Tag Archives: Alexander Campbell

The Fork in the Road: Moral vs. Positive Law: Background

Guy wrote a comment asking why I take such a dim view of positive law (and I do). I knocked out a quick comment, but I think the topic bears a more thorough explanation. It’s going to take several posts … Continue reading

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Replanting a Denomination: The Original Restoration Plea

A reader posted a comment, suggesting that the original Restoration Plea was not as I characterized it in the last post of this series, asserting — In actuallity, the concept of teaching “the correct doctrines of baptism, worship, and church … Continue reading

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Backgrounds of the Restoration Movement: Where Do We Go From Here?

The books on how to teach adult Bible classes all say you need to end with an application: how do we apply these lessons to our lives? It’s good to gain a perspective from history because it helps us separate … Continue reading

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Backgrounds of the Restoration Movement: Positive Law

In hindsight, it’s easy to see that the doctrine taught by Stone, the Campbells, and Scott differed radically from much that was taught in the years following the Civil War. What changed? Surely they didn’t realize at the time that … Continue reading

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Backgrounds of the Restoration Movement: The Missionary Society

Late in his career, Alexander Campbell argued strenuously for a national missionary society. In many states, Restoration Movement churches had already organized societies (a 19th Century term for a nonprofit organization) to send out missionaries and to do other good … Continue reading

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Backgrounds of the Restoration Movement: Baptism, Primitivism, and Heresy, Part 2

This brings us to the famous Lunenburg letter correspondence. Some of Campbell’s early writing often seems to suggest that he considered baptism essential to salvation. And this was conventional wisdom within much of the Movement. However, Stone had never considered … Continue reading

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Backgrounds of the Restoration Movement: Baptism, Primitivism, and Heresy, Part 1

The Restoration Movement was not begun with baptism in mind. Indeed, Barton W. Stone, Thomas Campbell, and Alexander Campbell had all begun their ministries and had written some of their most famous documents long before baptism became an issue. You … Continue reading

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Backgrounds of the Restoration Movement: Barton W. Stone and Richard McNemar

We in the Churches of Christ often claim to be part of or heirs of the Restoration Movement, founded by Barton W. Stone and Thomas and Alexander Campbell. We like to recite various Restoration Movement slogans and give them very … Continue reading

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Dialogue with Robert Prater: Robert’s Comment About Progressive Dialogue

Several days ago, Robert posted a comment that I’ve been meaning to get to for a while. Rich, I would just continue to encourage you to stand for truth in a balanced and loving way and have no desire to … Continue reading

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The Regulative Principle: All Churches Must Be Painted Green

The Regulative Principle is the formal name for what many in the Churches of Christ call the Law of Specific Authority. But how do we know that we need authority? Well, it’s obvious. You see, the opposite of the Regulative … Continue reading

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