Series: Throwback Thursday

February 20, 2020

Christian Standard

Studying Scripture with Alexander Campbell (Part 2)

Today we conclude this two-part article from 1940 explaining the “four aspects” of Alexander Campbell’s Bible study. Today’s article covers aspects three and four. _ _ _ Alexander Campbell’s Contribution to Bible Study (Part 2) By Howard Elmo Short, B.D. (Hartford);Minister, Church of Christ, Cuyahoga Falls, O.;February 10, 1940; p. 5 . . . There is no finer contribution that Mr. Campbell has made to Bible study than this insistence upon original thinking. How often we read, leafing through, just to find the “pet” verses which prove the point we are arguing at the moment! The admonition of Mr. Campbell

February 13, 2020

Christian Standard

Studying Scripture with Alexander Campbell (Part 1)

Restoration pioneer Alexander Campbell’s Bible study methods might be of interest to readers and leaders. A notation above the headline of this article indicated this was “a paper read before a Bible-study conference of the churches in the Akron (O.) area some months ago.” We will break this into two parts, plus edit it a bit for length. Part one will cover the first two of “four aspects of Mr. Campbell’s Bible study.” _ _ _ Alexander Campbell’s Contribution to Bible Study (Part 1) By Howard Elmo Short, B.D. (Hartford);Minister, Church of Christ, Cuyahoga Falls, O.;February 10, 1940; p. 5

February 6, 2020

Christian Standard

We're All in This Together

This article acknowledging the contributions of “denominationalists” received much positive feedback from readers in the weeks following its publication 55 years ago. _ _ _ Our Debt to Denominationalists By James G. Van BurenFebruary 6, 1965; p. 9 We are, much more than we sometimes realize, indebted to denominationalists. By “we” I mean those of us committed to the Restoration ideal, who delight in designating ourselves as “undenominational” and as “Christians only.” By “denominationalists” I mean those who have not been aware, as far as we know, of the sinfulness of denominational divisions and who would be considered by us

January 30, 2020

Christian Standard

Of Pageantry, Baptism, and the Catholic Church

A lively editorial page from January 26, 1935, touched on such topics as the activity of the Holy Spirit, the Roosevelts planning to serve wine at the White House (Prohibition had been repealed in 1933), and reaction to a Robert Benchley essay called “The Sunday Menace” (the humor author had suggested outrageous acts “to get rid of the dullness of midafternoon on Sunday”). But the editorial we share today is a measured, almost melancholy observation about how baptism is practiced in the Roman Catholic Church. _ _ _ THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS MISSING SOMETHING Editorial; January 26, 1935; p. 4

January 23, 2020

Christian Standard

We May Forget, But God Does Not

German psychologist and neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer is credited with identifying the first case of “presenile dementia”—later called Alzheimer’s disease—in 1906. The 1970s and 1980s brought increasing awareness about Alzheimer’s disease in America. This personal reflection about a person with the disease was written by a Kentucky Christian College professor in 1990. _ _ _ A Parable of Meaning By Charles R. GreshamJanuary 21, 1990; p. 12 . . . One reads of what occurs when Alzheimer’s disease affects a person; one may even watch a television movie that presents Alzheimer’s effects in dramatic fashion; but it only “hits home” when

January 16, 2020

Christian Standard

Plainspoken Advice from a Veteran Minister, Circa 1900

We focus today on two short articles by J. M. Land, a man who preached several decades on either side of the Ohio-Indiana line, up until his death in 1905. Land usually shared obituaries or news items during the time he wrote for Christian Standard, spanning from 1873 to 1901, but he also wrote more than a dozen mainly shorter articles like the two we share today. The first piece by Land offers observations on how older ministers and younger ministers should relate with one another, and the second shares advice for how an incoming minister can resolve an inherited

January 9, 2020

Christian Standard

'Will You Say a Prayer for Me?'

William S. Boice graduated from Cincinnati Bible Seminary, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and Harvard Chaplain’s School, landed at Utah Beach with the troops on D-Day, and was “the first chaplain on German soil with our troops” during World War II, according to newspaper clippings. The Army chaplain, who subsequently started First Christian Church, Phoenix, Ariz., in 1952, wrote about “Another Part of a Chaplain’s Life” for this Christian Standard article from 75 years ago. _ _ _ Somewhere in Germany Another Part of a Chaplain’s Life By Chaplain (Capt.) William BoiceJan. 6, 1945; p. 8 Gone are the pleasant days

January 2, 2020

Christian Standard

An 'Independent' Objection

In this editorial from the December 27, 1970, issue of Christian Standard, the late Edwin V. Hayden registered an objection to the term “Independent Christian Church.” _ _ _ We’re Still FriendsIsn’t it wonderful that we can be brotherswe can even be friendswithout agreeing with one another in some rather strong opinions? Consider, for example, the convenient use of the term, “Independent Christian Church,” to designate folk who generally concur in the historic position taken by CHRISTIAN STANDARD. Some of our best friends use the term pragmatically, arguing that it is brief, generally understood, and generally applicable. It communicates what

December 26, 2019

Christian Standard

Kenneth T. Norris Played Pivotal Role in Maritime Christian College’s Early Years

Every year, Maritime Christian College in Charlottetown, P. E. I., Canada, hosts a series of lectures. It’s a tradition that started in 1960, the year the college was established. In the early 1980s, the annual event became known as the K. T. Norris Lectureship, honoring a man who helped found the college and became president shortly thereafter. Kenneth T. Norris was born in 1915 in Toronto, Canada. He was baptized at Toronto’s Keele Street Church of Christ in 1932 after spending much of his boyhood in Trenton, Ontario. Starting in 1936, he spent more than a decade attending college and

December 25, 2019

Christian Standard

Christmas Poems from 1877

(Christian Standard featured poetry for many years. This Christmas Day we share three poems by Marie Radcliffe Butler. All of these poems appeared at the top left column of the front page of the December 22, 1877, issue of the magazine. Fun fact: Butler’s poem “The Christian Standard — on the Field of Armageddon” was in the very first issue of Christian Standard, April 7, 1866, and occupied that same top-left position.) _ _ _ (Written for the Christian Standard.) CHRISTMAS POEMS. _ _ _ MARIE RADCLIFFE BUTLER. _ _ _ WHEN SHILOH CAME. (Luke i. 7.) A light in

December 24, 2019

Christian Standard

The Birth that Changed the World

 (We go back just a few years for this article, which appeared on p. 4 of the December 21, 2008, issue of Christian Standard. Previous to that, our sister magazine, The Lookout, shared it with their readers.) The Birth that Changed the World By Victor Knowles In Frank Capra’s acclaimed and heartwarming 1946 film, It’s a Wonderful Life, God sends an angel named Clarence to earth to show George Bailey (played by Jimmy Stewart) what life would be like if he had never been born. The moral of the movie (this is when movies had morals!) is that each person’s

December 23, 2019

Christian Standard

The Festival of the Second Mile

(This editorial appeared on p. 10 of the December 25, 1930, issue of Christian Standard.) The Festival of the Second Mile Christmas . . . is a special glorification of unselfishness. Essentially the Christmas spirit is the spirit of doing, at least to one’s loved ones, the things that will make them happy. We study for a month or so the wishes of these friends; we endeavor to learn from their own actions and from the observations of those near them “what they want;” then we proceed to give them what they want. And we find an unwonted happiness in

December 22, 2019

Christian Standard

A Strange Birthday Celebration

(This essay by John Greenlee appeared on p. 7 of the December 19, 1982, issue of Christian Standard. At that time, Greenlee served as minister with First Christian Church, Thousand Oaks, Calif.) A true story of Christmas . . . There was once a great king. His love for his people knew no limits. Although the kingdom was very large, the king knew every person by name. Everything the people of the kingdom had was a gift freely given by the loving king. So, to show their love and appreciation to the king for all he had done for them,

December 19, 2019

Christian Standard

‘The Gift of God to Godly Men’

Here is a Christmas sermon by a quiet and godly man who preferred to preach with his pen. _ _ _ So Christmas Comes By Orrin Root Editor, Bible School Literature,The Standard Publishing Company, Cincinnati, O.;December 24, 1949; p. 11 O little town of BethlehemHow still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep, The silent stars go by; Yet in thy dark street shineth The everlasting light; The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight.” Still indeed must have been the little town of Bethlehem in the depths of that night long

December 15, 2019

Christian Standard

How’s Your Christmas I.Q.?

We plan to post a few Christmas-themed articles from Christian Standard’s archives during the days leading up to the celebration of Jesus’ birth. We’ll start with this Christmas quiz from 1974. _ _ _ How’s Your Christmas I.Q.? December 15, 1974; p. 12;By Maxine Fream You’ve heard the Christmas story ever since you were a small child and you know it backwards and forwards, right? So you should have no trouble answering the following few questions, right? Watch it! True or false?— 1. Joseph and Mary were both descended from King David. 2. Joseph thought Mary’s child was illegitimate and

December 12, 2019

Christian Standard

Mark Twain’s Connections to Stone, Campbell

Most devotees of American literature know of Mark Twain’s connections to Hannibal, Mo., but few people in the Stone-Campbell Movement likely are aware of Twain’s connections—through his life in Hannibal—to the movement’s namesake pioneers, Barton W. Stone and Alexander Campbell. Donald Tingle shared some research on this topic 40 years ago. _ _ _ Mark Twain was a part of early restoration history Tom Sawyer, Barton Stone’s Grandson By Donald S. TingleJuly 29, 1979; pp. 15, 16 Some of you may stop at Mark Twain’s boyhood home in Hannibal, Mo., on your way to or from the North American Christian

December 5, 2019

Christian Standard

Focusing on Failure

Here’s a Christian Standard editorial from 140 years ago that will apply to most everyone, at least on some level. _ _ _ Concerning Failures. By Isaac ErrettDec. 13, 1879 We are moved to say a few words concerning failures, by a letter received from a friend, over whose pathway thick darkness has gathered, and on whose head fierce tempests have broken in long succession, who says: “My life is a failure, and I know it; I have attempted tasks for which I was not qualified and have wasted my life in attempts to be what God never meant I

November 28, 2019

Christian Standard

A Christian’s Thanksgiving

As a follow-up to last week, here is a second editorial about thanksgiving and the apostle Paul. _ _ _ A Christian’s Thanksgiving November 22, 1924An Editorial; p. 8(Most likely written by Willard Mohorter) We are never disappointed in Paul. From the beginning he understood that it was the good pleasure of God to reveal His Son in him. This was the goal of his ambition, and to its attainment he gave the whole of his talents. So Christlike was his character, and so exalted were his Christian accomplishments, that he was able to say: “Be ye followers of me,

November 21, 2019

Christian Standard

I Thank My God for You

This is the first of two editorials that center on thanksgiving and the apostle Paul. This one, from Thanksgiving 1934, is by Edwin R. Errett, and was republished 50 years later. _ _ _ I Thank My God for You Editorial by Edwin R. ErrettNovember 24, 1934; p. 3(Adapted/republished November 18, 1984; p. 3) There may be a monotony about messages on thanksgiving, but there was one phrase of whose monotony the apostle Paul was not afraid. In almost every letter of his that we possess, that phrase has prominent place: “I thank my God for you.” Sometimes he was

November 14, 2019

Christian Standard

‘The Church of the Air’

In the week following the historic stock market crash of 1929, we ran this front-page story on an early foray into Christian broadcasting at a radio station in Wichita Falls, Texas. We know little of radio evangelist Paul Henry Packard, and we do not know how many months or years his program was broadcast (though a March 1933 news item indicates Packard would soon move to Kentucky). In 1929, radio was still in its infancy. Less than 10 years earlier, in 1920, KDKA in Pittsburgh became the first commercially licensed radio station. _ _ _ Hungry for Pure Gospel Broadcasting

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