Liberty University

Article Critique
“Baptists and the Ecumenical Movement” by Professor John Briggs

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For
The Course CHHI 665

Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary

By
Dedra Duty

Lynchburg, Virginia
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Introduction
In the article, Baptists and the Ecumenical Movement by John Briggs, the role and history of Baptists in their engagement with the Ecumenical Movement is discussed. This article critique will summarize the main points of the article, as well as look at the strengths and weaknesses. The conclusion of this critique will determine the overall effectiveness of the article itself.
Summary
The article Baptists and the Ecumenical Movement traces the history …show more content…

Briggs says, “So let me make the point that evangelicalism and ecumenism are far from being opposed: rather the one is the child of the other.”5 It is a great point that evangelism and ecumenism go hand-in-hand and are birthed out of a need to reach the lost.
Due to the listing and the straight-forward points made by Briggs, there are few weaknesses when reading and critiquing this article. The author did a good job of getting his point across and developing a case for the involvement of Baptists in the ecumenical movement. The only weakness that could be pointed out is the lack of the term co-operative Christianity. In the introduction of the article, it says that Baptist World Alliance prefers the language of co-operative Christianity rather than ecumenism. Even though the author’s point was to show the involvement of the Baptists in ecumenism, knowing more about the differences in that language would have been beneficial.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the article by Briggs was helpful in understanding the Baptists and their involvement in the ecumenical movement. From the beginning history of the denomination’s involvement to present day, the author did an effective job of portraying the Baptists’ participation. The overall effectiveness of this article, in my opinion, and for my own education of this topic is helpful and helped me to better understand the involvement of the Baptist World Alliance with other denominations. Regardless of doctrine, churches