Here’s the elevator pitch: I want to produce a catechism resource for Baptists, and I’m hoping to use this substack as a way to collect my research, receive feedback on ideas, and most importantly, stay motivated.
I didn’t grow up Baptist; for most of my pre-adult life, my family attended a church affiliated with The Unity of the Brethren, a small offshoot of the Moravian church limited mostly to central Texas. It’s a strange little denominational body, mostly a free church tradition that shares resources in a way similar to Baptist denominations. Becoming Baptist in college didn’t feel like a particularly big shift away from what I was used to.
One very important difference, though, was catechism: before I could take communion, I had to attend classes on basic Christian doctrine, visit with our board of elders, and narrate a testimony in front of the church congregation (had I not been baptized as an infant, I would also have received baptism at this stage). That experience was invaluable to me, but I’ve never seen anything like it in a Baptist setting.
So this is the project I’ve been kicking around for a few years now: a resource, probably ultimately in the form of a book, that can serve as an argument for catechism in Baptist churches, a suggestion for how to structure it, and most importantly, an actual possible resource. Why am I the one to write this project? I’m absolutely not, but if no one else is doing it, seems worth a shot!
Ideally, I’ll commit to working on this until its done, and share progress from it on a regular basis here. I might share thoughts on something I’m reading, work out my thought process, or share actual parts of the project. I’m going to try and find a schedule that works for me and subscribers, and stick with it with enough regularity that missing a post or two would be noticeable. My real goal with this substack specifically is that external motivation, since self-motivation hasn’t been my strongest suit after seminary.
I’ll probably also try and throw in a little more personal stuff like media recommendations or just things I’m thinking about lately, to keep things fun. Like I said, a big part of this is just helping me keep myself accountable while also sharing thoughts and getting feedback on this project I’m excited about.
Sorry to ramble! At the moment I’m thinking this will be a 750-100ish word letter every two weeks; I don’t want to flood people’s inboxes.
In the next few letters, I’m planning on discussing James McClendon’s opening to his systematic theology, where he asks “Why don’t Baptists produce systematic theology?” as well as how to “order” this project. If you’re interested in any of that, feel free to subscribe! If not, honestly good for you. Way to know yourself, champ.
But seriously, thanks to anyone interested enough to sign up! To be honest, since seminary I’ve had this feeling of “wait, why did I do all of that again?” I enjoy the work that I do, but since I started taking care of Liz fulltime most of the year, I haven’t been able to find the energy or motivation to really try for some of the long-term goals I had hoped to accomplish. Hoping this exercise can help with that. Baptist generostiy helped me become the first person in my family to graduate from college, and it helped me go even further than that to get my master’s. I hope that some of my post-seminary work can at least be a small “thank you” to a people who have given so much to me.
Anyway, the toddler is waking up from her nap and I don’t know if substack saves drafts, so this seems like a good place to stop. See you all in a week or two!