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Anglican / Episcopal vs. Baptist

A side-by-side comparison of Anglican / Episcopal and Baptist teaching on 16 questions, from Scripture and salvation to baptism, communion and church government.

Anglican / Episcopal

The Anglican Communion descends from the Church of England, which broke with Rome in the 1530s while keeping bishops and much of the older liturgy. The Episcopal Church is its American branch. It describes itself as both catholic and Reformed.

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Baptist

Baptists arose from English Separatist churches in the early 1600s. They baptize only those who profess faith, govern each congregation independently, and hold to the Bible as the sole authority for belief and practice.

More about Baptist Christianity

At a glance

Where they differ: Authority: Scripture and tradition; Can a saved person fall away?; Baptism; Sacraments or ordinances; Church government; Style of worship.

Varies within one or both: Predestination and free will; Communion (the Lord’s Supper); Clergy and women in ministry; Mary and the saints; The Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts.

Where they agree: Books of the Bible; The Trinity; How a person is saved; Death, purgatory and hell; Day of worship.

Side by side

Question	Anglican / Episcopal	Baptist
Authority: Scripture and traditionDiffer	Scripture holds first place, and it is read with the help of tradition and reason. This threefold approach is often traced to the theologian Richard Hooker.	The Bible alone is the authority for belief and practice. Many Baptist bodies adopt confessions, but none is binding on a local church.
Books of the BibleAgree	66 books as Scripture. The Thirty-Nine Articles say the Apocrypha may be read “for example of life and instruction of manners,” but not to establish doctrine.	66 books.
The TrinityAgree	One God in three persons. The creeds are recited in worship and are part of the Book of Common Prayer.	One God in three persons. Baptists rarely use creeds in worship, but their confessions affirm the Trinity.
How a person is savedAgree	Article XI teaches that we are justified by faith only. Anglicans differ on how this fits with the sacraments, with Evangelicals stressing faith and Anglo-Catholics stressing baptism and the Eucharist.	Saved by grace through personal faith in Christ, usually described as a conversion experience. Baptism follows salvation and does not cause it.
Can a saved person fall away?Differ	Yes. Article XVI says a believer may depart from grace given and fall into sin, and by God’s grace rise again and amend his life.	Most Baptists, notably Southern Baptists, teach eternal security, often summarized as “once saved, always saved.” Some General Baptists disagree and hold that faith can be abandoned.
Predestination and free willVaries	Article XVII affirms predestination in gentle terms. Anglicans range from Calvinists to Arminians, and the church has never enforced one view.	Divided. Particular Baptists are Calvinist and hold to election, and General Baptists hold that Christ died for all and that election is based on God’s foreknowledge of who would believe. Southern Baptists include both.
BaptismDiffer	A sacrament of new birth into the church. Infants and adults are baptized, by pouring or immersion. Anglicans differ on how closely baptism is tied to regeneration.	Only those who have professed faith are baptized, and by full immersion. It is an ordinance that pictures death and resurrection with Christ and does not save.
Communion (the Lord’s Supper)Varies	The Eucharist. Anglicans affirm Christ’s presence but leave the manner open, from real presence among Anglo-Catholics to a spiritual or memorial view among Evangelicals.	An ordinance in remembrance of Christ’s death, observed periodically. The bread and cup are symbols, and many churches use grape juice.
Sacraments or ordinancesDiffer	Two sacraments “ordained by Christ,” baptism and the Eucharist. Five other rites, including confirmation and marriage, are called sacramental rites, and Anglo-Catholics often count all seven.	Two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptists avoid the word “sacrament” because it can imply that grace comes through the act itself.
Church governmentDiffer	Governed by bishops, with a presiding archbishop in each province. The Archbishop of Canterbury is a symbolic leader of the communion, without authority over other provinces.	Each local church governs itself, calling its own pastor and deciding its own doctrine. Churches cooperate voluntarily through associations and conventions.
Clergy and women in ministryVaries	Varies. Many provinces ordain women as priests and bishops, while some do not. Clergy may marry.	Varies. The Southern Baptist Convention limits the office of pastor to men, and other Baptist bodies ordain women.
Mary and the saintsVaries	Varies. Anglo-Catholics ask for Mary’s and the saints’ prayers, while Evangelical Anglicans do not. Official teaching honors the saints, but Article XXII calls the invocation of saints “a fond thing vainly invented,” so Anglo-Catholic practice goes beyond the formal doctrine.	Mary is honored as the mother of Jesus and the saints as examples. Baptists give them little role in worship and do not pray to them.
Death, purgatory and hellAgree	Article XXII rejects the “Romish doctrine concerning Purgatory.” Some Anglo-Catholics pray for the dead and hold a gentler view of the intermediate state.	Believers go immediately to be with Christ, and unbelievers to eternal punishment. There is no purgatory.
Style of worshipDiffer	Liturgical, following the Book of Common Prayer or a modern equivalent. Styles range from ornate “high church” to simple “low church” services.	Free-form, built around preaching, congregational singing and prayer. Order is set by each church.
The Holy Spirit and spiritual giftsVaries	Varies. Anglicanism includes a large charismatic wing, and other Anglicans give little emphasis to gifts.	Varies. Many Baptists are cessationist or cautious about tongues, and others are charismatic.
Day of worshipAgree	Sunday.	Sunday.
Best known for	The Book of Common Prayer, bishops, and a middle path between Catholic and Protestant traditions.	Believer’s baptism, local church independence, religious liberty and a strong emphasis on missions and evangelism.

“Agree” means the two traditions take the same broad position, although the wording above may still note finer differences. “Varies” means at least one of the two is itself divided on the question, so no single position can be given. These summaries describe typical teaching, and individual churches may vary. For an authoritative statement, consult each denomination’s own confessions.

Anglican / Episcopal vs. Baptist