Old Regular Baptist

The Old Regular Baptists are a Christian denomination based primarily in the Appalachian region of the United States.

Many Regular Baptists merged with the Separate Baptists near the beginning of the 19th century. The party names were dropped in favor of United Baptists. The use of the name Regular has persisted among some Baptist groups, particularly among primitive sects that reject modern methods, including missionary and educational auxiliaries for the churches.

Most Old Regular Baptists can be traced back to the New Salem Association of United Baptists which originated in eastern Kentucky in 1825. The name was changed to Regular United in 1854, to Regular Primitive in 1870, to Regular Baptist in 1871 and then in 1892 to Old Regular. The minutes of New Salem Association in 1892 indicate that they feared the extremism of some predestinarians, which taught that God is the author of sin.

Those associations and churches that do not trace their lineage through the New Salem (such as Mountain, Mud River, Twin Creek, Spencer and others, along with some churches that are in the larger associations) may have originated in the North District Association or like Twin Creek which formed from a split in the Licking River Particular Baptist Association in 1850. Twin Creek was one of the first Associations in Kentucky to title itself "Old Regular Baptist" in 1850. The Mud River Association originated from a split in the Pocatalico Particular Baptist Association in 1888. (The Mud River used the title Primitive Baptist when lettering to the New Salem Association for many years and later titled itself Regular or Old Regular Baptist.)

Yet other churches have left Primitive and United Baptist Associations and found a home among the Old Regular Baptists. The word old was added to Regular Baptist soon after many Regular Baptists had joined and or began to correspond with mission boards. This was done to distinguish the Old (or original) Regular Baptists from the New School Baptists that had emerged throughout the United States.

Old Regular Baptists have had several divisions through the years. In the late 19th century to early 20th century, they had major splits over Absolute Predestination of all things, Actual Eternal Vital Union and Eternal Creation theory; differences over the Atonement and Election doctrines also led to divisions. Three of New Salem's daughters, the Union, Mates Creek, and Sandlick, divided, the New Salem also dropped correspondence with the Burning Springs Association, her mother, because she had members that belonged to secret orders. In the 1960s, a debate started over when eternal life began, or was regeneration before belief and repentance or after. Some Old Regular Baptists hold the same views as the Primitive Baptists on regeneration.

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