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Our Story - the Churches of Christ

Brief History

There are 3 main strands to the Churches of Christ: The Churches of Christ, Disciples of Christ and Christian Churches. They arose independently from the Stone - Campbell reform movement of the 1840s in both Scotland and the United States.

Churches of Christ in Great Britain peaked in 1918 with 208 churches and around 16000 members*.

The Fellowship of Churches of Christ of Great Britain and Ireland was born in 1979 in Scotland upon the dissolution of the old Association of Churches of Christ of Great Britain and Ireland when many of the churches joined together with Presbyterian and Congregational churches to form the United Reformed Church.

What makes Churches of Christ unique

The following is extracted from Gray (see References below)

"All sectarian names and creeds are divisive, and should therefore be abandoned.

 Creeds which are made tests of fellowship are permanent barriers to the union of Christians. They have their place in history as safeguarding the faith and expressing it as accurately as possible for that particular generation; but they should not be made binding on future generations, or they tend to limit the truth of God. In place of belief in creeds the central test is personal trust in Jesus Christ. This is held to be the kernel of which the creeds may be no more than the husk, the reality which the creeds strive to express.

The Ordinances or Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper are recognized as essential parts of the Church's life, as channels of God's grace.

Baptism is by immersion into "the name of the Father , the Son and the Holy Ghost." Those only are baptized who profess penitence for sin, and who make confession of their loyalty to Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. But no other demands are made as qualifications for admission to the Church.

The Lord's Supper is celebrated every Sunday and constitutes the chief service of the day.

All Christians are priests and ministers unto God.

God calls some to give their whole life to the ministry, and these are therefore worthy of special honour. Others are called to serve as elders or deacons or deaconesses, either as whole-time or part-time ministers; and others serve in various capacities, including preaching and exhortation, as they are able. There is a mutuality in the ministry of the Church from which no qualified Christian should be excluded or should exclude himself.*"

References:

**Gray, James (1935) Discipleship in the Church (Birmingham, Overdale College)

*Thomson, David. M. (1980) Let Sects and Parties Fall: A short history of the Association of Churches of Christ of Great Britain and Ireland, (Birmingham, Berean Press)

Links:

website about the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement click