Firm Foundation

The Firm Foundation was a religious periodical published monthly in Houston, Texas, for members of the Churches of Christ. It was established in 1884 by Austin McGary. The Firm Foundation was, for the next hundred years, one of the two most influential publications among the Churches of Christ along with the Gospel Advocate.

History

Austin McGary founded the Firm Foundation in large part to combat David Lipscomb's views on rebaptism, as McGary adopted essentially the view which had already been espoused by John Thomas.David Lipscomb consistently argued that if a believer was baptized out of a desire to obey God, the baptism was valid, even if the individual did not fully understand the role baptism plays in salvation. Lipscomb and others among the Churches of Christ in Middle Tennessee routinely accepted Baptist converts without requiring them to be rebaptized.Austin McGary argued strongly that to be valid, the convert must also understand that baptism is for the forgiveness of sins. Thus, McGary did not regard baptisms performed in a Baptist church to be valid. McGary's view became the prevailing one in the early 20th century, but the approach advocated by Lipscomb never totally disappeared. By the end of the 20th century a practice of having the question discerned by the congregational leadership and the individual had again become widespread.