Restorationism

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Restorationism refers to unaffiliated religious movements that attempted to circumvent Protestant denominationalism and orthodox Christian creeds to restore Christianity to their constructions of its original form. The term applies particularly to movements that arose in the eastern United States and Canada in the early and mid 19th century in the wake of the Second Great Awakening.

Restorationist beliefs are sometimes referred to as Christian primitivism (seeking pristine, or original Christianity) which describes a number of movements attempting to return to Early Christianity, including the Baptists, Quakers, and before them, the Anabaptists. The newer term has special application to the Restoration Movement, and by comparison it is applied to other contemporary groups that are similarly motivated but founded separately. The name Restoration is also used to describe the Latter Day Saint movement, started by Joseph Smith and the publication of the Book of Mormon to which the more common term Mormonism stems. These two movements have a briefly overlapping history. Other groups are also called "restorationist" because of their comparable goal to re-establish Christianity in its original form, such as some anti-denominational "Restorationists" which arose in the 1970s, in Britain.

Contents

Background

Leading up to the 19th century, the Calvinist and Wesleyan revival, called the Great Awakening, had established the Congregationalist, Presbyterian, Baptist, and new Methodist churches on competitive footing for social influence in the new America. However, as that "revival of religion" cooled, there was a retreat from the social gains that had been experienced by Evangelical churches. Furthermore, that revival had strengthened opinion in some quarters that Evangelical religions were weakened and divided, primarily due to loyalty to creeds and doctrines which made salvation, and Christian unity, seem unattainable.

The Second Great Awakening made its way across the frontier territories, fed by intense longing for a prominent place for God in the life of the new nation, a new liberal attitude toward fresh interpretations of the Bible, and a contagious experience of zeal for authentic spirituality. As these revivals spread, they gathered converts to Protestant sects of the time. However, the revivals eventually moved freely across denominational lines, with practically identical results, and went farther than ever toward breaking down the allegiances which kept adherents to these denominations loyal to their own.

Today, restorationist organizations include Disciples of Christ, Churches of Christ, Independent Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Seventh-day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and others. These groups teach widely divergent theologies, but they all arose from the belief that the true pattern of the Christian religion died out through apostasy many years before and was finally restored by their churches. Some believe that they alone fully embody this restoration exclusively; others understand themselves as conforming to a rediscovered pattern of original Christianity that is now found in many churches, including their own. (This is the official stance of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), for example). Some restorationist denominations go so far as to state that mainline Protestant groups, let alone Catholic or Orthodox churches, are not actually Christian.

Restorationists

Restorationism is fundamentally based on a belief called the Great Apostasy. Essentially this is the claim that traditional Christianity has departed so far from the original Christian principles that it is not redeemable. Because of its divisions, errors, and compromises with the world, the claim is that the corrupted church fell out of line with the church founded by Jesus. If there were no apostasy-at-large and a church on the true-and-legitimate pattern was present, there would be no need for a Restoration. Thus, diverse Restorationists share with one another the conviction that there has been an apostasy from the true faith, which they have undertaken to correct.

Some who adopt the Restorationists' basic standpoint simply abandoned certain features of their own tradition, in favor of beliefs that have frequently appeared in other primitivist movements in the past. Typical of such non-traditional views might be adult baptism only, baptism only by immersion, congregationalism, indifference toward trinitarianism, disbelief in hell, lay ministers, non-substitutionary theories of atonement, free-will conversion (see Pelagianism), and often a less subordinated role for women.

In some cases, these groups believe that the Great Apostasy's departure from essential Christianity was so total and disastrous as to render futile any plan to remodel Christianity on existing foundations, necessitating a restoration so radical that the only feature familiar to traditional Christians is the name of Jesus the Christ.

Restoration Movement

Of these movements, the most optimistic about the then-present state of Christianity was the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement. Others sometimes refer to the followers of this movement as Campbellites; but the movement itself never adopted the term, which it considers disparaging. These churches strongly preferred to avoid applying to themselves any of the labels of convenience which divide Christians from one another, calling themselves instead by generic New Testament names, such as the Disciples of Christ, or the Church of Christ. They brought together many from Baptist, Congregationalist, Presbyterian, and Methodist churches, and other Christians across a spectrum of Evangelical and also Unitarian Christianity, at first with astounding success. But, as the movement progressed, it developed non-negotiable distinctives of its own, sometimes referred to disapprovingly as unwritten creeds, and fractured into four major groups—each of which has become a recognizable group (the term "denomination" still being unacceptable to many of them): the Churches of Christ (or "church of Christ"), the Independent Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, the International Church of Christ, and the Disciples of Christ.

Latter Day Saint movement

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or "Mormons" believe that Joseph Smith, Jr. was chosen not to reform, but restore in its fulness the original organization founded by Jesus Christ. According to Smith, God and Jesus appeared to him and instructed him that the creeds of the churches of the day "were an abomination in his sight", and that through Joseph Smith God would restore, or re-establish, the true church. (See Pearl of Great Price: Joseph Smith - History: Chapter 1:19)

The Great Apostasy was complete, Smith taught, requiring a full restoration of the original church, which included a priesthood or authority, prophet, apostles, evangelists, and teachers in order for God's Kingdom on earth to be re-established. Joseph Smith founded the Church of Christ in 1830, serving as the first prophet believed to be appointed by Jesus Christ in the latter days. Sidney Rigdon, and several other preachers, left their Churches of Christ to join Smith.

As part of his prophetic mission, Smith published the Book of Mormon, said to be translated from Golden Plates as directed by an angel Moroni. Members of the Latter Day Saint movement (Mormonism) believe that the Book of Mormon contains a record of the original church of Jesus Christ in the Americas (between about 600 BCE and 421 CE).

In addition, Smith claimed that he received the true authority or Priesthood directly from those who held it anciently, namely John the Baptist, who returned as an angel and gave him the authority to baptize (which the angel said had long been lost). Peter, James and John, the ancient apostles, returned as angels and gave Smith the authority to lead the church just had they done anciently. The church was organized on April 6, 1830, in New York state.

Adventism

Adventism is a type of Christian eschatology which looks for the Second Coming of Jesus to inaugurate the Kingdom of God, usually in the near future. This view often involves belief that Jesus will return to receive only a small group of those true Christians who are expecting his return and in anticipation of it have made themselves ready.

Millerites and Sabbatarianism

The Millerites are the most well-known family of the Adventist movements. From the Millerites descended the Seventh-day Adventists. This group emphasized apocalyptic teachings anticipating the end of the world, and did not look for the unity of Christendom, but busied themselves in preparation for Christ's return. Millerites sought to restore a prophetic immediacy and uncompromising biblicism that they believed had once existed but had long been rejected by mainstream Protestant and Catholic churches. The Worldwide Church of God movement belongs to this category because it sprang from the Seventh Day churches. The personal ministry of Herbert W. Armstrong became the Radio Church of God, which became the Worldwide Church of God. It later splintered into many other churches and groups when the Worldwide Church of God disassociated itself with the Restoration movements and made major attempts to join the Protestant branch of Christianity. More recently, the Nazarene (or using the Hebrew word Netzarim) movement claims that Jesus did not intend to replace the Torah, but only to demonstrate how to follow it. The Nazarenes generally hold to Aramaic Primacy, that the Christian New Testament was originally written in Aramaic, not Greek, and make their defense from Semitic languages.

Christadelphians

Dr. John Thomas (April 12, 1805 - March 5, 1871), was a devout convert to the Restorationist movement after a shipwreck at sea on his emigration journey to America brought to focus his inadequate understanding of the Bible and what would happen to him should he die. This awareness caused him to devote his life to the study of the Bible, which in turn brought him into contact with the teachings of Alexander Campbell. An independent mind and a sharp intellect inevitably led him to conflict with the teachings of Mr. Campbell, especially on matters concerning baptism and resurrection. Once the split with Mr. Campbell was inevitable, Dr. Thomas appealed to the Churches of Christ both in America and in England and a growing movement emerged. A distinctive body of believers developed whose doctrine incorporated Adventism, anti-trinitarianism, objection to military service, a lay-membership with full participation by all members, as well as other doctrines consistent with the spirit of the Restorationist movement.

One consequence of objection to military service was the adoption of the name Christadelphians to distinguish this small community of believers and to be granted exemption from military service in the American civil war.

Jehovah's Witnesses

The Jehovah's Witnesses originated in the 1870s as a Bible study group founded by Charles Taze Russell. The Witnesses believe that they are the true Christians and the other Churches generally departed in a Great Apostasy from the original faith on major points. Like the Millerites, the Witnesses believe that the original faith could be restored through a generally literal interpretation of the Bible, and a sincere commitment to follow its teachings. They focused on the restoration of a number of key doctrinal points derived from their interpretation of the Bible, including the use of the common English transliteration of the Tetragrammaton "Jehovah" as God's personal name; a rejection of trinitarianism in favor of a type of unitarianism; the rejection of the defining of hell as a place of eternal torment [1]; active proselytization; condemnation of the ingestion or transfusion of whole, allogeneic, blood; strict neutrality in political affairs; total abstinence from military service; and a belief in the imminent manifestation of the Kingdom of God on Earth.

See also

Restoration Movement

Mormonism

Millerites

Other

External links

References

  1. ^ The Hebrew she�ohl� and its Greek equivalent hai�des, which refer, not to an individual burial place, but to the common grave of dead mankind; (1988) Reasoning From The Scriptures. Watchtower, 169. 

Further reading

  • Birdsall Richard D. "The Second Great Awakening and the New England Social Order." Church History 39 (1970): 345-64.
  • Cross, Whitney, R. The Burned-Over District: The Social and Intellectual History of Enthusiastic Religion in Western New York, 1800�1850.
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