Restorationism

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Restorationism, also known as Restitutionism or Christian primitivism, is a religious perspective according to which the early beliefs and practices of the followers of Jesus were lost or adulterated after his death and required "restoration".[1][2][3] It is a view that often "seeks to correct faults or deficiencies (in other branches of Christianity) by appealing to the primitive church as normative model".[1]: 635 

Efforts to restore an earlier, purer form of Christianity are often a response to

denominationalism. As Rubel Shelly put it, "the motive behind all restoration movements is to tear down the walls of separation by a return to the practice of the original, essential and universal features of the Christian religion."[4]: 29  Different groups have tried to implement the restorationist vision in a variety of ways; for instance, some have focused on the structure and practice of the church, others on the ethical life of the church, and others on the direct experience of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.[1]
: 635–638  The relative importance given to the restoration ideal, and the extent to which the full restoration of the early church is believed to have been achieved, also varies among groups.

More narrowly, the term "Restorationism" describes unrelated Restorationist groups during the era of the

Swedenborgians (i.e., The New Church), Irvingians (the largest of which is the New Apostolic Church), Latter Day Saints (i.e., Mormonism), Jehovah's Witnesses (from the tetragrammaton for God), La Luz del Mundo (Spanish: 'the Light of the World'), and Iglesia ni Cristo (Tagalog: 'Church of Christ').[5][6][7][8] In this sense, Restorationism has been regarded as one of the six taxonomic groupings of Christianity: the Church of the East, Oriental Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, and Restorationism.[9][10] These Restorationist groups share a belief that historic Christianity lost the true faith during the Great Apostasy and that the Church needed to be restored.[11][12]

The term has been used to refer to the

Charismatic Restorationists, which arose in the 1970s in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.[13][14]

Uses of the term

The terms restorationism, restorationist and restoration are used in several senses within

Protestant Reformation,[2]: 217  and Protestantism has been described as "a form of Christian restorationism, though some of its forms – for example the Churches of Christ or the Baptists – are more restorationist than others".[15]: 81–82  A number of historical movements within Christianity may be described as "restoration movements", including the Glasites in Scotland and England, the independent church led by James Haldane and Robert Haldane in Scotland, the American Restoration Movement, the Landmark Baptists and the Mormons.[16]: 659pf  A variety of more contemporary movements have also been described as "restorationist".[17][18] Restorationism has been described as a basic component of some Pentecostal movements such as the Assemblies of God.[19]: 4–5  The terms "Restorationism movement" and "Restorationist movement" have also been applied to the British New Church Movement.[20]
: 82–83 

Capitalized, the term is also used as a synonym for the American

: 57–58 

The term primitive,

Ebionite tradition.[25]

Historical models

The restoration ideal has been interpreted and applied in a variety of ways.[1]: 635  Four general historical models can be identified based on the aspect of early Christianity that the individuals and groups involved were attempting to restore.[1]: 635  These are:

  • Ecclesiastical Primitivism;[1]: 635 
  • Ethical Primitivism;[1]: 635 
  • Experiential Primitivism;[1]: 635  and
  • Gospel Primitivism.[1]: 635 

Ecclesiastical primitivism focuses on restoring the

Alexander Campbell.[1]
: 636 

Ethical primitivism focuses on restoring the ethical norms and commitment to

Expounding of the Law warn against antinomianism, the rejection of biblical teachings concerning observance of the Law.[28]

Experiential primitivism focuses on restoring the direct communication with God and the experience of the Holy Spirit seen in the early church.[1]: 637  Examples include the Latter Day Saint movement of Joseph Smith and Pentecostalism.[1]: 637, 638 

Gospel primitivism may be best seen in the theology of

Reformation leaders who were attempting to do so.[1]: 638  On the other hand, he was convinced that the gospel message had been obscured by the Roman Catholic Church of the time.[1]: 638  He also rejected church traditions he considered contrary to Scripture and insisted on scripture as the sole authority for the church.[29]
: 23 

These models are not mutually exclusive, but overlap; for example, the Pentecostal movement sees a clear link between ethical primitivism and experiential primitivism.[1]: 635, 637 

Middle Ages

Beginning in about 1470 a succession of

Hussites, and Girolamo Savonarola's reforms in Florence.[33]

While these pre-reformation movements did presage and sometimes discussed a break with Rome and papal authority, they also provoked restorationist movements within the church, such as the councils of Constance[34] and Basle,[35] which were held in the first half of the 15th century.

Preachers at the time regularly harangued delegates to these conferences regarding

Protestant Reformation.[30]

Protestant Reformation

Huldrych Zwingli as depicted by Hans Asper in an oil portrait from 1531; Kunstmuseum Winterthur.

The Protestant Reformation came about through an impulse to repair the Church and return it to what the reformers saw as its original biblical structure, belief, and practice,[37] and was motivated by a sense that "the medieval church had allowed its traditions to clutter the way to God with fees and human regulations and thus to subvert the gospel of Christ."[29]: 21  At the heart of the Reformation was an emphasis on the principle of "scripture alone" (sola scriptura).[29]: 22–23  As a result, the authority of church tradition, which had taken practical precedence over scripture, was rejected.[29]: 22  The Reformation was not a monolithic movement, but consisted of at least three identifiable sub-currents.[29]: 21  One was centered in Germany, one was centered in Switzerland, and the third was centered in England.[29]: 21  While these movements shared some common concerns, each had its own particular emphasis.[29]: 21 

The

Lutheran Churches traditionally sees themselves as the "main trunk of the historical Christian Tree" founded by Christ and the Apostles, holding that during the Reformation, at the Council of Trent, the Church of Rome fell away.[38][39] As such, the Augsburg Confession, the Lutheran confession of faith, teaches that "the faith as confessed by Luther and his followers is nothing new, but the true catholic faith, and that their churches represent the true catholic or universal church".[40] When the Lutherans presented the Augsburg Confession to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, they explained "that each article of faith and practice was true first of all to Holy Scripture, and then also to the teaching of the church fathers and the councils".[40]

In contrast, the

Reformed approach can be described as one of "restoration," seeking "to restore the essence and form of the primitive church based on biblical precedent and example; tradition received scant respect."[29]: 21  While Luther focused on the question "How can we find forgiveness of sins?", the early Reformed theologians turned to the Bible for patterns that could be used to replace traditional forms and practices.[29]: 24  Heinrich Bullinger and Martin Bucer in particular emphasized the restoration of biblical patterns.[29]: 29–31  John Calvin reflected an intermediate position between that of Luther and Reformed theologians such as Zwingli, stressing biblical precedents for church governance, but as a tool to more effectively proclaim the gospel rather than as ends in themselves.[29]
: 291, 22 

Luther opposed efforts to restore "biblical forms and structures,"[29]: 112  because he saw human efforts to restore the church as works righteousness.[1]: 638  He did seek the "marks of the true church," but was concerned that by focusing on forms and patterns could lead to the belief that by "restoring outward forms alone one has restored the essence."[29]: 117  Thus, Luther believed that restoring the gospel was the first step in renewing the church, rather than restoring biblical forms and patterns.[29]: 118  In this sense, Luther can be described as a gospel restorationist, even though his approach was very different from that of other restorationists.[1]: 638 [29]: 121 

Protestant groups have generally accepted history as having some "jurisdiction" in Christian faith and life; the question has been the extent of that jurisdiction.

apostolic "first times" are given only partial jurisdiction.[41]
: 5, 6 

Church of England and Caroline Divines

Perhaps the most primitivist minded of the Protestant Reformation era were a group of scholars within the Church of England known as the Caroline Divines, who flourished in the 1600s during the reigns of Charles I and Charles II. They regularly appealed to the Primitive Church as the basis for their reforms.[42] Unlike many other Christian Primitivists, the Church of the England and the Caroline Divines did not subject Scriptural interpretation to individual human reason, but rather to the hermeneutical consensus of the Church Fathers, holding to the doctrine of Prima Scriptura as opposed to Sola Scriptura.[43] Furthermore, they did not hold to the separatist ecclesiology of many primitivist groups, but rather saw themselves as working within the historic established church to return it to its foundation in Scripture and the patristic tradition.[42] Among the Caroline Divines were men like Archbishop William Laud, Bishop Jeremy Taylor, Deacon Nicholas Ferrar and the Little Gidding Community and others.

First Great Awakening

Methodism

Methodism began in the 1700s as a Christian Primitivist movement within the Church of England. John Wesley and his brother Charles, the founders of the movement, were high church Anglican priests in the vein of the Caroline Divines, who had a deep respect for the Primitive Church, which they generally defined as the Church before the Council Of Nicea.[44] Unlike many other Christian Primitivists, the Wesleys and the early Methodists did not subject Scriptural interpretation to individual human reason, but rather to the hermeneutical consensus of the Ante-Nicene Fathers, holding to a view of authority more akin to Prima Scriptura rather than Sola Scriptura.[45] Furthermore, they did not hold to the separatist ecclesiology of many primitivist groups, but rather saw themselves as working within the historic established church to return it to its foundation in Scripture and the tradition of the pre-Nicene Church.[46] John Wesley very regularly asserted Methodism's commitment to the Primitive Church, saying, "From a child I was taught to love and reverence the Scripture, the oracles of God; and, next to these, to esteem the primitive Fathers, the writers of the first three centuries. Next after the primitive church, I esteemed our own, the Church of England, as the most Scriptural national Church in the world."[47][48] And, "Methodism, so called, is the old religion, the religion of the Bible, the religion of the primitive Church, the religion of the Church of England."[49] On his epitaph is written, "This GREAT LIGHT arose (By the Singular providence of GOD) To enlighten THESE NATIONS, And to revive, enforce, and defend, The Pure Apostolical DOCTRINES and PRACTICES of THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH…"[50]

Separate Baptists

James Robinson Graves

During the First Great Awakening, a movement developed among the Baptists known as Separate Baptists. Two themes of this movement were the rejection of creeds and "freedom in the Spirit."[29]: 65  The Separate Baptists saw scripture as the "perfect rule" for the church.[29]: 66  While they turned to the Bible for a structural pattern for the church, they did not insist on complete agreement on the details of that pattern.[29]: 67  This group originated in New England, but was especially strong in the South where the emphasis on a biblical pattern for the church grew stronger.[29]: 67  In the last half of the 18th century it spread to the western frontier of Kentucky and Tennessee, where the Stone and Campbell movements would later take root.[29]: 68  The development of the Separate Baptists in the southern frontier helped prepare the ground for the Restoration Movement, as the membership of both the Stone and Campbell groups drew heavily from among the ranks of the Separate Baptists.[29]: 67  Separate Baptist restorationism also contributed to the development of the Landmark Baptists in the same area at about the same time as the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement. Under the leadership of James Robinson Graves, this group looked for a precise blueprint for the primitive church, believing that any deviation from that blueprint would keep one from being part of the true church.[29]: 68 

Groups arising in the era of the Second Great Awakening

1839 Methodist camp meeting, watercolor from the Second Great Awakening.

The ideal of restoring a "primitive" form of Christianity grew in popularity in the United States after the American Revolution.[29]: 89–94  This desire to restore a purer form of Christianity played a role in the development of many groups during this period, known as the Second Great Awakening, including the Mormons, Baptists and Shakers.[29]: 89  Several factors made the restoration sentiment particularly appealing during this time period.[29]: 90–94 

  • To immigrants in the early 19th century, the land in America seemed pristine, edenic and undefiled - "the perfect place to recover pure, uncorrupted and original Christianity" - and the tradition-bound European churches seemed out of place in this new setting.[29]: 90 
  • The new American democracy seemed equally fresh and pure, a restoration of the kind of just government that God intended.[29]: 90, 91 
  • Many believed that the new nation would usher in a new millennial age.[29]: 91, 92 
  • Independence from the traditional churches of Europe was appealing to many Americans who were enjoying a new political independence.[29]: 92, 93 
  • A primitive faith based on the Bible alone promised a way to sidestep the competing claims of all the many denominations available and find assurance of being right without the security of an established national church.[29]: 93 

Camp meetings fueled the Second Great Awakening, which served as an "organizing process" that created "a religious and educational infrastructure" across the trans-Appalachian frontier that encompassed social networks, a religious journalism that provided mass communication, and church related colleges.[51]: 368 

American Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement

Thomas Campbell

The American Restoration Movement aimed to restore the church and sought "the unification of all Christians in a single body patterned after the church of the New Testament."

Alexander Campbell
; they used the name Disciples of Christ.

Barton W. Stone

The Campbell movement was characterized by a "systematic and rational reconstruction" of the early church, in contrast to the Stone movement which was characterized by radical freedom and lack of dogma.[29]: 106–108  Despite their differences, the two movements agreed on several critical issues.[29]: 108  Both saw restoring apostolic Christianity as a means of hastening the millennium.[29]: 108  Both also saw restoring the early church as a route to Christian freedom.[29]: 108  And, both believed that unity among Christians could be achieved by using apostolic Christianity as a model.[29]: 108  They were united, among other things, in the belief that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; that Christians should celebrate the Lord's Supper on the first day of each week; and that baptism of adult believers by immersion in water is a necessary condition for salvation. Because the founders wanted to abandon all denominational labels, they used the biblical names for the followers of Jesus that they found in the Bible.[53]: 27  The commitment of both movements to restoring the early church and to uniting Christians was enough to motivate a union between many in the two movements.[54]: 8, 9 

With the merger, there was the challenge of what to call the new movement. Clearly, finding a biblical, non-sectarian name was important. Stone wanted to continue to use the name "Christians." Alexander Campbell insisted upon "Disciples of Christ". As a result, both names were used.[53]: 27–28 [55]: 125 

Alexander Campbell

The Restoration Movement began during, and was greatly influenced by, the Second Great Awakening.[51]: 368  While the Campbells resisted what they saw as the spiritual manipulation of the camp meetings, the Southern phase of the Awakening "was an important matrix of Barton Stone's reform movement" and shaped the evangelistic techniques used by both Stone and the Campbells.[51]: 368 

The Restoration Movement has seen several divisions, resulting in multiple separate groups. Three modern groups originating in the U.S. claim the Stone-Campbell movement as their roots: Churches of Christ, Christian churches and churches of Christ, and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Some see divisions in the movement as the result of the tension between the goals of restoration and ecumenism, with the churches of Christ and the Christian churches and churches of Christ resolving the tension by stressing restoration while the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) resolved the tension by stressing ecumenism.[56]: 383  Non-U.S. churches associated with this movement include the Churches of Christ in Australia and the Evangelical Christian Church in Canada.[57][58]

Christadelphians

John Thomas

Alexander Campbell, on these topics but eventually agreed to stop because he found the practice bestowed no further practical merits to his personal beliefs and it had the potential to create division. He later determined that salvation was dependent upon having the theology he had developed for baptism to be effective for salvation and published an "Confession and Abjuration" of his previous position on March 3, 1847. He was also rebaptised
.

Following his abjuration and rebaptism he went to England on a preaching tour in June 1848 including Reformation Movement churches,[59] Although his abjuration and his disfellowship in America were reported in the British churches magazines[60] certain churches in the movement still allowed him to present his views. Thomas also gained a hearing in Unitarian and Adventist churches through his promotion of the concept of "independence of thought" with regards to interpreting the Bible.

Through a process of creed setting and division the Christadelphian movement emerged with a distinctive set of doctrines incorporating Adventism, anti-trinitarianism, the belief that God is a "substantial and corporeal" being, objection to military service, a lay-membership with full participation by all members, and other doctrines consistent with the spirit of the Restorationist movement.[61] One consequence of objection to military service was the adoption of the name Christadelphians to distinguish this small community of believers and to be granted exemption from military service in the American Civil War.[61]

Swedenborgians

Swedenborgian
Christian denomination

The New Church was founded on the basis of the theology of Emanuel Swedenborg.[8] As such, it is often known as the Swedenborgian Church.[8] The New Church's view of God is that "Jesus is God incarnate, not (as certain interpretations of the traditional Christian trinity contend) an emanation of the Godhead."[62] The New Church propounds the doctrine of Correspondence, which teaches that "Every word or fact of the Bible corresponded to a spiritual truth or mystical truth."[62] Additionally, The New Church teaches that "Objects in the physical world have spiritual correspondences."[63]

Irvingians

Mansfield Place Church, a former cathedral of the Catholic Apostolic Church in Edinburgh, UK

The

Holy Communion and Holy Sealing.[5][68][69]

Latter Day Saint movement

Adherents to the Latter Day Saint movement believe that founder

withdrawn from the Earth after the end of the apostolic age and before the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Unlike other reformers, who based their movements on their own interpretations of the Bible, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery held that they were visited by John the Baptist to receive the Aaronic Priesthood. This restoration authorized members to receive revelation from God in order to restore the original apostolic organization lost after the events of the New Testament.[70] According to Allen and Hughes, "[n]o group used the language of 'restoration' more consistently and more effectively than did the [Latter Day Saints] ... early Mormons seemed obsessed with restoring the ancient church of God."[29]
: 94 

Joseph Smith

According to Smith, God

prophet, seer and revelator
.

Some among the

continuing revelation, similarly to the progressive revelation
held by some non-restorationist Christian theologians.

The "

Protestant Reformation, which is seen as an important step towards the development of protected freedoms and speech required for a full restoration to be possible.[73]

Adventism

Adventism is a

Protestants.[74][75]

Millerites and Seventh-day Sabbatarianism

William Miller

The Millerites were the most well-known family of the Adventist movements. They emphasized apocalyptic teachings anticipating the end of the world, and did not look for the unity of Christendom but busied themselves in preparation for Christ's return. Millerites sought to restore a prophetic immediacy and uncompromising biblicism that they believed had once existed but had long been rejected by mainstream Protestant and Catholic churches. From the Millerites descended the Seventh-day Adventists and the Advent Christian Church.

Seventh-day Adventists

The Seventh-day Adventist Church grew out of the Adventist movement, in particular the Millerites. The Seventh-day Adventist Church is the largest of several

Spirit of Prophecy, as explained in the writings of Ellen G. White
.

Much of the theology of the Seventh-day Adventist Church corresponds to Protestant Christian teachings such as the Trinity and the

. The church is also known for its emphasis on diet and health, its holistic understanding of the person, its promotion of religious liberty, and its conservative principles and lifestyle.

Worldwide Church of God

The

Radio Church of God, which became the Worldwide Church of God. It later splintered into many other churches and groups when the Worldwide Church of God disassociated itself with the Restoration movements and made major attempts to join the Protestant branch of Christianity. The largest of these groups, the Living Church of God and the United Church of God
, continue in the tradition of the Worldwide Church of God as it was under the leadership of Herbert W. Armstrong.

Advent Christian Church

The Advent Christian Church is unaffiliated with Seventh-day Adventism, but considers itself the second "of six Christian denominations that grew out of the ministry of William Miller".

soul sleep
".

Advent Christians such as George Storrs and Jonas Wendell influenced the Bible Student movement.

Other groups originating in the nineteenth century

Bible Students

Charles Russell in 1911

In the 1870s, a Bible study group led by

immortality of the soul, and the definition of Hell as a place of eternal torment.[82]

Jehovah's Witnesses

first century Christianity, including increased emphasis on the use of Jehovah as God's personal name.[83]

Plymouth Brethren

John Nelson Darby

The Plymouth Brethren is a

conservative, Evangelical, restorationist movement whose origin can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in 1827.[84][85][86] The title, "The Brethren", is one that many of their number are comfortable with, in that the Bible designates all believers as "brethren". The first English assembly was in Plymouth in 1831,[87] where the movement became well known and assemblies diffused throughout Europe and beyond.[88] It was organised primarily by George Wigram, Benjamin Wills Newton and John Nelson Darby.[89] The movement soon spread throughout the UK. By 1845, the first English assembly in Plymouth had over 1,000 souls in fellowship.[90]

They became known as "the brethren from Plymouth", and were soon simply called "Plymouth Brethren". By 1848, divergence of practice and belief led to the development of two separate branches. The rift was caused primarily by a difference of opinions between

better source needed
]

20th-century and contemporary groups

Oneness Pentecostalism

Pentecostalism began primarily as a restoration movement that focused on the "experiential" aspect of the early church.[93] The early pioneers of the Pentecostal movement sought to restore the work and power of the Holy Spirit to the church, which they felt had been lost early on after the Apostolic Age. Oneness Pentecostals, in particular, continue to have a lot of restorationist themes present in their movement. Many Oneness Pentecostals see their movement as being a restoration of the Apostolic Church, which is why many of them refer to themselves as "apostolic" or to their movement as the "Apostolic Pentecostal" movement.

British New Church Movement

During the charismatic movement of the 1960s and 1970s, which focused on the transformation of the individual, some leaders formed what has become known as the Charismatic Restorationist Movement. These leaders, of whom Arthur Wallis, David Lillie and Cecil Cousen were at the forefront, focused on the nature of the church and shared a distinctive view that authentic church order was being restored to the whole church. This authentic church order centred on what is referred to as the "fivefold ministries", as listed in Ephesians 4:11: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Teachers and Pastors. Although the Charismatic Movement brought the Pentecostal gifts to the denominational churches, these restorationists considered denominationalism unbiblical, and shared a conviction that God would cause the church to be directly organized and empowered by the holy spirit. The movement has thousands of adherents worldwide, and notable church networks include Newfrontiers led by Terry Virgo, Salt and Light Ministries International led by Barney Coombs and Ichthus Christian Fellowship led by Faith and Roger Forster.

Shepherding movement

The British leaders of charismatic restorationism mutually recognised a parallel movement in the United States, centered on the Fort Lauderdale Five;

Great Commission International
.

Apostolic-Prophetic Movement

More recently another form of charismatic restorationism with a similar recognition of the

Kansas City Prophets. Leading proponents of the movement include C. Peter Wagner, Rick Joyner, Mike Bickle and Lou Engle
.

Church of God (Restoration)

The Church of God (Restoration) is a Christian denomination that was founded in the 1980s by Daniel (Danny) Layne.

Church of God (Guthrie, OK)
after his conversion.

One tenet of this group is that they are ordained by both prophecy and divine command to restore the church of God as it was in the Book of Acts.[95] Most of Daniel Layne's beliefs concerning the book of Revelation originated from some ministers who had left the Church of God (Anderson) reformation movement thirty or so years earlier. This teaching is upheld by the official eschatology, which is a form of church historicism. This Church of God (Restoration)[96] teaches that the 7th Trumpet in the book of the Revelation began to sound around the year 1980 when Daniel Layne was saved, alleging that there was a general discontent among many of its current adherents that were in various Churches of God at that time. A variation of this "Seventh Seal message"[97] had been taught in other Churches of God for approximately 50 years prior to this point.

Iglesia ni Cristo

Iglesia ni Cristo began in the

Felix Y. Manalo on July 27, 1914.[98][99] The church professes to be the reestablishment of the original church founded by Jesus Christ and teaches that the original church was apostatized. It does not teach the doctrine of the Trinity or the divinity of Jesus.[100] Iglesia ni Cristo does not subscribe to the term Restoration or claim to be a part of the Restoration Movement.[citation needed
]

La Luz del Mundo

La Luz del Mundo (full name: Iglesia del Dios Vivo, Columna y Apoyo de la Verdad, La Luz del Mundo) was founded in

divinity of Jesus. It continues to claim that it is the restoration of primitive Christianity and that its leaders, including Aarón Joaquín, his son, Samuel Joaquín Flores (14 February 1937 – 8 December 2014), and his grandson, Naasón Joaquín García
(born 7 May 1969), who is the church's international director, are apostles responsible for the restoration, without whom it would be impossible for people to truly believe in Jesus and be saved.

Apostolic Catholic Church (Philippines)

The Apostolic Catholic Church started as a mainstream

Independent Catholic denomination.[101]
The Church describes itself as a Conservative Church which aims to bring back Ancient Catholic Church traditions removed by previous councils and Popes.

Local churches

Watchman Nee

The

J.N. Darby, Watchman Nee and Witness Lee and associated with the Living Stream Ministry publishing house. Its members see themselves as separate from other Christian groups, denominations, and movements, part of what they sometimes call "The Lord's Recovery". One of the defining features of the local churches is their adherence to the principle that all Christians in a city or locality are automatically members of the one church in that locality. Another defining feature is the lack of an official organization or official name for the movement. Those in the local churches believe that to take a name would divide them from other believers. Thus, they often say they meet with "the church in [city name]" with the understanding that they are not the only church but belong to the same church as every believer in their city.[102]

Jesuism

Jesuism is the personal

Christian Bible.[104] In particular, Jesuism is distinguished from the writings attributed to the Apostle Paul and from modern Church doctrine.[105][106] Jesuism is not necessarily critical of the Christian Bible or Church doctrine, but rather it does not affirm their authority over the teachings of Jesus. As a philosophy, Jesuism is characterized as naturalistic and rationalist, rejecting the conflict between faith and science.[107]

World Mission Society Church Of God

World Mission Society Church of God is a non-denominational Christian movement founded by

Ahn Sahng-Hong in 1964. The church claims to be a restoration of the original Church of God and has teachings differing from other Christian denominations. After Ahn Sahng-hong died in February 1985, a group of people in Church of God Jesus Witnesses including the man Kim Joo-cheol and the woman Zahng Gil-jah
wanted to re-introduce the concept of a "spiritual mother", and on 22 March 1985 moved from Busan to Seoul. On a meeting in Seoul on 2 June 1985, they discussed how to call Zahng Gil-jah, and established a church called Witnesses of Ahn Sahng-hong Church of God which is led by Kim Joo-cheol and Zahng Gil-jah. Two major new doctrines were codified:

Ahn Sahng-hong should be regarded as Jesus Christ who had already come, should be titled Christ Ahn Sahng-hong, and pursuant to a traditional trinitarian view of Christian hypostasis Ahn was consequently also The Holy Spirit, God the Father, and thus God. Zahng Gil-jah should be regarded as God the Mother, a female image of God, be titled Heavenly Mother, or simply Mother, and together with Ahn Sahng-hong be regarded as God.[108]

See also

References

  1. ^ , 9780802838988, entry on Restoration, Historical Models of
  2. ^ , 9780415374200, page 634
  3. Servetus
    believed what has always been basic to restorationism: ... the true, apostolic church .... Restorationists in the South include three churches of the STONE-CAMPBELL TRADITION."
  4. ^
  5. ^ . From this nexus at Albury Park would eventually emerge the openly-restorationist Catholic Apostolic Church, in which both Drummond and London Scots preacher, Edward Irving (1792-1834), would figure prominently. Significant for the purposes of this discussion is the fact that the Catholic Apostolic Church would distinguish itself not only for its bold claim to exercise the charismata of the Apostolic age, but also for its lavish liturgies borrowed from the pre-Reformation church, both East and West.
  6. . The Second Great Awakening (1790-1840) spurred a renewed interest in primitive Christianity. What is known as the Restoration Movement of the nineteenth century gave birth to an array of groups: Mormons (The Latter Day Saint Movement), the Churches of Christ, Adventists, and Jehovah's Witnesses. Though these groups demonstrate a breathtaking diversity on the continuum of Christianity they share an intense restorationist impulse. Picasso and Stravinsky reflect a primitivism that came to the fore around the turn of the twentieth century that more broadly has been characterized as a "retreat from the industrialized world."
  7. .
  8. ^ . However, Swedenborg claimed to receive visions and revelations of heavenly things and a 'New Church', and the new church which was founded upon his writings was a Restorationist Church. The three nineteenth-century churches are all examples of Restorationist Churches, which believed they were refounding the Apostolic Church, and preparing for the Second Coming of Christ.
  9. .
  10. ^ Gao, Ronnie Chuang-Rang; Sawatsky, Kevin (7 February 2023). "Motivations in Faith-Based Organizations". Houston Christian University. Retrieved 22 November 2023. For example, Christianity comprises six major groups: Church of the East, Oriental Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, Protestantism and Restorationism.
  11. . Like other Restorationists, Russell held the theory of the Great Apostasy, the belief that Christianity had fallen away from its original purity. To the simple early message of Christianity, he believed, later teachers and political leaders had added unwarranted beliefs and practices.
  12. .
  13. , pg 230,231; 245-249
  14. , pg 82,83
  15. , 9780195300925, 225 pages
  16. , 9780802824165, entry on Restoration Movements
  17. ^ Max Turner, "Ecclesiology In The Major 'Apostolic' Restorationist Churches In The United Kingdom", Vox Evangelica 19 (1989): 83–108.
  18. ^ Elaine Milley, "Modern Theology of Restorationism", Archived 2016-04-18 at the Wayback Machine, Master's Thesis, Theological Studies Department, Tyndale College and Seminary
  19. , 9780252062810, 281 pages
  20. , 9780754634102, 268 pages
  21. ^ See for example Cassandra Yacovazzi, "The Crisis of Sectarianism: Restorationist, Catholic, and Mormon Converts in Antebellum America, Masters Thesis, Department of History, Baylor University, May 2009
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    . When the Lutherans presented the Augsburg Confession before Emperor Charles V in 1530, they carefully showed that each article of faith and practice was true first of all to Holy Scripture, and then also to the teaching of the church fathers and the councils and even the canon law of the Church of Rome. They boldly claim, "This is about the Sum of our Doctrine, in which, as can be seen, there is nothing that varies from the Scriptures, or from the Church Catholic, or from the Church of Rome as known from its writers" (AC XXI Conclusion 1). The underlying thesis of the Augsburg Confession is that the faith as confessed by Luther and his followers is nothing new, but the true catholic faith, and that their churches represent the true catholic or universal church. In fact, it is actually the Church of Rome that has departed from the ancient faith and practice of the catholic church (see AC XXIII 13, XXVIII 72 and other places).
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  78. ^ Jehovah's Witnesses – Proclaimers of God's Kingdom. chap. 31 p. 707 "A biography of Russell, published shortly after his death, explained: "He was not the founder of a new religion, and never made such claim. He revived the great truths taught by Jesus and the Apostles,"
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  81. ^ "Bible Students and the Future", Watch Tower, April 1, 1915, page 101, "In all the Continental Armies our Brethren, known as Bible Students, are to be found--not willingly, but by conscription. ...Before the war we recommended to the Brethren that in the event of hostilities they should, so far as possible, if drafted, request positions in the hospital service or in the supplies department, where they could serve the Government efficiently; whereas, if they were ordered to the firing line, they would not be obliged to shoot to kill. We have reasons for believing that these suggestions are being followed... We have exhorted the brethren to strict neutrality so far as the combatants are concerned, whatever might be their natural inclination through accident of birth or association."Retrieved 2010-12-20 Archived 2016-04-10 at the Wayback Machine
  82. ^ Reasoning From The Scriptures. Watchtower. 1988. p. 169.
  83. ^ The Watchtower, April 15, 1983, pg 29, "Why is God's name, Jehovah, missing from most modern translations of the Bible? Superstition that developed among tradition-bound Jews caused them to avoid pronouncing God's personal name, Jehovah. This has contributed to worldwide ignorance regarding the divine name."
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  102. ^ "Local Churches Beliefs". Archived from the original on 2007-12-14.
  103. ^ Bouck White. The Call of the Carpenter. US: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1911. p.314.
  104. ^ Owen J. Flanagan. The Really Hard Problem: Meaning in a Material World. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2007. p.36
  105. ^ Edgar Dewitt Jones. Paul the Stranger. Abilene: Voice of Jesus, 2003 (online transcription).
  106. ^ Douglas J. Del Tondo. Jesus' Words Only. San Diego: Infinity Publishing, 2006. p.19
  107. ^ Owen J. Flanagan. The Really Hard Problem: Meaning in a Material World. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2007. p.263
  108. ^ "About Us".

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