CHURCH HISTORY. I. The Lord established his church. It is his kingdom on earth, a spiritual kingdom.

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1 CHURCH HISTORY I. The Lord established his church. It is his kingdom on earth, a spiritual kingdom. A. As foretold by old testament prophecy, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to dwell on earth in human form. 1. He was rejected, ridiculed, beaten, nailed to a cross, died, and was buried. 2. On the third day, he arose from the grave, was seen by hundreds, and ascended to the right hand of the Father in heaven. B. On the judgment day, he will return for his church. C. He expects it not to change, but to be just as he set forth in the new testament. D Throughout the centuries, however, there have been those who have deviated from the pattern established by Christ for his church. E. This is a history of what has transpired and is presented as six major periods: 1. Apostolic (from the establishment of the church to 100 A.D.). 2. Persecution (100 A.D. to the Edict of Toleration in 313 A.D.). 3. Imperial (313 A.D. to the fall of Rome in 476 A.D.). 4. Medieval ( 476 A.D. to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 A.D.). 5. Reformed (1453 A.D. to the end of the Thirty Years War in 1648 A.D.). 6. Modern (1648 A.D. to the present). II. The Apostolic Period (from the establishment of the church to 100 A.D.). A. Fifty days after the passover, on the day of Pentecost, the eleven apostles added Mathias to take the place of Judas. 1. On that day, the twelve apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke to the Jews who had gathered. a. Peter addressed the entire crowd. He used the keys to the kingdom of heaven to unlock the mystery of God s plan for man s salvation by preaching unto them the gospel of Jesus Christ. b. About three thousand were added to the Lord s kingdom, his church, by being baptized into Christ for the remission of their sins. (Acts 2) 1

2 B This was the establishment of the Lord s church, the church of Christ. 1. Paul wrote to the church in Rome that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16) 2. The Jews entered the kingdom first. 3. Subsequently, Gentiles were added to the church by Christ in the same manner as the Jews (Acts 10). 4. Jew and Gentile became one in Christ (Galatians 3:28). C. No one can be in the Lord s church except those who are added by him to it. (Acts 2:47) There is no joining and no voting. D. The characteristics of the Lord s church are found in Acts through Revelation. 1. The new testament always refers to the church by showing that it belongs to Christ. It is not to be referenced by any man s name, any other name, nor by something that the church does. (Examples are found in Ephesians 5:23; Ephesians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 12:27; 1 Corinthians 1:2; Romans 16:16; and Colossians 1:13.) E. Members of the Lord s church are to refer to themselves according to their relationship to Christ. New testament examples are disciples (Acts 6:1), Christians (Acts 11:26), members (Romans 12:5), brethren (2 Thessalonians 1:3), sons of God (Romans 8:14), children of God (Romans 8:16-17), saints (Romans 1:7), and priests (1 Peter 2:5). F. Christ is the head of his church (Ephesians 5:23) and there is no earthly head. for the church. 1. He, through the new testament from Acts to Revelation, has set forth the doctrine 2. No man is allowed to change the teachings of Christ by adding to or taking away from the doctrine provided by him. His doctrine is good and applicable until he returns for the judgment and the end of time. (2 Timothy 3:16-17) G. The church universal is made up of local churches. (Examples are 1 Corinthians 1:2; Galatians 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; and Revelation 1:4.) 1. Each local church is to refer to itself as belonging to Christ. 2. Each local church is to recognize Christ as the head. 3. Each local church is to use the doctrine of Christ as its only doctrine and is not to add to or take away from it. 4. Each local church is to be autonomous from every other local church, but all are to follow the one doctrine of Christ. 2

3 5. All members of the local churches make up the universal church and are to refer to themselves as followers of Christ and not by something that they do or as students of some earthly teacher. 6. Each local church is to have elders (also called pastors, presbyters, shepherds, or bishops). They are to be appointed in accordance with the requirements of 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9. a. These men are not to lord it over the church, but are to serve the church and keep it pure in accordance with new testament teachings. b. They are to ensure that the church receives spiritual food. c. They are not to make laws, for Christ has already made the requirements for his church. They are not to relax these requirements, for Christ expects them to be followed. There is to be no adding to or taking away from the doctrine of Christ. 7. Each local church is to have deacons who meet the requirements of 1 Timothy 3:8-13. a. The deacons are to be servants. b. They are to take care of the various works of the church. 8. Some in the church may be preachers, evangelists, or teachers, but everyone in the church is important and everyone is expected to do according to his or her ability. There is to be no respect of persons. order. 9. When the church assembles, everything is supposed to be done decently and in E. The purpose of the Lord s church, the church of Christ, is to make known the manifold wisdom of God. (Ephesians 3:10) The church is to be an example to the world. F. The church is to assemble each first day of each week because Christ arose from the grave on the first day (Mark 16:1-6), and the church was established on the first day (Acts 2). Examples are Acts 20:7 and 1 Corinthians 16:2. Members of the Lord s body are not to forsake the assembly (Hebrews 10:24-27). When the church assembles on each first day, the following is to be done, nothing more and nothing less. 1. Sing (1 Corinthians 14:15; Ephesians 5:17-21; and Colossians 3:16). The Lord requires vocal music and does not allow instrumental sounds. 2. Partake of the Lord s supper (1 Corinthians 10:16; Acts 20:7; and 1 Corinthians 11:23-29). 3. Give (Acts 20:35; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7; and 1 Corinthians 16:1-2). 3

4 4. Preach (Romans 10:14-15; 2 Timothy 4:2; Acts 20:7; and 2 Timothy 2:2) 5. Pray (1 Thessalonians 5:17-18) G. The work of the church is to be as found in the new testament. 1. Evangelism (Acts 21:8; 2 Timothy 4:5; Romans 10:14-15; and 2 Timothy 4:2). 2. Edification (Romans 14:19; Romans 15:1-2; 1 Corinthians 14:26; 1 Corinthians 14:12; Galatians 6:1-2; and Ephesians 4: Benevolence (Acts 6:1-3; Acts 11:28-30; Romans 12:13; Romans 15:25-26; Galatians 6:10; 1 Timothy 6:17-19; James 1:27; James 2:15-17; and 1 John 3:17-18). Also see Ephesians 4: There are many other good works and activities that can be done by individual Christians in areas such as earning a livelihood, entertainment, and recreation; but the church, as a body, is to do only evangelism, edification, and benevolence. H. The Holy Spirit revealed to the apostle Paul that there would be a falling away, an apostasy. 1. When the elders from the church in Ephesus met with Paul at Miletus, he told them: Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears. (Acts 20:28-31) a. False teachers would come, even among the elders of the churches, and would be like ravenous wolves among the sheep, tearing them apart with false doctrine. b. The Judaizing teachers had already been causing problems that Paul had to address and more false teaching would come after his death. 2. When Paul was writing to the church in Thessalonica about Christ s return, he said that it would be preceded by a falling away: Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:3-12) 4

5 a. The church was not to be deceived into thinking that Christ s doctrine would always be followed until Christ s return, for there would be a great apostasy, or falling away, first. b. The man of sin would come, who would lead others into condemnation. (1) He would oppose God and exalt himself as God. (2) The evil that would lead to this great apostasy was already at work. (3) He would be a worker for Satan, not God, and would perform many signs and lying wonders to convince people to follow him. (4) Those who did not seek the truth would be sent a delusion so that they would believe lies and be lost eternally. c. Who was this man of sin to be? We are not told specifically, but looking at history, we can make a determination. organizationally. (1) Elders in the church did take the lead in deviating from the word (2) This began not long after Paul s death. (3) A church developed and grew with a structure similar to that of the Roman Empire, with one man as its head and a hierarchy of leaders. (4) The result was the establishment of the Roman Catholic Church, deviating from the church of Christ, with the pope calling himself Christ s representative on earth and commanding that all should follow him. 3. When Paul wrote his first letter to Timothy, he warned of the falling away: Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained. (1 Timothy 4:1-6) a. The Holy Spirit told Paul that there would be a falling away. b. Christians would be hearers and followers of false teachers. c. Marriage would be forbidden. Certain ones would not be allowed to marry. d. Certain foods would be prohibited. 5

6 e. The brethren needed to be warned then, and they need to be warned now. 4. A careful study of Revelation, combined with history, will show that the falling away, or great apostasy, did occur as prophesied. a. We need to look at the cause. b. Men listened to men instead of God. c. As God told Hosea in regard to Israel: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. (Hosea 4:6) d. There is still a danger today. A number of local churches have already fallen away and others are in the process. e. Individual Christians also need to take note and remain faithful to the word, looking forward to an eternal home with the Father. I. Members of the early church were persecuted during the apostolic period. 1. Initially the Jews persecuted Christians and stirred up Gentiles against them. (Acts 3-4). a. Peter healed a lame man and he and John were taken to the temple prison b. The apostles were imprisoned by the high priest (Acts 5:17-28). c. Stephen was stoned to death (Acts 6-7). Jews (Acts 8:1-4) d. The church in Jerusalem was scattered abroad because of persecution by the e. Saul, later called Paul, received letters from the high priest allowing him to go to Damascus to persecute Christians (Acts 9:1-9). f. King Herod killed James and imprisoned Peter (Acts 12:1-9). g. The Jews in Iconium stirred up the Gentiles against Paul and Barnabas and they had to flee to Lystra and Derbe (Acts 14:1-7). h. Jews from Antioch went to Lystra while Paul was there and stirred up the people so that they stoned him (Acts 14:19-28). i. When Paul and Silas were in Philippi, the Jews took them before the magistrates and they were beaten and thrown into prison (Acts 16:19-34). j. The Jews stirred up the Thessalonicans against Paul and Silas (Acts 17:1-9) 6

7 k. The Jews in Thessalonica went to Berea and stirred up the people against Paul and Silas (Acts 17:10-15). (Acts 18:12-17). m. Paul was taken by the Jews before Gallio, the deputy of Achaia n. When Paul returned to Jerusalem, the Asian Jews recognized him and caused the crowd to take him and beat him (Acts 21:27-31). (1) He was rescued by the Roman soldiers (Acts 21:32-36). (2) After telling the soldiers that he was a citizen of Tarsus, he was allowed to present his defense to the Jews (Acts 21:37-22:21). (3) The Jews wanted Paul killed and the Roman soldiers were going to scourge him, but refrained when he declared his Roman citizenship (Acts 22:22-29). (4) The soldiers took Paul to the Jewish council, where he caused a stir between the Sadducees and Pharisees over the resurrection (Acts 22:30-23:10). (Acts 23:23-35). (5) Paul was then sent to Caesarea to appear before the Governor Felix (6) Felix heard the accusations and Paul s defense, but decided to keep him as a prisoner until a more convenient time (Acts 24). (7) The more convenient time came two years later when Felix was replaced by Porcius Festus and Paul appeared before him and appealed unto Caesar Acts 25:1-12). (8) Paul appeared before King Agrippa who said that Paul almost persuaded him to become a Christian and would have set him free except for Paul s appeal to Caesar (Acts 25:13-26:32). (Acts 27-28) (9) Paul was taken to Rome and was a prisoner there for two years 2. There were also Gentile persecutions of Christians. a. Demetrius, a silversmith in Ephesus, stirred up the people against Paul and his companions because their teaching impacted his sales of silver shrines for the idol false goddess Diana. b. There were sporadic persecutions of the church almost from its establishment, but the first government sanctioned persecution was under the Emperor Nero from the city to satisfy his tastes. (1) Rome burned in 64 and Nero used that as an opportunity to rebuild 7

8 (2) The people began to blame Nero for the fire so that he could accomplish his rebuilding goals; so, to turn the attention away from himself, he blamed the Christians. death. let loose to tear them apart. (3) Nero had Christians killed, but also tortured many before their (a) Some were made to wear animal skins and then dogs were (b) Some were crucified. (c) Some were burned to provide light at night. (81-96). c. The second government sanctioned persecution was under Domitian (1) He had John boiled in oil and then banished him to Patmos. (2) A law was enacted that required every Christian brought before the tribunal to be punished, innocent or not, unless they denied Christ. the Christians. (3) Any type of disaster, such as famine or earthquakes, was blamed on (4) If Christians were taken before the magistrates and confessed to being Christian, they were put to death. (5) Timothy was one of the martyrs under the reign of Domitian. He chastised some pagans for celebrating a feast associated with their idolatry and they beat him so that he died two days later. III. The Persecution Period (100 A.D. to the Edict of Toleration in 313 A.D.). A. Imperial persecutions were erratic, but fierce. This whole period was essentially a time of persecution, but there were a number of major persecutions. 1. Causes. a. Heathenism recognized many gods, but not the one true God. b. Idol worship was a way of life. c. The Emperor was often worshipped. d. Prior to the fall of Jerusalem in 70, Christians had been considered as connected to the Jews and Judaism was recognized by the government. Subsequently, they were considered to be separate. 8

9 e. To avoid persecution, the Christians often met secretly and these secret meetings aroused suspicion. equal in God s eyes. f. Christians did not believe in a class society, but considered all men to be g. Covetous men found Christianity to be dangerous to their business. h. Any type of tragedy in the empire was blamed on Christians. 2. The first great persecution during this period was under Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius (98-161). a. These were three of what historically are called the five good emperors; not because they were good men, but because the empire prospered. The other two were Nerva and Marcus Aurelius. b. Around 111, Trajan was informed by Pliny, the governor of Bithynia, that those who profited from business with idol worshippers were suffering because of the number of people being converted to Christianity. (1) Trajan said that the Christians should be left alone unless they were accused and convicted. Then they were to denounce their faith or be punished. (2) As a result, there were a lot of false accusations and many deaths. (3) One such martyr was Ignatius of Antioch. He was thrown to wild beasts in the Roman amphitheater around 108). (4) Another martyr was Simeon (Simon of Mark 6:3). He was crucified by order of the Roman governor of Palestine in 107. Christians. c. Hadrian (Adrian) succeeded Trajan and continued his policy in regard to (1) At Mt. Ararat, a number of Christians were killed by placing crowns of thorns on their heads, nailing them to crosses, and running spears into their sides. (2) A pagan witnessed the tremendous torture of two Christian brothers and was so amazed at their faith that he said Great is the God of the Christians! Because he spoke up, he was then himself put to the same fate. d. Antoninus Pius succeeded Trajan and essentially maintained his policies in regard to Christians. 3. The next great persecution was under Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ). a. The cruelty under Marcus Aurelius Antoninus was so cruel and severe that onlookers cringed at the sight and marveled at the faith of the persecuted. 9

10 b. Some were made to walk barefooted over sharp objects such as thorns, nails, and sharp shells before being put to death. c. Others were scourged terribly and then put to a horrible death. d. A young Christian, Germanicus, showed such great courage when he was delivered to wild beasts that some who saw him wanted to become Christians. child. e. Polycarp heard that he was being sought, so he hid, but was betrayed by a (1) The guards that took him let him pray first and his prayer was so fervent that they regretted having to arrest him. burning in the market place. (2) He was taken to the proconsul and was sentenced to death by (3) The proconsul offered him a chance for freedom, however, if he would denounce Christ. His response was Eighty and six years have I served him, and he never once wronged me; how then shall I blaspheme my King, who hath saved me. f. Felictatis was a Christian lady in Rome who had seven sons. weights. (1) Januarius, the oldest, was scourged and pressed to death by (2) Felix and Philip, had their brains bashed out with clubs. (3) Silvanus was thrown from a high cliff. (4) Alexander, Vitalis, and Martial were beheaded. used on her sons. (5) Felictatis, the mother, was beheaded with the same sword that was g. Justin and six of his companions were scourged and then beheaded because they would not sacrifice to pagan idols. 4. Another great persecution was under Septimius Severus ( ). a. Septimius Severus maintained the policy of not seeking out Christians to persecute; but if they were brought up on charges, they were to denounce Christ and offer to Roman gods or be executed. b. He also outlawed Christianity. c. Many officials in the empire took advantage of Christianity being outlawed to pursue persecuting Christians vigorously. 10

11 5. Then came the great persecution under Decius ( ). a. Prior to Decius, most of the persecution of Christians had been local. Now they covered the general population of the empire. b. Christians, by this time, had increased in number and were no longer just the poorer class, but included a cross section of the populace. c. Decius wanted to restore the old virtues of Rome and commanded that all had to sacrifice to the Roman gods and set up commissions to provide certificates to those who complied. Those who did not comply were subject to arrest, imprisonment, and death. certificates, or fled. d. Many Christians recanted their faith and sacrificed to false gods, bought fake e. Those who remained faithful and were arrested were tortured and executed. f. Decius and the empire were threatened by the Goths and the persecution of Christians had to cease while he attended to military business. g. Martyrs included the bishops of Jerusalem, Rome, and Antioch. 6. The next great persecution was under Valerian ( ). exile. a. He took away the right of Christians to assemble and sent the clergy into b. Later he had church leaders executed. c. Stephen, the bishop of Rome was beheaded. d. A plague broke out in Carthage and the Christians were blamed. Cyprian, the bishop of Carthage was beheaded along with the persecution of other Christians. e. One writer, P.J. Twisck, recorded the severity of the persecutions, stating that Christian martyrs were cast before wild beasts; beaten, wounded, executed with the sword, burned, torn limb from limb, rent asunder, pinched with red-hot tongs; red-hot nails were driven in their fingers and nerves. Some were hung up by their arms, and heavy weights tied to their feet, and thus were torn asunder gradually and with great pain. Others, whose wounded bodies had been smeared over with honey, were place naked on the earth in the hot sun, to be tormented and stung to death by flies, bees, and other insects. Others were beaten with clubs, and cast into prison, until they miserably perished. 7. The final great persecution was under Diocletian and his successors ( ). a. This time of persecution is sometimes called the era of martyrs. b. The number of Christians increased, causing the pagans to hate them. 11

12 c. The mother of Galerius, Diocletian s adopted son, was a bigoted pagan who encouraged her son to destroy the Christians. d. The persecution began in Nicomedia where the pagans, determined to wipe out Christianity, forced their way into the church building, took all of the sacred writings, and burned them. e. Afterwards, Diocletian and Galerius had the building leveled. f. Diocletian then sent out an edict commanding that all church buildings and books be destroyed and that Christians be considered as outlaws. blame it on them. sex. g. Galerius had Christians imprisoned and set fire to the palace so that he could h. The persecution was severe and no distinction was made in regard to age or i. Many houses were set on fire and whole families were consumed. j. Others had stones fastened around their necks and they were tied together and forced into the sea. k. The pagans use every type of torture and device that they could imagine to torment and execute Christians. l. Over time, some of the provincial governors tired of the slaughter and appealed to the emperor. Their plea was heeded and many were not executed, but everything was done to cause them to have miserable lives. Ears were cut off, eyes were slit, and eyes were put out. Limbs were dislocated and hot irons were used to sear their flesh in conspicuous places. B. The canon of the new testament began to be formed. 1. The writings that we now have in the new testament were not all of the documents in circulation. There were other writings also, and it became necessary to differentiate those that were inspired from those that were not. 2. By 200, twenty-one of the twenty-seven books had been determined to be in the canon (those accepted as scriptural). 3. The books still in question were Hebrews, 2 Peter, James, Jude, and 2 and 3 John. 4. These last six books were included by the end of the fourth century and accepted by Jerome and Augustine, and the councils of Hippo in 393 and Carthage in 397. They were also accepted by both the Greek and Latin churches. C. Apostasy within the church began to grow. 12

13 1. The new testament describes the organization of the Lord s church and requires that there be qualified elders to oversee the flock. a. The term elder refers to one who is older physically and spiritually. elders. b. Presbyter also refers to an elder and the presbytery refers to the body of c. Pastor, bishop, and overseer all refer to the work of the elder overseeing and watching the church. All of these terms are synonymous and refer to the same office. 2. The church maintained the organizational structure of elders overseeing local, autonomous churches from its establishment until around 150. a. From 150 until 250, the local churches began to deviate from the Lord s plan and had a head elder over the other elders, and they became two distinct offices. b. Around 200 the head elder began to take the title of Bishop and the other elders became the presbytery. c. The episcopate was fully formed with the bishop over the elders. D. Around 250, the hierarchal structure began to develop, leading up to a time when there would be five Patriarchs over the churches. 1. During this period, bishops of larger churches began to rule several smaller churches in addition to the church where they were located. 2. Around 300, the bishops from the largest and most important cities became known as metropolitans. E. Another departure from the new testament pattern by the end of the second century was the distinction between the preacher and the other members of the church. 1. This distinction developed into the clergy/laity system. 2. There might be several reasons why this distinction developed. a. The Jews had a separate order of priests who were over the religious activities of the people and there were a large number of members in the Lord s church who had Jewish backgrounds. b. Some felt unworthy to go directly to God and wanted specially qualified men to go to Him on their behalf and to relieve them of their personal responsibility. c. The people wanted authority figures to manage the affairs of the church and to tell them what to believe and do. 13

14 d. The clergy considered themselves to be more spiritual than the lay members and deserving of special honor. F. Schools of theology began to spring up. 1. Pantaenus founded a school of theology in Alexandria around 180. Clement and Origen studied there. 2. Schools were established in Asia Minor, where Irenaeus had his beginning. 3. A school was in Carthage in North Africa, and Tertullian and Cyprian were early writers from there. G. Sects and heresies came into existence. 1. The Jews were accustomed to various sects, such as the Sadducees, Pharisees, and Essenes. As seen in Paul s writings, some of the Jewish Christians had a hard time giving up all parts of the law and wanted to incorporate things like circumcision into the Lord s church. 2. When the Gentiles were brought under the new covenant, some of the Gentile Christians also had things in their past that they did not want to give up 3. Some of the heresies that arose were as follows: a. The Gnostics. knowledge. (1) The term gnostic comes from the Greek gnosis, meaning (2) They believed that God was too pure to deal with the evil universe, so He created lesser gods to deal with it, some good and some bad. and dark, for example. (3) They believed in dualism; good and evil, spirit and matter, and light (4) They did not believe that Christ came to the earth in the form of man. They thought that Christ was one of the lesser gods. (5) They thought, as some do today, that the scriptures are allegorical and that they could make them mean whatever they wanted. disappeared shortly afterward. (6) They were most prominent during the second century, but b. The Ebionites. century. (1) Like the Gnostics, the Ebionites existed mostly during the second 14

15 (2) They were a Jewish group of Christians who did not accept the Gentiles and thought that the Jewish laws should still be kept. (3) They rejected Paul s writings because they did not recognize the Gentiles as being able to become Christians. (4) They were considered apostate by the Jews. (5) The Gentile Christians had very little sympathy for the Ebionites. c. The Manicheans. (1) They believed that the universe consisted of a light kingdom and a dark kingdom, each trying to master nature and man. in a heavenly Christ (2) They did not believe that Jesus was the Christ, but they did believe (3) Their founder, Mani, was executed by the Persian government in (4) They were strong in self-denial and did not like marriages. this group before changing. (5) One of the most famous early church writers, Augustine, was part of (6) They were persecuted by the emperors who were against Christianity and those who favored Christianity. d. The Montanists. second century. Maximilla. died. (1) Their founder was Montanus, and they came into being in the (2) Two women were also considered to be leaders, Prisca and (3) Maximilla claimed that there would be no more prophecy after she (4) Montanus said that he was inspired by the Holy Spirit. He said that the end of the world was coming soon and that the heavenly Jerusalem would be in the little town of Pepuza in Phrygia. Christians. (5) They claimed to have returned to the simplicity of the early (6) They believed in the priesthood of all believers. 15

16 (7) They displayed emotionalism, loss of control, and speaking in tongues like the Pentecostals of today. When the three leaders died, so did the movement. H. The period of persecution began to near an end in the early 300 s. 1. Diocletian abdicated the throne in Galerius, who was the real mastermind of the persecution and succeeded Diocletian, developed a terrible disease and softened his position on the Christians. a. He, along with Constantine and Licinius, issued an edict of toleration in 311. b. In the document, he stated that the goal of reclaiming the Christians to the laws and discipline of the Roman state had not been accomplished. c. Therefore, he gave Christians the right to assemble as long as they did not disturb the order of the state. themselves. d. Finally, the Christians were to pray for the emperors, the state, and e. Galerius died shortly thereafter. 3. Maximin still persecuted Christians in the east and Maxentius, son-in-law of Galerius, persecuted Christians in Italy. 4. Four men were at war, each wanting the throne, but the two most powerful were Maxentius and Constantine. a. Maxentius represented the heathen persecuting element and Constantine, although not a Christian, favored the Christians. b. The two met in battle in 312 at the Milvian Bridge over the Tiber River about ten miles outside Rome. c. Constantine claimed that he saw a sign in the sky that said Hoc Signo Vinces, which meant By this sign thou shalt conquer. d. Constantine won the battle and Maxentius was drowned in the river. I. The Persecution Period came to an end. 1. Constantine met with his brother-in-law, Licinius, in Milan and issued the new edict of toleration in Maximin, just before he committed suicide, consented at Nicomedia. 16

17 3. It provided protection for the Christians and ordered that the confiscated property be returned to the churches at the expense of the empire. IV. The Imperial Period (313 A.D. to the fall of Rome in 476 A.D.). A. The results of the edict of toleration on the church were as follows: 1. Persecution ended. 2. The church buildings were restored and reopened. 3. Heathen temples were confiscated and consecrated for use by the church. 4. Endowments from the public treasury were switched from the heathen temples to the facilities of the churches. 5. Privileges were given to preachers, such as freedom from taxes and they became a privileged class. 6. Sunday was proclaimed a day of rest and worship. 7. Good and evil people could easily be accepted by the church as members. 8. Pagan usages began to appear. 9. The worldly began to dominate the church. 10. The church and state united. a. In the east (Greek), the state dominated the church. b. In the west (Latin), the church dominated the state. B. The results of the edict of toleration to the state were as follows: 1. Crucifixion was abolished. 2. Infanticide was repressed. 3. Slavery was modified to give slaves legal rights. 4. The gladiatorial games were suppressed. C. A new capital was founded. 1. There was a need for a new capital of the empire. a. Rome was closely associated with heathen worship and traditions. 17

18 b. Rome was vulnerable to attack. 2. Byzantium, a thousand year-old city was chosen by Emperor Constantine. a. Its name was changed to Constantinople in honor of Constantine. b. It was located where Europe and Asia meet. c. it was fortified by nature. 3. The bishop of Constantinople was called the patriarch. a. The church was honored, but it was overshadowed by the throne. b. This was because of the presence and power of the emperor and the submissive nature of the people. D. Donatists. 4. There were many buildings for the church and no temples to idols. 1. During the persecution under Diocletian, a number of Christians defected. 2. After Constantine issued his edict of toleration, many wanted to return to the church. 3. A man by the name of Majorinus was consecrated as the bishop of Carthage and founded a sect that believed wayward Christians had to be re-baptized before they would be accepted back. 4. He died shortly thereafter in 315 and Donatus took his place. 5. Donatus appealed to Constantine in 316, but he ruled against him and banished the Donatists in an effort to unite the church. 6. Donatus was exiled to Gaul in 347 and died in The Donatists became the leading sect in North Africa for a while even though they were outlawed by Constantine. 8. After Donatus death, the sect split into two main groups and finally died out. E. The Arian controversy. 1. This controversy was started by Arius, a presbyter in Alexandria, around Arius believed that Christ was higher than human nature, but inferior to God. 3. He considered Christ to have had a beginning and not to be eternal in existence. 18

19 4. Arius was opposed in his thinking by Athanasius, a deacon in Alexandria. 5. Constantine tried to end the strife between the two groups of followers, but couldn t; so he called a council of bishops to Nicaea in Bithynia in 325 to decide between the two arguments. 6. The council condemned the teachings of Arius and came up with the Nicean Creed: We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father (the only begotten; that is, of the essence of the Father, God of God), Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made(both in heaven and on earth); Who for us men, and for our salvation, came down and was incarnate and was made man; He suffered, and the third day he arose again, ascended into heaven; From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. And in the Holy Ghost. 7. A number of other topics were also decided by the council. F. Monasticism. 1. As the church became more worldly, many wanted to be more spiritual, so they withdrew from the mainline thinkers and secluded themselves so that they could meditate and pray on spiritual matters. 2. The founder of this movement was Anthony of Thebes around He retired to a cave and became well known. developed. 4. Others followed his example and separate communities for men and women 5. They were called anchorites, which meant retirement, and their communities were called cenobites. 6. The movement later spread from Egypt into the eastern church. 7. It spread slower in Europe and resulted in monasteries, with the men called monks and the women known as nuns. G. Apollinarian controversy. 1. This movement was founded by the bishop in Laodicea, Apollinaris, around 360. human form. 2. They considered only the divine nature of Christ and that he was not man, but God in 3. This doctrine was condemned by the council of Constantinople in

20 H. Pelagian controversy. 1. This controversy was started by Pelagius in 410. from Adam. 2. He was a monk who came from Britain to Rome and taught that sin was not inherited 3. He was opposed by Augustine, who believed in the doctrine of original sin being inherited by birth from Adam. 4. Pelagius was condemned by the council of Carthage in Arminius in Holland, around 1600, and John Wesley, in the eighteenth century, began breaking away from the Augustinian doctrine. I. Pillar saints. 1. The first was Simon, a Syrian monk, in He built a succession of pillars, each higher than the previous one, the last being sixty feet high and four feet broad. 3. These pillars were where he lived for thirty-seven years. 4. Thousands followed his example in the east, but there were no followers in the west. J. Growing power of the Roman church. 1. When the capital of the empire was moved to Constantinople, the church in Rome began to assert itself as being the capital of the church. 2. By 381 the metropolitans in Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem took the title of Patriarchs. They had rule over the universal church. 3. From 451through 588, two primary Patriarchs began to emerge, the Patriarch of Rome and the Patriarch of Constantinople. a. The Bishop of Rome was the only Patriarch in the west. b. The Bishop of Constantinople was the leading Patriarch in the east. 4. From 588 to 606, the Bishop of Rome and the Bishop of Constantinople argued over who should be the Universal Bishop over the whole church. the pope. a. The Patriarch of Rome called himself the papa or father, later modified to 20

21 (1) The church in Rome considered Peter and Paul to be founders of the church in Rome; although when Paul wrote his epistle to the church in Rome, it was already in existence and he had not visited there yet. (2) The church in Rome considered Peter to be the chief apostle because Christ gave him the keys to the kingdom and said thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church. (Matthew 16:18) (a) This was a misinterpretation of scripture. stone. ledge of stone, or foundation rock. (b) The word Peter comes from a Greek word meaning (c) The word rock is from a different Greek word meaning (d) Christ told Peter that he would build his church on the truth confessed by Peter that he, Christ, is the Son of God and that Peter would be the one who opened the door to the kingdom by preaching to the multitude as recorded in Acts 2. b. The Patriarch of Constantinople, John the Faster, was the first to declare himself as Universal Bishop in 588. c. The Bishop of Rome at that time, Gregory, said that no man should have that title, even himself. He likened it to the anti-christ. d. Eight years later, in 606, Boniface III, the Bishop of Rome declared himself to be the Universal Bishop. (1) Rome became the head of the Latin/western church. (2) Constantinople maintained the head of the Greek/eastern church, but still recognized the other Patriarchs and called itself the first among equals. (3) In 622 when the Muslims tried to attain world domination, the Patriarchs of the Antioch, Jerusalem, and Alexandria were done away. Other Patriarchs were added later, but Constantinople still maintained the lead. 5. The great apostasy had become complete. The Roman Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church were formed and neither was the church of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Roman Church, however, would become the stronger of the two. 6. The word Catholic means universal. The name Roman Catholic Church does not include the name of Christ and is not of Christ. It is a man-made institution that is contrary to the word of God. Although its head, the pope, considers himself to be the representative of Christ on earth, he is in actuality the representative of Satan. K. The downfall of the western Roman Empire. 21

22 1. Causes. a. The Roman Empire had become immense. It spread from Britain and the Atlantic to North Africa and Mesopotamia. b The riches of Rome were coveted by their barbarian neighbors. (All who were not Roman, Greek, or Jew were considered to be barbarians.) c. Rome had become unaccustomed to war. (1) Discipline had relaxed. (2) They hired barbarians as soldiers, and even leaders, in the army. d. Rome suffered from numerous civil wars. (1) Emperors were no longer chosen by the senate and when one was killed, there was no vote. The one who had the most military power became emperor. (2) There were eighty emperors in ninety years. (3) Cities were plundered and the army was paid high wages. invasion. climates. are as follows: (4) Garrisons were called from the borders, which left them open for e. Asiatic tribes began to invade Roman lands, probably because of better 2. Invading tribes. Three of the groups that inflicted the greatest impact on the empire a. Visigoths. was divided into two halves. (1) In 395, Emperor Theodosius the Great, died; after which, the empire (2) The eastern portion was given to his son, Arcadius, and the western part was given to his ten year-old son, Honorius. was easier to defend. German. (3) The western capital was moved from Rome to Ravenna because it (4) Stilicho was Honorius general and he was half Roman and half (5) The Visigoths were a Germanic people who came from between the Danube River and the Baltic Sea and were led by a young man in his 20 s, Alaric. 22

23 (6) In the early 400 s., they invaded lands in the Balkans and began making incursions into Italy, where they were repelled by Stilicho. (7) Stilicho was accused of conspiring with the Visigoths in order to have his son placed on the throne. Thus he was beheaded in Ravenna. the empire, which was denied. (3) The Visigoths wanted a land of their own and an accepted place in (4) They besieged Rome until the senate paid them to leave. (5) Then in 409, they attacked Rome again and placed a temporary emperor, Priscus Attalus, on the throne. (6) He didn t last long and Alaric attacked Rome again in 410 because Ravenna refused the demands of Alaric. (7) Disgruntled slaves opened the gates of Rome at night and the Visigoths entered the city, killing, raping, and looting. (8) The Visigoths considered themselves to be Arian Christians, so they were lenient on Christians and their possessions. their slaves. France. (9) After three days, they left Rome, carrying with them their loot and (10) Alaric fell sick and died, and the Visigoths settled in southwest b. Vandals. terrible invader of the empire. from A.D. from 439 to 477 A.D. (1) Genseric was the Vandal king of Spain and considered the most (2) Genseric crossed the straits of Gibraltar and ravaged North Africa (3) His fleet was also a terror on the Mediterranean Sea to the empire (4) The empire tried to revenge itself twice and failed both times. (a) The first was under western Emperor Majorian in 457. The Roman fleet in the bay of Carthagena was destroyed. (b) The second was under eastern Emperor Leo in 468 where Genseric burned the Roman fleet off Bona. 23

24 died in 477. (5) Genseric finally made peace with the eastern Emperor Zeno and c. Huns. (1) Attila and his older brother Bleda inherited an empire that covered the Alps and the Baltic on the west to near the Caspian Sea on the east. (2) The two brothers made a treaty with the eastern empire in which they were to receive double what they had been given and, in the future, 700 pounds of gold each year. (3) It seems that the eastern empire reneged on their payment; so in 441, the Huns attacked the Danube frontier of the eastern empire while the Roman forces were occupied elsewhere. A number of important cities were captured and razed by the Huns. (4) The eastern empire made a treaty with the Huns in 442 and recalled their soldiers from the west, but Attila resumed his attack in 443. (5) Attila continued to destroy cities on his way to Constantinople, but realized that the walls of the city would prevent it from being taken. (6) In the peace treaty that followed, Attila had the eastern empire pay what they owed, 6000 pounds of gold, and then had them agree to pay 2100 pounds of gold each year. the eastern empire in 447. (7) Attila killed his brother around 445 and made his second attack on (8) He went further east on the second invasion and defeated the empire s forces at the Utus (Vid) River, but lost many of his own soldiers. (9) He sacked the Balkan provinces and went south into Greece, where he was stopped at Thermopylae. years. (10) He negotiated the terms of a treaty with Theodosius II for three (11) The eastern empire had to evacuate a large part of the territory south of the Danube and they had to continue paying tribute (the amount is not known). 3. The fall of Rome. a. All of these invasions and disruptions resulted in Rome being reduced to a small territory around the city. b. In 476, a relatively small group of Germans, the Heruli, under Odoacer, captured the city of Rome and dethroned the boy-emperor Romulus Augustus. 24

25 c. The western empire was no more, but the eastern empire continued, with Constantinople as its capital, until Some important leaders, called Latin Fathers, in the developing apostate church during the Imperial Period were as follows: a. Athanasius. (1) He was born around , although some sources think it might have been as early as 293, in or around Alexandria. (2) He became a deacon in the church in 319. (3) Athanasius rose to prominence during the Arian controversy and assisted the bishop of Alexandria, Alexander, during the council of Nicea. (4) Five months later, Alexander died. On his death bed he recommended that Athanasius be his replacement. (5) He was unanimously elected Patriarch in 326. (6) Because of his stand against Arianism, he spent seventeen of his forty-six years as Patriarch in exile, being exiled five times (once under Emperor Constantine, twice under Emperor Constantius, once under Emperor Julian, and once under Emperor Valens. b. Ambrose. (7) He died in 373. (1) He was born in 340. (2) In 372, he was made governor of Aemilia-Liguria in northern Italy. uproar about the successor. (3) In 374, the Arian bishop of Milan died and there was likely to be an (4) Ambrose went to the church building to settle things down and, while speaking, was interrupted by the whole assembly calling for him to be the next bishop. no theological training. (5) He was Catholic in his thinking, but had not been baptized and had (6) Ambrose rebuked the eastern emperor, Theodosius I, in 390 for massacring 7000 people in Thessalonica and threatened to excommunicate him if he did not confess and do penance. (7) He died in

26 c. John Chrysostom. (1) He was born in 347 in Antioch, Syria. (2) He was well known for his preaching and, in 398, he was called to Constantinople to become the archbishop. was exiled and died in 407. (3) Because he spoke against the misuse of wealth and influence, he d. Jerome. (1) He was born around 340, or maybe a few years later. where he lived for many years. (2) He was a learned writer and established a monastery at Bethlehem, (3) His most influential writing was the translation of the Bible into Latin, known as the Vulgate (the Bible in common speech). e. Augustine. (1) He was born in 354 in northern Africa. invasions were beginning. (2) In 395, he became the bishop of Hippo, just as the barbarian (3) He was known for his writings of theology and died in 430. L. As seen during the Persecution Period and the Imperial Period, the church began early to deviate from the organizational structure required by the new testament and quickly developed into a man-made structure similar to that of the Roman Empire. 1. The leadership changed. 2. The reference to the church as belonging to Christ was dropped in favor of manmade names (The Roman Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church). 3. The members referred to themselves as Catholics (Universalists) or Greek Orthodox instead of showing their relationship to Christ. 4. Instead of there being a single head of the church, one in the Roman Catholic Church claimed to be Christ s representative on earth with the false authority to add to and take away from the inspired word. The Greek Orthodox has their Patriarch. 5. The local churches gave up their autonomy. 26

27 6. Instead of teaching the whole counsel of God and making known the manifold wisdom of God, the apostate churches taught what was dictated by their heads. M. If there were faithful churches during this time of the apostasy, we do not have their history. We do know, however, that God s word has remained and will remain until the end. N. The Roman Catholic Church developed a hierarchy of leadership, with their papa, cardinals, archbishops, bishops, priests, fathers, etc. O. Members were no longer saints. A saint had to be someone who had accomplished a miracle during his or her life and was dead. P. Members were no longer priests. Priests were after the priesthood of man and not Christ. Only selected ones could be priests. Q. Instead of God being the only spiritual Father, certain men were also to be named Fathers. R. Before Christ adds anyone to his church, the person must have heard the gospel, believe that Christ is the Son of God, repent of his or her sins, confess belief in Christ, and be baptized for the remission of sins. of Christ. (Acts 8:26-39). 1. It stands to reason that one cannot obey the gospel if one has not heard the gospel a. The gospel of Christ includes baptism (immersion) for the remission of sins b. Unfortunately, some years after the establishment of the church and all of the apostles had died, exceptions were made to the baptism part of the gospel and people did not hear the whole gospel so that they could obey it. c. When Constantine became Emperor of the Roman Empire, he favored Christianity and many wanted to be considered a part of it, but did not follow the new testament requirements for Christ adding them to his church. The church accepted them even if they had not given up their pagan ways. 2. When people stopped being baptized (immersed), they stopped being in Christ, for one has to be baptized (immersed) into Christ. a. One of the greatest departures of the ante-nicene era (before the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D.) was the initiation of infant baptism. (1) This practice was derived from the erroneous idea that Adam s sin was passed along through all subsequent generations. (2) One of the early writers, Cyprian, said that the sins to be remitted were not the sins of the infant s, but the sin that he was bearing for Adam. 27

28 (3) This was obviously erroneous because the son does not bear the sin of the father, nor the father for the son (Ezekiel 18:20). An infant cannot understand the gospel, cannot believe what he does not understand, cannot repent of what he has not done, and cannot confess what he does not know. Then how can he be baptized? baptism (immersion). b. Another great departure was the substitution of sprinkling and pouring for (1) Novation, in 251, was the first person that we know about who was considered to be a member of the church without having been baptized (immersed). (2) Eusebius said of Novation and his clinical baptism : He when attacked with an obstinate disease, and being supposed at the point of death, was baptized by aspersion, in the bed on which he lay; if, indeed, it be proper to say that one like him did receive baptism. This illustrious character abandoning the church of God, in which, when he was converted he was honoured with the presbytery, and that by favour of the bishop placing his hands upon him, to the order of bishops, and as all the clergy and many of the laity resisted it, since it was not lawful that one baptized in his sick bed by aspersion, as he was, should be promoted to any order of the clergy. (3) Cyprian said: You have asked also, dearest son, what I thought of those who obtain God s grace in sickness and weakness, whether they are to be accounted legitimate Christians, for that they are not to be washed, but sprinkled, with the saving water. In this point, my diffidence and modesty prejudges none, so as to prevent any from feeling what he thinks right, and from doing what he feels to be right. As far as my poor understanding conceives it, I think that the divine benefits can in no respect be mutilated and weakened; nor can anything less occur in that case, where, with full and entire faith both of the giver and receiver, is accepted what is drawn from the divine gifts. For in the sacrament of salvation the contagion of sins is not in such wise washed away, as the filth of the skin and of the body is washed away in the carnal and ordinary washing, as that there should be need of saltpeter and other appliances also, and a bath and a basin wherewith this vile body must be washed and purified. Otherwise is the breast of the believer washed; otherwise is the mind of man purified by the merit of faith. In the sacrament of salvation, when necessity compels, and God bestows his mercy, the divine methods confer whole benefits on believers; nor ought it to trouble any one that sick people seem to be sprinkled or affused, when they obtain the Lord s grace. (4) A writing from an unknown source was discovered at Constantinople in 1873, which said: And concerning baptism, thus baptize ye: Having first said all these things, baptize into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in living water. But if thou have not living water, baptize into other water; and if thou canst not in cold, in warm. But if thou have not either, pour out water thrice upon the head into the name of the Father and Son and Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let the baptizer fast, and the baptized, and whatever others can; but thou shalt order the baptized to fast one or two days before. (5) Departures from the truth have occurred and will continue to occur when man assumes that his wisdom is comparable to that of God and reasons apart from the scriptures as the basis for his decisions. (6) Errors came about gradually through reliance on leaders who were considered authorities instead of looking to the Bible for true authority. 28

29 (7) Popular opinion has always generated support and may have influenced these men; however, they, or we, can receive little comfort from such an excuse. seems to want error. of the past. compromise with the truth. (8) It takes God fearing men to stand up for truth when the majority (9) Students of God s word today can learn valuable lessons from pages (10) Do not let error, no matter how slight it appears, cause a (11) Further error will use the first error as a stepping stone to completely corrupt the Lord s church. V. Medieval Period (476 to the fall of Constantinople in 1453). A. Growth of papal power. 1. Growth began with Gregory I (the Great). a. Gregory was born in Rome around 540. bishop. b. He became the bishop of Rome in 590 and claimed to be the universal c. He sent missionaries to England and was interested in converting Europe. d. He made the church the ruler in the province around Rome and paved the way for the church to have power over the states. e. He developed several doctrines of the apostate church, such as: (1) Adoration of images. (2) Purgatory. (3) Transubstantiation. 2. Boniface III was made bishop of Rome in 606 and had Emperor Phocas declare him to be the universal bishop and head of all the churches, thus overriding the claim of the bishop of Constantinople that he was the universal bishop. 3. Causes of the growth of papal power. a. The early church leaders stood between the secular rulers and the people and tried to protect the people from injustice and mistreatment. 29

30 b. The secular governments were uncertain with leaders rising and falling, but the church was steadfast. c. The church used fraudulent documents to support the authority of the Roman church and they were not questioned. (1) Donation of Constantine. (a) A document which claimed that Constantine gave Sylvester I ( A.D.), the bishop of Rome, supreme authority over all European provinces of the empire and proclaimed him to even be over emperors. (b) It claimed that the capital was moved from Rome to Constantinople so that there would be no secular ruler in Rome to rival the bishop of Rome. (c) It was written by an unknown writer in the eighth century and later had influence on political and religious affairs until the fifteenth century when it was clearly determined to be a forgery. (2) Decretals of Isidore. (a) They were a collection of around one hundred documents published between 847 and 852 A.D. which falsely claimed to be decisions made by the apostles and early bishops of Rome. (b) The writer used the pseudonym Isidore Mercator. (c) Some of the false claims were: universal church. the state. to the state. the clergy or the church. - That the Roman pope had absolute authority over the - That he church was declared to be independent from - The clergy at any level was to have no accountability - That no court was to make any judgment in regard to (d) It was about the sixteenth century before they were examined and discredited. Some findings were: but around the eighth and ninth centuries. - The Latin was not of the first and second centuries, 30

31 Middle Ages. which was not translated until around Titles and historical conditions were those of the - There were frequent quotations from the Vulgate, - One letter was purported to be written by Victor, the bishop of Rome in 200 to Theophilus, the bishop of Alexandria around Culmination of papal power. a. Between 850 and 1050, there were some weak popes and some who were wicked, and they brought discredit on the office of pope. Does this sound like someone who is the representative of Christ on earth? b. The power of the papacy culminated between 1073 and 1216, when the Roman church had power over the church and the European nations. as Hildebrand. c. The height of the papacy was reached under Pope Gregory VII, better known (1) Hildebrand was born in Tuscany between 1020 and ratified by the emperor. (2) He became pope in 1073 and was the last pope to have his election (3) When he became pope, there were scandals and abuses everywhere and he set out on his mission of reform. (4) He broke up simony (buying and selling of spiritual things) and got rid of clerics who had bought their offices. (5) He raised the standard of morals and compelled the priesthood to remain celibate. This had been urged previously, but had not been enforced. Hildebrand worried that if the priests married, they might form a religious group against him. He thought that he could control them if they remained celibate. emperors. (6) He ended the nomination of popes and bishops by kings and (7) He required that all accusations against priests or the church be tried in ecclesiastical courts and not in secular courts. secular sovereigns. (8) He forbade newly consecrated bishops to pledge allegiance to (9) He made the Roman church supreme over the state. 31

32 (a) The emperor, Henry IV, was offended by Hildebrand s actions and compelled a synod of German bishops to oust him as pope. (b) Hildebrand retaliated by excommunicating Henry from the church, which freed his subjects from their allegiance to him. received his absolution. Rome and he died in Salerno in (c) Henry was powerless and was submissive to the pope and (d) After Henry regained his power, he drove Hildebrand out of d. In 1198, Lotario de Conte di Segni, who was not even a priest and was only thirty-seven years of age, was elected pope and took the name Innocent III. (1) When he was inaugurated, he stated that Peter s successor, the pope, is between God and man and is the judge of all, but not to be judged by any. (2) He effectively asserted world dominance by the Roman church and claimed the power to depose emperors and kings. selected another. (3) He chose Otto of Brunswick as emperor, then deposed him and (4) He took charge of the government of the city of Rome. had divorced. (5) He made Philip Augustus, king of France, take back the wife that he (6) He excommunicated King John of England, made him surrender his crown, and then gave it back to him as a subject of the pope. 5. Decline of papal power. a. The decline began with Boniface VIII. (1) He was born around 1235 in Bologna, Italy as Benedict Caetani. (2) He became pope in (3) There was war between Edward I of England and Philip IV of France and both needed money to carry out their conflict. (4) Also in 1294, Edward sequestered (took possession of) all the money that was in the treasuries of the churches and monasteries and imposed taxes on the clergy. (5) Philip also began to tax the clergy in France. 32

33 (6) In 1296, Boniface issued a bull forbidding the taxation of the clergy without approval of the pope. Violation of this order would result in excommunication. (7) Edward and Boniface compromised and the clergy had to give a part of their income to support the kingdom. (8) Philip stopped the church in France from sending contributions to Rome. Boniface backed off and allowed the king to determine the need and the clergy to voluntarily contribute. (9) In 1300, Boniface declared it to be a Jubilee year. This brought many visitors to Rome and resulted in Boniface attaining quite a lot of money for the Roman church. (10) In 1301, Philip arrested one of Boniface s legates for insurrection. Boniface issued a bull against the king stating that civil courts had no right to try the clergy nor the right to tax them. (11) In 1302, that bull was officially burned. Subsequently, Boniface issued another bu ll declaring the pope to be over all spiritual and temporal matters, and he excommunicated Philip in (12) Philip ordered Boniface to resign, which he refused, so he was kept prisoner for several days. He was freed, but soon died in b. Babylonish captivity. (1) In 1305, the king of France had the seat of the papacy moved from Rome to Avignon in southern France. (2) The popes were figure-heads under the French king. popedom. (3) Papal orders were disobeyed and various men aspired to the (4) This lasted until 1377 when Gregory XI returned to Rome. c. Council of Constance. (1) The Council of Constance was called in 1414 by the anti-pope (one chosen contrary to church laws), John XXIII. should be. (2) The purpose was to end a schism and determine who the pope (3) Gregory XII and Benedict XIII also claimed to be the pope. Rome. (4) John agreed to resign if the others would resign also; then he left 33

34 (5) The council decided that it would have papal authority and brought John back and deposed him in (6) Gregory XII, the true pope, called the council back together and rejected everything that had been done by the previous meetings, including the power of the council, and then resigned rather than be deposed. (7) The council then deposed Benedict XIII, condemned the heresies of Hus and Wyclif, and elected Martin V as pope, bringing unity back to the Roman church. (8) No council had the authority to depose a pope, but John XXIII and Benedict XIII were anti-popes and Gregory XII resigned, paving the way for the election of Martin V. B. Rise of Mohammedanism. 1. Mohammed (Muhammad or Mohamet). a. Mohammed was born in Mecca in Arabia in 570. b. There was not much recorded about his early life until many years later, so it is difficult to know for sure, having to separate truth from legend. c. His father passed away either before his birth or shortly thereafter and his mother died when he was six, which left him to be brought up by his uncle. d. At the age of twenty-five, he married a rich widow, Khadeejah, who was fifteen years his senior. His trade was that of a merchant. e. In 610, at the age of forty, the claim is that he received a visit from the angel Gabriel, who established him as a prophet. f. His wife was his first follower and his movement was slow getting started, with a few others joining them. g. He began his public preaching in 613 and caused a stir among the heathen by condemning idolatry and polytheism. This resulted in Mohammed having to flee from Mecca in 622. He went to Yathrib, which later was called Medina. His flight is called the Hejira and is the date from which the Mohammedan calendar is based. h. Tradition says that Mohammed received a message from God in 624 to face Mecca while praying instead of Jerusalem. i. Mohammed, with ten thousand men, took control of Mecca in 630. j. He conquered all of Arabia and died in 632. Moslems. 2. Islam is the religion founded by Mohammed and the followers are called Muslims or 34

35 a. Muslims believe that Islam is the name given by Allah to his religion. It means obedience and peace and is derived from the Arabic Salema, which means peace, purity, submission, and obedience. (1) There are two major groups of Muslims. (a) A Shiite believes Ali to be the legitimate successor to Mohammed and rejects the first three caliphs. to Mohammed. (b) A Sunni accepts the first four caliphs as rightful successors (2) The caliph is the civil and religious leader of a Muslim state. Radical Muslims believe that a powerful caliph will unite all Islamic lands and make the rest of the word subject to Islam. b. The Qur an is considered to be the final and verbatim word of God. The hadith is the written record of Mohammed s life and is used to supplement the Qur an and to aid in its interpretation. (1) The Qur an says that Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Jesus, and the apostles of Jesus were Muslims. They believe that the Bible contradictions to the Qur an are corruptions. (2) The Qur an teaches that there is one God and that there is no Godhead. Jesus was only a prophet. empire. was left. 3. After Mohammed s death, a series of caliphs led the Muslims and expanded their a. They seized each of the Greco-Roman provinces until only Constantinople b. They expanded into India on the east and into Egypt, northern Africa, and the greater part of Spain in the west. c. They made Bagdad on the Tigris River their capital. d. Progress in western Europe was stopped in southern France by Charles Martel, who won a decisive battle at Tours in 732. enemy on horseback. (1) This was one of the few battles where the foot soldier defeated an (2) It ended when the Muslim leader was killed. reasons. d. The Muslims had been victorious in expanding their empire for several 35

36 win. filled with sensuality. (1) They were fierce fighters who believed that Allah destined them to (2) They believed that if they died in battle, they would go to a heaven (3) The people that they conquered felt that it was better to offer tribute than to defend their liberty. 4. Some positive aspects of Islam, considering that it is a false religion, were as follows: their doctrine. a. Their doctrine was simple and one did not have to be scholarly to understand b. The Christian world had taken up image worship, but the Muslims rejected such and stressed worship of Allah directly. c. Wine and strong drink were forbidden. d. They stressed literature and science. (1) Numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.) came from the Arabians. (2) They catalogued the stars. (3) Bagdad was a literary center. (4) This ceased, however, when the Turks succeeded the Saracens as the head of the Muslim empire. 5. On the other side of the coin, so to speak, besides being a false religion, there were a number of very undesirable aspects to the Muslim religion. and God s love. a. Their method of evangelism was by the sword and hatred instead of the Bible (1) Men who resisted were put to death. (2) Women were placed in harems. (3) Children were taken from their parents and placed with Muslim families who reared them in Islam. b. Church and state were one. followers of Islam. c. Allah is considered to be fierce and has no love for anyone other than the 36

37 d. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is considered to be only a prophet who was inferior to Mohammed. existence. e. Heaven is believed to have no spiritual value, but is to be a sensual place of f. Women are considered as only slaves and playthings for men. the worst on earth. g. Their governing ability was severely lacking. Islamic countries were some of 6. Quotes from the Qur an. a. And fight in the Way of Allah those who fight you, but transgress not the limits. Truly, Allah likes not the transgressors. And kill them wherever you find them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out. And Al-Fitnah is worse than killing. And fight not with them at Al-Masjid-al-Haram (the sanctuary at Makkah), unless they (first) fight you there. But if they attack you, then kill them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers. But if they cease, then Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. And fight them until there is no more Fitnah (disbelief and worshipping of others along with Allah) and (all and every kind of) worship is for Allah (Alone).But if they cease, let there be no transgression except against Az-Zalimun (the polytheist, and wrong-doers, etc.). (Surah Al-Baqarah 2: ) Al-Fitnah refers to a trial that tests one s faith. Makkah is the province of Mecca. b. Let those (believers) who sell the life of this world for the Hereafter fight in the Cause of Allah, and whoso fights in the Cause of Allah, and is killed or get victory, We shall bestow on him a great reward. And what is wrong with you that you fight not in the Cause of Allah, and for those weak, ill-treated and oppressed among men, women, and children, whose cry is: Our Lord! Rescue us from this town whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from You one who will protect, and raise for us from you one who will help. Those who believe, fight in the Cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (Satan, etc.). So fight you against the friends of Shaitan (Satan); Ever feeble indeed is the plot of Shaitan (Satan). (Surah An-Nisa 4:74-76) c. And fight them until there is no more Fitnah (disbelief and polytheism: i.e. worshipping others besides Allah) and the religion (worship) will all be for Allah Alone [in the whole of the world ]. But if they cease (worshipping others besides Allah), then certainly, Allah is All-Seer of what they do. (Surah Al- Imran 8:39) d. And a declaration from Allah and His Messenger to mankind on the greatest day (the 10th of Dhul-Hijjah - the 12th month of Islamic calendar) that Allah is free from (all) obligations to the Mushrikun (see V.2:105) and so is His Messenger. So if you (Mushrikun) repent, it is better for you, but if you turn away, then know that you cannot escape (from the Punishment of) Allah. And give tidings (O Muhammad) of a painful torment to those who disbelieve. (Surah Aal- Imran 9:3) See item e below for the definition of Mushrikun. e. Then when the Sacred Months (the Ist, 7th, 11th, and 12th months of the Islamic calendar) have passed, then kill the Mushrikun (see V.2:105) wherever you find them, and capture them and besiege them, and prepare for them each and every ambush. But if they repent and perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat), and give Zakat, then leave their way free. Verily, Allah is Oft- 37

38 Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surah Aal- Imran 9:5) The Mushrikun are the disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah, idolaters, polytheists, pagans, etc. Salat is Muslim prayer. Zakat refers to Muslim alms giving and is required based on ability to do so. f. Fight against those who (1) believe not in Allah, (2) nor in the Last Day, (3) nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger (4) and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth (i.e. Islam) among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. (Surah Aal- Imran 9:29) Jizyah is a per capita tax on non-muslim citizens. g. Verily, the number of months with Allah is twelve months (in a year), so was it ordained by Allah on the Day when He created the heavens and the earth; of them four are Sacred, (i.e. the 1st, the 7th, the 11th and the 12th months of the Islamic calendar). That is the right religion, so wrong not yourselves therein, and fight against the Mushrikun (polytheists, pagans, idolaters, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah) collectively, as they fight against you collectively. But know that Allah is with those who are Al-Muttaqun. (Surah Aal- Imran 9:36) Al-Muttagun are the pious saints. h. O you who believe! What is the matter with you, that when you are asked to march forth in the Cause of Allah (i.e. Jihad) you cling heavily to the earth? Are you pleased with the life of this world rather than the Hereafter? But little is the enjoyment of the life of this world as compared with the Hereafter. If you march not forth, He will punish you with a painful torment and will replace you by another people, and you cannot harm Him at all, and Allah is Able to do all things. (Surah Aal- Imran 9:38-39) i. So, when you meet (in fight Jihad in Allah's Cause), those who disbelieve smite at their necks till when you have killed and wounded many of them, then bind a bond firmly (on them, i.e. take them as captives). Thereafter (is the time) either for generosity (i.e. free them without ransom), or ransom (according to what benefits Islam), until the war lays down its burden. Thus [you are ordered by Allah to continue in carrying out Jihad against the disbelievers till they embrace Islam (i.e. are saved from the punishment in the Hell-fire) or at least come under your protection], but if it had been Allah's Will, He Himself could certainly have punished them (without you). But (He lets you fight), in order to test you, some with others. But those who are killed in the Way of Allah, He will never let their deeds be lost. (Surah Muhammad 47:4) j. Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those who are with him are severe against disbelievers, and merciful among themselves. You see them bowing and falling down prostrate (in prayer), seeking Bounty from Allah and (His) Good Pleasure. The mark of them (i.e. of their Faith) is on their faces (foreheads) from the traces of (their) prostration (during prayers). This is their description in the Taurat (Torah). But their description in the Injeel (Gospel) is like a (sown) seed which sends forth its shoot, then makes it strong, it then becomes thick, and it stands straight on its stem, delighting the sowers that He may enrage the disbelievers with them. Allah has promised those among them who believe (i.e. all those who follow Islamic Monotheism, the religion of Prophet Muhammad till the Day of Resurrection) and do righteous good deeds, forgiveness and a mighty reward (i.e. Paradise). (Surah Al-Fath 48:29) k. Verily, Allah loves those who fight in His Cause in rows (ranks) as if they were a solid structure. (Surah As-Saff 61:4) 38

39 C. Charlemagne s empire. 1. Charlemagne was born in 742 as Charles, and was later also called Charles the Great. He was the grandson of Charles Martel, the victor in the decisive battle of Tours, and the son of Pepin III, King of the Franks. 2. He was called Karl the Great by the Germans. 3. When Pepin died in 768, Charles and his brother, Carloman, jointly ruled until the death of Carloman in 771 when Charles became the sole ruler of the Franks. 4. His reign was almost completely involved in warfare, with the longest war being with the Saxons from 772 to When Charlemagne conquered a people, he converted them with the sword to what he understood to be Christianity. He was a lot like Mohammed, evangelizing with the sword. 6. He defeated the Lombard s in 774 at the request of Pope Hadrian, who called him the new Constantine. 7. He became the ruler of most of the lands in western Europe, northern Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, and Italy. 8. The highlight of his career was on Christmas day in 800 when Pope Leo III crowned him Emperor of the Romans. 9. He became more influential in the affairs of the Roman Catholic church than the pope, appointing and deposing bishops and interceding in other church matters. 10. Charlemagne died in 814. D. The Holy Roman Empire. 1. The Holy Roman Empire was the successor to the empire founded by Charlemagne. 2. Charlemagne s descendants were ineffectual and weak and lost the throne. 3. The emperor was elected by seven princes called electors. 4. The empire had declined severely until Henry I (the Fowler) reigned from 919 to 936 A.D. He began the restoration process which was continued by his son Otto I (the Great). 5. Otto I reigned from 951 through 973, and is considered the founder of the Holy Roman Empire which had fifty-four emperors. 6. The succession of emperors ended in 1806 when Napoleon was at the height of his career and Francis II was forced to renounce his title as Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and revert to that of Emperor of Austria. 39

40 E. Separation of the Latin and Greek churches. 1. The Roman popes and the patriarchs in Constantinople had been at odds for hundreds of years, but the final point of separation came in 1054 when the pope in Rome excommunicated the patriarch in Constantinople. 2. In retaliation, the patriarch in Constantinople excommunicated the Roman pope and all churches that were under him. 3. One big thing that caused the final split was when the establishment of the Holy Roman Empire. There was an independent state, which included the idea of an independent church. 4. Also, Rome wanted to be the ruling church. 5. The big doctrinal difference was related to how each church considered the Holy Spirit. The Latin church believed that the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father and the Son. The Greeks believed that he proceeded from the Father and not the Son. 6. They differed too in some of their laws. Greek. a. Marriage of priests was forbidden in the Roman church, but allowed in the b. The Roman church practiced the adoration of images, while the Greek church only revered pictures in bas-relief (carved on a flat service so that they are raised a little from the background). c. The Roman church used unleavened bread for the communion, while the Greek church used common bread. d. The Roman church protested against observing the seventh day by fasting on that day, but this was not done by the Greek church. Later the fast day was changed to Friday to coincide with the day that Christ was crucified. E. The crusades. 1. Beginning in the fourth century, multitudes of Christians made pilgrimages each year to the Holy Land. 2. Around 1000 A.D., the number making the pilgrimage greatly increased because of the false rumor that Christ was coming and the world would end. 3. Muslims had taken over much of the eastern empire and many of the pilgrims were being oppressed, robbed, and even killed. Turkish threat. 4. In 1095, Alexius I sent envoys to Pope Urban II asking for soldiers to help confront the 40

41 5. The Pope s plea at the Council of Clermont in southern France resulted in a huge response from the lower level of the military elite, who would form a new class of knights, and the ordinary citizens. 6. It was determined by the council that the soldiers would wear a cross on their uniforms as a symbol of the church. 7. There were a number of crusades, but seven major ones will be mentioned. The first was 1096 to a. Four sets of troops were established and ready to leave for Byzantium in b. Another less organized band of knights and commoners called the People s Crusade set out before the others under the leadership of a preacher, Peter the Hermit. They left destruction in their wake and wouldn t heed Alexius advice to wait for the others and were crushed by the Turks. Many were enslaved or killed. c. Another group, led by Count Emicho, massacred Jews in towns around the Rhineland in 1096 A.D. and caused a major crisis between the Jews and Christians. d. When the main four armies reached Byzantium, Alexius demanded that they swear an oath of loyalty to him and that they give him any of the lands that they recover from the Turks, as well as any new land that they might conquer. Only one commander took the oath. e. In 1097, the crusaders and the Byzantine army took Nicea. f. They took Antioch in 1098 and Jerusalem in Despite their promise to protect the citizens, they slaughtered hundreds of men, women, and children when they entered the city. 8. The second crusade was 1147 to a. After the first crusade, many of the crusaders returned to their homes, but some stayed and established four large crusader states: one in Jerusalem, one in Odessa, one in Antioch, and one in Tripoli b. Around 1130, Muslims began to gain territory again and captured Odessa in c. As a result, King Louis VII of France and King Conrad III of Germany led another crusade in d. Conrad s army was defeated at Dorylaeum, so Conrad and Louis joined forces (about 50,000 men) and attacked Damascus. They were soundly defeated by the Muslims. 9. The third crusade was 1188 to

42 a. The Muslims took Cairo in 1169 and Jerusalem, under Saladin, in b. As a result, the third crusade was begun by Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, Philip Augustus of France, and Richard I (the Lion-hearted) of England. c. Barbarossa drowned at Anatolia before reaching Syria. d. Richard defeated Saladin at Arsuf in e. Richard and Augustus argued and Augustus went home. f. Richard did not take his army to Jerusalem, but reached an agreement with Saladin that allowed Christians to visit the Holy Sepulchre without being molested. 10. The fourth crusade was 1201 to a. The crusaders got distracted from saving the Holy Land because of scrabbles with Constantinople and captured and plundered it instead. b. The crusaders ruled the Greek Empire for fifty years. 11. The fifth crusade was 1228 to a. Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II was excommunicated by the pope, but led a crusade to Palestine anyway. b. He obtained a treat whereby Jerusalem, Jaffa, Bethlehem, and Nazareth would be given to Christians. c. Then he crowned himself as King of Jerusalem. 12. The sixth crusade was 1248 to in Egypt. release. a. Louis IX of France, known as St. Louis, led this crusade and began his invasion b. He was captured by the Muslims and had to pay a high ransom for his c. He went to Palestine after his release, but returned to France in The seventh crusade was 1270 to a. This crusade was led by St. Louis and Prince Edward Plantagenet of England. b. It also started in Africa, but Louis died at Tunis. His son made peace and Edward returned to England to become King Edward I. 42

43 F. Development of monasticism. 1. In the east, each ascetic lived apart from the others in a cave, a hut, or on a pillar; but in the west, the ascetics formed communities and were organized. 2. The first was the Benedictines. a. It was established by St. Benedict of Nursia around 529 at Subiaco in Italy. A number of other Benedictine monasteries were also established. b. There were certain rules that had to be obeyed. (1) Agreement to stay at the monastery. (2) Obedience to the head of the monastery. (3) Vow of poverty (no individual possession by the monk or nun). (4) Personal charity. c. They were industrious and taught the people many useful skills. 3. Cistercians sometimes called white monks or Bernadines. a. They were named after Citeaux, in France, where they were founded in b. The founding fathers were a group of Benedictine monks led by St. Robert of Molesme from the abbey of Molesme who were dissatisfied with the laxity that developed and wanted to strictly adhere to the rules of St. Benedict. c. They reintroduced manual labor for the monks and concentrated on architecture and literature, copying ancient books and writing new ones. 4. Franciscans. a. They were founded by St. Francis of Assisi in b. He established three orders. (1) Friars Minor in (2) Poor Ladies in (3) Brothers and Sisters of Penance in Friars. c. Because of the color of their habits, the monks became known as the Grey 43

44 5. Dominicans. a. It was a Spanish order founded by St. Dominic in b. It spread into all the countries of Europe. c. They differed from the other orders in that they were preachers. d. They were called Black Friars because of their dress and they went door to door collecting alms for their support. G. Beginning of religious reform. 1. Five great movements to reform the Roman Catholic Church occurred during the Medieval Period, but resulted in persecutions. 2. The first was Albigenses. a. They sprang up in Albi, a town in southern France, around b. They were against the authority of tradition, purgatory, image worship, and priestly claims, and considered the Catholic Church to be corrupt because of its power and wealth. c. They believed in two gods, the good god of light (called Jesus in the new testament) and the god of darkness and evil, which was associated with Satan, the god of the old testament. d. They considered that material things were evil, including the body, which they thought to have been created by Satan. e. They taught that the spirit was a prisoner in the body and that it could only be saved by doing good works. f. Salvation was for the believer at death, but for one who was not good enough, the spirit would be incarnated into an animal or human. g. There were two types of Albigenses, Believers and Perfects. (1) Believers were those who had not taken the rites of Perfects. baptism of the Holy Spirit. (2) Perfects were those who hands laid upon them giving them the h. In 1208 the Albigenses murdered an official representative of the Pope, Peter Castelnau, and Pope Innocent III ordered a crusade against them, wiping out almost the whole population of the region, Catholics included. 3. Waldensians. 44

45 a. They were founded about 1170 by Peter Waldo (Valdes) in Lyons, France. b. The name Waldensians was applied to his followers by those who were their enemies. They called themselves Poor of Christ, Poor of Lyons, Poor in Spirit, or Brothers. c. Waldo (Valdes) was a wealthy merchant who claimed to have come to the realization of Jesus instruction to the rich young ruler to give his wealth to the poor and follow him. began preaching. d. He arranged for his wife s welfare, placed his two daughters in an abbey, and e. He attracted many followers because the Roman Church had become far removed from the common people with their wealth, politics, and corruption. f. He tried to get the Roman Church to reform and even had permission from the Pope to preach if approval was obtained from the local authorities. g. The archbishop of Lyons did not want them to preach there and put the local clergy in a bad light, so they left and went to other locations. h. The same problems arose, but they kept on preaching. i. Waldo (Valdes) died around r Albigenses in j. A large number of the Poor were killed during the persecution of the k. In 1215, anathema was pronounced on the Poor by the Fourth Lateral Council, and they became official heretics. 4. John Wyclif. a. He was born in Yorkshire, England, around b. He received his Doctorate of Theology from the University of Oxford in c. He was appointed rector of Lutterworth by King Edward III in d. He maintained that the Roman Church had fallen into sin and should give up all of its property and that the clergy should live in poverty. e. From 1376 to 1378, he was the clerical advisor to John Gaunt, who essentially ran England until his nephew, Richard II, came of age in the Roman Church. f. Based on Wyclif s advise, the King and Parliament stopped yearly payments to g. Pope Gregory XI issued five bulls against Wyclif, but with no effect. 45

46 h. Wyclif s last political act was in 1378 when he said that a criminal could be removed from the sanctuary of church buildings. i. He finished his translation of the new testament into English in j. He attacked the system of monasticism, opposed the authority of the pope in England, and was against the false doctrine of transubstantiation, which alienated him from John Gaunt. k. He was allowed to retire to private life at Lutterworth in l. He and others completed a translation of the old testament into English in 1384, the year of his death. m. His followers were called Lollards and were persecuted and wiped out under King Henry IV and King Henry V. 5. John Huss. Republic, in a. Huss was born in Husinec in Bohemia, which is now the south of the Czech b. He said "I had thought to become a priest quickly in order to secure a good livelihood and dress and to be held in esteem by men." c. He was ordained in 1401 and preached in Prague s Bethlehem Chapel, which was the center for reform in Bohemia. The sermons, for example, were in Czech instead of Latin. d. Because of his study of the scripture, he said that he had spent his time in a foolish sect. "When the Lord gave me knowledge of Scriptures, I discharged that kind of stupidity from my foolish mind." papal authority. e. Huss was influenced by the teachings of Wyclif and proclaimed freedom from f. During this time, there were several men claiming to be pope. When one, the antipope John XXIII, authorized the selling of indulgences to raise money for his campaign against one of his rivals, Huss said that he was exploiting the people, which not only angered the antipope, but also the king, who was receiving a portion of the indulgences. g. Huss had previously been excommunicated, but reinstated. Now his excommunication was revived and an interdict was placed on the city of Prague as long as Huss preached there. The people were banned from taking communion and being buried on the grounds of the church facility. h. Huss went to the countryside in 1412 to spare the city. In his writings, he said that Christ is the head of the church, not the pope and that "through ignorance and love of money" the pope can make many mistakes. He also said that rebelling against the pope was obeying Christ. 46

47 i. In 1414, the Council of Constance assembled and the Holy Roman Emperor, Sigismund, promised Huss safety if he would come and give an account of his doctrine. Huss went, but did not receive a hearing. Instead, he was imprisoned for months and brought before authorities and asked to recant his beliefs. j. His response to the authorities was: "I appeal to Jesus Christ, the only judge who is almighty and completely just. In his hands I plead my cause, not on the basis of false witnesses and erring councils, but on truth and justice." k. In 1415, he was chained to a stake and burned to death. l. The Bohemians were at conflict with the Roman church for a while, but later the two became reconciled; although they offered both the bread and wine to all, whereas the Roman church only offered the bread to the masses and the priests also partook of the wine. as Moravians. m. A group in Moravia still followed the teachings of Huss and became known 6. Jerome Savonarola. a. Savonarola was born in Ferrara, Italy, in b. He became a Dominical Friar and, after a while, was transferred to St. Mark s in Florence, where he became a popular preacher. c. He liked to speak on the Revelation and said that great judgment would come upon Florence and Italy. He even claimed to have received visions from heaven. d. Savonarola made some unwise decisions also. For instance, he had boys go house to house and collect vanities and bad things that the people had, put them in the street, and had them burned. e. This did not make the people happy, having children look for their faults, and destroying good things with the bad. f. Savonarola had developed a host of enemies to his doctrine and attempt to reform Florence. Another friar, Francis of Apulia, challenged him to a test by fire. Each had a representative who was supposed to pass through a narrow opening between two walls of fire to determine whose doctrine was correct. On the day that it was to take place, a large crowd assembled, but a heavy rain put out the fires. The people were very upset and ganged up against Savonarola, who barely made it to the safety of St. Mark s. Two days later, the convent was besieged and Savonarola and the friar that was to represent him were taken and put into prison. g. The trial was authorized by wicked Pope Alexander VI. h. Savonarola was excommunicated from the church, periodically subjected to torture, found guilty, hanged, and burned in the great square of Florence in

48 H. The fall of Constantinople. a. The Turks had taken province after province of the eastern empire until only Constantinople was left. b. The city was well fortified naturally and artificially, but it was not able to withstand the barrage of artillery fire, and especially the big cannon that the Turks had. c. The city had, at most, 10,000 men to defend it and the Turks, under Mehmed II (Mohammed II) had 100,000 to 150,000 men. d. Constantinople was besieged for about 50 days, but fell to the Turks in mosque. e. The church building called the Church of St. Sophia was immediately changed into a f. The city was renamed Istanbul and became the Turkish capital until World War I. g. Christians were allowed to practice their religion, but had to dress in distinguishing clothes and could not bear arms. h. This ended the period of the Medieval church. VI. The Reformed Period (1453 A.D. to the end of the Thirty Years War in 1648 A.D.). A. The Reformation began in Germany and spread over northern Europe, resulting in the breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church and the establishment of national churches. 1. Several things occurred that led to the Reformation. a. The Renaissance. (1) The literal meaning is rebirth. (2) The term Middle Ages was initiated by those in the fifteenth century to identify the period between the downfall of the classical world of Greece and Rome and the time in which they lived when there was an enlightenment of thought. The Middle Ages was a period of darkness where the Roman Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire controlled human thought. literature, and science. (3) The Renaissance was a period of awakening to interests in art, (4) It began in Italy where the leaders were not religious leaders, but those who were skeptical and inquiring. (5) An intellectual movement called humanism developed where man broke free from religious confines and began to think for himself relative to classical literature and culture. 48

49 (6) In northern Europe, the movement resulted in more of a religious awakening where Greek and Hebrew were studied and there was a search for the real truths of the scriptures rather than doctrine taught by the Roman Church. b. The printing press. (1) Although history teachers say that Johannes Gutenberg was the inventor of the printing press, there is evidence that earlier types were used by the Chinese and Koreans previously. (2) Gutenberg may not have known about the earlier inventions when he developed his press, but it is certain that his printing press was the one that made an impact on history. (3) Another controversy seems to be the date of Gutenberg s invention. The dates range from around 1448 to (4) It is believed that he was born in Mainz, Germany, around as Johann Gensfleisch and later changed his name to that of the place where his family settled. (5) He was trained as a goldsmith, gem cutter, and metallurgist. (6) Because of business debts, he needed money so he came upon the idea of a printing press that could produce materials quickly and at lower costs. Guttenberg Bibles in Latin. (7) After a few minor printings, he printed two hundred copies of his (8) Because of debts owed to his business partner, Johann Fust, Gutenberg relinquished his business to him and Fust completed the printing of the Bibles. (9) Previously, a copy of the Bible might cost a common man a year s wages and was too expensive to own. The printing press allowed the Bible to be in common use and led to its translation into other languages and circulation throughout Europe. (10) When people read the new testament, they soon realized the fallacy of the Roman Catholic doctrine. c. The spirit of nationality. own national churches. (1) The people were beginning to resist the rule of foreigners over their (2) They didn t want to support religious leaders in a foreign country. (3) They wanted the religious leaders to be subject to the same laws and courts as the rest of the people. 49

50 d. The Reformation in Germany. Germany with Martin Luther. (1) An awakening was occurring all over Europe, but it really started in (2) Luther was born in Eisleben, Saxony, in (3) At thirteen, Luther s father enrolled him in a school run by the Brethren of the Common Life in Magdeburg, where he became interested in the monastic life. University of Erfurt in (4) His father wanted him to be a lawyer, so he sent him to the (5) Luther graduated with a Master s Degree in (6) That summer, he was in a terrible lightning storm and a bolt of lightning almost hit him, causing him to believe that it was a sign from God. (7) He immediately entered the Augustinian monastery. (8) Between 1507 and 1510, he continued his studies at the University of Erfurt and a university in Wittenberg. (9) From 1510 to 1511, he took a break from his studies and represented the Augustinian monasteries in Rome. Biblical studies. (10) In 1512, he received his doctorate and became a professor of (11) The selling of indulgences to obtain absolution for sinners by the Roman Church had become increasingly corrupt and, although banned in Germany, it still was practiced there. (12) In 1517, Johann Tetzel began selling indulgences for renovation of St. Peter s Basilica in Rome. (a) The pope had signed the certificates himself. (b) The certificates were good for pardoning the sins of the holder and for family and friends, living or dead, in whose name the certificates were purchased. absolution required from a priest. (c) There was no confession, repentance, penance, or (d) Tetzel told the purchasers that as soon as your coin clinks in the chest, the souls of your friends will rise out of purgatory to heaven. (13) This outraged Luther and he wrote his Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences, also known as The 95 Theses. 50

51 Wittenberg in discussion. (14) He attached the document to the door of the church building in (15) Essentially, it was a document of questions, written to inspire (16) He did refer to the St. Peter s scandal, and asked why the Pope, who was richer than Crassus, did not pay for the renovation himself instead of taking money from the poor believers. Rome. (17) His 95 theses spread quickly throughout Germany and even to (18) In 1518, he was ordered to appear before an imperial diet (assembly) where arguments were presented by both sides for three days with no agreement. (19) Later that same year, the pope condemned Luther s writings, and in 1520, Pope Leo X issued a papal bull against Luther and gave him 120 days to recant. (a) The Elector Frederick of Saxony was supposed to deliver Luther for trial and punishment, but he agreed with him and protected him instead. Christ. (b) Luther called the papal bull the execrable bull of Anti- (c) He burned the bull publically at the gates of Wittenberg. Church. (d) He also burned copies of the laws enacted by the Roman (20) He refused to recant and, in 1521, the pope excommunicated him from the Roman Catholic Church. (a) Luther was called before the Diet or Supreme Council of the German rulers at Worms and he attended after the new emperor, Charles V, promised him safe conduct. (b) He stood before the Council, presided over by the emperor and was asked to retract the things that he had written, to which he said that he would retract nothing except what was disproved by scripture or reason. (c) As promised, he was allowed to leave Worms peacefully. (21) On his way home, he was intercepted by Frederick and taken to the castle in Wartburg in Thuringia for protection. (a) He stayed in disguise while there. (b) Also, he translated the new testament into German. 51

52 (22) When Luther returned to Wittenberg, he continued his efforts for a reformed Roman Catholic Church. (23) He had been against celibacy in the church and in 1525, he married Katherine of Bora, a former nun, and had five children. of the church. followed Luther. (24) A division developed between the reformed and Roman branches (a) The southern group followed Rome and the northern group (b) A Diet was held in 1529 to bring the two parties together, but the Catholic rulers had the majority and condemned the Lutheran doctrines. it was forbidden to be taught. (c) In states where Luther s doctrine had not become dominant, (d) The states that were dominant in their teaching of Luther s doctrine were required by Catholics to practice their doctrine. (e) The princes favoring Luther s teachings protested formally; and from that time onward, they were called Protestants and the doctrine that opposed Catholicism was called the Protestant religion. (25) Although Luther sparked the Reformation, he was not involved in his later years and became harsh in his thinking. (a) He favored expelling Jews from the empire. in the old testament. (b) He supported polygamy based on practices of the patriarchs (26) Luther died in The reformation spread to other countries. a. Although the reformation in Switzerland was occurring at the same time as that in Germany, it was an independent movement, begun by Ulrich Zwingli. (1) Zwingli was born in 1484 in Wildhaus, Switzerland. (2) From a religious standpoint, Zwingli believed that the Bible was truth and that if it was not in the Bible, it was not truth. (3) He studied under some of the greatest Humanists in Switzerland, which makes it the more remarkable that he later became a reformer. 52

53 (4) Like Luther, he preached against indulgences. (5) He was not as spiritual as he should have been in his younger life, however, and had some things that he had not fully given up; but when the plague hit Zurich in 1520, he was stricken, causing him to change his life upon his recovery. (6) Because of his debates with Roman theologians in 1523, some changes were made in Switzerland. (a) Lent was abandoned. the Bible. (b) Clerical celibacy was declared not to be in accordance with (c) Mass was replaced. (d) Churches were cut off from the papacy. (7) The Swiss reformers and the German reformers reached agreement on fifteen points of reformation, but disagreed on the Lord s supper. The followers of Luther held to the bread and wine changing into the literal body and blood of Christ, while the Swiss thought it to be symbolic. (8) The Roman Catholic Church declared war against the Swiss Protestants in 1531 and Zwingli was the chaplain for the Swiss. The Swiss lost, and he was killed at the battle of Kappel. His body was defiled by the Catholics. b. The next leader of the reformation was John Calvin. (1) He was born in France in (2) His father wanted him to be a lawyer, but when his father died, Calvin was free to pursue the course of learning of his choice. (3) He, like Zwingli, studied under a number of Humanists, but came to be a follower of Protestantism between 1528 and (4) This was a dangerous time for heretics in France, so Calvin fled Paris in 1533 and roamed France, Italy, and Switzerland. was published in (5) His Institutes of the Christian Religion, which explained his beliefs, (6) That same year, Calvin moved to Geneva, a French speaking city which did not become a part of Switzerland until

54 (7) A controversy brewed between two groups. One wanted mild reform, such as no required church attendance, and the other, of which Calvin was a part, wanted radical reform. magistrates to control the clergy. control of the clergy. (a) The mild reformers, called Libertines, wan ted the (b) The radical reformers wanted the city to be under the (c) The Libertines won and Calvin left the city for Strasbourg. Geneva in (d) The Libertines lost power in 1540, and Calvin returned to (8) It took him fourteen years to impose his ideas on the church. (a) The sermon was the key part of the service. were banned. theocratic. (b) The singing of psalms was allowed, but musical instruments (c) The church controlled all aspects of life and Geneva became (d) All ministers were equal. elders and deacons. church court. crime. (e) There were no bishops, but there were elected laymen as (f) The elders and deacons were members of a consistory, or (g) The moral code became criminal law and sin became a - Excommunication meant banishment from the city. - Lewd singing resulted in piercing of the tongue. - Blasphemy was a death sentence. (9) Calvinism spread in Europe and he died in (10) The five points of Calvinism (TULIP). (Look at the scriptures that were taken out of context and misinterpreted to obtain this false teaching.) 54

55 Adam. (a) Total depravity. Man is born a sinner, inheriting the sins of - Man s heart is evil: For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man. (Mark 7:21-23) - Man does not seek God: As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. (Romans 3:10-12) - Man cannot understand spiritual things: But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:13) - Man is at enmity with God: Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace. (Ephesians 2:15) - Man is a child of wrath: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. (Ephesians 2:3) - The Calvinist maintains that because man is totally evil, he cannot desire God, so God has to predestinate. - Man s will does not choose God, but it is God s will that chooses man: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:13) - Man s belief is granted by God: For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake. (Philippians 1:29) - Faith is the work of God: Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. (John 6:28-29) - God ordained people to believe: And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. (Acts 13:48) - God predestined who would be saved: Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings 55

56 in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence; Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: That in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. (Ephesians 1:1-11) - For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. (Romans 8:29) (b) Unconditional election. God makes His selection of the saved by His will without the consideration of merit in the individual. (See Ephesians 1:4-8 as quoted above.) Some are selected to be saved and some are not. - For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. (Romans 9:15) - Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? (Romans 9:21) bore the sins of the elect. (c) Limited atonement. Jesus only died for the elect and only - Jesus died for many, but not all: For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Matthew 26:28) - Jesus died for the sheep and not the goats: I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. (John 10:11) As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. (Matthew 25:32-33) - Jesus prayed for the one that God gave him and not for the world: I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. (John 17:9) - Christ purchased the church with his blood, which means that he shed his blood only for the chosen and not all of the world: Take heed therefore unto 56

57 yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. (Acts 20:28) (d) Irresistible grace. God offers an internal call to the elect by the Holy Spirit entering into their hearts and they cannot resist. - God decides on whom He will show mercy and man has no part in it: So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. (Romans 9:16) - God works salvation in the individual: For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:13) - Faith is the work of God, not man: This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. (John 6:28) - God ordains those who are to believe: And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. (Acts 13:48) - God gives Jesus those who are to be saved: All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. (John 6:37) (e) Perseverance of the saints. Once saved, always saved. - The saved are saved for eternity: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. (John 10:27-28) - Salvation is everlasting life: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. (John 6:47) - Those in Christ are not condemned: There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:1) - The saved will overcome all temptation: There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13) - The saved will be kept saved until Christ s return: Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6) c. Political strife and civil war hindered the reformation in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway for a while; but eventually, all accepted the views of Luther during the sixteenth century. 57

58 d. In France, Jacques Lefevre translated the Bible from the Latin Vulgate into French in 1530 A.D. and Protestantism gained ground until the St. Bartholomew s Day massacre in (1) Catherine de Medici, the mother of King Charles IX of France thought that Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, a Huguenot (Protestant) leader, was talking the king into a war with Spain, so she ordered his assassination. He was only wounded, and the king, wanting to please the Huguenots, said that he would investigate. (2) Charles mother convinced him that the Huguenots were about to rebel, so he ordered their leaders killed by Catholic authorities. (3) Many Huguenots were in Paris at the time celebrating the marriage of their leader, Henry Navarre, to the king s sister, Margaret. (4) On the top of the list of those to be murdered was Admiral Coligny. He was beaten and thrown out of his bedroom window on August 24. (5) Once the killing started, it could not be stopped even though the king issued an order to do so on August 25. (6) The killing continued into October and the number of Protestants killed was estimated at 3000 in Paris and 70,000 in all of France. e. The Netherlands (Holland and Belgium), were not affected by the first wave of Protestantism (the Martin Luther movement), but the second wave, the Anabaptists, was very popular. Anabaptists were so called by their detractors because they were said to re-baptize those who had been baptized (sprinkled) as infants. The Amish and Mennonites are direct descendants of the movement. (1) The third wave of the reformation, Calvinism, came in the 1560 s. (2) In 1566, William the Silent started the Eighty Years War to liberate the Dutch Calvinists from the Catholic Spaniards. (3) In 1648, the Netherlands won its independence. (4) Holland on the north became Protestant and Belgium in the south remained mainly Roman Catholic. f. The reformation in England began with Henry VIII. (1) Henry s first wife, Catherine of Aragon, did not bear him a son to become heir to the throne; and by 1527, she was considered too old to bear a child. (2) Henry was a Roman Catholic, thus forbidden to obtain a divorce, so he asked the pope for a special Papal Dispensation which would allow him, as king, to be divorced without allowing anyone else to obtain such. The pope refused. 58

59 (3) Henry was angry and ordered the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1533 to grant him the divorce, which he did to remain on good terms with the king. (4) The result was that England separated itself from Rome and Henry was made the official head of the church in England in 1534 by Parliament. (5) The country was still Catholic, but not under the pope. (6) One might think that the people would be angry with Henry, but in fact they were more angry with the Roman Church. (a) The Church made them pay to be married. (b) They had to pay for infants to be baptized. (c) They had to pay for burial on Church grounds. (d) The Church got richer and the people got poorer. (7) Some of the richest Roman Catholics were those in the monasteries. (a) The monks had stopped doing the helpful things for the people and had, instead, become lazy and rich off of the people. (b) They were considered by Henry to be a threat. becoming rich at their expense. (c) The people too had become tired of the lazy monks (8) Henry, in his desire to get rid of the monasteries, started what was called the Dissolution. (a) He sent government officials, under his chief minister, Thomas Cromwell, to check on what the monks were doing. (b) If they could not find wrong doing, they made up things and even tricked the monks. For instance, if a monk had taken a vow of silence and was asked if he kept his vows, and the monk answered yes, he was condemned for speaking and for not keeping his vows. If he did not answer, he was accused of not helping the king. ones were shut down by (c) The smaller monasteries were closed by 1536 and the larger (9) The only real protest against the closing of the monasteries was in 1536 and was led by a lawyer, Robert Aske. into their complaint, so most left. (a) Thousands marched to London and Henry agreed to look 59

60 (b) Henry, of course, did not do as he said; but, instead, hung Aske in chains in the church tower until he died of starvation. Henry was William Tyndale. (10) One of the leaders in the English reformation during the reign of (a) Even though Henry separated himself and the church in England from the pope, he persecuted Protestants. (b) He was ordained into the Roman Catholic clergy in 1515, but later went to Cambridge and was converted from Romanism to Lutheranism. (c) The Roman Church was against the Bible being in any language other than Latin and Tyndale knew that if people were to know the truth of God s word, they needed the Bible in a language that they could understand. left for Germany. and smuggled into England in (d) This could not be accomplished in England, so in 1524, he (e) His translation of the new testament was completed in 1525 (f) Roman authorities found out about it and confiscated or bought the books and, led by Cuthbert Tunstall, burned them at St. Paul s church building. Tunstall hated the Bible and cursed it. Belgium, in kept being smuggled into England. (g) Tyndale completed and printed the Pentateuch in Antwerp, (h) He continued to make updates and copies of his translations (i) He was betrayed by Henry Phillips, who posed as his friend in an effort to have the opportunity of turning him over to Roman Church authorities. (j) Phillips took Tyndale for a walk one night and pushed him into a dark alley where thugs grabbed him and took him to the church authorities. (k) Tyndale was imprisoned in a castle near Brussels without heat, light, or sufficient clothing and food for one year and one hundred and thirty five days. in (l) He was hanged and burned by the Roman Church authorities (m) Ninety percent of Tyndale s translation was used in the King James Version of the Bible and seventy-five percent was used in the Revised Standard Version. (11) Another leader of the English reformation was Thomas Cranmer. 60

61 (a) He was a supporter of King Henry VIII s desire to divorce Catherine and was appointed to several embassies in Europe where he came in contact with Protestant leaders, was converted to their cause, and married the daughter of a Lutheran scholar. (b) The king appointed him Archbishop of Canterbury in (c) Since Henry was against ecclesiastics marrying, Cranmer had to banish his wife until the king died in and was replaced by his son, Edward VI, who allowed the clergy to marry. (12) Edward was only nine years old when he became king and only reigned and lived for another five years. His mother was Jane Seymour, Henry s third wife. (a) Under Edward, Cranmer supported the translation of the Bible into English and the public reading of the Bible by the members. (b) Cranmer was instrumental in making England Protestant and prepared The Book of Common Prayer in 1549 and a revision in (c) Edward died in (13) Mary succeeded Edward VI. (a) Before Henry VIII died, he willed that Edward, his son by Jane Seymour, should be king in his stead. If Edward died, Mary, his daughter by Catherine, was to take his place, and if Mary died, Elizabeth, his daughter by Anne Boleyn, was to be queen. (b) The first thing that Queen Mary did was have the marriage of her mother, Catherine, to Henry made valid and legal. (c) Next, being a devout Roman Catholic, she repealed the laws favoring Protestantism made by Edward. (d) Mary blamed Thomas Cranmer for her mother s divorce and had him arrested, tried, and sentenced to death for treason. him tried again for heresy. - Cranmer s sentence was not carried out, so she had - In order to save his life, Cranmer recanted his Protestantism and pledged his allegiance to the pope. - This did not save him, however, for he was still found guilty and sentenced to die by burning at the stake. - As the flames were lit, he renounced his recantation. 61

62 (e) In keeping with her desire to return England to Romanism, Mary killed around 275 Protestants and became known as Bloody Mary. (f) Mary died in (14) Elizabeth became queen after Mary. (a) She called for Parliament in 1559 to pass the Act of Supremacy, which re-established the Church of England, and the Act of Uniformity, which created a common prayer book. (b) She was excommunicated by Pope Pius V in her job and her people. (c) She never had a husband and said that she was married to (d) The Bible again had its place in the pulpit and the home. (e) Elizabeth died in James I of England. (15) Elizabeth was succeeded by James VI of Scotland, who became (a) Because James had Presbyterian influence, the Puritans felt that he would support their cause to continue the reformation. (b) James knew some of the Puritans in Scotland and didn t like them; but because they were a sizable minority, he didn t want to ignore them. populace was diverse religiously. Catholicism. even more distance from Rome. (c) He wanted unity and stability in England, but knew that the - The Papists wanted the church to return to Roman - The Puritans were loyal to the throne and wanted - The Presbyterians wanted to do away with the hierarchy of bishops and have elders, or presbyters. - The Nonconformists and Separatists, who later became the Pilgrims to America, wanted the church out of religion. considerable Puritan influence. - The Parliament wanted to expand its role and had a - The bishops and hierarchy of the Church of England had power, privilege, and wealth and didn t want to lose it. 62

63 (d) On his way from Edinburgh to London, a group of Puritans interrupted James journey to give him a petition known as the Millenary Petition. - It expressed their loyalty to the crown. - It covered such things as church service, church ministers, church livings and maintenance, and church discipline. - It also had some things to which the Puritans objected, like using the sign of the cross, wedding rings, and wearing of liturgical clothing. - There was no mention of a new Bible translation. Court Conference in (e) James took the petition seriously and called the Hampton - The members were stacked against the Puritans and included the king, his Privy Council of Advisors, nine bishops and deans, and four moderate presenters of the Puritans cause. - James opened the meeting and let the attendees know that he liked the structure and hierarchy of the Church of England more than the Presbyterian organization in Scotland. - The Puritans were not allowed in the conference on the first day, but were allowed to attend and present their case on the second day. - Their case for changes to church organization and structure were denied, but they also recommended new Bible translation. - The translations in use were not considered to be true to the original and James didn t like the Geneva Bible that he used because of the marginal notes. - The end result of the conference was that James ordered that a new translation be prepared for popular use in the language of the day and that it be true to the original. (f) Fifty-four of the nation s most learned men were selected to prepare the translation, but only forty-seven are known to have participated. (g) They were divided into six companies. - Two were at Oxford. - Two were at Cambridge. - Two were at Westminster. 63

64 (h) They were presided over by the Dean of Westminster and two Hebrew scholars from the universities. Genesis thru 2 Kings. (i) The first company at Westminster (ten) was assigned (j) The second company (seven) was assigned the epistles. Chronicles thru Song of Solomon. apocryphal books. Malachi. thru Acts and Revelation. (k) The first company at Cambridge (eight) was assigned 1 (l) The second company at Cambridge (7) was assigned the (m) The first company at Oxford (7) was assigned Isaiah thru (n) The second company at Oxford (8) was assigned Matthew (o) Some effort was started immediately upon the appointments, but vigorous effort was not started until (p) When the translations were completed, a copy of each was sent to London where two from each location, a total of six, made the final revision. in (q) The finished product was printed and available to the public g. The reformation in Scotland was led by John Knox. (1) His early years were during a time when the Roman Catholic Church owned over half the land in Scotland. Bishops and priests were often political appointees and many led immoral lives. (2) Lutheran literature was smuggled into the country; and in the early 1540 s, Knox came under the influence of the reformers and became the bodyguard for the fiery Protestant preacher, George Wishart. (3) The Archbishop of St. Andrews, Cardinal Beaton, had Wishart arrested, tried, strangled, and burned in (4) Sixteen Protestant nobles stormed the castle where Beaton resided, killed him, and mutilated his body. (5) The French were allies of Scotland at the time, and a fleet of their ships placed the castle under siege. During a break in the siege, John Knox joined the Protestant defenders. 64

65 was short-lived. (6) One Sunday, Knox was called to be their preacher, but his tenure (7) In 1547, the castle was put under siege again and taken. Some were placed in prison and others, including Knox, were sent to the galleys as slaves. years in England. (8) He was released after nineteen months and spent the next five (9) When Mary became queen, he fled to France and then to Geneva where he met John Calvin. Then he went to Frankfurt and joined some Protestants there, but they couldn t reach an agreement on the order of worship. (10) Meanwhile back in Scotland, a group called The Lords of the Congregation was striving to make Protestantism the religion of the land. In 1555, they asked Knox to come help and he preached extensively with them for nine months before he was forced to flee back to Geneva. for the Edinburg church. (11) Knox returned to Scotland again in 1559 and became the preacher (12) In 1560, the English had been supporting the Protestants in Scotland and the French had been supporting the Catholics. The military Lords of the Congregation had taken control of many cities and in accordance with the Treaty of Berwick, the English and French left Scotland. (13) Knox helped establish the Presbyterian Church as the Church of Scotland and was a leader in Calvinism. 3. Soon after the reformation began, the Roman Catholic Church started a Counter- Reformation to defeat Protestantism. a. Pope Paul III was concerned about the abuses in the Roman Catholic Church that brought forth the reformation, so called for the Council of Trent to investigate the matter. The Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V wanted the council to look at abuses so that the Protestants might be swayed to return to the church, but the pope did not want to make any concessions that would lessen his power and authority. The council was divided into three distinct periods. (1) The first period was 1545 to 1549 and was called by Pope Pius III to define the differences between the Protestants and Catholics. Five statements were generated. (a) Scripture and tradition were to be of equal value, which was contrary to the Protestants belief that the Bible alone was the authority. (b) The Roman Catholic Church had the sole authority for interpreting the scriptures and the interpretation was to be based on the Latin Vulgate. (c) Good works were to be performed. 65

66 salvation. (d) The seven sacraments were absolutely necessary for divine - Baptism was the first step, whether as an infant or as an adult, and is considered necessary to embrace God. - The Eucharist, or communion, is a sacrifice and a meal where the Catholic partakes of the real body and blood of Christ. - Reconciliation, or penance, which consists of conversion, confession, and celebration and is where God s forgiveness lies and members are called upon to forgive others. - Confirmation is a deepening of the baptismal gifts and is often associated with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. - Marriage where the husband and wife give themselves publicly to each other and show family values and also God s values. - Holy orders, or ordination, whereby the priest vows to lead other Catholics by bringing them the sacraments, proclaiming the gospel, and providing other means to holiness. - Anointing the sick, formerly known as last rites or extreme unction, which is for not only physical healing, but also mental and spiritual healing. permission of the pope. (e) Communion in both kinds was forbidden except by express (f) Paul III suspended the council in 1548 and died in Protestants attend. (2) The second period was 1551 to 1552 and Charles V insisted that (a) The Protestants came with two demands. papacy. to that of the papacy. of the Protestants. - All bishops should be relieved of their oath to the - The authority of the councils should be made superior (b) The Roman Church obviously did not agree to the demands (c) They did uphold pilgrimages and penances, affirmed the doctrine of transubstantiation, and condemned the Protestant view of the Eucharist. 66

67 Charles position in Germany. (d The second period ended in 1552 because of the collapse of (3) The third period was 1562 to By this time, the Jesuits had become more powerful in the council and it declared the following: (a) Clerical celibacy. (b) Communion in one kind only for the laity. (c) Veneration of images and relics. were to supervise their moral lives. duties. (d) Bishops were to ordain only suitable men to holy orders and (e) Clergy were to reside in their parishes and perform regular (f) A seminary was to be established in every diocese. (g) The influence of the pope was greatly enhanced and he was recognized as the Vicar of Christ on Earth. (h) None of the reforms of the council would become law unless they were approved by the pope. b. The Order of the Jesuits was founded by Ignatius, a Spanish soldier who experienced a religious conversion while he was recovering from a wound received in battle. He spent considerable time in prayer and composed a guide book called Spiritual Exercises to help one become closer to Jesus Christ. (1) While in Paris in 1534, he met six young men at the University of Paris who joined him in his spiritual exercises and in a vow of poverty, chastity, and a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Since the later was not possible, they vowed to accept a work offered by the pope. (2) In 1539, he drafted the first outline of the orders organization and Pope Pius III approved it in (3) They stressed obedience to the pope and flexibility, which allowed them to participate in ministries throughout the world. (4) The order grew rapidly and became a strong force in the counterreformation. (5) Education and scholarship became its principal work, but it also devoted itself to caring for the young, the sick, prisoners, prostitutes, and soldiers. 67

68 (6) By 1556, when Ignatius died, there were about 1000 Jesuits. By 1626, there were 15,544, and by 1749 there were 22,589. (7) In the eighteenth century, there was considerable hostility against the Jesuits primarily because of the anti-clerical and anti-papacy feeling of the time. Pressured by several countries such as France, Spain, and Portugal, Pope Clement XIV issued a decree in 1773 abolishing the order. (8) The demand for the restoration of the order became so great that, in 1814, Pope Pius VII reestablished the society and it grew to be the largest male religious order. Protestantism. c. Active persecution was another means the Roman Catholics used to fight political instead of religious. (1) The Protestants also used persecution, but the motive was generally (2) The Catholics who were put to death in England were mainly those who conspired against Queen Elizabeth. extinguish the Protestants. (3) On the European continent, most of the countries tried to (4) The Spanish Inquisition was for both political and religious reasons. Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and Islam. (a) Spain was formed out of a religious struggle between (b) After the crusades and the conquest of Spain by the Christian Spaniards, the leaders needed a way to unite the country into a strong nation. Ferdinand and Isabella chose Catholicism and asked the pope in 1478 for permission to begin an inquisition to purify the country for the Catholics and drive out all others. (c) In 1483 A.D., Tomas de Torquemada became the inquisitiongeneral for fifteen years and was responsible for the killing of about 2000 Spaniards. Spanish leaders would not listen. (d) The Catholic Church and the pope tried to intervene, but the (e) Those who were targeted were given the choice of confessing their heresy to the Catholic Church and turning on others, or death. (f) The reign of terror finally ended in Day massacre in (5) In France, the persecution topped out with the St. Bartholomew s d. The Catholic missionary efforts were a force in the counter-revolution. 68

69 (1) The Jesuits played a large role in this effort. (2) They started mission work in heathen lands before the Protestants and converted many in places like South America, Africa, India, and Canada. countries. e. The Thirty Years War of 1618 to 1648 affected most of the European (1) The period from 1618 to 1625 was known as the Bohemian period. (a) When Ferdinand became king of Bohemia in 1617, the Calvinists felt threatened. He also became Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II in (b) In 1618, the Calvinist rebelled and threw two of the members of the Bohemian Royal Council from a window which was seventy feet up. They both landed in a pile of manure and only suffered minor injuries. The incident was called Defenestration of Prague. (c) Catholic troops invaded Bohemia and won a decisive victory. (2) The second segment was the Danish period from 1625 to (a) This period began when King Christian IV of Denmark supported the Protestants against Ferdinand II. (b) This also ended with a Catholic victory. (3) The Swedish period was next in 1630 to Sweden. (a) The new Protestant leader was King Gustavus Adolphus of (b) In 1630, the Swedes entered Germany and were later joined by France, which made the war mainly over political issues. (c) Again, the Catholics won. (4) The French period was 1635 to troops into Germany. Ferdinand III. (a) France s success against Spain enabled them to send more (b) Ferdinand II died in 1637 and he was succeeded by his son, (c) Peace negotiations began in 1641, but little progress was made until the death of Cardinal Richelieu in 1642 A.D. and the French occupation of Bavaria in

70 (d) The Treaty of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years War in 1648, and this essentially ended the Period of Reformation. VII. Modern (1648 to the present). A. Soon after the reformation, three distinct parties appeared in the Church of England. 1. The Romanizers who wanted to reunite with the Roman Catholic Church. 2. The Anglicans who were satisfied with the moderate reforms of King Henry VII and Queen Elizabeth. 3. The radical Protestants who thought the church should be similar to those established in Geneva and Scotland. B. The radical Protestants in England became known as the Puritans, a name of contempt originally assigned to them by their enemies. They were divided into two groups. 1. Those favoring the Presbyterian type of church. 2. Those who favored autonomy for individual congregations and were called Independents, Congregationalists, and Separatists. C. A civil war broke out between King Charles I and Parliament in the 1640 s. 1. The Puritans took advantage of this opportunity and urged Parliament and the nation to renew their covenant with God. 2. Parliament called a group of clergy together in the Westminster Assembly to advise it on the government of the church, but it was too badly divided to achieve anything. 3. The New Model Army, with its hero and leader, Oliver Cromwell, defeated the Royalists and took control of the government, allowing religious pluralism which was favorable to the Puritans. D. After the death of Cromwell in 1658, Charles II became king and the Anglicans assumed power and persecuted the Puritans. E. After the Glorious Revolution of 1688 A.D., the Puritans were considered to be deserters from the Church of England and were granted rights as a separate organization. F. The Presbyterian, Congregational, and Baptist churches arose from the Puritan movement. Geneva. 1. As already discussed, the Presbyterian Church was established by John Calvin in there by John Knox. a. Calvinism spread to Scotland and the Presbyterian Church was established 70

71 b. The Presbyterians in France were known as the Huguenots. c. The Presbyterian Church of the United States was formed in 1788, although wilderness congregations were established as early as the 1630 s. 2. The early Congregationalists were called Separatists or Independents to distinguish themselves from the Calvinist Presbyterians. a. They believed that the early disciples of Jesus had little or no organization. b. They were somewhat like the Anabaptists in that they believed that full membership in the church required adult baptism, but they differed from the Baptists in that they considered children of believers to be members in some sense. c. The Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) was the statement of faith for the Church of England (Anglican) and the Church of Scotland (Presbyterian), so the Congregationalists had their own called the Savoy Declaration in d. To be different from the Anglicans, the Congregationalists went for many years without church buildings and simply met in homes. e. They came to America and were known as Pilgrim Fathers. f. Many universities were founded by the Congregationalists, including Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Williams, and Amherst. in New England. g. In America, they were closely intertwined with the Presbyterians, especially h. Since they had no governing body, they became more diverse than many of the other reformed churches. i. By the 1750 s, some preachers were teaching universal salvation, which was not well accepted by those with Calvinistic thinking. j. Some Congregationalists began teaching Unitarian beliefs and the first church to do so openly was in Boston in (1) Unitarians believe that God is the only God and they do not believe in God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit being the Godhead. but that all will be saved. (2) They also do not believe in eternal punishment for the unrighteous, k. In 1931, the Congregation Churches merged with the General Convention of the Christian Church to become the Congregational Christian Churches. 71

72 l. During the early 1900 s, some of the churches didn t like the liberal trend of missionary societies, national committees, and such like, so they split off and became the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference. m. In 1957, the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches in the U.S. merged with the Evangelical and Reformed Church to form the United Church of Christ. 3. There is more than one version of how the Baptists began, but the best information is that they initially emerged from the English Separatists Movement. There were two types of Baptists, the General Baptists and the Particular Baptists. a. General Baptists. (1) They believed in the general atonement for sins (Christ died for all sinners) and that a person could fall from grace. (2) The first General Baptist Church was founded by John Smyth (c c. 1612) in Holland around 1608 or (a) Smyth had broken away from the Church of England. against infant baptism. (b) He believed that one had to believe to be baptized and was (c) He came to believe that true worship had to be from the heart and required that all preaching, prayers, and singing should be spontaneous without the aid of any book. (d) He even disallowed the reading of the Bible in the assembly because he did not trust the correctness of the English versions of the day. (e) Pouring was still the mode used for baptism at that time and he baptized himself first and then others. (f) He had always been one who periodically changed his views; so, characteristically, before he died, he abandoned the Baptist beliefs and encouraged his followers to switch to the Mennonites. After his death, most did change. Helwys. (3) Another General Baptist around that same time period was John (a) He had an unsettling relationship with Smyth and when Smyth began to vary, he continued with the Baptist beliefs. Baptist group on English soil. (b) He led a small group to England in 1611 and was the first (c) They allowed each church to elect their elders and deacons. 72

73 beginnings. (d) The Baptists changed considerably from their early b. Particular Baptists. (1) This group emerged from the Separatists in the 1630 s. (2) They were influenced by John Calvin and believed in a particular atonement (Christ died for the chosen few). (3) They issued the First London Confession of Faith in 1644, two years before the Westminster Confession of Faith. (4) Typical Baptist history relates the Baptist movement to the General Baptists, but the doctrines and practices are more in line with the Particular Baptists. (5) Although the history of the Particular Baptists begins with Henry Jacob, he did not want to break from the Church of England, but merely to reform it. while. (6) Because of his efforts, he fled England and went to Holland for a (7) In 1616, he returned to England and formed the JLJ Church. Lathrop, and Henry Jessey. (a) JLJ stand for the first three pastors, Henry Jacob, John (b) There were several breaks from the JLJ Church. (c) One was in in 1633 for two reasons. - The JLJ Church had become too large and was in danger of being found out because it was illegal to be outside the Church of England. England. - The JLJ Church conformed too much to the Church of (d) Another group left in 1638 because they strongly held to baptism for believers and not just a chosen few. these groups. (e) The Particular Baptist came about through one or both of c. Baptists in America. (1) The first Baptist Church is thought to have been established in America in 1639 by Roger Williams. 73

74 (2) It started out based on Particular Baptist doctrine, but changed to General Baptist beliefs in the mid-1650 s. James Manning. (3) It returned to the Particular Baptist beliefs in the 1700 s under (4) Other Baptist churches began to appear, following the Particular Baptist teachings, but they did have some General Baptists in their number. (5) The Philadelphia Baptist Association was founded in (6) In 1742, they adopted the London Baptist Confession of 1689 and changed the name to the Philadelphia Confession of Faith. America. decreased. reasons. (7) In 1770, they established a college and sent missionaries throughout (8) The Particular Baptists increased and the General Baptists (9) The Particular Baptists in America began to decline for several (a) The Revolutionary War brought about a feeling of independence and with it, a feeling of independence from Particular Baptist beliefs s. (b) A feeling of revivalism swept the country in the 1700 s and - Some became legalists and made their own laws. heartfelt. - Others went to the other extreme of doing what was (c) There was a movement to water down their theology to attract more people and that took them away from their Calvinistic roots. individual was stressed above all else. a God-centered faith. (d) After the Civil War, liberalism swept into the country. The (e) With liberalism, a man-centered faith developed instead of (10) In the late 1700 s and early 1800 s, the Baptists began to form missionary societies to help spread their teachings. southern Baptists. (a) There were tensions between the northern Baptists and the 74

75 (b) The main issue was in regard to slavery. The northern Baptists believed that God would not approve of one race being considered superior to another and the southern Baptists believed that the races should be separate. Baptist Convention in (c) The result was a split and the formation of the Southern (11) Baptists churches are autonomous and have pastors (the preacher) and deacons. They do not believe that you have to be baptized to be saved, but that you are baptized because you are saved. G. The Methodist Church began in England. 1. John Wesley ( ) was an ordained minister in the Church of England. 2. He and his brother, Charles, tried to revitalize the members of the Church of England and organized small societies to meet for Bible study with lay preachers instead of ordained priests, beginning in The lay preachers rode circuits to meet with the different societies. 4. The followers of Wesley were called Methodists because of their rules and method. England. 5. While Wesley lived, the Methodists in England remained a part of the Church of 6. Wesley began sending preachers to the American colonies in 1771 and they rode circuits just as in England. 7. Since there were bad feelings toward the Church of England after the Revolutionary War, Wesley allowed the Methodists in America to form a separate denomination. 8. At the Christmas Conference of , Dr. Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury formed the Methodist Episcopal Church. Wesley gave them the title of superintendent instead of bishop, but the American Methodists soon began calling their leaders bishops. 9. There were different opinions about organization and beliefs and a number of different Methodist Churches came into existence. a. The Republican Methodist Church was established by James O Kelly in b. The Methodist Protestant Church came about in the 1920 s. Methodist Church. c. It merged with the major branch of Methodism in 1939 to form the United 75

76 d. Some were upset and kept the Methodist Protestant Church, while others became the Bible Protestant Church (later the Fellowship of Fundamental Bible Churches). The Southern Methodists formed in 1940 and Evangelical Methodist Churches formed in founded in e. Because of the slavery issue, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was f. The Wesleyan Church of America was founded in 1843 and the Free Methodist Church was established in Both rejected slavery. g. African Americans formed their own Methodist Churches. (1) The African Methodist Episcopal Church was formed in (2) The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church was founded in (3) The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (now the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church) was started in h. In an attempt to stress more holiness, which had waned from the Methodist movement, the Church of the Nazarene was established in i. In 1939, the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Protestant Church, and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, merged to form the Methodist Church. j. The Evangelical United Brethren and the Methodist Church merged in 1968 to become the United Methodist Church. H. Members of the Church of England held services in America beginning in the early 1600 s and established Anglian Churches, meaning that they were of the Church of England. 1. After the Revolutionary War, the Anglicans were split in loyalty and the Protestant Episcopal Church was established in In 1873, a group split off and established the Reformed Episcopal Church. 3. In 1967, the Protestant Episcopal Church was renamed the Episcopal Church. I. Over the years, many churches have come into being with a variety of identifying names, but there is only one true church of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and it bears his name and conforms to the organization and doctrine found in the new testament of the Bible. VIII. The restoration period was time in church history where men were striving not to reform a religious institution, but to restore the church to its original state as found in the new testament. A. It was an effort to return to the new testament for the only source of organization and doctrine. 76

77 B. It was a plea to speak where the Bible speaks and to be silent where the Bible is silent. C. It called for using Bible names for Bible things and doing Bible things in Bible ways. D. The only way to please God is to obey God; and to obey God, man must know what God wants us to do and not to do. After all, God made man with a purpose and his purpose is found only in His word, the Bible. E. The restoration movement was a time when men searched for the truth, discovered the truth, and practiced in accordance with the truth. F. A true disciple will follow the truth wherever it leads. Proverbs 23:23 says: Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. G. Harbingers of the restoration (those who reacted against doctrines of men and showed signs of going to God s word for guidance on religious matters). 1. Twelfth century. a. Peter Waldo (c c. 1218) was a wealthy merchant in Lyons, France, who gave up his wealth and property in 1170 to preach a simple understanding of the Bible. b. His followers were called Waldensians. c. He said scripture speaks and we ought to believe. d. He taught the people to read the Bible for themselves and believed in the right of private judgment based on Acts 17:11. The Jews had stirred up the Thessalonians against Paul and Silas, so the brethren in Thessalonica sent them to Berea where it is said that: These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. e. This became one on the basics of the restoration movement. 2. Fourteenth century. a. Marsillius (c to 1280-c. 1342). (1) He was born in Padua, Italy. (2) In 1324, he published Defensor pacis in support of Louis of Bavaria in his struggle against Pope John XXII. (a) He said that the people are the true source of power in the community and that the leader s power comes from the people. (b) Another point was that the religious leaders, the pope and his hierarchy, should stick to religious matters and leave civil matters up to civic leaders. 77

78 (c) He also said that the religious leaders had no coercive power over the people and that the pope did not have complete power. was the Bible. (3) He was a medical doctor, professor, and teacher and his first love (4) He reacted strongly against the Catholic Church and said that people should look to the new testament on matters of faith. (5) He also stressed the right of private judgment. b. John Wyclif ( ). (1) He has already been discussed. (2) In summary, he was a professor at Oxford who rebelled against Catholicism and was called the morning star of the reformation. (3) He insisted that the church has purely religious functions and that the new testament is the final authority. (4) He was the first to translate the Bible into English. c. William of Ockham ( ). (1) He was also known as William Ockham and William of Occam. (2) He rebelled against Catholicism, said that the authority of the scriptures took precedence over the traditions of men, and rejected every practice for which he could not find new testament authority. (3) He was for the separation of state and the freedom of speech. sovereignty. (4) In 1330, he wrote a series of treatises on papal power and civil (5) He believed that things should be kept simple and his principle became known as Ockham s Razor. 3. Fifteenth century. a. John Huss ( ). (1) He has been discussed previously. (2) In summary, he was a Bohemian, a disciple of John Wyclif, and bold in opposition to clerical corruption. He believed that Christ is the true head of the church and that 78

79 religious law was the new testament. In 1415, he was condemned at the conference of Constance and burned. His only crime was saying that the new testament was authority. (The same conference agreed to burn Wyclif s bones and scatter the ashes.) b. Jerome Savonarola ( ). (1) He has been discussed previously. (2) In summary, he preached in Italy, pleading for purity of doctrine and often mentioning the primitive church. He was against indecent books and pictures and aroused bitter enemies, including the Medici family of Florence, Italy, who swore to destroy him. He spoke against Pope Alexander VI and was hated by him. The Roman Church had him hanged as a public nuisance and then burned his body in c. John Wessel Goesport ( ). (1) He taught theology in Paris, Cologne, and Heidelberg. (2) He believed the new testament to be the only guide and the Bible to be the only rule of faith and practice. 4. Sixteenth Century. a. Martin Luther ( ). (1) He has already been discussed. Wittenberg, Germany, in (2) He nailed his ninety-five theses to the door of the church building in b. Reformers of this century made a number of contributions to the restoration. Unfortunately, their efforts crystalized into denominations. Some of their important contributions were: and plenary (complete). (1) Inspiration of the Holy Bible and it being the word of God, verbal (2) All sufficiency of the scriptures. common German language). (3) Right of private judgment (Luther translated the Bible into the (4) The church is a priesthood of believers (Luther s definition). 5. Seventeenth century. a. William Chillingworth ( ). (1) He is considered to be a forerunner of the restoration movement. 79

80 short time in his youth. around (2) He grew up in a Protestant home, but converted to Catholicism for a (3) Later, he began to think for himself and returned to Protestantism (4) The way that Protestants felt about one another disturbed him and he wondered why they couldn t get along. to know the will of God. (5) He believed that man could turn to the Bible and use his reasoning (6) The Bible must be source of authority. b. Rupertus Meldenius ( ). (1) He lived in Germany and was a Lutheran theologian and educator. and in all things, charity. (2) He coined the slogan: in essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; c. Edward Stillingworth. (1) He preached in London, England, at St. Paul s Cathedral. (2) In 1662, he wrote: It would be strange indeed, the church should require more than Christ himself did, or make other conditions of her communion than our savior did of discipleship. d. John Locke ( ). (1) He was a British philosopher. (2) He did not believe in the divine right of kings and said that it was not supported by scripture or reason. (3) He wrote four essays on toleration, another on the reasonableness of Christianity, and one on human understanding. (4) His first essay on toleration stressed non-sectarian Christianity and it was read by Thomas Campbell while he was a student at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. The essay stressed that faith comes as a result of testimony and that you have no faith without testimony. (5) Thomas Campbell introduced his son, Alexander, to Locke s works. d. Independent movement. 80

81 (1) It began in 1680 in Western Europe. eighteenth century. (2) One historian counted forty movements in England alone in the 6. Eighteenth century. (3) Greater than a mighty army is an idea whose time has come. a. John Glas ( ). (1) He was ordained to preach in the Church of Scotland in (2) When he placed the catechisms of the Church against the scriptures, he noticed the difference and began to preach more from the scriptures. (3) In 1725, he started a society of a hundred people who were committed to studying the scriptures. Church. (4) In 1727, he wrote that the new testament is against a national (5) In 1730 A.D., he was removed from a position of leadership in the Presbyterian Church and he started the first Glasite church. (6) He influenced his son-in-law, Robert Sandeman, who worked with him, along with Michael Faraday, the famous English chemist. (7) They stood for: (a) Reproduction of the new testament church. (b) Autonomy of local congregations. (c) Weekly observance of the Lord s supper. (d) Not referring to the Lord s Day as the Christian Sabbath. (e) Emphasizing the intellectual aspect of faith, teaching that it is contingent upon evidence, revelation, and testimony. b. Robert ( ) and James ( ) Haldane. Scotland. gospel. (1) They were wealthy brothers who belonged to the church in (2) They were alarmed that theology was being preached instead of the 81

82 (3) They used their money to build schools, train preachers, and put Bibles into the hands of the people. (4) They believed that anyone (laymen) could preach. ( ). Ireland. c. John Wesley ( ), James O Kelly ( ), and Rice Haggard (1) Methodism was introduced in New York in 1760 by a man from (2) In 1784, John Wesley sent Dr. Thomas Coke (Anglican preacher) to America with Wesley s Christmas letter (read December 25, 1784 in Baltimore at the Methodist conference). read. Methodist Episcopal Church. (3) James O Kelly and Rice Haggard were present when the letter was (4) It was also agreed that the church in America would be called the (5) Kelly and Haggard objected to the term Episcopal. (6) Asbury and Coke were ordained as superintendents. Asbury. (7) Shortly after the conference, Coke left because he could not stand (8) Asbury s rule was pay, pray, and obey. (9) At another conference in 1792, O Kelly proposed that a preacher be allowed to talk to Asbury if he did not like his assignment. (10) O Kelly broke away from the Methodists in 1793 and had a meeting in Virginia where he devised five principles of the Christian church. (a) Christ is the only head. (b) Christian is the only designator. faith and practice. (c) The Bible is the only creed and is all sufficient as the rule of (d) Christian character is the only test of fellowship. (e) Right of private judgment. 82

83 (11) O Kelly s movement was intended to overthrow the human element and he took the name Republican Methodist for his followers because the movement was to be based on republican, or democratic, principles. (12) The next meeting was August 4, 1794, at the Old Lebanon church building in Sarah County, Virginia. (a) Haggard moved that followers of Christ be known as Christians only. Bible be their only rule of faith. (b) A Mr. Hafferty was also in the meeting and moved that the (c) Both motions passed. Jefferson. (13) O Kelly had been a classmate of Patrick Henry and Thomas H. The men just discussed were looking to abandon the doctrines of man and to understand and follow the doctrine of God as found in the new testament. 1. Some characteristics of the new testament are that it is: a. Simple. b. Profound. c. Comprehensive. d. Divine. e. The pattern for mankind to follow. f. Capable of bringing out the best in our lives. g. Universal. h. Perfect. 2. The thrust of the restoration movement was: a. Loyalty to Christ. b. No creed except that of Christ as found in the new testament. c. The new testament, God s word, is the only rule of faith and practice. d. Conformity to Christ s teaching. 83

84 e. Thus saith the Lord in matters of faith. f. Liberty in matters of private opinion. g. Christian unity on the basis of the new testament. h. Calling Bible things by Bible names. i. Disavowal of human names and creeds. j. Practicing ordinances in accord with the new testament. new testament. exclusion of all others. k. Autonomy of each church (congregation) organized in accordance with the l. Wearing the name of the living, reigning, and interceding Christ to the m. Recognizing and restoring he authority of Christ over his church. n. Exalting the church of Christ above all institutions. o. Obeying the commands of Christ. p. Exemplifying the ideals of Christ in the lives of all who wear his name. q. Unifying the body of Christ by loving him and obeying his commands to the exclusion of all manmade doctrine. I. Let s look at some men who were instrumental in restoring the Lord s church to be as found in the new testament. In doing so, we will draw from internet sources and from experiences on a Trip Into History conducted by J.M. Powell, a preacher and teacher from Nashville, Tennessee, and an ardent student of the restoration period. After many months of planning, the Trip Into History began on August 30, 1976 at Hillsboro church of Christ building in Nashville. The men discussed will generally be in the order of their birth. 1. Thomas Campbell ( ) and Alexander Campbell ( ), father and son. 84

85 a. When the Trip Into History was nearing the home of Alexander Campbell and Bethany College, J.M. Powell said that this story of the restoration movement never ceases to thrill my very soul, and the love that the people had for the word of God. does the Bible say? (1) The only book that they cared anything about was the Bible. What (2) What does the Bible teach? God. (3) The only authority in religion to them was the Bible, the word of (4) And unless we get back to that concept and that idea, we are gone as a people, and we are slipping rapidly away from that reverence and respect for the word of God being all authoritative in matters of faith and life. b. Since Alexander Campbell was Thomas son and they were both so connected in the restoration period, and since J.M. Powell intermingled his discussion of them, they will be included together in the following discussion. c. Speaking of Thomas Campbell, he said: Thomas Campbell was perhaps the best educated preacher in America when he came here in 1807, certainly one of the best educated men. (1) He was a profound scholar and natural born teacher. He was well acquainted with French and English literature. and he knew philosophy. (2) He knew Greek and Latin and Hebrew, as well as he did English, (3) He knew church history, and he knew all of the wisdom that has originated with man, but most of all, he knew the wisdom that originated with God. 85

86 (4) If I could sum up the life of Thomas Campbell in one sentence it would be this: the greatest ambition of Thomas Campbell was to know the will of God. d. He came to this country in (1) His father was Archibald Campbell, a very devout Catholic. And he remained a Catholic throughout the early part of his life. (2) As a young man, Archibald came to Quebec and fought under General Wolfe, but when he returned to Ireland, he became an Anglican, a member of the Anglican church, and remained a member of that church until his death at the age of 86. (3) The Campbell s had migrated to Ireland from Scotland several decades before Thomas Campbell was born. They were highly respected people. community. (4) They were intellectual people and they lived well in the (5) Archibald Campbell had four sons, Thomas, James, Archibald, and Enos. He had four daughters. Each one of his daughters had the name Mary, but each daughter died in infancy. years of age. e. Thomas Campbell entered the University of Glasgow when he was twenty the University of Glasgow. (1) He was born February 1, 1763, and he graduated with honors from (2) He spent a year in a theological school operated by the Seceder brethren of the Presbyterian Church. The church, the Presbyterian Church, at that time was fragmented. It had many divisions. Church of Scotland. (3) In 1733, the Seceder Presbyterian Church had split off from the (4) In 1747, the Seceder Church divided into the Burghers and the Antiburghers. In 1798, both the Burghers and the Antiburghers divided into the New Lights and the Old Lights. And so when Thomas Campbell came out of the Theological School, he found himself a Seceder, Antiburgher, Old Light Presbyterian preacher. (a) The Burgher Oath required that public officials had to affirm approval of the religion presently practiced in the kingdom. (b) Those who opposed the Burgers were Antiburghers. were more liberal. (c) The Old Lights were more Calvinistic and the New Lights 86

87 f. That s the way things were with Thomas Campbell. thirty miles from Belfast. (1) He was given a church in Ahorey, Ireland, near Rich Hill, about (2) He married Jane Corneigle, a member of the Huguenot, a French Huguenot, family. They had seven children. (3) It was hard for the Campbell s to make a living. He never received more than $240 a year for his preaching. (4) He operated a school, but didn t get too much money out of that because he never turned away a student and he had more nonpaying students than he did paying students. (5) He tried farming, but he was not successful as a farmer because he was a scholar, and he just was not inclined. (6) His health was getting bad and his doctor told him that he had to have a sea voyage, had to have a change or he couldn t live. come to America. (7) So he talked the matter over with his family and he decided to g. When he landed in America, in the Spring of 1807 in Philadelphia, it happened that the Synod of his church was in session and he went before them and he gave his credentials. (1) He was given an assignment in Washington, Pennsylvania. (2) When he reached Washington, Pennsylvania, he found a number of people that he had known in Ireland, people who had heard him preach in Ireland. country among his people. (3) He was disturbed about the divisions that existed here in this (4) He believed that God s people ought to be one and he believed that they could be one if they would listen to the teaching of the New Testament and turn away from the creeds made by men. (5) His ideas, his concepts, made him very unpopular with his fellow preachers and in his presbytery of which he was a part. h. Finally, he reached the point that he had to become an independent: I ll just be a Christian. I ll follow the new testament. 87

88 (1) By the year 1809, he and others who thought as he did had formed what they called the Washington Christian Association. (2) They met in the early part of the summer of 1809 in the home of Abram Walters and Campbell made one of the greatest speeches he ever made. (a) He talked about the deplorable conditions that existed in the religious world, and how that people ought to be united, and how that they could be united. (b) He pled that the people read the Bible for themselves, to accept it as the word of God, and to follow wherever it would lead them. (c) He came to the climax of his sermon on that day by saying: where we speak, the Bible speaks, and where the Bible is silent, we are silent. (3) There was a man present by the name of Andrew Leneau. He got up and said: Of course, if infant baptism is not in the Bible, we can have nothing to do with it. (4) There was a man by the name of Thomas Atchison who got up and very emotionally said: I hope that I shall never live to see the day when this old heart of mine will reject that precious passage of scripture that says; suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not. And he walked out of the room, weeping audibly. Mr. Atchison! (5) Another man in that audience, by the name of James Foster, said: (6) Mr. Atchison stopped and looked around. (7) Foster said: Mr. Atchison, the scripture that you have just quoted says nothing about baptism, about infant baptism. i. In that meeting, they decided that they were going to follow the Bible, they were going to accept it as their guide, and then they called for another meeting to be held August 17, (1) At this meeting, a committee was selected with Thomas Campbell as the chairman, twenty-one men. (2) They were to draw up a statement as to what their aims would be as an independent group of Christians. (3) Thomas Campbell was appointed by the committee to draw up this statement, and a medical doctor in the community, near Washington, Dr. Welsh, invited Mr. Campbell to come to his house and remain until he had written a statement. (4) Campbell went and remained for about three weeks, and on September 7, 1809, they had another meeting, at which time Thomas Campbell read the Declaration and Address. 88

89 in all church history. (a) Now, that is certainly one of the most famous documents (b) M.M. Davis, who s written so much on the restoration movement, says that it is the Declaration of Independence for the Christian. He also says that it is the Emancipation Proclamation for the Christian. (c) David Lipscomb said of it that it is the beginning of the current effort to restore the apostolic order of things. kind ever written. (d) N.B. Hardeman said of it: It s the greatest document of its (e) It has 30,000 words, about 50 pages. It has four divisions: the declaration, the address, the appendix, the postscript. j The postscript simply gives two or three reasons how the Declaration and address can be known to the people in the community. k. The appendix explained in detail everything in the Declaration and Address. l. In the declaration, there are four points that are emphasized: the Bible for himself. (1) One, the right of private judgment, every man has the right to read (2) Number two, the sole authority of the scriptures. (3) Number three, the horrid evils of sectarianism. (4) Number four, unity can be achieved if people will adhere strictly to the teaching of the new testament. m. In the address part of the document, there are thirteen propositions, some of which are quite well known to us. They may be summarized in the following way: (1) Number one, the essential unity of the church, based upon this statement by Mr. Campbell, and I quote, the church of Christ on earth is essentially, intentionally, and constitutionally one. (2) Number two, the supreme authority of the holy scriptures. (3) Number three, the special authority of the new testament. obey his word. (4) Number four, the essential fellowship of all who love Jesus and 89

90 (5) Five, the divisive nature of man-made creeds. (6) And number six, if all innovations were removed from the church, then God s people could be united upon a Biblical basis. (a) That was based upon this classic statement by Thomas Campbell that: nothing ought to be admitted into the faith or the worship of the church or to be made a test of fellowship among Christians that is not as old as the new testament. man. (b) That s one of the greatest statements ever made by mortal (c) Let me put it this way. If I preached to you something that s new, I m not preaching the truth. If I preach to you the truth that makes man free, I m preaching to you something that s old, something that is as old as the new testament. n. Let us leave Thomas Campbell and have a word to say about Alexander Campbell, the greatest Roman of them all. o. Alexander Campbell and his mother, and brothers and sisters, attempted to come to America in (1) They set sail on a vessel from Londonderry, Ireland, and about four days at sea, the vessel grounded off the Isle of Islay, one of the Hebrides. (2) I think this is providential because they went immediately to Scotland and to Glasgow, and Alexander enrolled in the University of Glasgow. 90

91 p. The family attended a church, an independent congregation that was trying to reproduce the church of the first century, using the new testament as a guide. (1) The preacher of that congregation was Grenville Ewing, and Grenville Ewing invited many preachers from the British Kingdom, United Kingdom, to come and preach to that congregation, the Haldane brothers, James and Robert, Alexander Carson, John Walker, Roland Hill, and all of these men were pleading for a unity of God s people upon the basis of the New Testament and were pleading for a return to new testament Christianity. the first day of every week. (2) The members of that congregation observed the Lord s supper on (3) They took the new testament as their guide and they believed in the autonomy of the local congregation, each congregation with a plurality of elders and deacons, and on down the line. (4) As they learned new truths from the new testament, they put them into practice immediately and began to preach them. (5) And so, it was providential that Alexander Campbell came under the influence of this movement in Scotland, and of this preaching on the part of Grenville Ewing and these other men whose names have been mentioned. q. During the school year, Alexander Campbell, like his father, became versed in French and English literature, Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. (1) By the time Alexander Campbell was twenty-two years of age, he could quote from memory the first four books of the new testament in English and also in Greek. lived. (2) He began a practice in Glasgow that he never left as long as he (3) He got up at four o clock every morning and he studied, and he studied, and he studied, and he continued to study, working his books, until ten o clock at night. (4) That was a pattern that he followed until the day of his death. (5) No wonder then he accumulated such a vast amount of information and could use it so effectively. (6) He hungered for righteousness. (7) He had a thirst for knowledge, and he had a good mind, a receptive heart, an open mind, and open heart, and he accepted the truth of God as he found it. r. In 1809, the family set sail again for America, and some 46 days later, they landed in New York City. 91

92 (1) They saw the sights of the city for two or three days, then they took a stage to Philadelphia and Alexander, who was twenty-one at the time, in his twenty-second year, became the head of the family. (2) He hired a wagon and team to carry the family and their belongings from Philadelphia to Washington, Pennsylvania, a distance of some 300 to 350 miles. (3) Now, Thomas Campbell was so eager to meet his family, he knew they were coming, that he rode horseback for three days and he met them somewhere between Washington, Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (a) He got in the wagon with his family and he said to his son: Alexander, I have the galley proofs of a document that I have written, hadn t been printed yet, but I want you to read it. (b) It was the Declaration and Address. (c) The first thing that Alexander Campbell read in America was the Declaration and Address, and as soon as he read it, he said: Father, this is exactly what I believe. (d) You have reached the same conclusion that I have reached. And he said: I m determined to spend the rest of my life preaching these wonderful new testament principles that you have set forth in this Declaration and Address. (e) He said: I propose to do so without pay. To which Thomas Campbell replied: Well son, I fear that you ll wear many a ragged coat. (f) He never wore a ragged coat in his life from necessity. (g) When he died on March 4, 1866, he was one of the wealthiest men in the state of Virginia. (h) He was a successful farmer, and a book binder. fine animals. (i) He was postmaster for thirty years, and he was a breeder of (j) In fact, everything he touched turned to gold, and he used it to extend the kingdom of God upon this earth. s. Alexander Campbell s first sermon was preached September 16, 1810, and his text was Matthew 7:24-27 about the man hearing and doing the will of God. (1) He called this sermon A Call to the World to Heed the Words of Jesus, and he never departed from that theme throughout his long life. 92

93 (2) The scripture that he used was: Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. (Matthew 7:24-27) t. He was married on March 11 to Margaret Brown, a rich farmer, a wealthy farmer and landowner, and three days after the wedding, Alexander Campbell moved into the Brown home which is now known as the Campbell home. (1) It was given to him. (2) It was deeded to him by his father-in-law, and Alexander Campbell lived in that house for fifty-five years. u. In 1812, on March 13, a child was born, a little girl. (1) They gave her the name, Jane, named for Alexander s mother, Jane Corneigle Campbell, and then the question of infant baptism came up. (2) What shall we do? (3) Alexander was not eager to rush into it. (4) Alexander said: I m going to spend three months finding out what the Bible teaches about baptism, about infant baptism. (5) He was a thorough Greek scholar. from his reading of the Bible: baptism. (6) He spent three months, and he came up with three Biblical truths (a) Number one, only penitent believers are fit subjects for (b) Two, only immersion is taught in the new testament. (c) Number three, only a simple confession of faith in the deity of Jesus Christ is obligatory for a person prior to his baptism. (7) Now to find someone to baptize him. (a) He went to Mathias Luce, a Baptist preacher, and Mr. Luce didn t want to baptize him upon a simple confession of faith. (b) It had never been done in America. 93

94 (c) It was unheard of, and Mathias Luce said: Mr. Campbell, this is not in accord with Baptist usage. (d) Do you know what Mr. Campbell said? He said: Mr. Luce, it may not be in accord with Baptist usage, but it s in accord with new testament usage. (e) Finally, Mathias Luce consented to baptize the Campbell s upon a simple confession of faith, and, as far as I know, it was the first time in America that it was done. Buffalo Creek. baptizing. (f) The day was chosen for the baptizing, June 17, Wednesday, (g) A large crowd of people gathered there to witness that (h) Thomas Campbell and his wife decided they wanted to be baptized too, and Dorthea, Alexander s sister, decided she wanted to be baptized. (i) The two Campbell s spoke for seven hours on that Wednesday, showing from the Bible why they were being immersed and why they were being baptized upon a simple confession of faith in the deity of Jesus Christ. baptized also. (k) James Henon and his wife said that they wanted to be (l) And so, seven people were baptized on that eventful day, and the following Sunday, Thomas Campbell baptized thirteen more at the Brush Run church on a simple confession of faith in the divinity of Jesus Christ. was a bombshell. v. On August 30, 1816, Alexander gave his famous sermon on the law. And it (1) It was the beginning of the end so far as his connection with the Baptist people was concerned. (2) He was looked upon as a heretic, but he was vindicated. (3) He was the first man in America to preach a distinction between the old testament and the new testament, and law and grace, between the teaching of Moses and the teaching of Jesus. (4) And he said that we are under the new covenant, the new law, under the gospel and under grace, under Jesus. He was the first man in America to do it. w. In 1820, he had his first debate, with John Walker, Mt. Pleasant, Ohio. And he affirmed that only penitent believers are fit subjects for baptism and only immersion is taught in the Bible. 94

95 x. In 1823, he had a second debate, this time with William McCalla in Washington, Kentucky. He affirmed those two propositions, plus a third, that baptism is for the remission of sins, and this was the first time in public debate that affirmation was made with reference to the design, the new testament design, of baptism. y. In 1829, Campbell was elected to the Constitutional Convention of Virginia, and James Monroe, James Madison, John Randolph, Chief Justice Marshall, all were members of that same committee. (1) Often, Alexander Campbell crossed swords with these giants of men, and every Sunday, he preached in the First Baptist Church of Richmond, Virginia. (2) James Madison heard him while that convention was in session, and later he said that Alexander Campbell was the greatest expositor of the Bible of any man that he had ever heard. (3) Also in 1829, he had his famous debate with Robert Owen, Robert Dale Owen, from New Lanark Mills, Scotland, and Cincinnati, on the evidences of Christianity. the Christian Baptist. z. In 1830, he began the publication of the Millennial Harbinger. It succeeded (1) Let me go back. The Christian Baptist was published for the first time July 4, 1823, the same year that he had his debate with McCalla, and he published the Christian Baptist for seven years. Christian Baptist. (2) Mr. Campbell was probably at his best when he was editor of the (3) He was hard on the professional clergy. (a) He referred to the kingdom of the clergy and he called them textuary divines, scrap doctors, hireling priests, and so on. (b) He wrote a satire that is equal, probably, to any satire that has ever been written by mortal man, and it s called Peter s Third Epistle, or the Third Epistle of Peter, and in it he scours the kingdom of the clergy. It was published in 1824 in the Christian Baptist. aa. He had his last debate in 1843 in Lexington, Kentucky, with N.L. Rice, and this according to many scholars of the restoration movement, is the greatest debate of history. bb. And on and on, Mr. Campbell went from one success to another. (1) He was highly honored by the people of America. (2) He knew well, presidents of the united States, often invited to the White House and whenever he went into a state, when the Governor found out that he was there, he was always invited to come to the Governor s mansion as the guest of the Governor. 95

96 (3) He was in demand as a speaker. (a) He was a polished speaker. (b) He was a knowledgeable, knowledgeable man. (4) Judge Burnett, who was the Supreme Court Justice of the state of Ohio was present during the Campbell-Owen debate and he said after listening to this debate: I have been listening to a man who seems to have lived in all ages. cc. I think I failed to mention he had a debate in 1837 with Bishop Purcell, the Catholic bishop, and this too was a monumental debate. (1) After the debate was over, Bishop Purcell said that Alexander Campbell was the fairest man in debate that he had ever known, and he went on to say that it seemed that Mr. Campbell s desire was to get at truth and not simply win a victory. Alexander Campbell. (2) I think that was high tribute to the goodness and intelligence of dd. In 1850, he spoke to a joint session of Congress in Washington. (1) As far as I know, the first time that a preacher has ever been invited to do that, but Alexander Campbell received such an invitation and he accepted the invitation and of course he acquitted himself in a fine and favorable way. (2) He continued to write and to preach, and to lecture. later on the train. (3) He travelled thousands of miles horseback, steamboat, stage, and (4) He accomplished more than ten men ordinarily accomplished. (5) He loved to work. (6) He had a strong physique and a brilliant mind. ee. During the Campbell-Owen debate, again, there was a man by the name of Lyman Abbott, who was living in Cincinnati at the time, and he was the president of the Lane Theological School in that city and a pastor of the Second Presbyterian Church. (1) He was the father of Harriet Beecher Stowe, who wrote Uncle Tom s Cabin, and Henry Ward Beecher. (2) He heard every session of that debate and at the close of the debate he went to him and said: Mr. Campbell, I have been amazed at your expertise in debate. How is it that you have accumulated so much knowledge and apparently just pick it out of the thin air and use it so skillfully to clinch the point that you make in debate? How do you do it, sir? 96

97 hours every day. (3) And Campbell s reply was: Sir, I can do it because I study sixteen ff. He was a scholar who loved to study. (1) You know, in his youth, though, he wasn t given to scholarship. (2) In his early teens, as a matter of fact, he was assigned a French lesson, and his text book was The Adventures of Telemachus. (a) He went out under the shade of a tree. became drowsy and he fell asleep. ate it. (b) It was a warm Spring day and he opened his book and he (c) The book fell out of his hand and an old cow came up and (d) When Thomas Campbell found out about it, he reprimanded his son severely and said: Alexander, that old cow has more French in her stomach than you have in your head. gg. Those on the Trip Into History were going to the Campbell house the next day, and J.M. Powell said: Now I don t know whether there s any connection to it at all, but tomorrow when you walk in Grand Parlor of the Campbell mansion, you re going to see some beautiful wall paper that Alexander Campbell himself bought in Paris. It s pictorial wallpaper and it concerns The Adventures of Telemachus. I don t know that there s any connection with that French lesson or not, that he had, but I know this, the only other house in America that has that identical wallpaper is the Hermitage in Tennessee. It can be found in the hall of the Hermitage. hh. After J.M. Powell s lecture, someone asked him to tell something about Alexander Campbell s school, and he agreed to do so. (1) Every morning at 6:00, Campbell walked the two miles from his home to the classroom, and, well he began his class at 6:00; he got there earlier than that. four. (a) He got up earlier than that because he always got up at (b) He had a class every morning at 6:00, a Bible class. (c) His students referred to him as old man eloquent. (d) And without note, without book, without open Bible or anything, he sat there and just talked out of the overflow of his heart, because he knew the Hebrew, he could quote it from memory. He knew the Greek and he knew Latin and he knew all the English versions that were available in his day. 97

98 (e) A great teacher he was. (2) The school was founded in 1840, operated first in 1841, and, of course, as long as he was there, it was a great school, sound as any school could be; but now it is tragic. (3) It is tragic. It is tragic. (4) They believe nothing. (5) They do not believe in the inspiration of the scriptures. (6) They do not believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ and they do not even pretend to teach the Bible any more. (7) Now that s going to happen to us unless we re very careful. (8) We might as well face it. (9) We ve got to uphold the truth and we ve got to be concerned with the principles of the restoration movement. got to. (10) We ve got to talk about them, we ve got to embrace them. We ve (11) We ve got to think about them and speak to our children about them and get them reading and save them from going into utter digression. 2. Elias Smith ( ). a. He was born in Connecticut, but lived near Long Island Sound during the Revolutionary War and could see the British warships. b. In 1780, he and his family moved to Hebron, Connecticut, where he finished his sparse formal education, It is said that he could read and write some. 98

99 c. He was forcibly sprinkled when he was eight; and, as he got older, he was concerned about his baptism, so he began to study the scriptures and found that baptism was immersion for believers. He was baptized in 1779, but was not yet a Baptist. d. In the 1770 s, Baptists had four requirements for becoming a Baptist: (relate an experience). (1) The convert had to give a reason for the hope that was in them (2) Be immersed. (3) Agree to the Baptist articles of faith. (4) Be voted into the church. e. Smith petitioned for membership, met the requirement, and was accepted into the Second Baptist Church in Woodstock, Connecticut. f. In 1789, he considered the ministry and began to further his self-education. The two books that he studied were Cruden s Concordance and a book of sermons. g. He moved to Salisbury, New Hampshire, in 1801, and was becoming disillusioned with the Baptist teaching when his brother influenced him to take up Universalism, which he did for fifteen days. h. Based on his studies of scripture, he gave up both Baptist Calvinism and Universalism doctrine and decided to follow only scripture, calling himself only a Christian. i. Smith wrote: When in my twenty-fourth year, I believed there would be a people bearing a name different from all the denominations then in this country; but what would they be called I then could not tell. In the spring of 1802, having rejected the doctrine of Calvin and universalism [sic], to search the scriptures to find the truth, I found the name which the followers of Christ ought to wear; which was Christians (Acts 11:26). My mind being fixed upon this as the right name, to the exclusion of all the popular names in the world, in the month of May, at a man's house in Epping, N.H. by the name of Laurence, where I held a meeting and spoke upon the text, Acts 11:26, I ventured for the first time, softly to tell the people that the name, Christian was enough for the followers of Christ without the addition of the words, Baptist, Methodist, etc. j. The Baptists refused to have anything to do with him, so he began to meet with a group of friends in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in they had 150 members. Conference. (1) Twenty-two had their first communion together, but a year later, (2) They drew up a set of articles and called themselves the Christian 99

100 (3) In 1805, they discarded the articles and decided to use only the Bible as their basis for faith and practice. 3. Abner Jones ( ). a. He was born in Massachusetts, but moved to Vermont when he was eight b. He led a rather immoral life as a teenager, but joined the Baptist Church in c. He began practicing frontier medicine in Lyndon, Vermont around 1797 or d. About that same time, a revival meeting came to Lyndon and caused Abner to consider becoming a preacher. e. As he preached, he studied his Bible more and broke from the Baptist s Calvinistic system, and decided to be a Christian only. fellowship. f. He emphasized Christian character as the only and all-sufficient test for g. In 1801, he organized a free church in Lyndon and, one year later, was ordained by the Free Will Baptists. Christian. (1) He agreed to join the group, but not as a Free Willer, but as a (2) Even though he joined their group, he refused to submit himself to their manmade rules and regulations. 4. John Mulkey ( ). 100

101 a. Earlier during the Trip Into History, a stop was made in Tompkinsville, Kentucky, at the Old Mulkey Meeting House State Shrine. many years ago. (1) The meeting house sat in a wooded section, preserved as it was (2) It was constructed in the log cabin style with filling between the logs for protection against the weather. (3) Inside, the speaker s platform was slightly raised, and what may be called the lectern covered the entire length of the platform. (4) A window was directly behind the platform. flat surface for sitting. (5) The pews were essentially logs cut in half lengthwise to provide a (a) They had no backs and were so close together that the worshippers obviously must have braced their backs against the knees of those sitting behind them. (b) The front and back row seats must have surely been choice. (c) In fact, the sitting arrangement would have been an inducement for a man to seek the preaching assignment. b. J.M. Powell mounted the speaker s platform and began to speak. (1) We re in Monroe County. The county seat is Tompkinsville. (2) This is the only place in America where a county is named for a sitting president and the county seat is named for a sitting vice-president. (3) We just passed through Gamaliel. 101

102 (a) Gamaliel was named by a preacher who lived contemporaneously with John Mulkey and who helped him in his efforts to restore new testament Christianity. (b) He gave it a Biblical name from Gamaliel, the learned Jewish rabbi at whose feet Paul sat as a student. (c) Many prominent people have come from Gamaliel: the Harlands, around Franklin and Nashville, and the Crabtree s, Miss Ora Crabtree, who taught for many years at David Lipscomb College. Her father was a doctor in the area. Miss Copus, of Gillingwater, who came from this area, and the Coma s came from this area, and many other people of prominence in the church in business and the professions; but back to John Mulkey. (4) The Mulkey s were originally from Connecticut. came to this area. (5) They migrated down to South Carolina and eventually John Mulkey (6) He was a strict Calvinist, the old school Baptist, and he held to the five points of Calvinism: hereditary total depravity, irresistible grace, predestination, unconditional election, the final perseverance of the saints. (7) But John Mulkey was a thinker. He began to read the Bible and he could see a lot of differences in what he had learned from Calvin and what he was learning from the new testament. (8) Little by little, he turned from Calvinism and began preaching the new testament right from this pulpit. This was the Mill Creek Baptist Church had 200 members. (9) In the early part of 1809, John Mulkey was charged with heresy because he was preaching the new testament and he was preaching against the five points of Calvinism. (10) The early part of 1809 was rough for John Mulkey and finally on November 18, 1809, there was a meeting in this building, Mill Creek Baptist Church. (a) He got up in this pulpit and he announced to the group a decision that he had reached: I m no longer a Baptist, I m no longer a Calvinist, I no longer hold to the five points of Calvinism. (b) I believe that we ought to follow the new testament, he said, and I believe that we can use this as a pattern and reproduce first century Christianity. (c) Now I want all the people in this room who feel as I feel, and who would join me in my efforts to reproduce new testament Christianity to walk through the west door. will get possession of this building. (d) This is important, he said, because this will determine who 102

103 this pulpit through that door. (e) He picked up his hat and his Bible, and he walked out of (f) It was a cold day. (g) A light snow had been falling. (h) The air was crisp. (i) And he stood out there for a long time, wondering if anybody would follow him; but one by one the people began to go through the door. (j) And when the count was made, 150 people stood with him and said, brother John, we believe as you do. (k) We want to take the new testament as our guide. (l) About fifty people who did not believe as he believed, stood together out there, and they knew at once that John Mulkey and his group would gain possession of the building, so they went elsewhere and found a meeting place. (m) Among the 150 people who went out that door to join hands and heart with John Mulkey was a woman by the name of Hannah Pennington, who was the sister of Daniel Boone. (n) Thus, there began in this area, in 1809, under the leadership of John Mulkey, a movement to restore first century Christianity, using the new testament as a guide. (11) Mrs. Copus showed me a little history of Monroe County some time ago, written by a professor at Western Kentucky State University. (a) And in that book, I noticed this statement, that: John Mulkey had converted himself to Campbellism. This is a quote. country. but he was still a Presbyterian. (b) Well, this was before Alexander Campbell had come to this (c) Thomas Campbell was in this country up in Pennsylvania, (d) This is, of course, a historical inaccuracy. (e) John Mulkey was an independent thinker, and he was doing precisely what the Campbell s later did. 103

104 (f) And it is interesting to note that this movement to restore new testament Christianity was well along the way with a number of independent movements in this country long before the Campbell s came upon the stage of action. (g) About the first independent movement in this country took place in Virginia/North Carolina under the leadership of James O Kelly in the year (h) The second independent movement was in 1800 in Vermont/New Hampshire under the leadership of Dr. Abner Jones and Elias Smith. (i) The third was in 1804 in central Kentucky, Cane Ridge, under the leadership of Barton W. Stone. (j) This was the fourth. (k) The Campbell s came along with a fifth movement. (l) They finally got together, joined hands and hearts, and they changed the religious history of the world. c. The Park Service gave an interesting account of two grave sites, besides that of John Mulkey, that are on the grounds. her maiden name: (1) One is that of Hannah Boone Pennington, but the stone bears only Hannah Boone Born in Berks County, Pa. August 24, 1746 Died in Monroe County, Ky (2) The other is the grave of Daniel s brother, Squire Boone. (a) A story is told that while Daniel was on one of his several lengthy explorations, Squire Boone comforted his wife, Rebecca. (b) In fact, she was so comforted by Daniel s brother that she conceived and gave birth to a daughter by him. (c) When Daniel returned, he is reported to have easily adjusted to the fact of his wife s adultery and he accepted little Jemima as his own. (c) After all, he said, she is still a Boone. (d) The gravestone reads: 104

105 Squire Boone Born in Penn. October 5, 1744 Died in Ind. Built Traveler s Rest 5. As an aside, when the Trip Into History left the Old Mulkey Meeting House State Shrine, J.M. Powell related a connection that Abraham Lincoln had with the restoration movement. a. Carl Sandberg s definitive work, six volumes of Lincoln, often speaks of Lincoln and his connection with preachers of the restoration movement. (1) In Springfield, Illinois, one of the best friends that Lincoln had was a lawyer by the name of Edward Baker. congregation in Springfield. (2) Mr. Baker was also a preacher and he preached for the (3) Lincoln often went to hear him preach. (4) On one occasion, Lincoln and Baker ran for Congress, United States Representative, and Edward beat Mr. Lincoln. (5) When he came up for re-election, he did not want to run against his friend Lincoln, and he moved to another district to keep from running against Lincoln. (6) When Lincoln was elected President, Edward Baker was in Washington with him and rode in Lincoln s carriage from the hotel to the capitol and introduced him to the audience. (7) One of Lincoln s children was named Edward Baker for his friend, this gospel preacher and lawyer. b. Mr. Baker left the Washington area, the Illinois area, and went to California. (1) He lived in San Francisco for ten years and was a distinguished lawyer there and continued to preach. Oregon. (2) Then he went to Oregon and became United States Senator from (3) When the war broke out between the states, he was made a Colonel in the Union Army, and he fell in battle, mortally wounded, at Falls bluff, Virginia. 105

106 c. There is a tradition that Lincoln was baptized by a preacher of the restoration movement and there are some letters that have been circulated to that effect. enough. (1) But, as far as I am concerned, the evidence is not convincing (2) There is nothing to really substantiate it. (3) Actually it is not too important to us to know that. (4) Hopefully he was, but he certainly never indicated any preference toward the restoration movement. (5) However, in Carl Sandberg s work, which I own and have read several times, there is one point that gives Mr. Lincoln s views of the Bible and it s right down the line with reference to the thinking of the preachers of the restoration movement. restoration movement. (6) So I do know that he had admiration for the principles of the (7) He expressed them. (8) He had admiration for the preachers of the restoration movement, and Edward Baker was one of his closest friends in the world, a gospel preacher, and a fellow lawyer. 6. As another aside, the Trip Into History encountered another interesting place, Shakertown, a small restored community similar to Williamsburg, Virginia. a. J.M. Powel had this to say about this little village: nineteenth century. (1) It was a community that was established in the early part of the (2) They were a people who believed that Christ came the second time in a woman whose name was Ann Lee, and she started this movement, the Shaker movement. (3) They did not believe in marriage and people who were married, if they joined the Shaker community, had to confess their sins, give up their home relationships, and their marriage relationships. (4) They claimed to perform miracles and they also claimed to have a revelation from God about all of these things. (5) They were quite numerous in this particular area. (6) Two of the five men who signed the famous Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery defected and joined the Shakers and went into oblivion. 106

107 (7) That s why that a visit to Shakertown for us is important, and that is a connection that the restoration movement had with the Shakers. (8) Of course, they ve played out now. (9) They are no more. (10) But there are some buildings that remain as mute evidence of their distortions of the scriptures and their beliefs that were so contrary to the new testament. b. Shakertown existed under the Shakers from 1805 to 1910 A.D. According to the guide brochure, they led the state of Kentucky in scientific farming, in the propagation of new sheep cattle, and hog strains, and in the development of agricultural implements. They were very industrious and dedicated to their work and their belief. Some excerpts from the guide are as follows: (1) The meeting house was the spiritual center of the community in which was held the shaking, whirling dances which resulted in the name Shaker. Above the meeting room were the apartments of the ministry, a ruling body of two elders and two eldresses. The side doors were for their use only. Note: The elders were watching from above to ensure that the shaking and dancing did not lead to anything inappropriate. (2) Among the Shakers there was a perfect equality in their burdens and labours. All engaged in socially useful hand labor from the Ministry to the humblest convert. (3) The Trustees Office was an outer court where the trustees, trading deacons, and office deaconesses lived. Here visitors from the other Shaker villages were entertained, charity was dispensed to the poor, the honest inquirer counseled, and all commercial relations with the world conducted. (4) The society was divided into five communal families, each numbering from fifty to one hundred members and governed by two elders and two eldresses. A semiautonomous unit, every family had its own dwelling, shops, barns, fields, and orchards. Temporal pursuits wee supervised by two deacons and two deaconesses. (5) To accommodate the celibate inhabitants, each dwelling had two entrance ways, dual stairways, and a wide common passage way on each floor to separate the brothers and sisters apartment. The ell contains the dining room and kitchen and on the second story the meeting room and nurses quarters or infirmary. 7. Barton W. Stone ( ). 107

108 a. No Trip Into History in regard to the restoration movement would be complete without a trip to the Old Cane Ridge Meeting House and the story of Barton W. Stone. b. The old meeting place is completely enclosed in a stone building for preservation, but is otherwise maintained as it appeared many years ago. It is a log cabin structure like the Old Mulkey Meeting house and has a long speaker s platform with a window behind, but the seats are more comfortable and it has a balcony. c. The curator, Dr. Hoke S. Dickinson, provided the following historical background: (1) Cane Ridge got its name from Daniel Boone, who discovered the cane brake on the ridge between Paris and Mt. Sterling. (a) A cane brake is just a tall, thick growth of regular old fishing pole cane, but he was greatly impressed with it because it extended several miles east and west and it was about four miles deep, north and south. (b) The cane was growing to a height of eight to ten feet. the Cane Ridge. (c) He was so impressed with it that he named the whole area (2) He had a friend by the name of Robert Finley who was a Presbyterian preacher at North Carolina. (a) Mr. Finley had been wanting to bring some of his congregation to settle on the frontier, so he asked Daniel Boone where he would suggest they come. 108

109 Kentucky. good farm land. cattle and livestock the year round. (b) He said: If I were you, I d go to the great Cane Ridge in (c) He said: The cane is so tall and thick, I know that it will be (d) Further, he said: The cane would afford food for their (e) It also brought a lot of wild game here to feed so that they could have a good supply of fresh meat all the time for their table with a minimum of hunting. on the cane. (f) The deer, the buffalo, and the smaller game came to feed (3) They came here in (a) That year they were busy clearing the land for their farms, building their own homes, so it was 1791 when they came together and built this old meeting house right on the spot where it now stands. (b) The building actually was erected in Virginia. Kentucky had not yet become a state. It was a county of Virginia. (c) It became a commonwealth the next year after this was built and was admitted into the union in (4) This building is very much as it was completed in There are some exceptions to that statement and I ll point them out. didn t need them. open. (a) Originally, there were no windows in the building, but they (b) The way you see the cement between the logs was all left (c) That was because the Indians came to the cane brake to get their supply of fresh meat, and when the congregation was in here at worship, they had to be on the alert for Indian attacks. (d) You can see by the seating arrangement that someone could see out in every direction between those logs. logs and then cut the windows in. (e) When that danger was past, they put clay in between the 109

110 (f) The original floor was a dirt floor, the second one was a log floor. This is the third floor. I sometimes refer to it as our new floor since it s only been here since same time as this floor. (g) The pews that you are sitting on were put in here at the (h) None of the furnishings are original, but the building itself is, even the old balcony, which was the slave balcony. (i) The slaves climbed ladders at either end of the building and came in the doors upstairs, and that s where they sat to worship. up there to worship until (j) Although they were members of the congregation, they sat (k) In 1829, the congregation took that out, brought the slaves downstairs to worship took the timbers down to Mr. Warren Rogers farm. (l) Being a member of the congregation, he wouldn t let them be cut up and mutilated, but he made a hayloft in his barn with those timbers. (m) They stayed there until rebuilt with the original timbers. (n) Then they were brought back here and the balcony was d. After Dr. Dickinson left, J.M. Powell mounted the speaker s platform and provided an historical sketch of Barton W. Stone. building. (1) In 1798, Barton W. Stone was ordained in the ministry in this (a) As he stood before the presbytery, they asked him this question: Mr. Stone, do you receive and adopt the confession of faith as containing the system of teaching that is found in the Bible. (b) And Mr. Stone gave this laconic reply: I do, in so far as I see it consistent with the word of God. (2) In 1801, Mr. Stone went to Logan County, Kentucky to attend a revival that was being conducted by James McGready, the famous Presbyterian preacher. (a) During that meeting, Mr. Stone was inspired to come back to this place and preach a sermon on the great commission as given in the book of Mark. 110

111 (b) He had been reading the Bible more and more and the confession of faith less and less. Consequently, he was putting more dependence upon and faith in the simple teaching of the new testament than in the confession of faith of the Presbyterian church. people were astonished. (c) When he preached that sermon from this pulpit, the (d) It was so different from what they had been used to, but he pointed out that he was preaching the new testament, preaching the gospel, preaching the love of God, the plan of salvation as set forth in the new testament scriptures. (3) That same year, that great revival that was mentioned a moment ago took place on the grounds surrounding this building. several days. without interfering with each other. (a) Some twenty or thirty thousand people were present for (b) Some eight or ten preachers preached at the same time (c) There were a great many converts. (d) If you ll read in Earl West s book, The Search for the Ancient Order, you ll read something of the physical manifestations of that meeting, quite extraordinary. (e) But to make a long story short, at the conclusion of the meeting, all of the preachers present wanted to, quote, Calvinize the converts, unquote. (f) Mr. Stone objected. (g) He wanted them not to be followers of Calvin, but followers of Christ; not to be followers of the Confession of Faith, but the new testament. independent group. Springfield Presbytery. (4) Gradually, he got in bad with the presbytery and he had to form an (a) He sent out a paper, a pamphlet, called The Apology of the (b) I have seen a copy of this apology, and it simply sets forth the idea that they intended to follow the new testament, and they encouraged the people to read the Bible for themselves and to follow its teaching. (5) Finally, on June 28, 1804, in this building, a meeting was held at which time the famous Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery was read and adopted. (a) Now this is a short document. 111

112 (b) It can easily be read in just a few minutes and yet it sets forth some ideas that changed the course of the religious world, one of the most famous documents in all Christian literature, and this is five years before Campbell s famous Declaration and Address was created in 1809 up in Washington, Pennsylvania. (c) In this document, Stone and those with him simply declared that: We intend to follow the Bible, follow the new testament, and we urge people to read the Bible and to follow its teaching. (d) They said: We look with disdain upon the use of the word Reverend among those who preach the gospel. (e) They decided that they would not use it. laity, that all are one in Christ. the name of Rice Haggard. (f) They did not want to make a distinction between clergy and (g) There was present at that meeting in this house a man by (h) He got up and made a proposal, the same proposal that he had made ten years earlier at Old Lebanon Meeting House in Surrey County, Virginia, back in 1794 to the followers of James O Kelly. (i) He got up in this room and he held aloft a copy of the New Testament and he said: Brethren this book is a sufficient guide in matters of faith and life and in it we are told that the disciples were first called Christians at Antioch. And I propose that we adopt the name Christian and that we wear it to the exclusion of all human designations. (j) That proposal was accepted. It was unanimously adopted. (6) Barton W. Stone who died in 1844 and whose remains lie in the cemetery was gentle in spirit. (a) He had a winsome personality. for people and for the souls of men. the gospel. (b) He had a warm heart, and he had great love for God and (c) He was gentle and yet he was firm in his proclamation of (d) He had no use for Calvinism. He had learned to distrust it. (e) He had discarded it long since, and in his biography, he says this about Calvinism: Let me speak to you when I shall be lying under the clogs of the grave. 112

113 Calvinism is amongst the greatest hindrances to Christians in the world. It is a dark mountain between heaven and earth, and it is a hindrance to the sinner who is seeking the kingdom of God. (7) This man converted hundreds of people in this neighborhood, and one of his famous converts was Robert Millican, Dr. Robert Millican, who at the time was teaching at Little Rock Crossroads, about three miles from here, in the school. (a) He was teaching Greek, and Latin, and mathematics. (b) This was in the year hearted Stone, and he was converted. (c) Millican came under the general influence of this warm (d) He became a great preacher, college president, writer, scholar, classical scholar, one of the most learned men of his day. (8) Stone preached from this pulpit a number of years and then he was succeeded by another person who preached just a few years. eloquent preachers in all the country. (a) Then came John Allen Gano, of fame, one of the most (b) Whenever he spoke, people listened. congregations. (c) He preached here for thirty years to large and influential (d) His father was a chaplain in George Washington s army, and, according to tradition, baptized George Washington. (e) His chaplain father was a member of the Baptist Church. (f) John Gano was converted by Stone, and when it was learned that John Allen Gano was to adopt the principles of the restoration movement, the Baptist friends of Mr. Gano wanted to do something to retrieve him, bring him back into the Baptist fold. (g) And they sent for one of the most famous Baptist preachers in Kentucky, Jacob Creath, to come and talk to this young man, this brilliant young man. (h) As Jacob Creath found John Allen Gano, he found him with an open new testament, and they had a long discussion. Jacob Creath. (i) When the meeting ended, John Allen Gano had converted (j) Jacob Creath became one of the great preachers of the restoration movement, and his fame will live to the end. 113

114 - Jacob Creath ( ) was born in Nova Scotia, Canada, and moved with his family to Virginia when he was ten. eighteen, and was ordained at twenty-one. - He became a Baptist at twelve, started preaching at - He moved to Fayette County, Kentucky, in (9) Barton W. Stone moved to Jacksonville, Illinois. (a) He was growing feeble. (b) He gave a visit to Hannibal, Missouri, to visit a daughter. (c) While he was there, he sickened and died, but his remains were brought back to his beloved Cane Ridge. 8. Raccoon John Smith ( ). (d) John Allen Gano preached the funeral of Barton W. Stone. a. John Smith was born October 15, 1784 in east Tennessee. b. His good friend, Alexander Campbell, is said to have commented that John Smith was the only man that he ever knew that would be ruined by a college education. c. He was a truly unique character. d. His formal schooling was limited to months instead of years, but he yearned for knowledge. e. His parents were strict Calvinistic Baptist; and as he was growing up, he looked for the Lord to call him as one of the elect. to have such. f. People were relating marvelous things about their conversions and he longed 114

115 g. His father died and he became responsible for the family. h. This heightened his desire for a spiritual experience. i. Finally, someone told him that he was saved, but he still thought that he should have a spiritual experience. Informing the Baptist Church of his concerns, they passed on his conversion and welcomed him into the Baptist Church. j. Soon after being admitted to the Baptist Church, John Smith had a strong desire to preach and could not understand why he had not received a calling. without a calling. k. He did speak out in prayer meetings and was reprimanded for preaching l. Consequently, he talked himself into believing that he had the calling and began to be a Baptist preacher. m. The more he preached, the more he studied the new testament and memorized verses from it, using them in his sermons. n. Since the other Baptist preachers didn t use a lot of Bible verses, they chastised him for doing so, saying that the Lord would tell him what to say. o. About this time, he was exposed to The Christian Baptist, published by Alexander Campbell, and was influenced by what he read. p. When Campbell made a trip into Kentucky, Smith was determined to hear him, although the other Baptist preachers had not accepted Campbell as one of the elect. or not. minutes to John Smith. q. Smith knew that if he heard Campbell he would know if he was of the elect r. Campbell spoke for two and a half hours, and it seemed like only thirty s. Afterwards, John Smith said that Campbell had thrown more light on the scriptures than he had ever heard before. t. Raccoon John Smith left the Baptist Church and became a preacher of the gospel, converting thousands. u. Once after speaking before a number of lawyers and judges in Sparta, Tennessee, he was asked if he felt intimidated before such a learned group. He responded: Not in the least, for I have learned that judges and lawyers, so far as the Bible is concerned, are the most ignorant class of people in the world, except Doctors of Divinity. v. It is reported that he was called Raccoon because he once said: I am John Smith from Stockton s Valley. In more recent years, I have lived in Wayne, among the rocks and hills of 115

116 Cumberland. Down there saltpeter cave abound, and raccoons make their homes. On that frontier we never had good schools, nor many books; consequently, I stand before you today a man without an education. But, my brethren, even in that ill-favored region, the Lord, in good time, found me. He showed me his wondrous grace, and called me to preach the everlasting gospel of his Son. w. He married Anna Townsend in 1806 and later, they lost two boys in a cabin fire. Anna died in 1815 from the shock. He remarried to Nancy Hurt that same year. together. x. He played a key role in bringing the Campbell and Stone movements y. He died February 28, John T. Johnson ( ). a. He was born in Scott County, Kentucky, on November 5, b. Johnson was a successful farmer, lawyer, and politician. c. He was brought up in a Baptist family, but did not attach himself to the Baptist Church until he was thirty-three years of age. d. He was disturbed by what was being taught and practiced by the Baptist Church and began to study his Bible. 116

117 new testament. e. At forty-two, he decided to preach and to enlighten the Baptists based on the f. Not being able to convince his Baptist brethren, he broke away and began teaching according to the new testament only. g. He lived in the same county as Barton W. Stone and assisted him in editing the Christian Messenger. h. There were two groups teaching from the new testament at that time. Christians. called themselves disciples. (1) One was associated with Barton W. Stone and members were called (2) The other was led to the truth by Alexander Campbell and they (3) Both groups realized that they must follow the new testament only, but neither group initially knew of the other. i. John T. Johnson was instrumental in helping to bring the two groups into one. number of areas. j. He preached in many places and helped churches become established in a k. He was conducting a meeting in Lexington, Missouri, in December 1856 when he caught pneumonia and died. 10. Sidney Rigdon ( ). a. He was born in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, on February 19, b. He lived on a farm and was allowed only a meager formal education, so he studied the Bible, history, and grammar by the fire after his parents went to bed. c. His family were members of the Baptist Church. 117

118 d. Sidney knew that he had to have had an experience before he could become a Baptist, but he had not had such, so he made one up and was accepted as a Baptist. e. He did not like farming and left in 1818 to become an apprentice to a Baptist preacher in Beaver County. f. He obtained his license to preach and moved to Warren, Ohio, to work with Adamson Bentley, whose wife s sister became his bride in g. While working with Bentley, he began to wonder about the Calvinistic doctrine taught by the Baptist and was concerned that some of his children might not be among the elect. h. In 1820, Bentley and Rigdon read a pamphlet of Campbell s debate with John Walker and were so impressed that they travelled eighty-five miles the summer of 1821 to talk with Campbell. (1) They were fascinated at what they heard. (2) When they left, Rigdon said that if he had taught one error from the pulpit, he had taught a thousand. i. In 1822, Campbell talked Rigdon into preaching for a Baptist congregation in Pittsburg that, with Rigdon s preaching, became the largest in the city. He also introduced him to Walter Scott. j. Rigdon and Campbell became close and he accompanied Campbell on a three hundred mile horseback trip to debate William L. MacCalla in Washington, Kentucky. k. The reason why Rigdon left the Baptist Church in Pittsburg is uncertain. heresies in (1) The Baptists said that they excommunicated him because of (2) Rigdon said that he resigned in l. In February 1825, Campbell printed a thirty-two lesson series on A Restoration of the Ancient Order of Things. Rigdon was so fascinated by these articles that he began to preach on the restoration theme to large gatherings. m. His fame spread and he was considered to be a great preacher. n. Then in 1827, Campbell met with the Mahoning Association and recommended that an evangelist be sent by the association to the Western Reserve. (1) Instead of Rigdon, he recommended Walter Scott. 118

119 emotionally unstable. (2) This might have been because Rigdon, although popular, was o. Rigdon and Campbell had three main areas of disagreement. (1) Divine authorization for church leadership. Rigdon doubted his own authority to preach until he met Joseph Smith. (2) The re-emergence of the manifestations of the Holy Spirit. Rigdon thought that an authorized minister of the word should have some or all spiritual gifts. (3) The communal church where all things were had in common. Rigdon admired the Shakers and felt that the church should be communal. p. The Mahoning Association met in 1830 for the purpose of dissolving itself. (1) Rigdon took the opportunity to promote a communal society. (2) Campbell argued against it. q. Because the Disciples followed the thinking of Campbell, Rigdon had the church for whom he preached in Mentor drop fellowship with the Disciples. r. He did influence some to join him in a communal effort in 1830, and they began looking for a special event to usher in the millennium. s. Prior to this, in 1829, Rigdon had converted Parley Pratt. and moved to New York state. (1) By the summer of 1830, Pratt decided to preach, so he sold his farm (2) In Newark, New York, he came in contact with The Book of Mormon and the teaching of Joseph Smith. (3) He was convinced and was baptized into the Mormon religion. (4) Excited about his new faith, he wanted to return and tell his family and friends, one of which was Sidney Rigdon. missionaries to the Indians. (5) Joseph Smith commissioned Pratt and three other men as (6) They arrived at Rigdon s house in October of would read their book. (a) Sidney said that he would not argue with them, but that he 119

120 (b) They did receive permission to speak to the congregation and Rigdon told the members to prove all things and not to discount what was said until they had given it appropriate consideration. (7) Rigdon studied The Book of Mormon and was impressed by it, but he would not accept it unless God gave him a sign, which Rigdon claimed He did. November 30, (8) He and his wife were baptized into the Mormon religion on t. When Campbell heard of Rigdon s conversion, he said: He who sets out to find signs and omens will soon find enough of them. He that expects visits from angels will find them as abundant as he who in the age of witchcraft found a witch in every unseemly old woman. u. Twenty-four year old Joseph Smith said that God had given him a vision for thirty-seven year old Sidney Rigdon: (1) Behold, verily, verily I say unto my servant Sidney, I have looked upon thee and thy works. I have heard thy prayers and prepared thee for a greater work. (2) Thou art blessed, for thou shalt do great things. Behold, thou wast sent forth even as John, to prepare the way before me, and before Elijah which should come, and thou knew it not. (3) Thou didst baptize by water unto repentance, but they received not the Holy Ghost; but now I give unto thee a commandment, that thou shalt baptize by water, and they shall receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, even as the apostles of old. v. After Rigdon denounced the Disciples, Walter Scott said Sidney told him at a school house meeting that his preaching for the last two years has been to tickle the ears of the listeners and had not been to impact their hearts. w. Thomas Campbell tried to get Rigdon to engage in a debate, but he refused, thus completely ending Rigdon s relationship with the restoration movement. 11. Walter Scott ( ). 120

121 Mays Lick, Kentucky. a. After touring Shakertown, the Trip Into History tour visited the small town of b. At the cemetery, J.M. Powell stood at the grave of Walter Scott, the man of the golden oracle, and related the following: (1) His mother was Mary Innis Scott. His father was John Scott. (a) They were accomplished musicians. concerts in Edinburgh. business. (b) Walter was an accomplished flutist and he often gave (c) On one occasion, John Scott went to another town on (d) While he was there, he had a heart attack and died. (e) When the news reached his wife, Mary Innis Scott, the mother of Walter, she was so shocked that she had a heart attack and died immediately, and the two of them were buried in a common tomb. (2) Walter Scott enrolled in the University of Edinburgh, and after four years he graduated with honors as a classical scholar. Innis, the brother of his mother. (a) He had an uncle living in New York. His name was George (b) His uncle wrote Walter to come to the new world, and on May 9, 1818, Walter landed in New York. (c) He was a young man just out of college. Institute on Jamaica, Long Island. (d) He applied for a position as a teacher in the Classical (e) He taught Latin for the school year, and then he and another young man of the same age walked all the way from New York City to Pittsburg. George Forrester. (3) In Pittsburg, he came to know a fellow countryman by the name of (a) Now George Forrester was operating a classical school and also preaching for a little church in Pittsburg. (b) In Scotland, he had come under the influence of the Haldane brothers, and George Forrester was attempting to restore new testament Christianity. 121

122 (c) By day, the two young men taught in Forrester s academy. By night, they studied the Bible together. (d) It wasn t long until Walter decided that he had not been scripturally baptized, and he asked George to immerse him according to the teaching of the new testament. (4) Scott and Campbell met for the first time when Scott was twentysix and Campbell was some years older. (a) They met in Pittsburg. (b) They were made for each other, and without the other, the restoration movement would have never accomplished what it did. (c) They were alike in many ways. - They were alike in that they both loved the Bible. men. - They loved the Lord, and they loved the souls of (f) They weren t alike in some ways. - Physically, they were unalike. - Campbell was a strong, muscular man. - Walter Scott was weak, physically, of slight build. - Campbell never disappointed an audience. - He was always great as a speaker. moved; he never used gestures. - He always spoke in a conversational tone; he never - He appealed to the intellect, to the head of man. the people. despondent. - On the other hand, Walter Scott often disappointed - He was often blue and discouraged, and - He often made flat failures as a preacher, and yet, at times when Walter Scott was at his best, he could reach such heights of eloquence, the like of which Campbell could never reach at his greatest. 122

123 - On one occasion, Scott was holding a meeting, open air meeting, between Wheeling, West Virginia, and Wellsburg, West Virginia.. - Campbell was present. - A large gathering was there. - Scott was at his best. - He was preaching on his favorite subject of redemption and during the sermon, he reached great heights of eloquence to the extent that he literally moved people out of their seats. - Of a sudden, Campbell s eyes flashed, his face glowed, he stood to his feet, and he shouted in a firm voice, glory to God in the highest. - He was not aware of what he had done. Scott. movement. - He had been so moved by the eloquence of Walter (5) Walter Scott added a new dimension to the restoration (a) It was Walter who discovered that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were designed principally to prove the deity of Jesus Christ. Messiahship of Jesus. (b) It was Walter Scott who put a new emphasis on the (c) He said that this was the central theme of the Bible, the old testament in prophecy, the new testament in reality. (d) He said the faith of a Christian could be summed up in four words: Jesus Christ, God s Son, and this he referred to as the golden oracle. (e) It became a favorite subject topic of his, and people often referred to him as the man of the golden oracle. (f) It was Walter Scott who introduced the five finger exercise of preaching based upon Acts 2:38: faith, repentance, baptism, remission, and the gift of the Holy Spirit. (g) He made a five-fold application of these five points: that faith destroys the love of sin, repentance destroys the practice of sin, baptism destroys the state of sin, remission destroys the guilt of sin, and the gift of the Holy Spirit destroys the power of sin. (6) Walter Scott added many other things to restoration preaching. 123

124 salvation. (a) It was Walter who first used the term the gospel plan of (b) And, this man was the first to preach baptism for the remission of sin, and the first one to baptize an individual for that purpose. - This was on November 18, 1827, in New Lisbon, Ohio, in the Western Reserve, as we know it in church history. - The name of this individual was William Amend. - He had been searching for the truth, he had read Acts 2:38, and he said: If I ever hear a man preach it just like it s revealed in the new testament, I m going to ask him to baptize me for the remission of my sin. street. - And according to tradition, he was passing down the - Walter Scott was preaching. - He was extending the gospel invitation and he called upon people in the audience to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sin. - William Amend heard him. - He walked in the building, never stopped until he got to the spot where Walter Scott was standing, and at the proper moment, he said: Mr. Scott, I want to be baptized for the remission of sin. (7) Scott and Campbell were warm friends. (a) Scott often visited in the Campbell mansion and they studied the Bible together and they prayed together. principles involved in this movement. (b) They talked about the restoration movement and the fired. (8) At 4:30 o clock on April 12, 1861, the first shot of the Civil War was heard this report, it broke his heart. (a) Walter Scott was living here in Mays Lick, and when he (b) It grieved his spirit. (c) He could not see how brother could be fighting against brother, shooting brother, and he thought about the restoration movement and the great success that preachers of the gospel were having. 124

125 (d) What s going to become of this great work of the Lord? (e) It literally made him sick, put him to bed, and on April 23, 1861, in his 65 th year, Walter Scott died. the next day. service. (f) His remains were brought to this spot, and he was buried (g) L.P. Streeter and John Rogers officiated at the funeral (h) Streeter wrote Mr. Campbell a letter telling him of the decease of his friend and co-laborer, Walter Scott, and in the next issue of the Millennial Harbinger, Campbell wrote a beautiful tribute to Walter Scott. (i) And among other things, he said this: Next to my father, he was my most cordial and indefatigable co-laborer in the origin and progress of the current reformation. I knew him well. I knew him long. I loved him much. And by the eye of faith and the eye of hope, methinks I see him in Abraham s bosom. 12. Aylette Rains ( ). a. Aylette Rains was born in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, on January 22, priest. b. His family had him sprinkled (christened) when he was four by an Episcopal 125

126 c. His religious training came from his mother. His father spent the last forty years of his life as a Deist. He believed that God existed and created everything, but that was all. d. When he was eighteen, he read Age of Reason by Thomas Paine and turned toward Deism and Universalism. He believed that all would eventually be raised up in righteousness after they died regardless of whether or not they died in sin. This belief was also called restorationism. e. Aylette Rains went into the Western Reserve of Ohio to preach restorationism and heard about Walter Scott. (1) He went to hear him with the intent of challenging his teaching. (2) After hearing him preach, he could find nothing wrong with what he said, so he didn t open his mouth. f. Rains went to see his friend and fellow preacher of restorationism and told him about what he heard from Walter Scott. g. They spent days discussing Walter Scott s sermon and studying the Bible. h. The result was that they went to a nearby lake and baptized each other. i. Subsequently, they considered themselves members of the church of Christ. j. Some of the members of the Mahoning Association did not want to fellowship Rains because of his restorationism views, but Walter Scott, Thomas Campbell, and Alexander Campbell spoke on his behalf and it was agreed to accept him if he kept his views as opinion only. j. It took a while, but in 1830, Rains wrote Alexander Campbell that restorationism had been erased from his mind by the study of the new testament. k. He married Sarah Ann Cole in 1833 and moved to Paris, Kentucky. l. After their house burned in 1862, they moved to Eminence, Kentucky, to live with their only daughter, Lizzie. m. He preached for many years until his death on September 7, Philip S. Fall ( ). 126

127 England. Kentucky. family. Louisville, Kentucky. a. He was the oldest of twelve children, born in September, 1798, in Keloedon, b. They moved to the United States in 1817 and settled near Russellville, c. His parents both died when he was nineteen and he became the head of the d. Having a good education himself, he established an academy in 1818 near e. Since he had been a Baptist in England, he united with the Baptist Church in America, also in He was ordained as a preacher in f. In 1821, he married Annie Bacon and began preaching in Louisville, Kentucky. g. In 1824, he read the writings of Alexander Campbell and decided to follow the new testament only, leading his congregation in that same direction, and putting away Baptist creed. Baptist Church in testament. h. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1825 and began preaching for the (1) Before he accepted the position, he told them his views on the new (2) They agreed and soon, with few exceptions, also accepted his views. 127

128 (3) He stayed with the Baptist Church in Nashville until 1831 when he became ill and returned to Kentucky. i. After Fall left, there was a lot of dissention among the members and the membership dropped to twenty-five. j. They asked him to return in 1858 and he restored peace and built the membership up to over six hundred by 1877 when he had to retire because of age and infirmities. k. He returned to Kentucky and did some preaching and writing as he was able until his death on December 3, Jacob Creath, Jr. ( ). preacher. the two. Greek grammar. a. He was born January 17, 1799, in Mecklenburg, Virginia, the son of a Baptist b. He was named Jacob after his uncle and was called Jr. to distinguish between c. He was a good student of the new testament and also studied Latin and d. From his study of the new testament, he knew that he must be born again, but he didn t know how that was to be accomplished. e. In 1817, he was baptized by his father and became a Baptist. He was ordained to preach in

129 f. He studied Latin, Greek, English, and Theology at the University of North Carolina through the fall of In November 1821, he became a student at Columbia College in Washington, D.C. until December g. After his education was complete, he preached in Kentucky until October At that time, he and his cousin, son of Jacob Creath, Sr., went to Nashville and stayed several days at the Hermitage, home of General Andrew Jackson (three years before Jackson became president). h. Then he went on a preaching tour of the South and into Louisiana where he received considerable opposition from the Presbyterians, Methodists, and Episcopalians. i. He was in New Orleans in the fall of 1827 and became ill. He recovered in early 1828 and returned to Kentucky. j. His preaching against human creeds caused him trouble among the Baptists and he and his anti-creed brethren had to meet separately. After about two years, they began to take the Lord s supper weekly. k. A representative of the Great Crossing Baptist Church in Scott County, Kentucky, sent Creath a letter wanting him to appear before them and give his views on how a sinner is born again. before Agrippa and Festus. treated Jacob Creath, Jr. (1) When he appeared before them, he read from Acts Paul s defense (2) John T. Johnson was there and was upset over the way the Baptists (3) Johnson said that the mistreatment of Creath played a big role in his becoming a part of the restoration movement. l. Later, Creath and his uncle visited in the home of a friend and met Raccoon John Smith, who shared his similar beliefs. m. In 1830, the Elkhorn Baptist Association and the Frankfort Association both met to charge Jacob Creath, Sr., Jacob Creath, Jr., and John Smith with failing to teach Baptist doctrine and teaching that God s word is the infallible rule of faith and practice. n. They wouldn t allow the accused to defend themselves and one man present who is said to have been one of the wickedest men in Kentucky said that the Baptists were worse than the Spanish inquisition. o. In 1831, Creath married Susan Bedford. p. They moved to Missouri in 1839 and Susan died in q. He continued to preach in Missouri and surrounding states and, while preaching in Bowling Green, Kentucky, he met Prudence Rogers, who became his wife in

130 r. He was steadfast in what he believed and was a strong opponent of missionary societies and human creeds. s. Jacob Creath, Jr., died January 9, 1886, in Palmyra, Missouri. 15. Robert Richardson ( ). a. Robert Richardson was born in 1806 in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and grew up in an Episcopalian family. b. Walter Scott tutored him at his home and was a great influence on is life. c. In 1827, he received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. d. Richardson was baptized for the remission of his sins by Walter Scott in e. He was associated with Bethany College and Alexander Campbell for many years and is probably best known for editing the memoirs of Alexander Campbell. f. He died in 1876 and was buried a short distance from the Campbell s. 16. Tolbert Fanning ( ). 130

131 a. Tolbert Fanning was born in Cannon County, Tennessee, May 10, b. The family moved to Lauderdale County, Alabama, in c. In 1826, he heard a young preacher speak about obeying the gospel to obtain salvation. Fanning responded to the invitation and was baptized for the forgiveness of his sins the next morning in Cypress Creek. d. Within three years, he was preaching occasionally. e. In 1830, he was in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and saw a Christian man sell a Christian slave. He was strongly against slavery and spoke against it during his sermon for the East Main Street church. His sermon so angered the members that they said that he would never speak for them again. baptism. f. In 1831, he debated a Presbyterian preacher in Nashville on the subject of g. He moved to Nashville in January 1832 and received his law degree from the University of Nashville in h. That summer, he travelled through Kentucky with Alexander Campbell and married Sarah Shreve. She became seriously ill within three days and died twelve days later. Fall. i. In 1836, he married Charlotte Fall, an English born girl and sister of Philip S. j. They were both interested in young people and conducted a female academy in Franklin, Tennessee, from 1837 to

132 k. They started another female academy in southeast Nashville in 1840 that continued for two years. l. In 1843, they started a boys agricultural school where the students could pay for their education by farming. m. The Fanning s are best known in their education endeavors by their establishment of Franklin College in n. Tolbert Fanning edited The Christian Review from 1844 to 1847 and then began the Gospel Advocate in o. In the spring of 1874, Fanning was gored by a prize bull and died that May. 17. L.L. Pinkerton ( ). College. a. The Trip Into History tour visited Midway, Kentucky, the home of Midway b. According to an article by Ladell J. Futch in the Rural Kentuckian Magazine, Volume 28, No. 2, Midway College was established in 1847 by Dr. Lewis Letig Pinkerton. Continuing, it said: (1) At that time, only the wealthy could afford formal education for their children. Available public education was concentrated primarily at the college level. The general population was more or less on its own to provide elementary education for its young people. There were also many who believed it was a waste of time and effort to provide formal education for young girls. That was also a time when there were relatively large numbers of orphans. In such time, it was almost impossible for an orphan girl to receive any education or training to prepare her for a full life. three-fold purpose: (2) Dr. Pinkerton established the school at Midway, Kentucky, with a (a) Clothe, feed, and educate orphan girls. 132

133 (b) Teach them to be self-supporting. and public schools of that day. (c) Create a supply of efficient teachers for the subscription (3) The school was chartered in 1847 as Kentucky Female Orphan School. It was never intended to be an orphanage or orphan asylum. It was a school for orphan girls. (4) From its beginning, the school has been rather loosely connected to the Christian church. In a letter to Dr. Alexander Campbell in 1840, Dr. Pinkerton explained his dream for the school. He said that it was not his intention to make the brethren responsible for its failure, but if it succeeded, the churches of Christ shall have the credit. (5) In 1875, the Christian churches in Kentucky officially accepted primary responsibility for the school. However, it is not a sectarian school. Complete control of the school is with a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees which is, according to a recent brochure, dedicated to the continuance of the unique function of serving young womanhood in a Christian atmosphere. It has an interdenominational staff and student body. c. The church in Midway was reported to be the first among the churches of Christ in America to use an instrument of music in worship to God. d. As any casual student of restoration history knows, the introduction of the musical instrument as a means of worshipping God was one of the major contributors to brotherhood division. e. The following account was taken from an article by Mrs. A.P. Bryan in The Lexington Herald, Sunday, April 10, (1) The first musical instrument ever played in any church of Disciples of Christ an antique melodeon which almost caused a rift in the Christian church ranks when it was introduced at the services of the Midway house of worship almost 115 years ago occupies a position of honor at Midway College today. (2 The melodeon, according to Woodford County historians, was placed in the old Midway Christian church by Dr. L.L. Pinkerton, one of the founders of the school, about 1860, at the time when churches questioned the use of musical instruments in worship. (3) A spirited controversy resulted among members of the church, and Dr. Pinkerton s act was denounced in an article published in a Cincinnati newspaper in (4) Dr. Pinkerton, then pastor of the Midway church had Thompson Parrish, son of James Ware Parrish, one of the co-founders of the girls school, play the melodeon at his service. (5) Early history of the instrument was recalled when the business director of the orphan school found a reference to it in some old files. 133

134 (6 The Rev. Mark Collis, pastor emeritus of the Broadway Christian Church in Lexington and a trustee of the school for almost 50 years, recollected a story of the melodeon told him by John S. Shouse, former trustee and the father of Jouett Shouse of Washington. (7) According to the story, the melodeon caused so much trouble in the Midway church that Adam Hibler, an elder of the church, removed the instrument of Satan from the church late one night with the assistance of a Negro servant, Rueben, who passed it out to his master through a window. (8) History of the melodeon for the ensuing period is obscure, but it was located comparatively recently by John Rogers, a Midway historian. (a) He found it in the possession of Misses Mary and Elizabeth Nugent, who lived at the Versailles-Midway Pike and Old Frankfort Pike intersection at Nugent s Crossroads. (b) They inherited the old instrument from their father, James Nugent, who had been a friend of Mr. Hibler s. (c) Whether the melodeon was given to him or he purchased the melodeon at a sale for $1.65, as reported by some members of his family, is not known. (9) School authorities, however, were satisfied that the melodeon in the Nugent home was the original instrument of Satan removed from the old Midway church in the middle of the night, and James Ware Parrish II, Midway capitalist and horseman, became interested in the melodeon and its history. (10) Mr. Parrish was the son of the Thompson Parrish who played the instrument at the first church services, and donated the money necessary for the purchase of the antique instrument for the orphan school. (11) Since its discovery and acquisition by Midway College, the melodeon has been exhibited and played at five Christian church conventions, four of them State gatherings and the international assembly. The instrument has attracted interest wherever it has been exhibited. 18. Benjamin Franklin ( ). 134

135 a. Ben Franklin was born February 1, 1812, in what is now Belmont County, Ohio, opposite from Wheeling, West Virginia. b. He was a fourth generation descendent of the brother of the famous philosopher, Dr. Ben Franklin. c. The Franklins were Methodists, but there was not a Methodist church in their area. Ben never became a member. d. In 1834, Samuel Rogers, from Kentucky, moved near the Franklins. (1) He began to preach in a school house and caused quite a stir among his listeners who accused him of being a Campbellite. (2) Consequently, they were effective in having the school house offlimits for his preaching. e. Ben s father was prejudiced against Rogers teaching also, but he stood up for his friend and neighbor. f. Soon, many of the Franklins, including Ben, were baptized. evangelist. thousand to Christ. g. Ben immediately began to preach and was not only a preacher, but an h. Although he kept no records, some say that he brought about seven i. He also became the editor of a number of Christian papers. 135

136 j. Ben Franklin died on October 22, Robert Milligan ( ). a. He was born in Ireland on July 25, b. In 1818, the family moved to Ohio. c. In 1837, he opened a school in Flat Rock, Kentucky, d, Having become a member of the Presbyterian Church when he was twentyone, he studied the new testament in the Greek and was baptized into Christ in 1838 by and elder of the Cane Ridge church of Christ. e. He obtained a college education and taught in various places for a number of years, finally accepting the chair of mathematics and astronomy at Bethany College in f. In 1857, he became the co-editor of the Millennial Harbinger. Kentucky. as president. g. In May 1857, he was elected president of Bacon College in Harrodsburg, (1) It was changed to Kentucky University in 1859, with Robert Milligan (2) The college buildings burned in 1864 and the school was moved to Lexington and had full university status in (3) Robert Milligan resigned as president and was made head of the College of the Bible until his death on March 20, (4) One of the professors in the Bible College was J.W. McGarvey. 20. W.K. Pendleton (( ). 136

137 a. W.K. Pendleton was born to Virginia aristocrats in Virginia. b. He was well educated, finally receiving a degree from the University of c. While he was still an infant, the family moved to a house that had been built by his great-grandfather. The house was called Cuckoo. d. His parents and brother read the writings of Alexander Campbell and, two years before W.K. Pendleton entered the university, they were baptized. e. Pendleton, while pursuing his studies of the law, also continued to read Campbell s writings, studied the Bible, and sought religious truth. f. Alexander Campbell travelled a good bit preaching the gospel and came to Charlottesville, Virginia, in He also had his daughter, Lavina, with him. Pendleton was sick at the time and was not able to hear Campbell, but some boys who did came to visit him and joked with him of her beauty. (1) Pendleton joked back and said that he would be well soon and would meet Lavina and beat them all out. (2) He left the university in 1840 and went back home. (3) He heard Campbell preach and was baptized. (4) Meanwhile, he had met and fallen in love with Lavina and they married on October 14, 1840, at the Campbell mansion. 137

138 g. He was now torn between politics and working with his father-in-law. h. In 1840, he had been named a delegate to the Young Men s National Ratification Committee that was going to endorse Harrison and Tyler as leaders on the party ticket. He also met and heard Daniel Webster and Henry Clay. College in i. He listened to Campbell and moved to Bethany for the opening of Bethany j. Pendleton and Robert Richardson were teachers in the physical sciences. k. In 1845, he was made vice president of the college. l. Lavina was ill and passed away at twenty-nine in May m. Besides his work at the College, Pendleton had been made co-editor of the Millennial Harbinger and he too was in failing health. (1) He saw a doctor who said that he needed a sea voyage, so after Lavina s death, he sailed to England. and a Mr. and Mrs. Semple. (2) He was accompanied by another of Campbell s daughters, Clarinda, n. He married Clarinda in the summer of 1848 and she died in o. He married again in p. In 1864, Campbell was getting more feeble and turned the editorship of the paper over to Pendleton. College. q. After Campbell s death in 1866, Pendleton was made president of Bethany r. His college duties became too great to continue the paper; so, in 1870, the Millennial Harbinger ceased. s. Pendleton was getting older and less able to handle the duties required of a college president, so he resigned in 1884 and moved to Florida in t. He was on a trip back to Bethany on September 1, 1899, when he died. 21. Jesse Londerman Sewell ( ). 138

139 man of one book. a. Jesse Sewell studied one book, the Bible, all of his life and was known as the b. David Lipscomb told of a debate that was to be held in Flat Creek, Tennessee, between Dr. Brents and Dr. Ditzler. (1) Dr. Brents, for the Lord s church, became ill the morning of the debate and could not participate. (2) David Lipscomb and the other preachers were deciding what to do. being afraid. (3) If they delayed or canceled, the opposition would accuse them of (4) There was no time for extra preparation, but they looked among the preachers there and chose the man of one book, Jesse Sewell. (5) The next day, Dr. Brents was able to continue. c. Jesse grew up in Overton County, Tennessee, really in the backwoods. d. His formal education was equivalent to that of the third or fourth grade. the area. e. His background was Baptist, because that was the predominant religion of 139

140 (1) The Baptist of that time thought that you had to have a special calling to be a Baptist and to preach. to tell them what to say. (2) Consequently, they didn t use the Bible because they relied on God (3) Sometimes they would begin by saying that they didn t know what they would say, but that God would provide the words. (4) One time he was riding his horse to the place where he was to preach and another preacher came upon him from a side road. that Jesse had a Bible with him. (a) As they were riding together, the other preacher noticed (b) The other preacher told Jesse that he was sorry to see that he had his Bible because people might think that he got his sermons from it. f. In February, 1842, he was charged with preaching faith, repentance, and baptism, and turned out of the church. g. As a result, he and his wife decided to take a year off and study the Bible to see if they were wrong. h. After the year, they decided that they were correct to teach only what the Bible said, so they called their neighbors together in a community schoolhouse and Jesse preached to them his first sermons based on being members of nothing except what the Lord had added them to. i. That was on Wolf River in Overton County, Tennessee. j. David Lipscomb said that Jesse Sewell passed from side to side during the Civil War, preaching to those on the north and those on the south to 10,000 people. k. It is said that he baptized twenty-six denominational preachers and, in total, l. The last Sunday in June 1890, he attended the assembly of the church, came home, did some chores, and sat down on the porch. When his wife came out to check on him, he had passed on. 22. Moses Lard ( ). 140

141 a. He was born in Bedford County, Tennessee, October 29, find work. write. began to preach. b. The family moved to Missouri in 1829 and his father died of smallpox in c. His mother was very poor and Moses and his brother had to leave home to d. He became an apprentice to a tailor in 1835 and taught himself to read and e. He read the writings of Walter Scott and was baptized in Then he f. Lard married in 1842 and, with the help of friends, entered Bethany College in He graduated with honors in g. After graduating, he returned to Missouri to preach, but came back to Bethany College for the 1853/1854 school year to obtain a Master of Arts degree. broke out. h. Again he returned to Missouri to preach and was there when the Civil War (1) The state was divided on the issues and Moses remained neutral. (2) The state required that all clergy take a Missouri Test Oath giving their allegiance to the union. This caused great difficulty for Moses and he moved to Georgetown, Kentucky in i. He began Lard s Quarterly that same year. (1) His style was that of the period, with long and complex sentences, but his thoughts were profound. 141

142 (2) He was basically serious, but did occasionally include humor in his writings. He once wrote: Brawley was clearly called and sent; but for what purpose heaven never informed the world, and the world never found out. He never bored an audience except when he made a speech, nor delighted one except when he kept silent. (3) He wrote against instrumental music in the assembly and creeds, and said that the terms Christian Church and church of Christ were used interchangeably, but Christian Church is not Biblical, and church of Christ is. (4) it was five volumes ( ). (5) The paper was discontinued because of financial problems. j. He was despondent over the war and moved to Canada in the summer of 1864, but came back to Lexington, Kentucky, in k. He continued his preaching and writing Lexington, Kentucky, in (1) He joined four other preachers in publishing the Apostolic Times in (2) Lard became the preacher and an elder of the Main Street church in (3) He completed his commentary on Romans in l. Lard died of cancer in June Jesse B. Ferguson ( ). 142

143 1819. a. Jesse Babcock Ferguson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 19, b. Shortly thereafter, the family moved to the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. c. He had planned to attend William and Mary College like his older brothers, but his father s financial setbacks precluded such and, in 1833, he became a printer s helper in a newspaper office instead. shop. d. The newspaper failed in 1834 and he went to Baltimore to work in a print e. During that same year, he developed an inflammation of the tibia bone in his leg and it affected him the rest of his life. f. In 1835, he went to work for his brother, who became an editor of a paper in Virginia, and completed his studies in Latin and Greek. g. He opened a school in 1836, married in 1837, and was baptized in himself. h. He became a popular preacher in Kentucky and began to think highly of i. In 1842, the church in Nashville invited Ferguson to preach in a series of meetings, which he did with great success. Afterwards, the church wanted him to work with them full time, but he declined. j. He went back for another successful meeting in 1844 and was again asked to work with the church in Nashville. Again, he declined. k. The church continued to request that he move to Nashville, until he finally accepted in 1846 for one year, leaving his family in Kentucky. years. l. In 1847, he moved his family to Nashville and worked with the church for five m. In 1852, he espoused a false teaching that was printed in Christian Magazine and contended that all "whose place of birth and external circumstances prevented the hearing of the gospel in life would not be condemned without hearing it." (1) He based his teaching on 1 Peter 3:19: By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison. (2) This scripture refers to Christ going into paradise and preaching to the saints there after his death and before his resurrection. (3) Alexander Campbell exposed his erroneous teaching and made Ferguson very angry that anyone would disagree with him. 143

144 n. Finally, Ferguson went into Universalism and spiritualism and took many with him, the result of listening to man instead of the word of God. o. It was said that he "rose to such a height in the estimation of his hearers, and especially his own, that his head became giddy, and, being no longer able to preserve his religious equilibrium, he was precipitated doctrinally into the region of departed spirits, where he immediately attempted to immortalize himself by new discoveries." p. The church in Nashville was devastated and the few faithful members went to court to get their building back. They were successful, but a few days later the building was burned. r. Jesse B. Ferguson died in obscurity in Nashville on September 3, s. After his passing, David Lipscomb wrote: It may be a matter of sad interest to our readers to know the fate of this once honored but erratic man. He was the most popular preacher in the Southern country at one time. He was almost worshiped by his admirers in this city, where he ministered as preacher of the church of Christ. He had not that humility of soul and strength of character to stand flattery and adulation heaped upon him. He apostatized from the faith and adopted latitudinarian views in his faith and with reference to morality. He attempted to build up a congregation of adherents on his loose views. He failed, turned politician, veered to different points of the compass as the popular winds seemed to blow. He lost respect of all parties here. Once no citizen of Nashville but felt it an honor to be recognized by him. In later years he was scarcely recognized by his former acquaintances even of the world when met on the streets. The contrast was too painful to be borne by one so ambitious of popular applause as he. So, although his family resided in the vicinity, of late years he was seldom upon the streets of Nashville... He died on Saturday, September 3, On Lord's day he was buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery. The funeral services were performed by Dr. Baird, of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. 24. Isaac Errett ( ). 144

145 a. He was born in New York City on January 2, b. His parents were baptized into Christ around Pennsylvania. c. His father died in 1826 and his mother moved soon thereafter to Pittsburg, d. Errett was baptized in e. He became a diligent student of God s word and began preaching in f. He had frequent contact with Walter Scott, Thomas Campbell, and Alexander Campbell, among other restoration preachers. the Christian Standard. g. He was not only a preacher and evangelist, but the founder and publisher of h. There was some controversy about him. He favored missionary societies and considered instrumental music in the assembly to be a matter of opinion. i. Errett passed away in John William McGarvey ( ). a. He was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, March 1, b. His father died in 1833 and his mother remarried. c. The family moved to Tremont, Illinois, in Pendleton in d. In 1847, McGarvey entered Bethany College where he was baptized by W.K. 145

146 e. Afterwards, he decided that he was going to devote his life to preaching the gospel and graduated with honors in f. His family had moved to Fayette, Missouri, while he was at college, so after he graduated, he went to Fayette and taught in a male school. g. His step-father died in 1851 and he gave up his teaching job to preach for the church in Fayette and others in neighboring counties. h. He moved to Dover, Missouri in 1853 and was married. meetings throughout the state. (1) He spent about half his time in Dover and the other half holding (2) He also held five public debates. i. In 1862, he moved to Lexington, Kentucky, to work with the church there and spent three and one-half years writing his acclaimed commentary on Acts and gaining a reputation as a Bible scholar. j. When Kentucky University moved to Lexington in 1865, he accepted a chair in the College of the Bible. k. Another work of McGarvey was Lands of the Bible, published in l. He was against instrumental music in the assembly, but considered missionary societies to be a matter of expediency. m. He died in 1911 in Lexington. 26. William Lipscomb ( ). 146

147 a. He was born July 20, 1829, in Franklin County, Tennessee. b. Lipscomb was baptized in 1846, graduated from Franklin College in July 1847, and began teaching languages at the college that same year. c. His younger brother, of course, was David Lipscomb. d. William and Tolbert Fanning founded the Gospel Advocate about the middle of 1855 and continued its publication until the Civil War caused it to be discontinued. e. He was a scholar, writer, preacher, and teacher. 27. David Lipscomb ( ). a. David Lipscomb was born on Bean s Creek in the Old Salem Community in Franklin County, Tennessee, January 21, b. He and his brother William entered Franklin College in January (1) He was greatly influenced by Tolbert Fanning who baptized him in a watering trough during the summer of (2) He graduated from Franklin College in October c. He managed a large plantation in Georgia until the fall of 1851 when he returned to Franklin County, Tennessee. By the end of the year, he was living with his brother, William, in Nashville. d. He preached his first sermon near the end of e. Much of 1857 was spent preaching around McMinnville, Tennessee, but he then bought a farm with William in Davidson County. 147

148 f. From 1858 to 1861, he preached mostly in central Tennessee and around Nashville. Two significant things happened during this time. (1) The Civil War broke out. (2) The Gospel Advocate had to discontinue publication because of no mail service and the lack of paper products. g. In July 1862, he married Margaret Zellner. In September 1863, they had a son, but he died at nine months from dehydration caused by teething. h. During the winter of 1862/1863, he taught school in Lawrenceburg. Then he opened a school in Eagle Mills with eight students. spring of editor. i. They moved to a farm in Nashville early in 1864 and the war ended in the j. In January 1866, the Gospel Advocate was revived with David Lipscomb as the (1) Philip S. Fall became a contributing editor in January (2) E. G. Sewell became associate editor in September k. James A. Garfield was nominated as the presidential candidate for the Republicans in June David Lipscomb was very disappointed because he was against Christians being involved in civil matters. Garfield was elected president, but was assassinated in September l. In 1883, the Lipscomb s bought an 110 acre farm, Avalon, on Granny White Pike, moved there the next year, and resided there the rest of their lives. m. In 1885, J.C. McQuiddy joined the editorial staff of Gospel Advocate as office and managing editor. E.A. Elam began contributing articles and became front page editor. Granville, younger half-brother of Lipscomb, was hired to edit International Bible school lessons. n. In 1887, Granville wrote Sunday school material called Little Jewels, which started the Gospel Advocate in the business of providing Sunday school materials. o. In the fall of 1889, F.D. Srygley became an editor of the Gospel Advocate. p. On October 5, 1891, the Nashville Bible School was established on Fillmore Street with nine students. The faculty consisted of Lipscomb, his brother William, and James A. Harding. Lipscomb later wrote, "I have found more satisfaction in teaching the Bible to the young men and women at school than in any work of my life." q. In the fall of 1893, the Nashville Bible School had its first permanent location at the corner of South Spruce and Olympic Streets. It stayed there through the Spring of 1903 when the campus moved to Avalon, the present location of Lipscomb University. 148

149 r. In 1899, a division among Nashville churches was complete. a. Lipscomb was against and had written against the use of instrumental music in the assembly and the organization of missionary societies. b. There was a definite split between those who held to the new testament and those who added man-made practices. Spring of s. Jesse P. Sewell was added to the editorial staff of Gospel Advocate in the t. The 1906 census recognized the difference between the churches of Christ and the Disciples of Christ. u. David Lipscomb died on November 11, 1917, days after a paralyzing stroke. Lipscomb College. v. In 1918, the Nashville Bible School was officially recognized as David 28. James A. Garfield ( ). a. Garfield was born November 19, 1831, in Orange, Ohio. b. He was baptized March 4,

150 began to preach. c. He was a student and teacher at Hiram, Ohio, from 1852 to 1854, and also d. He entered Williams College in 1854 and graduated in e. Garfield was elected to the Ohio Senate in 1859, joined the Union Army in 1861, and was commissioned a Brigadier General on January 10, f. He was elected to Congress in October g. He was promoted to Major General September 18, Army was in Alabama. h. It is said that he preached for the Mooresville church once when the Union i. He was elected United States Senator from Ohio in January 1880, nominated for president in June 1880, and elected president November 2, September 19, j. He was inaugurated March 4, 1881, shot by an assassin July 2, 1881, and died k. It is also reported that he once said that he gave up the greater job of being an elder in the Lord s church to take a lesser job as President of the United States. 29. J.M. Barnes ( ). 10, a. Justice McDuffie Barnes was born in Montgomery County, Alabama, February 150

151 b. J.M. Barnes attended Bethany College and studied under Alexander Campbell from 1854 to c. After returning home from Bethany, he established Strata Academy for elementary and secondary education on his father s plantation in south Alabama. d. The school moved to Highland Home, Alabama, in 1881, and became Highland Home College in e. He moved to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1898 and established Barnes School for secondary education. It remained in operation until Barnes provided a free education for anyone who wanted to be a preacher. f. He inherited his father s plantation in 1861 and began preaching in1862, travelling all over Alabama and the south. Montgomery. g. He was instrumental in churches being established in Birmingham and h. Since he had wealth from his plantation, he could preach if needed without compensation. It is said that he never received more than $300 in a year for his many evangelistic efforts. i. During the Trip Into History, H. Leo Boles was quoted as saying: There has been but one J.M. Barnes. He imitated no man s style of preaching and no one could copy his style. He preached with earnestness and fervor. He was logical in his arguments, convincing in his reasoning and dramatic in his effect. He took the Bible as his only rule of faith and practice and the source of all spiritual truths. He found in it a rich supply of illustration. He needed no other book or literature, but his material came from the Bible. He used no other except the English Bible. His lessons were presented with such clearness and simplicity that even children could understand him. Late in his life, he came to the Nashville Bible School, Nashville, Tennessee, now David Lipscomb College, for a meeting. The writer of this sketch was off at a regular appointment when brother Barnes came and began a meeting on Sunday. He came in on Monday afternoon, and brother Barnes had a brief conversation with him. That night in the chapel auditorium, brother Barnes was preaching in his usual unique way. He had been preaching about twenty minutes and he looked down and said: brother Boles did you pray for this meeting before coming here tonight? The reply was no. Brother Barnes stopped and said: let us all kneel while brother Boles leads us in a word of prayer for this meeting. j. J.M. Barnes was the uncle of J.M. Powell s wife. 30. T.B. Larimore ( ). 151

152 a. He was born July 10, 1843 in east Tennessee. b. While young, he worked on a farm and attended school only about ten to twelve weeks a year, but he studied hard and enrolled in Mossy Creek Baptist College at the age of sixteen. (1) He wanted an education so much that he walked to the college, covering forty miles the first day. not able to attain it. (2) While there, he tried to get religion like the Baptist taught, but was (3) Instead, he was determined to live right and honor God all of his life. for the duration. c. When the Civil War broke out, he joined the Confederate Army and stayed d. He obeyed the gospel in 1864 and began preaching in e. In 1866, he also entered Franklin College, studied under Tolbert Fanning, and graduated with honors in f. After graduating, he preached in north Alabama. Then he preached in west Tennessee and returned to north Alabama in 1871, establishing Mars Hill Academy in Florence. Later, the name was changed to Mars Hill College. extensively. g. He closed the college in 1887 and dedicated his life to preaching, travelling h. His mode of preaching was twice every day and three times every Sunday. 152

153 i. He died March 18, 1929, in Santa Ana, California. 31. James A. Harding ( ). a. He was born in Winchester, Kentucky, March 16, b. His father, James W. Harding, was a gospel preacher. Moses Lard. c. He was baptized at thirteen while attending a meeting held by his father and d. In the fall of 1866, he entered Bethany College and graduated in e. After graduation, he and his roommate, Charles Knight, opened a school for boys and young men in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. It became a full academy within a few years. f. About that same time, he married Charles sister, Carrie. Carrie died in their fifth year and he remarried again a few years later. g. He had not preached much, but in the spring of 1875, he was asked to hold a protracted meeting. When he responded that he didn t have any evangelistic sermons, he was told: Why, you have been brought up in the church all your life. You have also attended Bethany College and have your degree. You have been preaching since you were nineteen. If you can t hold a meeting, you ought to be shot. Now, shut your mouth, get your horse, and come on out and hold that meeting! h. From 1876 to 1893, he preached two times every day and three times on Sunday in different locations. i. It is estimated that he had over fifty debates with denominational preachers. j. He began writing for the Gospel Advocate in 1882 and began his own paper, The Way, in Later, he became president of Nashville Bible School. 153

154 k. A wealthy family provided financial support and land for him to open Potter Bible College in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in October l. When he left Nashville Bible School, he took John N. Armstrong, who was married to his daughter Woodson, with him. (1) Armstrong became the president of four different colleges. (2) The last one was in Morrilton, Arkansas after James A. Harding. (3) It moved to Searcy, Arkansas, and was named Harding University in m. Harding died May 28, Daniel Sommer ( ). a. Sommer was born in St. Mary s County, Maryland, January 11, poor. had to endure. b. His father died when he was very young, and the family was very c. He learned patience and perseverance from the hardships that he d. He got his first job at the age of nine, rising before daylight, walking several miles to the work site (building roads), and then walking home after dark. e. His parents were Lutherans, but there was not much religion in the family and he developed some of the bad habits of the world around him. 154

155 f. Then in 1863, a lady started a Sunday school class in a private house and invited the neighborhood children. Sommer attended, learned to pray for the first time, and began to change his life. g. By the end of 1864, however, Sommer had lost his enthusiasm and had become indifferent. h. About that time, the Methodists were having a revival and he attended, regaining his enthusiasm. The result was that he became a regular in Methodist Bible classes. i. In 1866, Sommer moved to Hartford County, Maryland, and began to work for a man who was a member of the Lord s church. They studied together and Sommer began to change his convictions. j. In 1869, he was baptized in Middletown, Pennsylvania. wanted to preach. k. Now that he was converted, he began to study the Bible more and l. Some older men convinced him that he should obtain more education since his formal training to that point was minimal. m. As a result, he entered Bethany College and had to work hard and even go into debt to pay his way. n. This was at the time when W.K. Pendleton was its president, and there were two schools of thought. (1) One was that the Bible was for the saint and the sinner. (2) The other was that the Bible was for the sinner. After one was baptized, all he had to do was love God. There were no laws governing the church and all one had to do was be sincere. Pendleton held this view. o. Bethany College had changed after Alexander Campbell had died. p. In 1871, Sommer received permission to miss classes one day so that he could go to Wellsburg, West Virginia, to meet Ben Franklin. (1) They immediately hit it off and became close friends. (2) Sommer found out that Ben Franklin was also disturbed about the way some in the churches were deviating from the new testament pattern. (3) Franklin told him about a church in Cincinnati that was spending $140,000 for a building and putting an $8000 organ in it. q. During the Christmas holidays of 1872, Sommer conducted a gospel meeting and never returned to Bethany for final exams. 155

156 Baltimore. r. He married Kate Way and began to preach for one of the churches in s. After a short stay in Baltimore, he moved to Kelton, Pennsylvania. t. Then in 1880, he moved to Reynoldsburg, Ohio, and, with another preacher, started a small paper called the Octogragh. The name was representative of the eight writers of the new testament. u. In the Fall of 1884, he moved to Martel, Ohio, and then to Richwood in the Spring of The church there supported missionary societies, had an organ, and sold pies to make money. He spoke strongly against such. Then a liberal preacher came and spoke, which resulted in division within the congregation. it the Octographic Review. v. Sommer bought the American Christian Review in 1886 and renamed w. His experience with Bethany College made Sommer disgusted that brethren thought a gospel preacher had to have a college education. Ben Franklin and Jacob Creath, Jr., also were disgusted with Bible Colleges because of the troubles in the College of the Bible in Kentucky University. 33. E.A. Elam ( ). a. Edwin Alexander Elam was born March 7, 1855, in Fosterville, Tennessee. b. He began teaching in public school at seventeen and entered Franklin College in For a couple of years, he would teach a session and go to school a session. c. In 1876, he entered Burritt College and had the same type of schedule. 156

157 year. Alabama. d. In 1879, he went to Mars Hill, Alabama, and taught with T.B. Larimore for a e. While there, he preached his first sermon in the courthouse in Florence, f. When the school year was over, he began preaching full time. curriculums. board in g. He wrote for the Gospel Advocate and prepared literature for Bible school h. He was interested in Nashville Bible School and became a member of the i. He died March 14, J.D. Tant ( ). a. Jefferson Davis Tant was born June 28, 1861, in Cartersville, Georgia. was fifteen. b. He became a Methodist at fourteen and the family moved to Texas when he c. Fortunately, the Tant s lived near a high school and J.D. became interested in obtaining an education. (1) The family was poor, but J.D. had a dollar that he used to buy some fabric for his mother to make him a pair of pants. 157

158 (2) He entered school with his new pair of pants, but he did not have money for school books, so he tried to study his lessons with other children so that he could use their books. (3) This worked for a while until one boy cursed him and told him to quit school if his daddy could not buy his books. (4) J.D. told his teacher and the teacher said that he would leave a window open so J.D. could get books from the school room to study as long as he had them back before class each morning. (5) This is what he did for two years, often staying up until the wee hours of the morning studying by lamp light. (6) The other children couldn t understand how he knew so much without having any books, so they began to call him idiot. (7) His last two years were better because a lady found out about his desire to learn and gave him $20 for books. (8) He then found himself in a class by himself, not because he was so much smarter than the other students, but because he worked harder. various places. the gospel. d. He became a Methodist preacher in 1880 and rode the circuit, preaching in e. In 1881, he moved to Buda, Texas, where he heard W.H.D. Carrington preach f. Studying his Bible, he answered the invitation during the meeting and his previous baptism was accepted because he had been baptized (immersed) for the remission of sins. g. He then began his journey as a gospel preacher, preaching what the Bible says and not what man says. h was a financial milestone in his preaching career. During that year he received his first compensation for preaching, $9.75 for the year, $5.00 of which was for performing a wedding ceremony. i. He married in 1890 and his wife died in j. He married again in k. He travelled extensively preaching the gospel and died June 1, J.W. Shepherd ( ). 158

159 a. James Walter Shepherd was born in Irvine County, Kentucky, August 18,1861. b. He obeyed the gospel in 1877 during a meeting in Clark County by James A. Harding. When one of the elders was asked about the meeting, he said.. not much of a meeting. Oh, brother Harding did his usually powerful preaching, the attendance was fair, but the results were negligible. Only little Jimmy Shepherd was baptized." c. He began preaching in 1882 and went on a preaching tour of the Cumberland Gap section of Kentucky with I.B. Grubbs. (1) Grubbs was a teacher at the College of the Bible in Kentucky University where Shepherd became a student in (2) Grubbs asked Shepherd how many sermons he had and he said one. only one sermon. to Grubbs speak. (a) Then Grubbs asked how he expected to hold a meeting with (b) Shepherd replied that he planned to get more by listening (3) The first meeting created a lot of interest and lasted longer than anticipated, so Grubbs sent Shepherd ahead to start the second meeting in order to keep to on schedule. By the time Grubbs got there, everything was going so well that the people asked him to let young Shepherd keep on preaching. d. During his vacation in 1883, he preached in Madison County, Alabama, assisting the church in Huntsville. (a) The church in Huntsville had been started during the preaching of James A. Harding on February 18,

160 (b) The Berea congregation in Madison County was started as a result of Shepherd s preaching on August 18, e. He graduated from the College of the Bible in 1884 and began preaching in various places overseas in f. After returning to the states, he did evangelistic work, preached for several congregations, was office editor of the Gospel Advocate from , and wrote a number of books. g. He died July 27, A.G. Freed ( ). a. Arvy Glenn Freed was born in Saltillo, Indiana, August 3, b. After graduating from Valparaiso University in 1889, he began his teaching, preaching, and debating career in Essary Springs, Tennessee. president. c. Southern Tennessee Normal College began in that year with Freed as d. In 1895, West Tennessee Christian College in Henderson, Tennessee, offered a merger and Freed accepted based on his having a lease of ten years to run the school. e. In 1897, a brick administration building was erected and the school was renamed Georgie Robertson Christian College. f. There was some dissention among the faculty, so Freed resigned when his lease was up in 1905 and moved to Denton, Texas, as president of Southwestern Christian College. 160

161 g. In 1908, he returned to Henderson and, with N.B. Hardeman, and became the co-founder of National Teachers Normal and Business College. He was president and Hardeman was vice-president. h. In 1919, the name was changed to Freed-Hardeman College. i. He sold his interest in the college in 1923 and moved to Nashville, Tennessee, to become the vice-president of David Lipscomb College. j. During all of his educational endeavors, he remained active in preaching, teaching, and debating, and encouraged many young people to pursue a college education. k. He remained at David Lipscomb until his death in Foy E. Wallace, Sr. ( ). a. Foy Edwin Wallace, Sr., was born in Decatur, Texas, June 2, b. He attended Calhoun College in Kingston, Texas, and began preaching in rural communities at the age of twenty-one. c. In the 1890 s he went to the Indian Territory in Oklahoma to preach and made friends with the miners as they entered and left the mines. practiced. (1) Freedom of speech was not something that was respected or 161

162 (2) Neither was preaching the pure gospel from the new testament. (3) Some of the men who were disgruntled with his preaching decided that they would stop him and run him out of town on a rail. (4) The miners heard of the plan and watched at the windows. (5) When the men rose up during Wallace s sermon and yelled throw the preacher out, the miners responded with drawn guns telling them to sit down and let him speak. d. C.R. Nichol was his close friend and they were like David and Jonathan. e. Wallace was not only an accomplished preacher, he was also a great debater. (1) In 1910, he had a debate with a Baptist preacher named Cagle. meeting. whipped him in the debate. (2) After the debate, he decided to stay for a week and hold a gospel (3) During the week, he heard that Cagle was bragging about how he (4) Wallace replied: "W-e-l-l, I baptized his moderator, his son-in-law, two of his elders, and many of his members, 19 in all. If he calls that victory, I am glad to concede it." f. He died November 21, N.B. Hardeman ( ). Tennessee. a. Nicolas Brodie Hardeman was born May 18, 1874, in Milledgeville, 162

163 b. He graduated from West Tennessee Christian College in 1895 and started teaching in rural schools of west Tennessee. c. He returned to the college, which was renamed Georgie Robertson Christian College, as a faculty member from 1897 to d. In 1908, he established the National Teachers Normal and Business College (renamed Freed-Hardeman College in 1919) with A.G. Freed and was vice president until e. He was co-president with Hall L. Calhoun from and became president in 1926, serving as such until f. He was an outstanding teacher and expected the best from his students. g. Not only was he an outstanding teacher, he was also an accomplished debater and an excellent preacher. h. Although he never was a local preacher, he held many meetings and taught large numbers the word of God. i. He died in early November H. Leo Boles ( ). a. Henry Leo Boles was born near Gainesboro, Tennessee, February 22, b. His paternal grandmother was the daughter of Raccoon John Smith and his mother was Smith s great niece. c. He graduated from Burritt College in 1900, from Nashville Bible College in 1903, and from Vanderbilt with an M.A. in d. He began teaching philosophy and mathematics at Nashville Bible College in 1906 and took daily Bible lessons from David Lipscomb at the same time. 163

164 e. Nashville Bible College was changed to David Lipscomb College and Boles became president in f. As president, he devoted more of his time to teaching Bible from the Bible and opposed any digression. g. He was also an outstanding preacher, debater, and writer. writer. on the Holy Spirit. (1) He wrote for the Gospel Advocate as contributor, editor, and staff (2) Boles wrote commentaries on Matthew, Luke, and Acts, and a book h. He died February 7, C.R. Nichol ( ). a. Charles Ready Nichol was born in Readyville, Tennessee, March 26, b. He attended several colleges and universities, graduating from Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. Christian College. c. In 1948, he received an honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from Abilene 164

165 d. He preached throughout the United States and parts of Canada and had over three hundred debates. e. He was president of Thorp Springs Christian College in Texas for two years, served as a guest teacher at Abilene Christian College, and taught Bible classes at Pepperdine Christian College from f. He also wrote twenty-one books. g. Nichol died in July G.C. Brewer ( ). Tennessee. a. Grover Cleveland Brewer was born December 25, 1884, in Pulaski, b. He attended Nashville Bible School and received a degree from the University of Texas. Later, he received LL.D. degrees from Harding College and Abilene Christian College. c. He began preaching when he was sixteen in Florence, Alabama, and preached in all of the states except those on the Canadian border. radio programs. d. He not only preached the gospel, he wrote, debated, and had a number of e. As editor of the Voice of Freedom, he tried to enlighten Christians and non- Christians about the threat of Catholicism and Communism. The paper was both religious and political. 165

166 f. Brewer died June 9, Gus Nichols ( ). January 12, a. Bunyan Augustus Gus Nichols was born in Walker County, Alabama, b. His family were Baptists, and he was talked into being baptized by the preacher in the Baptist way and not according to the new testament. c. As a youth, he taught singing schools at various places, including the Iron Mountain School near where he lived. d. When he was seventeen in August 1909, he was asked to lead singing during a meeting by C.A. Wheeler, a gospel preacher, at the Iron Mountain School. written in his own Bible. meeting. (1) Nichols said that he had heard the Bible preached just like it was (2) As a result, he and some others were baptized by Wheeler after the e. He married Matilda Brown in 1913, and they began farming in the Howard Community near Carbon Hill, Alabama. (1) At the time, Matilda was not a Christian, but she went with Gus to the assemblies at the Iron Mountain School building. 166

167 (2) She finally learned the gospel and was baptized in late summer of 1917 by C.A. Wheeler at the same place where Gus had been baptized in f. In 1916, Nichols began preaching at the Iron Mountain School while farming and working for the Galloway Coal Company in Carbon Hill. g. On the night of May 27, 1917, Gus was reading a book by Brents on The Gospel Plan of Salvation, using light from a kerosene lamp. (1) A tornado hit and destroyed the house. time gospel preacher. (2) Afterwards, with his wife s support, he determined to become a full h. In 1919, he and his family moved to Berry, Alabama, so that he could attend Alabama Christian College. In 1920, there was a circular put out by the college concerning a debate between Gus and his brother on whether women should be given the right to vote. Gus was on the negative. December 29, i. He moved to Cordova, Alabama, in 1924, to Millport in 1926, and to Jasper in j. Gus had been invited to hold a gospel meeting in Jasper in October Stanley Building. (1) It was held in the Odd Fellows Hall, upstairs in the Phillips and (2) Gus drew arrows on the street with chalk to announce the meeting baptized. (3) They met there for a while, but moved to the courthouse through k. In 1926, N.B. Hardeman held a tent meeting in Jasper and thirty-seven were l. As a result, land was bought and a building was constructed on Fifth Avenue, with N.B. Hardeman preaching the dedication sermon the first Sunday in October November 16, m. After moving to Jasper, Gus Nichols remained the preacher until his death n. He was not only an outstanding preacher, but a writer. o. It is said that he memorized the complete Bible and was known for his sermons where he would quote the scriptures from memory. 167

168 43. Foy E. Wallace, Jr. ( ). a. Foy Esco Wallace, Jr., was born September 30, 1896, near Belcherville, Texas. b. He preached his first sermon at fifteen and began having all of the meetings and appointments that he could handle. People called him little Foy and the boy preacher. c. During one of the meetings, he met his wife-to-be and they married in gospel meetings. d. He preached for several churches, but eventually spent most of his time in e. One of his local works was in Los Angeles, California, in the 1930 s. (1) It was during the depression. (2) He was called to come to Nashville, Tennessee, to edit the Gospel Advocate and, because of the depression, his salary was cut before he even arrived. f. At the same time, he was still asked to conduct numerous gospel meetings; but, because he worked for the Gospel Advocate, the churches did not compensate him well and he had financial difficulty. g. After paying his debts, he resigned from the Gospel Advocate and moved to Oklahoma City and conducted meetings all over the United States and Canada. h. At this time, premillennialism was threatening the brotherhood and he and other faithful preachers took a strong stand for the truth and kept it from invading the churches. i. He sometimes baptized over one hundred during a meeting and was also exemplary during debates. 168

169 j. After a meeting in Cushing, Oklahoma, in 1952, he returned to his hotel room to find that his wife had suffered a stroke. (1) At first the doctors said that she would not survive. (2) Then they said that she would not walk again. again with aids. (3) Wallace took her Hot Springs, Arkansas, where she learned to walk (4) From then on, he took her with him to most of his meetings. k. He wrote more than a dozen books. l. Foy E. Wallace, Jr., died December 18, Guy N. Woods ( ). Mississippi. a. Guy Napoleon Woods was born September 26, 1908, in Vardeman, b. He was born in Vardeman because his father had gone their briefly to work in a saw mill. Soon after he was born, they moved back to their home in Holladay, Tennessee. c. He was baptized in 1926 at the age of sixteen and preached his first sermon the next month for the church in Holladay. 169