Primitive Baptists

Primitive Baptist Churches
Classification	Protestant
Orientation	Conservative Calvinist
Theology	Reformed Baptist
Polity	congregational
Region	United States, mainly in the southern states
Origin	1800s
Separations	Missionary Baptists

Primitive Baptists – also known as Hard Shell Baptists or Old School Baptists – are conservative Baptists adhering to a degree of Calvinist beliefs that coalesced out of the controversy among Baptists in the early 1800s over the appropriateness of mission boards, tract societies, and temperance societies. The adjective "Primitive" in the name conveys the sense of "original".

This controversy over whether churches or members should participate in mission boards, Bible tract societies, and temperance societies led the Primitive Baptists to separate from other general Baptist groups that supported such organizations, and to make declarations of opposition to such organizations in articles like the Kehukee Association Declaration of 1827.

Primitive Baptist churches arose in the mountainous regions of the southeastern United States, where they are found in their greatest numbers.

African-American Primitive Baptist groups have been considered a unique category of Primitive Baptist. Approximately 50,000 African Americans are affiliated with African-American Primitive Baptist churches as of 2005. Approximately 64,000 people were affiliated (as of 1995) with Primitive Baptist churches in the various other emergences of Primitive Baptists.

Since arising in the 19th century, the influence of Primitive Baptists has waned as "Missionary Baptists became the mainstream".

Despite not having emerged as a recognizable group until the early 19th century, Primitive Baptists trace their origins to the New Testament era, rather than to John Calvin. In fact, they oppose elements of Calvin's theology, such as infant baptism, and avoid the term "Calvinist". However, they are Calvinist in the sense of holding strongly to the Five Points of Calvinism and they explicitly reject Arminianism. They are also characterized by "intense conservatism". One branch, the Primitive Baptist Universalist church of central Appalachia, developed their own unique Trinitarian Universalist theology as an extension of the irresistible grace doctrine of Calvinist theology. They were encouraged in this direction by 19th century itinerant Christian universalist preachers of similar theological bent to Hosea Ballou and John Murray.

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