Thomas Campbell’s “Declaration and Address” was written a few years after Barton Stone’s Cane Ridge Revival. That revival was held in Kentucky in the summer of 1801. It lasted for five days, and attracted somewhere between ten and thirty thousand people. Today isn’t really about the Cane Ridge revival, but I can’t help but imagine how loud one must have had to preach to that many people in order to be heard in a day without microphones.
Anyway, a more important and remarkable thing about the Cane Ridge Revival (or, the Cane Ridge “Camp Meeting” as it is sometimes called) is that Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian ministers alternated preaching from the rough, hastily built platforms, and in their preaching, there was no indication of any sectarian differences among them.
Thomas Campbell wasn’t even in America at the time of the Cane Ridge revival. He arrived a few years later, and had never even heard of Barton Stone.
He arrived alone; his family remained, for the time being, back in Ireland, where he had recently resigned his ministry at the Old Light Anti-burgher Seceder Presbyterian Church.
That’s quite a name for a church, isn’t it? The Old Light, Anti-burgher Seceder Presbyterian Church. It’s a name that was the result of many divisions within the church. Somebody didn’t like something about the church, so they separated and formed a new church. Then divisions arose within that new church, which divided again.
Eventually, you end up with the Old Light (as opposed to the new light) Anti-burgher (as opposed to the pro-burgher) Seceder (as opposed to the non-seceder) Presbyterian (as opposed to the Methodist or Anglican) Church.
In America, Thomas Campbell hoped to overcome the divisions that plagued his church back home. One could say that he was hoping to bring to his fragmented world a movement for wholeness.
Arriving in American, he was assigned by the Presbyterian synod to preach in southwestern Pennsylvania. Since there were a number of believers in that region who did not have churches or ministers, Thomas Campbell welcomed them to the Lord’s Table, without requiring them to affirm any Presbyterian creed as a condition of their participation. Ooh.
In those days, that was a big deal. Most churches back then carefully guarded who could and could not receive communion at the Lord’s Table. If it was a Presbyterian table, you had to be Presbyterian—one who affirmed Presbyterian creeds, one who subscribed to Presbyterian statements of faith—in order to participate. Same thing for Methodist tables; you had to be Methodist. Or Anglican tables; you had to be Anglican.
There weren’t a whole lot of people in southwest Pennsylvania in those days; which meant that churches were widely scattered. You may have been a Methodist, but if the nearest Methodist church was a ten-mile walk or a twenty-mile horse ride, and there was a Presbyterian church just down the road, you might have found yourself worshiping there instead.
It didn’t seem right to Thomas Campbell to deny the Lord’s Supper to someone who was a follower of the same Christ he was. So he welcomed them unconditionally. It seemed to him the right thing to do.
But to others in the synod, it was not the right thing to do, and they formally rebuked Campbell. He was allowed to continue preaching, but by the end of 1808, Campbell had withdrawn from the synod, and—with a few other like-minded individuals—formed the Christian Association of Washington, Pennsylvania. It was in the following year—1809—that the Christian Association published what Campbell called his “Declaration and Address.”
Historians have called the Declaration and Address the most influential document in Disciples history. Some have hailed it as “one of the great milestones on the path of Christian unity in America.” It was in that document that Campbell wrote the words that I hope are now familiar to you, that “the church of Christ on earth is essentially, intentionally, and constitutionally one.” The Declaration and Address also affirms that every person who professes their faith in Christ and who seeks to follow Christ is a part of that one church.
In an age of fierce denominational differences and rivalries, this was a bold statement to make.
An entry on Wikipedia states that Thomas Campbell was a man before his time. His ideas, which attracted some attention in his own time, would only become more popular in the years and decades to come. His ideas helped give birth to three distinct Christian movements: the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the Church of Christ, and the Independent Christian Churches.
However, as inspiring and significant as Campbell’s words are, we are, in fact, three separate movements today. We know that we still have work to do when it comes to recognizing and living out the truth that is the oneness of Christ’s church.
The good news is that we are, in fact, doing that work. On this bicentennial celebration of Thomas Campbell’s Declaration and Address, these three movements are coming together in worship, this morning, this afternoon, in thousands of congregations and cities throughout North America and the world. Several of us will be attending (and I will be participating in) one such celebration taking place at 5:00 today, at First Christian Church in Bellflower. We will reaffirm the oneness of the church, a oneness that we recognize despite the historical differences that have divided us in the past.
We will, as the scripture says, make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit, recognizing that there is one body and one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, and one baptism.
For we who are Disciples, this is an excellent opportunity to live out our identity as a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world. When Thomas Campbell’s son, Alexander, arrived in America a few years later, they discovered that their thinking on church unity was the same. They began a new movement, which they called “Disciples.” Alexander became the prominent leader among the Disciples.
Eventually the Disciples joined with Barton Stone and his growing movement, the members of which called themselves “Christians.” In 1832, the Disciples and the Christians came together, and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) was born.
Ever since, we have proclaimed that “unity is our polar star.” The open table that is at the center of our worship gives witness to the unity of the church. Every Sunday, we gather around the Lord’s Table. Every Sunday, the invitation is extended to all, to gather at the table and partake of the body and blood of Christ.
It certainly is fitting that this bicentennial celebration of the “Declaration and Address” coincides with World Communion Sunday, a day on which we recognize our oneness with all those who gather around this table around the world; all those who, in various languages, in various styles of worship, in nations rich and poor, partake of these same elements.
It is fitting that this bicentennial celebration also coincides with the 2nd Sunday of our reconciliation emphasis. For us, reconciliation ministry is about overcoming divisions; specifically, divisions caused by race and racism. Like World Communion Sunday and our Great Communion celebration, reconciliation emphasizes that we are, indeed, one.
We are one in Christ, whether or not we agree on every issue that comes along. Even when we disagree, we are one in Christ. Remember that.
When some of us like one type of music and some of like another type, we are one in Christ.
When some of us see the government’s role in society a little differently than others do, we are still one in Christ.
When we speak with different accents, or pray in different languages, we are still one in Christ.
When personalities clash, we are still one in Christ.
When we are separated from one another due to travel or illness, we are still one in Christ.
When we hurt one another and are in need of forgiveness, we are still one in Christ.
When we celebrate together, we are still one in Christ.
When we mourn together, we are still one in Christ.
When we worship together, we are still one in Christ.
We are one in Christ with each other. We are one in Christ with other parts of the body, around the world.
We are one church—one church in Christ.
Sources used for background historical information:
Lester G. McAlister & William E. Tucker, Journey in Faith: A History of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). St. Louis: CBP Press, 1989 (third printing).
Mark G. Toulouse Joined in Discipleship: The Shaping of Contemporary Disciples Identity (revised and expanded). St. Louis: Chalice Press, 1997
“Declaration and Address,” Wikipedia entry.
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