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James Madison Pendleton SELECTED WRITINGS OF JAMES MADISON PENDLETON VOLUME I Historical and Autobiographical JAMES MADISON PENDLETON (1811-1891) SELECTED WRITINGS OF JAMES MADISON PENDLETON IN THREE VOLUMES k Volume I k Historical and Autobiographical • James Madison Pendleton and His Contribution to Baptist Ecclesiology • Reminiscences of a Long Life • The Funeral of Dr. J. M. Pendleton k COMPILED AND EDITED BY THOMAS WHITE Printed in 2006 by THE BAPTIST STANDARD BEARER, INC. No. 1 Iron Oaks Drive Paris, Arkansas 72855 (479) 963-3831 THE WALDENSIAN EMBLEM lux lucet in tenebris “The Light Shineth in the Darkness” ISBN# 1579780466 SELECTED WRITINGS OF JAMES MADISON PENDLETON IN THREE VOLUMES VOLUME ONE — HISTORICAL AND AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL • James Madison Pendleton and His Contribution to Baptist Ecclesiology by THOMAS WHITE • Reminiscences of a Long Life by JAMES MADISON PENDLETON • Article on the Death of J. M. Pendleton by M. M. RILEY VOLUME TWO — ECCLESIASTICAL • Selected Writings on Various Aspects of the New Testament Church by JAMES MADISON PENDLETON VOLUME THREE — THEOLOGICAL • Selected Writings on Various Topics of Theology by JAMES MADISON PENDLETON v TABLE OF CONTENTS VOLUME I Historical and Autobiographical k PAGE Acknowledgements . ix Introduction . xi James Madison Pendleton and His Contribution to Baptist Ecclesiology . 1 by Thomas White Reminiscences of a Long Life . 279 by James Madison Pendleton The Funeral of Dr. J. M. Pendleton . 443 by M. M. Riley vii k ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS —————— must extend a thank you to those who made this process I possible. First, I would like to thank Bill Lee and his associates at the Baptist Standard Bearer who agreed to publish this project. His work to preserve our Baptist heritage will positively impact generations to come. I must also thank the Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives in Nashville, Tennessee which houses many of these rare resources on microfilm. Also I want to thank Jennifer Faulk for her dedicated service and selfless help in retyping many of these articles. Many teachers and friends have encouraged and guided my study of James Madison Pendleton, including Dr. John Hammett, Dr. Keith Harper, Dr. Paige Patterson, and Dr. James Hilton. Without them, I would not be the person I am today and this project would never have reached completion. Last, I would like to thank my family who put up with hours of endless work on projects just like this one. Besides my Lord Jesus Christ, Joy is the love of my life, and our daughter Rachel is, of course, the apple of her daddy’s eye. God has truly blessed me far beyond anything I could have ever imagined. To Him be praise forever and forever. Amen. ix k INTRODUCTION —————————— his book is volume one in a three volume series. The T first volume contains the only PhD dissertation to focus on James Madison Pendleton. The dissertation is titled, “James Madison Pendleton and His Contributions to Baptist Ecclesiology” and was originally written for Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in the spring of 2005. Minor changes and revisions have been made to the original publication but the work is substantially the same. This volume also includes Pendleton’s autobiography titled Reminiscences of a Long Life, and a newspaper article “The Funeral of Dr. J. M. Pendleton.” This volume provides much information about the life and influence of Pendleton. The second volume in the work contains many of his writings on ecclesiology. The doctrine of the church and more specifically the doctrine of baptism dominate much of the second volume. The third volume contains miscellaneous theological articles from Pendleton and demonstrates the pastoral concern of a man who truly personified the pastor/theologian. Of particular interest in volume one is the dissertation’s discussion of the extent of Landmarkism. The term Landmarkism has been linked to many views which have little to do with it. This dissertation, among other things, attempts to pinpoint a precise definition of the central aspect of Landmarkism. In this definition, one will not find the mention of a denial of the universal church, nor an insistence upon closed communion, nor the belief of Baptist church succession. This definition restricts Landmarkism to the denial of Pedobaptist ministers as Gospel ministers and the denial of Pedobaptist churches as true churches. This is the xi THOMAS WHITE essential meaning of Landmarkism. All else is mere peripheral additions. The key error of Landmarkism when properly defined can be easily determined. Landmarkism places the proper mode and proper subject of baptism in the “being” of a church and not in the “well-being” of a church. This placement affects all that follows ecclesiologically. With proper mode and subject of baptism in the “being” or definition of the existence of a church, all Pedobaptist organizations are no longer churches. With Pedobaptist no longer possessing churches but societies, they cannot commission or ordain gospel ministers. Since a person cannot call themselves to the ministry because that call must be affirmed by the local church, Pedobaptist societies do not have gospel ministers. This is the outworking of Landmarkism which, ironically, began from Calvin’s definition of the true church—the word preached and the sacraments rightly administered. Calvin intended the ordinances to be “rightly” administered meaning without infusing grace which corrupts justification by faith alone while the Landmark movement extended that definition to include the ordinances administered according to Scripture in mode and subject. A clear understanding of this movement can allow one to solve the Landmark riddle. The ordinances must be kept in the definition of the “being” of a church in order to distinguish the church from parachurch organizations and Bible study groups. The correction to Landmarkism comes by placing “rightly administering the ordinances” in the “well- being” of a church which allows one to consistently affirm what Scripture teaches without un-churching all Pedobaptist gatherings. This author believes that the proper mode and subject belong to the “well-being” of a church. With this definition, Baptists maintain that Pedobaptist gatherings are true churches and possess gospel ministers while maintaining that Baptist churches are closer to the New Testament and thus, purer churches than Pedobaptist churches. Understanding the error of Landmarkism does not undermine the usefulness of Pendleton or the Landmark xii INTRODUCTION emphasis on the local church. Pendleton’s dedication to every detail of Scripture and his focus on proper ecclesiology can provide many insights to the reader in an age where the specifics of how church should occur have been substantially lost. One final note worthy of notice is the bibliography of this dissertation which is the most complete listing of Pendleton’s works. Months of effort scrolling through cloudy microfilm displaying issues of the Tennessee Baptist and other Baptist newspapers from the middle of the 1800s have resulted in listing more than seven hundred articles which Pendleton wrote. Perhaps this list will demonstrate the importance of Pendleton during his lifetime and help some future researcher to better understand our Baptist heritage. At the request of his son, Pendleton wrote his autobiography titled, Reminiscences of a Long Life, which was published in 1891. Pendleton began writing this book on his seventy-ninth birthday, November 20, 1890, and finished it within two months.1 This work is the most comprehensive account of Pendleton’s life. One cannot read this work without admiring the man who wrote it. It seems as if every page demonstrates his concern for people, his devotion to the Lord, and his love for his wife. The final chapter was finished by Pendleton’s son after Pendleton’s death, which occurred on March 5, 1891, at 12:40 p.m.2 It was fitting that Pendleton’s final sermon and breath came where he spent much of his ministry—Bowling Green, Kentucky. He preached his last sermon there on the 25th day of January in 1891. In addition to providing wisdom for young ministers, this work demonstrates Pendleton’s disagreement with the practice of slavery and the civil war. Pendleton considered 1James Madison Pendleton, Reminiscences of a Long Life (Louisville, KY: Baptist Book Concern, 1891), 185. 2Unsigned article, “Editorial Notes of the Death of J. M. Pendleton,” Western Recorder (March 12, 1891). xiii THOMAS WHITE himself an emancipationist but not an abolitionist, desiring the gradual removal of slavery and not its immediate reversal. Pendleton not only disliked slavery but also rejected the right of the South to secede from the Union. These views forced him to flee North under threats to his life. He eventually wrote his systematic theology titled Christian Doctrines: A Compendium of Theology for the benefit of uneducated black ministers in the South. The final article included in this volume discusses the death and funeral of J. M. Pendleton. The reader will notice that T. T. Eaton and W. H. Whitsitt who fought so vehemently against each other during the controversy over Baptist origins were both present and involved in the funeral proceedings of J. M. Pendleton. Two bitter enemies both had a sincere admiration for Pendleton. After years of studying his work and writings, this author continues to have a deep rooted appreciation for the man known as James Madison Pendleton. Although, I am not a Landmarker, it is my sincere desire that through Pendleton’s writings, the reader will develop a desire for proper ecclesiology, a better appreciation of Baptist history, and a deeper understanding of Scripture. xiv JAMES MADISON PENDLETON AND HIS CONTRIBUTION TO BAPTIST ECCLESIOLOGY BY Thomas White TABLE OF CONTENTS VOLUME I James Madison Pendleton and His Contribution to Baptist Ecclesiology k PAGE ABSTRACT . 5 INTRODUCTION § Purpose of the Dissertation . 9 § Overview of the Dissertation . 11 § Definition of Terms . 13 CHAPTER 1. THE LIFE AND WORKS OF JAMES MADISON PENDLETON § Childhood 1811–1831 .
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