Ask the Preacher
Previous Page

Sender's name: Corry Riley

I'm attempting to find the approximate date that the church of Christ was formed.  Let me explain further...
I read a question whereby it stated that a few different men from different states in the US created their own independent movements and then somehow got together and created one main movement, known now as the churches of Christ.  So, when did this occur?

---------

You are talking about two different things that can get confused. The church of Christ began 2000 years ago. Jesus inaugurated his church on the rock of the Christian confession that Jesus himself is the Christ (Matt 16:13-18). The Bible mentions the church of Christ in Romans 16:16. It is important to note that this is not a title, but a description. The church never really has a single "title" in the New Testament. For more about the church, I would recommend the articles and outlines on this web site.

What you are talking about is a back to the Bible movement in the early 19^th century. There were men such as Elias Smith and Abner Jones in the 18^th century, followed by men like Rice Haggard, Thomas Campbell, Barton Stone, Alexander Campbell, Walter Scott, and a host of others who advocated a return to the Bible and doing away with religious creeds, following only the Bible, not man made creeds. I would recommend going to the web site: http://www.mun.ca/rels/restmov/restmov.html or getting a book on what is now called the "Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement." A simple read is the book on the Restoration Story by Bill Humble. There are others which can be found at Gospel Advocate bookstore.

John Telgren

P.O. Box 452

Leavenworth, KS 66048

Web: epreacher.org/ask

Click here to email a question