Disciples of Christ Historical Society Digital Commons @ Disciples History Discipliana - Archival Issues 2008 Discipliana Vol-67-Nos-1-2-2008 Glenn Thomas Carson Disciples of Christ Historical Society Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.discipleshistory.org/discipliana Part of the Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, History of Religion Commons, Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Carson, Glenn Thomas, "Discipliana Vol-67-Nos-1-2-2008" (2008). Discipliana - Archival Issues. 62. https://digitalcommons.discipleshistory.org/discipliana/62 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Commons @ Disciples History. It has been accepted for inclusion in Discipliana - Archival Issues by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Disciples History. For more information, please contact [email protected]. "WE . FRATERNIZE WITH NONEn Alexander Campbell and the Question of Universalism ~Disci oliana Sprinpoo8 IA6LE.OF.CONIENIS .... 3 THE PRESIDENT'S DESK 5 Richard]. Cherok "We Fraternize with None" Alexander Campbell and the Question of Universalism 23 Debra B. Hull Mossie Allman Wyker Ordained to Change the World 26 INTHENEWS 28 DID You KNow? Discipliana (ISSN No. 073~-9881) is published semi -annually by Disciples tDiscipliana of Christ Historical Society. 1101 19th Avenue. S.. Nashville. TN 37~1~-~109' a journal of Stone-Campbell history Periodical postage paid at Nashville. TN and additional mailing ornces. Vol. 67. Issue I, Spring~008 Printed in the USA. Copyright © ~008. Disciples of Christ Historical Society. PUBLISHED BY POSTMASTER: Send address changes Disciples of Christ Historical Society to Discipliana. 1101 19th Avenue. S.• Nashville. Tennessee (USA) Nashville. TN 37~1~-~109' Glenn Thomas Carson. President Discipliana is the premier journal of historical studies in the Stone -Campbell movement. Members of Disciples of Christ Historical Society receive EDITOR Discipliana along with other benents. Glenn Thomas Carson. Ph.D. Contact the Historical Society for EDITORIAL ASSISTANCE & PRODUCTION membership levels and information. DisciplesWorld. Inc. Indexed by Restoration Serials FOUNDING EDITOR Index. Indexed in Religion Index One: Claude E. Spencer Periodicals, the Index to Book Reviews in Religion. Religion Indexes: RIOI SCHOLAR'S ESSAY SELECTION RITIIBRR 1975 - on CD ROM. and Rick Cherok (Cincinnati Christian University) the ATIA Religion Database. published Gary Holloway (Lipscomb University) by the American Theological Library Scott Seay (Christian Theological Seminary) Association. 300 S. Wacker Dr. Ste. ~100. ~hicago. IL 60606. Email atla@ atla.com. Web www.atla.com Disciples of Christ Historical Society Manuscripts should be submitted 110119th Avenue, S. electronically as an email attachment in Nashville, TN 37~1~-~109 Microsoft Word. with endnotes. Essays (866) 834-7563 should not exceed 3500 words. www.discipleshistory.org Polar Star Press and The Three Streams [email protected] Cross (with The Future of History) are Trademarks of Disciples of Christ HistoricaiSociety. Nashville. Tennessee. USA. and registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Ornce. ..··..the·..···PIffiSlDENT'S·DESlZ lcome to Discipliana. If you are movement we call Stone-Campbell. searching for the very latest in That is why we publish this journal. WStone-Campbell historical studies, We want you to know the "who" and the you're in the right place. "why" of how we have come from then to Since 1941, Disciples of Christ Ristori- now. cal Society has placed the preservation of As historians, we are convinced that our faith heritage at the very center of its we must know the details ofthe past. We mission. We believe we have an impor- need to see the places and the people and tant and exciting story to tell, one that the circumstances that form the tableaus connects all that is ideal about the past to of history. It is these details that help all of our hopes for the future. us to understand, at least in part, why The starting point for each ofthose stories is a person. To be sure, our The accomplishments of individuals and nations common identity with - whether in the arenas of science,politics, orfaith one person - Jesus of - are the building blocks of civilization. Nazareth - is involved in every story. Yet, we also celebrate all those per- sons who populate our particular stories. history developed in one way rather than These are the tales lived and told over another. We are further convinced that the last ~oo years that give the imprint of without this understanding of the past, it "Disciples" and "Christians" to the three is difhcult to make sense of the present streams of churches that comprise this and impossible to make any predictions THE PRESIDENT'S DESK about the future. While we are living now Our movement has created thousands and have dreams about someday. we have of congregations and changed millions come to accept that grappling with all of it of lives in the United States alone, not to begins then. mention the millions in other nations The accomplishments of individu- around the globe. Benevolent ministries als and nations - whether in the arenas bearing the flags of the three streams of of science, politics, or faith - are the this movement have served countless building blocks of civilization. The people in virtually every nation. And preservation of their stories by archivists, dozens of institutions of higher education and the interpretation of their stories have trained generations in every walk of by historians, gives us insight to how we life - including one U.S. president. arrived from there to here. It is the history Ours is a story of opening new vistas of of all these marvelous lives that shows us, faith both at home and abroad, includ - step by step, exactly how we progressed ing our historic call for oneness among from huts to palaces and from ignorance all Christians. The ideal of unity is now to enlightenment. expanded to call for the harmony of all At Disciples of Christ Historical people of faith everywhere. It is an ideal Society, our mission does not involve worthy of our devotion, because the the preservation of scientifIc or political realization of unity has the potential to history. We leave that in the able hands of bring the kind of peace and harmony others. Our mission involves faith, but a that the world has longed for but never particular faith arising on the American experienced. soil and creating a unique chapter in In this issue, Rick Cherok explains one Christian heritage. In fact, we are the only struggle in our history to maintain our organization in the world that has as its hope for unity, while also holding on to primary purpose the material preser- our core identity. This is an essay that has vation of this particular faith. When it been prepared especially for our readers comes to the Stone-Campbell movement, and one I know you will fInd helpful in there are others who have secondary in- connecting then to now. terest' but we stand alone as the premier keeper of this intriguing story. - GLENN THOMAS CARSON THE QUESTION OF UNIVERSALISM aWE FRATERNIZE WITH NONE" rom early in his publishing career, Alexander Campbell made it plainly clear Fthat he opposed the doctrine of universal salvation. "We are very sure that all the Universalists on earth," he wrote in 18~5, "cannot produce one sentence in all the revelation of God that says any thing about the termination of the punish- ment of the wicked." Furthermore, he wrote, "1am content to be assured that whosoever hears the gospel and believes and obeys it, shall be saved, and that whosoever hears it and disbelieves it, shall be damned.'" RICHARD J. CHEROK Nevertheless, Campbell was fre- America's antebellum era. The ad- quently called on to clarify his position herents of Universalism, according to on Universalism, and was occasion- Russell E. Miller, also regarded them- ally applauded within the Universalist selves as "a denomination of 'come press." outers' who challenged prevailing The confusion surrounding religious orthodoxies."3 So intimately Campbell's relationship to Universal- paralleled were the early Campbellian ism probably found its origin in two and Universalist pursuits of Christian distinct sources. The frrst was his reform that the editors of The Sentinel, expanding reputation as an iconoclas- and Star in the west, a weekly Univer- tic, frontier reformer of Christianity. salist periodical published in Cincin- Through the pages of his Christian nati, Ohio, commended Campbell for Baptist, Campbell gained notoriety his efforts to restore New Testament as a caustic rival to the norms of the Christianity and wished him "God established Christian traditions of speed" with his further work. 4 A second incident that brought Campbell's views on Universalism into question was his opposition to the Mahoning Baptist Association's endeavor to disfellowship Aylette Raines (1798-1881), a well-known evangelist among the Universalists. In 18~8, Raines united himself with the reform efforts of Campbell, although he had not yet completely abandoned his belief in the doctrine of universal salvation. At the Mahoning Associa- tion,s annual meeting, shortly after Raines' conversion, the leaders of the assembly suggested that their new Alexander Campbell (c. 184~) member be excommunicated from the THE QUESTION OF UNIVERSALISM association because of his continued Universalism as a nonessential belief