Brian Haymes (b.1940) was one of the most important English Baptist ministers of the late twentieth and early twenty-first century. He pastored 4 churches (from 1965 to 2005 in Bristol, Exeter, Nottingham and London), with a period as principal of 2 our Baptist Colleges (Northern and Bristol), and was a President of the Baptist Union (1993). In addition to his written work, both individually and as part of a small writing group, he offered Baptists some wise and important thinking about their identity (see here), which deserves still to be read.
A passionate Baptist (and at the same time a committed ecumenicist) he argued for the importance of a Baptist way of being church, which he felt was in danger of being lost. He saw small glimmers of hope among those that continue to offer theological thought and offer his encouragement.
Brian's place among Baptists was recognised in 2011 when he was given a festchrift, Questions of Identity, edited by two of his friends Ruth Gouldbourne and Anthony R. Cross, and with many more friends contributing, including Paul Fiddes, Faith Bowers, Alan Kreider, Robert Parkinson, and Sean Winter. The title was play on a small influential booklet called A Question of Identity, which had been a set of talks he had given for the 1986 ministers conference in the Yorkshire Baptist Association. (The booklet was reprinted with a new coda in the Journal of Baptist Theology in Context in 2021.)
I did not know Brian well, but several years ago he very kindly invited me to his home and offered me books from his library. Many I took were Baptist related, each with his name written inside. He stayed in contact, sending emails of encouragement to press on with the bits of work I was doing.
In the last few months he was working on a manuscript which brought together many of his essays and articles into one place. It will now be published posthumously, and one of the best ways to honour his legacy will be to take the time to hear his voice — bold, clear, coherent — speak to us again.
What a voice...it was part of the alchemy that made his preaching so captivating and compelling. Next to Morris West and Richard Kidd, Brian was as close to being a Baptist mentor to me as I have had. I remain a Baptist not least because of the fact that Brian (with others) offered a vision of being Baptist that was bold, clear, coherent and above all faithful to the power of the gospel to constantly remake us as disciples and communities into further comformity to Christ.
Posted by: Sean Winter | July 18, 2024 at 01:49 AM
This is a really helpful piece, Andy. Thanks for writing it. Brian was a great encourager. Rest in peace, rise in glory.
Posted by: Peter Morden | July 22, 2024 at 08:45 AM