Our Heritage

New Hope Christian Church is part of a heritage of churches which are part of what is known as the Restoration Movement, or the Stone-Campbell movement (in reference to Barton W. Stone and Thomas and Alexander Campbell who were the leading thinkers and promoters of the movement).

The Restoration Movement
The Restoration Movement began in a time of radical denominationalism on the American frontier of the early 1800's. Many protestant denominations defined themselves in distinction from each other in very particular ways. Many of these denominations were shaped by creeds and confessions that had been developed over the previous 300 years in protestant Europe. Many people, including Thomas Campbell, Alexander Campbell (Thomas' son), Barton W. Stone, and Walter Scott, saw the emphasis on creeds and confessions, and the resulting divisions and non-cooperation between denominations as a major obstacle to the proclamation of the gospel and disciple making.

There developed among many people, concentrated mainly in northern Kentucky, southern Ohio, and western Pennsylvania, a desire to end the divisions that hindered the spreading of the gospel. The idea that developed was that unity would result when Christians restored scriptures as the primary authority for faith and practice (as opposed to creeds and confessions), and that such a unity would be the basis for effective Christian witness and disciple-making.

History of the Restoration Movement
The early years of the Restoration Movement were marked by a true desire for unity alongside the messy process of figuring out how people with various and different convictions were to practice faithfully together.

During this time, several key practices emerged as important responses to what was seen as "the New Testament pattern for the church." These practices included baptism of believers by immersion (in contrast to infant baptism by sprinkling), weekly participation in communion (as opposed to monthly, quarterly, or annually participation), and identifying themselves as "not the only Christians, but Christians only" (as opposed to denominational names).

This struggle to 'figure things out' lead thinkers like Alexander Campbell to study the scriptures intensely on the pressing issues. Campbell and others published articles that worked through their own developing views on issues such as baptism, the Holy Spirit, the name by which churches should be known, the form of church government, and the use of popular revivalism methods.

By 1850 the Restoration movement consisted of independent congregations bound together by their publications, missionary and Bible societies, colleges, and conventions. As time progressed, the desire for unity began to come into tension with what scriptural authority meant for faith and practice. As people came to differing interpretations of scripture-resulting in different practices-unity began to take a back seat to convictions.

Toward the late 1800's, American frontier life changed dramatically and brought an intensification of tensions among churches in the Restoration Movement. As with any time of transition, there were those who sought to keep up with the times and others who sought to hold on to the previously established form.

The introduction of the organ as an aide to worship was one of the most serious controversies in the Christian Churches of the late 1800's. Although the issue may seem trivial to us, it must be understood that the causes of disagreement resulted from people's deep desire to do God's will and be faithful to the scriptures in their faith and practice. The trouble came from "an inability to discern between matters of opinion and matters of faith."

Although the organ (along with other instruments) was to receive the greatest attention as a source of division, other issues, such as closed communion (only allowing certain people to share in communion), open membership, paid ministry, and missionary societies, led to the first division of the Restoration Movement in 1906. That break resulted in two distinct groups: the Churches of Christ (who did not allow instruments, among other issues) and the Disciples.

Over the period from about 1910 to 1971 there arose several points of tension among the Disciples group. These tensions created a rift within this branch of the Restoration Movement-a rift that was to widen until it officially split in 1971.

The first tension involved churches' relationship with interdenominational groups. The so-called 'liberal wing' supported involvement with these groups, while the more 'centrist' churches protested such associations. A second issue was the emergence of theological liberalism which tended to view scripture in a way that centrists believed would undermine scripture as authoritative.

A third point of contention was the growth and power of various missionary societies. There was a trend toward denominational structure that the 'centrists' opposed.

A fourth issue was the practice of open membership. The 'liberal' leadership encouraged such practices in the churches as well as in the missionary societies. In the minds of the centrist churches, this was a move toward unity at the cost of the authority of scripture.

By 1971 the group known in 1906 as 'the Disciples' had officially split into two groups: the Disciples of Christ (the 'liberal' group), and the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ (the 'centrist group' which is now generally referred to as the Independent Christian Churches).

It is this 'centrist group' of Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, that the New Hope Christian Church finds themselves.  Please refer to our What We Believe page for more information on our specific beliefs. 

("Our Heritage" was adapted from an article written by Joel McClure.)

 

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