Sam Stone wrote in 1962, "If the early leaders of the Restoration movement are like men engaged in a race, it might be said that Barton Warren Stone took an early lead, but was later passed by Alexander Campbell." Sam Stone contended that Barton Stone was deserving of greater appreciation . . . and he did so by presenting this "survey of his life." . . .
March 21, 2024
"Not 1804, not 1809," Ira M. Boswell wrote in 1924, "but that day in January, 1832, when the union between the Disciples of Christ and the Christians was consummated, is the greatest date in religious history between Pentecost and now" . . .
March 14, 2024
"Their [the Restoration pioneers'] troubles were many. There were enemies without and within," Ira M. Boswell wrote in 1924. "I shall not have time to notice them all, but will give my attention to those which prevailed before the union between the disciples of Christ and Christians" . . .
March 1, 2024
What can we learn by reviewing Restoration Movement history? . . .
March 1, 2024
Exploring the pivotal issues that gave rise to two major divisions (and a number of smaller ones) . . .
February 2, 2023
In preparation for the 1931 North American Christian Convention, slated for June 17 to 21 of that year in Lexington, Ky., Christian Standard published a list of important dates in Restoration Movement history. . . .
May 1, 2022
Can We Restore the Unity of the Restoration Movement?
May 1, 2022
By Tom Ellsworth In 1856, postal authorities accepted a new name for a little community in southern Indiana: Santa Claus. Then, in the 1920s, the Postal Service decided there would never be another Santa Claus Post Office in the United States. Consequently, every December, more than 400,000 pieces of mail are routed through the town because of its Christmas-themed postmark. I suspect the community’s founders never anticipated the full impact of the unique name. On a little knoll just a mile or so south of Santa Claus stands quaint, white-framed Mt. Zion Christian Church, the oldest church building in Spencer
September 28, 2021
Three church anniversaries: First Christian Church (Monticello, Ky.) will feature an appearance by founder "Raccoon" John Smith; Oak Grove Christian Church (Lake Lynn, Pa.); and First Christian Church (Lamar, Mo.)
August 30, 2021
Excerpts from Jerry Harris's devotional thoughts presented on the 220th anniversary of the Cane Ridge Revival earlier this month.
August 19, 2021
"It was here in the summer of 1838 that a very pretentious doctor . . . had so frightened one of our able debaters of those times, that he obtained and rejoiced in the name of ‘Campbellite Killer.’”
We continue this week with the third installment of Frederick D. Kershner’s biographical study of Restoration Movement father Barton W. Stone from 1940. (Part one and part two are available here.) _ _ _ “Stars” April 27, 1940; p. 7 There was a group of young ministers, of which Stone was probably the center, which reacted against the high Calvinism of their fathers after the Cane Ridge revival. Stone, McNemar, Marshall, and three or four others withdrew and organized the Springfield Presbytery. They published an apology, some part of which was comprehended in the autobiography of Barton W. Stone. The
We continue this week with our second installment of Frederick D. Kershner’s look at Barton W. Stone from 1940. Though Kershner wrote his profile on Stone in three installments, we shared only a portion of part one last week; today we share the rest of the article originally published April 20, 1940. _ _ _ “The Message of Barton Warren Stone” April 20, 1940; p. 7 BARTON WARREN STONE[’s] . . . life may be summarized under the following outline: Early period (1772–1799). Cane Ridge Revival (1799–1801). The Springfield Presbytery (1802–1804). Independent career (1804–1831). Union with the Campbells (1831). Later
April 30, 2020
In 1940, Christian Standard published a lengthy series of articles called “Stars” by Frederick D. Kershner, then serving as dean of the School of Religion at Butler University in Indianapolis. In introducing the series on March 9 of that year, Kershner wrote, “We shall strive to interpret the ongoing of a great movement in the life of the church through the contribution of six of its most significant advocates. . . . We shall be occupied only secondarily with the mere details of biography. . . .” Those six Restoration Movement “advocates” included: • Thomas Campbell . . . “who
December 12, 2019
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
September 5, 2019
During this past year of sharing articles and editorials from the archives of Christian Standard, we have featured several pieces written by Isaac Errett, leader of this magazine from its founding in 1866 until his death in 1888, but not so much written about Errett. The September 11, 1909, issue of Christian Standard was another “Centennial Special” that commemorated the 100-year anniversary of Thomas Campbell’s “Declaration and Address.” Virtually all of the historical articles in that September issue were about Errett. We will excerpt from one article and run a second article in its entirety. Neither article attempted to tell
August 28, 2019
If its current rate of decline continues, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) denomination could lose half its membership over the next 10 years, according to an Institute on Religion and Democracy blog post by Jeffrey Walton. Numbers provided by the DOC’s Office of General Minister and President show that total membership declined 7 percent from 2017 to 2018, from about 411,000 to around 382,248. Likewise, average worship attendance declined 11 percent, from 140,000 to 124,000, Walton wrote on IRD’s blog, Juicy Ecumenism. Also, baptisms dropped from 4,344 to 3,782, down 13 percent, while other additions (including transfers in) declined
June 13, 2019
When the Stone Movement and the Campbell Movement united in 1832, “Raccoon” John Smith helped seal the deal. Barton W. Stone represented his contingent of churches at those meetings in Kentucky, while Smith represented Alexander Campbell’s interests. Here are Smith’s historic words on that occasion: “Let us, then my brethren, be no longer Campbellites or Stoneites, New Lights or Old Lights, or any other kind of lights, but let us come to the Bible, and to the Bible alone, as the only book in the world that can give us all the light we need.” We start this week with
May 22, 2019
By Jim Estep The United States is becoming increasingly divided politically. Conservatives keep moving further to the right, liberals are gravitating toward the left, and those in the center are stretched between the two. It’s similar to what has happened to the Restoration Movement. A Formula for Effectiveness When I attempt to describe the Restoration Movement to someone, I draw on this formula: Biblical Authority + Church Unity → Global Disciple-Making The Restoration Movement affirms biblical authority and binds it to a strong commitment to church unity (beyond the level of unity by agreement), all for the sake of making
April 25, 2019
We continue our monthly series of excerpts from Christian Standard, circa 1909. The magazine devoted one issue each month that year to articles of particular interest to our movement. Today we feature a sermon by Barton W. Stone, who allied with Alexander Campbell to form the Restoration Movement (aka, the Stone-Campbell Movement). No date is attached to this sermon, which we will prune some, as it is quite long. Here’s Barton W. Stone (1772–1844): _ _ _ God’s Love for a Lost World A Sermon by Barton W. Stone (Published April 10, 1909; p. 6) The love of God is
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