Many Roads to ONE: Tracing a Magazine From Dream to Reality

ONE Magazine fulfills the decades-old dream of a unified denominational magazine. For many years, each agency of the National Association of Free Will Baptists published its own independent correspondence.

In contrast, ONE Magazine combines the resources of all eight denominational agencies into a bi-monthly, full-color magazine. Sent free to more than 45,000 readers, ONE gives a unified voice and vision to the denomination.

The following timeline traces the steps

• November 1953: Contact magazine becomes the first official periodical of the Executive Office of the National Association of Free will Baptists, under the leadership of W.S. Mooneyham. The magazine starts with fewer than 500 subscribers and 16 pages. In 1964, the magazine expands to 28 pages, eventually reaching 32 pages in 1977.

• February 1978: A 14-member National Publications Committee forms under the leadership of chairman Jack williams, editor of Contact magazine; Don Robirds, editor of Heartbeat magazine (a periodical published by Free Will Baptist International Missions); and Bert Tippett, publications editor for Free will Baptist Bible College.

• February 1981: The National Publications Committee is renamed Free Will Baptist Press Association and expanded to include editors of state Free Will Baptist publications, writers, printers, photographers, and designers. By 1985, the association numbers more than 50 members and sponsors annual writer’s conferences, a young writer’s contest, and a journalism scholarship for Free will Baptist college students.

• November 1990: during a Press Association meeting, Don Robirds — at the suggestion of the national directors — introduces the possibility of combining all denominational publications into a single magazine. The idea meets with mixed response.

• May 1994: During the final meeting of the Free Will Baptist Press Association a journalism scholarship is awarded to Eric Thomsen, a junior at Welch College.

• July 2001: Delegates to the 2001 convention in Detroit, Michigan, approve resolutions from the Georgia and Florida State Associations to establish a committee to consider the feasibility of unifying all national publications. After a three-year process, the Publications Committee recommends the launch of a new magazine.

• July 2004: Kansas City convention delegates overwhelmingly approve the recommendation to move forward with the new publication. The unnamed magazine would replace six existing magazines: Aim (home Missions), Heartbeat (International Missions), the Master’s Men Newsletter, Bulletin (Free will Baptist Bible college), OutReach (Randall house), and Contact (executive office).

  [Read the fascinating story describing how ONE Magazine got its name.]

• December 2004: The Magazine Oversight Committee, consisting of departmental directors and Executive Secretary Keith Burden, hire Eric Thomsen as managing editor for the. “It’s a God Thing,” declares executive secretary Keith Burden. “It has been amazing to watch him work through this process that would never have succeeded without his blessing.”

• April 2005: ONE Magazine publishes its premier issue.

About Free Will Baptists

One of the oldest Baptist groups in the nation, Free Will Baptists can be traced to the General Baptists of England and Holland. Early American founders of the denomination include Elder Benjamin Randall in the North (NH) and Paul Palmer in the South (NC). These northern and southern Free Will Baptists grew independently over the centuries, at times splitting or merging with other groups.

By the late 19th century, Free Will Baptist churches dotted the rural landscape of the nation, often with little connection to any church or association. In 1935, however, Free Will Baptists from across the nation gathered at Cofer's Chapel in Nashville, Tennessee, to form the National Association of Free Will Baptists. Today, Free Will Baptist churches exist across the nation and around the world, working together to fulfill the Great Commission.

Learn more: www.nafwb.org.