 THE BROKEN FELLOWSHIP
A careful observer will note that Churches of Christ and the Independent Christian Churches have many similarities. Once we were a united people, worshiping and serving the Lord in a common faith. In this lesson we will notice that past connection and the causes of our separation.
The Period of Unity (1804-1849)
Our roots here in America reach back to the work of Barton W. Stone in Kentucky and Thomas and Alexander Campbell in Western Virginia in the first decade of the 1800s. They had committed themselves to project of restoring the original faith and practice of the church. The seed of the gospel produced a common crop of Christians wherever it was preached (Lk. 8:11). Thousands of godly souls eagerly embraced the invitation to go back to the Bible and be Christians only. Scores of Baptist churches abandoned their denominational connections and became New Testament Christians. The Mahoning Baptist Association was dissolved and its member churches joined the restoration effort in 1830.
In 1831-32, the followers of Stone and Campbell met in Georgetown and Lexington, Kentucky and agreed to unite and merge their efforts for the Lord.
A tremendous surge of growth followed this move and the number of disciples soon numbered upwards of 250,000. So great was the reception to the gospel that many thought the restored church would soon sweep the field.
The Period of Turmoil (1849-1906).
Satan never rests when God's cause is flourishing. In October of 1849, a group of prominent brethren met in Cincinnati, Ohio to organize the American Christian Missionary Society to coordinate the mission work of the entire brotherhood. The chief leaders of this movement were D. S. Burnett, the organizer and W. K. Pendleton, its chief defender. Alexander Campbell had laid the foundation for the missionary society in a series of articles published in the Millennial Harbinger in 1841-1848. He was elected the first president of the organization. Once open, there was no closing the floodgates and a clutch of unscriptural and disruptive practices soon appear in the brotherhood. In 1859 Dr. L. L. Pinkerton introduced an instrument of music into the worship of the church in Midway, Kentucky. His reasoning was that their singing was so poor that even the rats had left the church. Though slow in being accepted, by 1906 the majority of our churches had adopted instrumental music. Inevitably in every place where it came, friction and division followed in the wake.
The issues of slavery and abolition plagued the churches from 1840-1860. A few disciples owned slaves, but many were too poor to afford such a luxury. A. Campbell preached a message of moderation. He viewed slavery as a social evil, but noted that the Scriptures did not specifically condemn it. Rather,
it was regulated. While he expected the institution of slavery to fall before the advance of the gospel, he warned against agitation that would disrupt society and lead to bloodshed. John Boggs founded The Northwestern Christian in Indiana, a magazine to promote the abolitionist cause within the church. He felt it his duty to drive out of the church all who owned slaves or sympathized with the practice. He went further and attacked those like Campbell who would not espouse his abolition viewpoint. James Shannon of Missouri was just as outspoken in affirming the merits of slavery. He alleged that it was God's will for the African people. Along with the entire nation, the bonds of unity were greatly strained by these agitations.
When the cannons fired on Fort Sumter, in 1861, not only the Union but the church as well was grievously torn. At first, strong leaders such as David Lipscomb (Tennessee), Ben Franklin (Ohio and Indiana) and J. W. McGarvey (Missouri and Kentucky) urged brethren to maintain a neutral, pacifist position. Others were caught up in the fever of war and joined the fray on their chosen side. James A. Garfield recruited Christian brethren and formed the 42nd Ohio Volunteers. He led his troop in the bloody battles of Shiloh and Chickamauga He was eventually commissioned a general. R. M. Gano of Texas put together a calvary troop made up largely of Christians. By a single day they missed fighting Garfield's Christian troops at Shiloh. During the war years, the Missionary Society issued several inflammatory resolutions favoring the Union cause and condemning the South. This not only convinced the Southern brethren of the evil nature of the society, it embittered them against those associated with it. Following the war a sectional bitterness was clearly evident between those north of the Mason-Dixon line and those south. The division that finally came reflected that sectionalism.
A spirit of compromise had been developing in those churches that wanted societies and instrumental music. This was reflected in Walter Scott's paper, The Protestant Unionist which reduced the terms of fellowship to a
belief in the deity of Jesus. "Progressive brethren" as they preferred to call themselves, were frequently involved in union meetings with denominational ministers. They came to refer to the church as a "denomination." The cliche was coined that "We are Christian only, but the not the only Christians."
The role of the progressive minister gradually evolved from that of a preacher and evangelist to that of "pastor" like their denominational counterparts. With this it wasn't long until men like Isaac Errett began to add the title "Reverend" to their name.
Within that same stream of progressive preachers there soon were manifestations of rank theological liberalism. Led by men like J. H. Garrison, editor of the Christian Evangelist, R. C. Cave of St. Louis, Edward S. Ames of the Disciples Divinity House of the University of Chicago, these men began an assault on the inspiration and authority of the Scriptures that equaled the most rabid of the liberal Protestants.
Separation Realized (1906)
In 1906 those responsible for the U. S. Religious Census noted the polarization that existed among the Restoration churches. They commissioned J. W. Shepherd to gather the statistics of those churches whose fellowship excluded instrumental music and missionary societies. The resulting figures were shocking. The progressives claimed 982,701members, our brethren could count only 149,658. We had 2, 649 congregations, they had 8,203. The liberals had gained control of most of the foreign mission work, the schools and benevolent works. We were a small, badly beaten remnant scattered primarily in the South. Our little strength was found in the circle of influence of David Lipscomb's Gospel Advocate and Austin McGary's Firm
Foundation papers. We were poor, with little strength or resources. We were scorned and ridiculed by the progressives and the sectarian world as well. Brethren of great courage and conviction refused to accept defeat. They argued that "they went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us; they would have continue with us...."(I John 2:19).
Growth and Recovery (1906-1976)
A handful of faithful men of God, threw themselves into the Lord's work with incredible sacrifice and zeal. Foot by foot they recovered the ground lost and reestablished New Testament congregations throughout the land. By 1976 we had grown to some 1,200,000 members, outstripping those who had left us. Thousands more had been won in foreign fields. From lower socio-economic strata we had moved into the middle class of society. Following World War II we expanded our mission outreach into every state of the nation and some 140
foreign nations. There had been substantial growth in good works such as Christian Schools, benevolent works, Christian camps etc. With all of this came growth in recognition and respect in the eyes of the world.
Today's Choice
Today apostasy again is knocking at our door. In the name of "changes" that they claim will improve our congregational life, our worship and evangelism, progressives are agitating among our people. Awareness of the hard battle fought and losses sustained should make us very leery when we hear voices calling for unity based on compromise with the Christian Churches. It was their doctrines and practices that devastated us in the past. The agenda of the "change agents" among us will bring the same baneful results it brought our fathers a century ago. Remember the lessons of history or you will repeat the mistakes of history! JHW |
