old Romania until the 20th century, and Orthodox opposition was strong. Nevertheless, a church was organized in Jegalia in 1909. An ethnic Romanian church was formed in Bucharest in 1912 by Constantin Adorian (1882-1954), a Romanian who had previously joined the German Baptist church in Bucharest. Adorian led in forming the Baptist Union of Romania in 1920.[4] He met in June 1919 with Radu Tașcă, Vasile Berbecar, Teodor Sida and other baptist pastors from Crișana in Buteni to discuss the formation of a "Union of Romanian Baptist Communities". The organization was formally created in February 1920, when, after gaining approval from the authorities, a congress was held in the same location with representatives from baptist churches from all around the country.[5] In 1930, the Union had 45,000 members.[6] Before 1944, the legal status of evangelical groups such as the Baptists was not well-defined. Due to World War II and the military dictatorship of General Antonescu, laws were passed in 1942 and 1943 dissolving all religious associations in Romania. As a consequence, Baptists could not meet, worship or evangelize. On August 31, 1944, these laws were abolished, and the Baptists (and others) could once again engage in religious activity legally. In 1948 Baptists were recognized as a legal cult[7] (the generic term used by the Romanian government to describe any officially recognized religious body).

In 2013, the union had 2,195 churches and 106,102 members.[8]

Out of the 18 officially recognised denominations in Romania, the Baptist Union is one of the only three which do not accept subsidies from the government for the salaries of its ministers, believing that it is the deliberate duty of every believer to financially support the activities of his church.[10][11] However, the Union accepts subsidies from the local authorities for the construction or reparation of its churches when their funds are insufficient.[12] The church also has its own pension fund for its retired pastors.[9]

Being part of the baptist tradition, the Baptist Union of Romania affirms believer's baptism (as opposed to infant baptism). Baptism is done by complete immersion in water, one time, "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit". Baptism, in itself, is not seen as necessary for salvation, but rather as a public declaration of faith following a born again experience. Thus it symbolizes the death of the old self and the emerge of the changed man in Christ.[13]

The Lord's Supper, also known as the Eucharist or "Holy Communion", is a symbolic ordinance done in remembrance of the sacrifice and atonement of Jesus Christ. The eucharist is given to every baptised christian who has made a declaration of faith. Every believer has the responsibility to examine his life before partaking communion as stated in "1 Corinthians 11:28".[14]

Baptists believe that a person is saved by grace alone through faith alone. Good works are seen as succeeding justification, rather than determining it.[9]

The Baptist Union of Romania holds to eternal security considering that a person has eternal life from the moment they believe in Jesus, and that a saved person cannot lose his salvation nor give it away. If a person does not persevere in faith, that person is considered to have never been truly born again.[9]

Historically, the baptist churches in Romania were very much influenced by calvinism. This was no surprise given the fact that the church had German roots. According to the Romanian baptist historiographer, Alexa Popovici, early baptists had a "Calvinist inclination". There is evidence to suggest that, at some point, calvinist soteriology, including double predestination, was preached in some congregations in Transylvania. The liberal tendencies of the Reformed Church made some Hungarians switch to the baptist tradition which also contributed to the predominant calvinist view among Romanian baptists.[15] However the church would experienced a shift towards arminianism during the interwar period due to the founding of a formal seminary in collaboration with the Southern Baptist Convention and the theological influences of Edgar Young Mullins.[16] This will also be the predominant view among Romanian baptists for much of the communist period. After the 1989 Revolution, the calvinist position would reemerge and gain popularity once again, although it would still remain a minority view.[17]