Robert Robinson (1735–1790), Baptist Minister in Cambridge, on Anabaptistic Convictions

Abstract

Robert Robinson (1753–1790) was an influential Baptist minister and thinker, whose ministry spanned three decades in St Andrew’s Street Baptist Church, Cambridge. There has been no recent scholarly treatment of Robinson’s life and work as a whole. What has been done tends to see him through the eyes of others. Robinson’s ability as a speaker and writer led to his being asked to write a history of the Baptist movement. In the completed History of Baptism, a work ultimately of 566 pages, Robinson was wide-ranging. The focus of this article is on what Robinson wrote about Anabaptism. Sections of his book covered many other aspects of baptismal practice. The article examines what Robinson said about the different types of Anabaptists that existed. It then goes on to consider the contested convictions which Robinson found in Anabaptism. Finally, Robinson’s work on Anabaptism in relation to baptism and the church is covered.