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Church Conferences

Part of the comprehensive plan of the 3535 Foundation involves organizing conferences that enable churches and associations to learn, discuss, and implement the principles of 1689 Ecclesiology.

The conference is tailored for pastors, seminary students, lay leaders, and everyday Christians. Our objective is to introduce the ideals of the 17th-century ecclesiastical debates to the modern-day 21st-century church. Each year, the topics covered will build upon previous discussions, gradually fostering an understanding of the theological concepts that shaped the 26th chapter of the 1689 London Baptist Confession.

During the conference, specific time slots will be allocated for congregations and/or associations to engage in discussions concerning the addressed topics. The aim is for the presenters to inspire the audience to develop a deeper comprehension of our beliefs, the reasons behind them, and their significance.

The conference will feature speakers who may not always agree on every theological point. However, the intention is not to engage in debates or determine “winners and losers.” Instead, the objective is to stimulate conversation, encourage questions, and promote further exploration through reading, with the ultimate goal of local churches and associations striving to faithfully reform their ministries in accordance with the teachings of Christ. Additionally, we plan to enhance the overall experience by offering fine dining and classical music to cater to the holistic well-being of attendees.

July 22-24, 2025

$70 until 5/31, $109 thereafter
Community Baptist Church (Fargo, ND)

We’re thrilled to announce that the 3535 Foundation will be hosting its second conference on 1689 Ecclesiology from July 22-24, 2025, in Fargo, North Dakota.

Next year’s focus will be the rise of 17th-century 1689 Congregationalism and the Reformed Baptist movement—an essential chapter in church history. Dr. Matthew Bingham, a leading voice on this topic, will be our keynote speaker, and we’re in the process of securing one or two additional distinguished speakers to enhance the discussion.

Matthew Bingham

Dr. Bingham joined Phoenix Seminary in 2024 after having served in both ministerial and academic contexts in the United States and the United Kingdom. Most recently, Dr. Bingham taught and held administrative leadership positions at Oak Hill College in London. Alongside these academic pursuits, he has served as a pastor in the United States and Northern Ireland.

Dr. Bingham is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and his research and writing focus primarily on the history and theology of post-Reformation England. He is the author of A Heart Aflame for God (forthcoming, Crossway), Orthodox Radicals: Baptist Identity in the English Revolution (2019, OUP), and numerous articles in peer-reviewed academic journals. He is married to Shelley and together they have four children: Amelia, John, James, and David.

– Queen’s University Belfast, PhD
– Princeton Theological Seminary, MDiv
– University of California Los Angeles, BA

James Renihan, PhD

President, Professor of Historical Theology – International Reformed Baptist Seminary

After a ministry of church planting in central Massachusetts, Dr. James Renihan and his family moved to Escondido, CA in 1998 to begin serving as Dean of the newly formed Institute of Reformed Baptist Studies. He led that work for 20 years, and when it became IRBS Theological Seminary in 2018 was appointed the first president. He has served as a pastor of churches in Massachusetts, New York and California. He is a graduate of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (PhD), Seminary of the East (MDiv), Trinity Ministerial Academy, and Liberty Baptist College (BS). His academic work has focused on the Second London Baptist Confession and the broader Puritan theological context from which it arose.

Jared Mays

Jared Mays is a member and the pastoral intern of discipleship at Great Victoria Street Baptist Church in Belfast, Northern Ireland in partnership with Reaching and Teaching International Ministries. He is a graduate of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a PhD student in Church History at Queen’s University, Belfast where his research focuses on the development of baptistic groups in the late seventeenth century. Jared has taught at the Irish Baptist College and Queen’s University and is a Junior Fellow for the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies. He is married to Zoe, and they have four children.

Noah Bailey

Pastor

Although raised a reformed Baptist, Noah joined Lydia, his high school sweetheart, in the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America during their years at Geneva College. They now have six kids: Katie, Michael, Julia, Andrew, Elaina, and Allen. Noah earned his M.Div. at RPTS in Pittsburgh, PA. After eight years of church planting in northwest Oklahoma, Noah took up the pastorate of First RPC of Cambridge, MA in 2017. Noah plans to begin his PhD at Queen’s University Belfast this autumn, studying the transatlantic literary debate between New England Congregationalism and Scottish Presbyterianism in the 1640s and 50s.