Journal: Journal for Baptist Theology & Ministry
Volume: JBTM 17:2 (Fall 2020)
Article: Who Dat Say Dey Gonna Teach Dem Saints? Baptist Beginnings In New Orleans To The Founding Of The Baptist Bible Institute
Author: Lloyd A. Harsch

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Who Dat Say Dey Gonna Teach Dem Saints?
Baptist Beginnings In New Orleans To The Founding Of The Baptist Bible Institute

Lloyd Harsch

Lloyd Harsch is chair of the Division of Theological and Historical Studies, and professor of Church History and Baptist Studies, occupying the Cooperative Program Chair of SBC Studies at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Mention New Orleans and images of good food, good music, and Mardi Gras will flood the mind. There may even be a thought or two regarding Bourbon Street or the Battle of New Orleans. But for more than a century, when Baptists thought of New Orleans, images of spiritual destitution and the need for churches came to mind.

In 1682, René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle was the first European to sail down the Mississippi River. Reaching the Gulf of Mexico, he claimed all the land drained by the river for France. He named the territory Louisiana in honor of Louis XIV. Because the mouth of the river was obscured by cedar logs and La Salle’s poor documentation, it was not until Pierre Le Moyne, Sieur d’Iberville’s identification of the mouth in 1699 that settlement of the area could begin in earnest. The city of New Orleans came into existence on May 7, 1718, and was named in honor the king’s nephew, Philippe II, Duke of Orléans. May will prove to be an important month in the seminary’s history.

Controlling commerce on the Mississippi River promised great wealth for France. It also blunted Spain’s advance north from Mexico and encircled England’s colonies. Conflict with England erupted into war in 1754, expanding to global proportions two years later. With England emerging victorious, France sought to prevent the loss of all New France by ceding its non-Canadian portion to Spain in 1763, as part of the treaty negotiations.

Spain struggled to govern its new territories. New Orleans became a center for trade, both legal and otherwise. Smuggled goods and financial backing for the American Revolution came through the city. As the French Revolution took hold in Europe, uprisings

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for independence erupted in what is now Haiti. At the same time, Spain fearing British expansion, secretly ceded Louisiana back to France. When Napoleon took control of France, he tried to quell the rebellion in Haiti. Yellow fever decimated his troops, and Haiti gained its independence. This loss shattered his dreams of a Louisiana-based sugar empire and complicated his desire to conquer Europe.

President Thomas Jefferson recognized the strategic importance of New Orleans for trade and defense. He sent representatives to Paris with instructions t...