This is a comprehensive, yet unusual, book on the faith and life of Baptist Christians. It explores a Baptist understanding of the church, ministry, sacraments, and mission from a thoroughly theological perspective. In a series of interlinked essays, the author relates Baptist identity to a theology of covenant, and to participation in the communion of the triune God. The book thus surveys the "tracks" of heritage, giving a solid historical background to each of the major themes, while at the same time offering "traces" of possible paths for the future, based on a tracing out of a vision of God.