History of reformatory movements resulting in a restoration of the Apostolic Church

Front matter

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

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Preface

In preparing this work for the public, we have drawn from the most reliable and distinguished authorities extant. We have prepared the work with much labor and patient research. The present work is the condensation of many volumes. For authorities, we have depended on such standard works as McClintock and Strong's Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia Britannica, Chambers' Encyclopedia, Prof. George P. Fisher's History of the Reformation, Philip Schaff's History of the Christian Church, Neander's History of the Christian Religion and Church, and Prof. R. Richardson's Memoirs of Alexander Campbell. In delineating the development of the great apostasy from the original apostolic order of things, in describing the successive Protestant reformations, in setting forth the restoration and identification of the Church of Christ, as accomplished through the labors of Alexander Campbell and his coadjutors, and in giving a brief history of the nineteen Ecumenical Church Councils, we have followed the order of events as closely as it was possible to be done. We have aimed to give places, dates, and authorities, and corroborating testimony from disinterested parties. In a word, if there is any reliability in history, it will be found in the following pages. We have aimed to present a systematic compendium of Reformatory Movements, and as such we ask our readers to receive our work, bating all imperfections, as purely a labor cf love.

THE AUTHOR.

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Introduction

For many years the writer has himself felt the pressing need of a work of this character. While young in the ministry, and comparatively poor, in possession of very few books, and having no access to large libraries, he continually felt himself hampered by the absence of books of reference, and felt himself crippled in his public ministrations because he could not find time, in his struggles to live above want, to ransack the pages of history in quest of the desired information. The general reader needs just such a work as this, who, in a moment, by referring to the index, can find what he wants and satisfy himself. The preacher needs it for easy reference, and especially the traveling evangelist, who can not pack a lot of books with him. The author of this work, having frequently desired a help of this kind, which he could carry with him, to aid him both in speaking and writing for the press, came to the conclusion that others might be greatly benefited by the matter contained in it. The author has for a long time had such a work in contemplation. It is not only intended for the Disciples of Christ, but it is also prepared with a view of circulating it among the various denominations, and with, the purpose of inciting the independent and untrammeled thinkers in the denominations to investigate the pages of history to see if these things are so.

Within the compass of this work, we have aimed to give a connected view of the Reformatory Movements from Martin Luther down to the times of the great reformer, Alexander Campbell. The reader will discover, the fact, that while such illustrious reformers as Luther, Zwingli, Melancthon, Calvin, Knox and Wesley only aimed at re-forming existing abuses and immoralities in the Church, Campbell sought the complete restoration of apostolic principles and practices,

VI INTRODUCTION.

and, having determined upon a work of that character, did actually raise up a body of people identical with primitive Christians, both in faith and practice. The plan of the work is as follows :

1. A brief statement of the primitive order of things. 2. A sketch of the apostasy from the third century down to the times of Luther, or to the Reformation of the sixteenth century. 3. A connected history of the Protestant period, which embraces the efforts made at reformation during the space of three hundred years. 4. The Restoration of the Apostolic Church. 5. A history of the nineteen Ecumenical Church Councils— the study of the proceedings of which is highly instructive and interesting, they serving as a sort of spiritual thermometer of the troublous times of the Church, as the Church was manipulated by princes and priests. The various decrees of successive councils will show how kings and princes were deposed, the rivalries of ambitious men in Church and State, the origin of image worship, auricular confession, penance, the mass, celibacy, purgatory, prayers for the dead, transubstantiation, etc. The subjects we have enumerated should be studied as they are not studied in these days of flashy literature and fast living. There is entirely too much superficial reading done, even by ministers of the gospel, who should be in possession of a general knowledge of church history, without which they will feel themselves more or less annoyed and crippled in their ministerial work. People who profess to be reformers can not very well progress as reformers unless they have an intelligent view of the situation, as we have outlined it in this work. The general reader, engaged in secular employments, who has not the time to explore the pages of many volumes, and not even time to consult books of reference, will, we feel confident, find this work of great advantage to him ; that it will aid him very much in ascertaining the facts of history, and furnish him with facts and data with which to make just comparison between truth and error, between what God has decreed, and what man has invented, and especially show him the difference between reforming imperfect church organizations and restoring the Church of Christ as founded by the apostles.

INTRODUCTION. Vll

We should probably apologize to the general reader for investing portions of this work with a show of too much learning and too much refined scholarship; but we found it impossible to prepare a work of this character— which is history condensed — and dress it up in a simple garb of words and terms of speech, without marring more or less the pages of history, and without doing injustice to the subjects treated and to the authors quoted.

If the reader shall derive as much benefit and pleasure in perusing these pages, as the author has derived from the preparation of the work, the author will feel that he has not labored in vain.

In revising The Apostolic Church Restored, which has been before the public several years, we have enlarged the work considerably by adding ti it a History of All Innovations, on which we have bestowed much attention, by a searching investigation of the most reliable authorities, being careful to furnish times, places and names. Our foot-notes are very copious. As supplemented to The Apostolic Church Restored, the History of All Innovations will prove to be of immense value to the reader, especially to the preacher and to journalists. The documents to which we have had access in the preparation of this work are not accessible to the general reader ; indeed, the facts are not accessible to many scholars. P»y tracing up the origin of the various denominations—which an apostate Church has spawned upon the world — and by locating the origin of all innovations from the fourth century down to the present, we have identified the Church of Christ as established

by the apostles.

THE AUTHOR,