Two Seed in the Spirit Baptists

Two Seed in the Spirit Baptists are one of several so-called “hardshell” Baptist groups of the early nineteenth century. Like other churches in the movement, these Baptists were highly predestinarian, antimissionary Calvinists, who saw no need for “new-fangled” missionary societies or what they believed to be the corrupting influence of higher education to advance God’s kingdom. This particular group, influenced by the ideas of Daniel Parker, who lived and worked primarily in Tennessee, believed that people are born with either a good seed planted by God or an evil seed planted by the devil. Like Primitive Baptists, who are associated with the same school, these Baptists practiced foot washing and opposed the idea of a paid clergy. Some even rejected the idea of Sunday schools. Few if any such Baptists exist in South Carolina today, and their numbers are extremely small worldwide.

Parker, Daniel. Views on the Two Seeds. Vandalia, Ill.: Robert Blackwell, 1826.