Abstract
Among its religious counterparts the central state often tends to favour institutional churches. How does it relate to a congregational type of religious group (with a high degree of local autonomy)? The example of the French Baptists sheds light on this question. French Baptist congregationalism is characterized by a weak institutional authority over the local churches, compensated, however, by an informal hierarchy among members. Status is drawn from three sources: a pastoral lineage, training abroad, and familiarity with the group's history. Baptists in France met with general political distrust during the first two-thirds of the 19th century. Later on this position was modified. At the beginning of the 20th century, the decentralized Baptist model was favoured by the republican state, then in opposition to the main institutional church (the Roman Catholic Church). In the later 20th century, the situation changed once more. Religious pluralism grew, creating concern about the possible dangers of an informal “power” that might be difficult to control.