Oliver Hart and the Rise of Baptist America

In a time when Baptists comprise the largest Protestant denomination in the United States, we might be hard-pressed to imagine the American religious landscape without a towering Baptist presence. Eric C. Smith’s exceptional biography Oliver Hart and the Rise of Baptist America poignantly shows that such prominence was no foregone conclusion, narrating the story of the 18^th-century Baptists’ long journey from the scorned fringe to the respectable center of American religious life through the lens of the remarkable, yet oft neglected, Baptist clergyman Oliver Hart. Smith argues that Hart constitutes an ideal figure through whom to trace the numerical growth and eventual institutional unification of American Baptists, noting that there were “few major events or influential figures in the eighteenth-century Baptist story to which Hart was not somehow connected” (5)—a contention that he substantiates in fascinating detail, lending a rather breathtaking scope to the study and offering a firm sense of historical context.

Exploring both the institutional development of Baptist America and the corresponding contours of Hart’s own life, Smith attributes Hart’s pivotal role in the story of 18^th-century Baptist life to his “singular and understated style of religious leadership” (7), which included an earnest piety that garnered respect from all his peers, a remarkable ability to create far-flung networks of friends and ministry partners, and the willingness to adapt ministry models from his northern roots (such as building Baptist associations or promoting moderate revivalism) to create a growing Baptist presence in the South. In the course of thirteen chapters, Smith skillfully traces Hart’s story from his early life and conversion in Pennsylvania during the Great Awakening, to his call to ministry and relocation to South Carolina, and eventually through his outspoken patriotism during the American Revolution and into the early days of the fledgling republic.

Among the many themes that Smith highlights, perhaps the most ubiquitous and illuminating is the tension between 18^th-century Baptists’ desire for an ecumenical evangelicalism (especially with regard to the shared evangelism efforts of the Great Awakening and other revivals) and their sense of a set-apart identity grounded in their doctrinal particularity as Baptists (an identity that notably included longstanding experiences of persecution at the hands of pedobaptist establishment majorities). The attempt to integrate into a wider evangelicalism while also maintaining a distinct Baptist identity undergirded a great deal of Hart’s activities and achievements, as he actively cultivated ecumenical revivalist networks and offered avowed evangelical support for the patriot cause from his pulpit.

At the same time, he also sought to establish uniquely Baptist legacies, such as the Charleston Association, to create a connective fabric between Particular Baptist churches (which endorsed the doctrine of “particular atonement”) in the South—an achievement that Smith marks as Hart’s “salient contribution to American history” in laying the essential groundwork for an organized Baptist denomination (123). For so long an irenic proponent of evangelical cooperation in service of revival, by the last years of his life Hart turned his focus toward “Baptist precisionism” in building up a denominational scaffolding, setting an example for Baptists into the next century regarding “how to balance evangelical catholicity with doctrinal precision” (294-95). After his death Hart’s dream of a national denomination finally came to fruition in the Triennial Convention in 1814, although such unity ultimately proved quite fragile in the face of sectional conflicts over slavery and the looming Civil War.

The strengths and insights of Smith’s volume are too multitudinous to fully chronicle, but several stand out as particularly helpful. First, his characterization of Hart as a common thread connecting the sprawling history of 18^th-century Baptists is vindicated by the multitude of major figures, organizations, and events that he traces directly through Hart’s life and work. Illuminating this web of connections is no small feat, and it bespeaks meticulous research and a keen analytical eye. Second, Smith’s clear and thorough analyses of key Baptist doctrinal convictions on topics such as believer’s baptism, communion, regenerate church membership, church discipline, and religious freedom are deftly integrated into his narrative, providing essential context to motivate the actions of Hart and his Baptist cohorts. Such attention to theological detail also allows Smith to succinctly clarify differences between various groups of Baptists (such as Hart’s Regulars and the more radical Separates), which further illuminates Hart’s significance in bridging these gulfs in service of forging a unified Baptist identity. Third, Smith’s discussion of Hart’s relationship to the American Revolution and the early republic (particularly chapters 10 and 12) highlights major themes of civil religion and the “Providentialist interpretation of American exceptionalism” (281) that remain hugely influential and relevant today, especially among Hart’s evangelical heirs.

Though Smith raises a number of other fascinating topics as well, all worth discussing if space allowed, one more warrants specific mention here: Hart’s ambivalent relationship to slavery. As a minister in South Carolina (and a slaveowner himself), Hart endorsed a “moderate evangelical” proslavery position that treated slaves as “spiritual equals” but still defended the institution of slavery as essentially godly and biblical. In his twilight years, having moved back northward, Hart evidently endorsed incremental abolition, though he continued to own slaves to the end of his life. While Smith devotes a few pages to this change of heart (295-98), much of his discussion deals with the broader Baptist movement toward abolition. I was left wishing for a more detailed accounting of Hart’s own development on the issue, although admittedly this may simply reflect a limitation in the source material.

In all, Oliver Hart and the Rise of Baptist America achieves exactly what Smith sets out to do, recounting the remarkable institutional development and growth of Baptists during the long 18^th century by narrating the compelling life story of Oliver Hart. Smith’s firm grasp of Baptist historiography and his own analytical contributions make the volume well worthwhile to scholars, while his smooth narrative also keeps it easily accessible to more general audiences. For anyone interested in the origins of Baptist influence in America, I wholeheartedly recommend this book.

Daniel R. Bare is assistant professor of religious studies at Texas A&M University.

Daniel R. Bare

Date Of Review:

December 28, 2023