A sect of Christians very numerous in Balfara, and the neighbouring towns: they formerly inhabited along the river Jordan, where St. John baptized, and it was from thence they had their name. They hold an anniversary feast of five days, during which they all go to the bishop, who baptizes them with the baptism of St. John. Their baptism is also performed in rivers, and that only on Sundays: they have no notion of the third person in the Trinity; nor have they any canonical book, but abundance full of charms, &c. Their bishoprics descend by inheritance as our estates do, though they have the ceremony of an election.
Despite a stated reliance on the plain meaning of the Bible and the dictates of common sense, Buck's Theological Dictionary, first published in London in 1802, seeks to provide a textual basis for the evangelical community. By combining brief essays on orthodox belief and practice with historical entries on various denominations, Buck provided an interpretive lens that allowed antebellum Protestants to see Christianity's almost two millennia as their own history.Wikipedia
Read More