For some, "Christian" (adj.) no longer includes Lutherans

[Jonathan Lighter]

Most enlightening, Bill.  But for us worrywarts, the creepy wake-up call on the current status of "Christian" (adj.) is the _Harper's_ article by Jeff Sharlet at

http://www.harpers.org/SoldiersOfChrist.html

Probably means nothing....

JL

"Mullins, Bill" <Bill.Mullins at US.ARMY.MIL> wrote:
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Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: "Mullins, Bill"
Subject: Re: For some, "Christian" (adj.) no longer includes Lutherans
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>
> While it's probable that Melchior meant Christian as
> code for born-again evangelical, note that there are some
> Protestant denominations that call themselves simply the
> "Christian Church," or variants thereon.
>

A restoration movement, started in the early 1800's by Alexander
Campbell and Barton Stone, is the beginning of this group. From
Wikipedia: "Restorationism sought to renew the whole Christian church,
on the pattern set forth in the New Testament, without regard to the
creeds developed over time in Catholicism or Protestantism, which
allegedly kept Christianity divided. " Alexander Campbell preached "We
speak where the Bible speaks, and are silent where the Bible is silent."
Main tenets today include weekly Lord's Supper, baptism by immersion,
and no heirachical structure (each congregation is more or less
independent of others).

Throughout the 1800's, the group was called the Christian Church or
Church of Christ. About 1900, there was a split into "Church of Christ"
and "Disciples of Christ". Today, probably the main difference between
them to a casual observer is that CofC tends towards a capella music
during worship services and DoC allows instrumental music. Later on,
the Disciples split into Christian Church and DofC, over issues of
conservatism and liberalism. Other smaller groups have since separated
themselves from the mainline Church of Christ group. (The "anti"
movement (against a bunch of stuff that they consider nonscriptural,
like missionary societies and supplemental Sunday school publications),
and the "Boston"/Crossroads movment.) (Other minor divisive issues
include the whether Sunday school is in fact appropriate, since it
doesn't appear in scripture; "one-cuppers" who use only one cup for
Communion (as was done at the Last Supper, etc.)) [Jim Jones's Guyana
group was a cult of personality that came from the Christian Church, I
believe. Harriet Miers is a member of a large Christian Church
congreation in Dallas that is currently in the process of dividing.
Ronald Reagan, James Garfield, and LBJ were also members of Restoration
Movement churches].

These churches are all over the south, particularly in Tennessee and
Texas. Note that they often do not consider themselves "denominations",
but believe simply that all Christians are members of the Church (and
all you other folks, whose practices and beliefs aren't in line with
scripture, are denominations . . . ). Growing up, I continually
heard "You're Church of Christ? Aren't you the ones that think everyone
else is going to hell?? To which I thought (and sometimes replied) "If
the shoe fits . . .".

Church of Christ joke: Why don't members of the Church of Christ have
sex standing up? Because someone might think that they are dancing.

And to pull this back to a more traditional ADS-L topic: Members of
churches in the Stone-Campbell movement used to be called
"Campbellites". The OED has it back to Dec 1830. I don't hear it much
anymore.

"BAPTISTS OF THE WEST."
The Episcopal Watchman (1827-1833); Nov 20, 1830; 4, 28; APS Online pg.
222 col 1.
"The Campbellite Baptists; so called from having adopted the sentiments
of Alexander Campbell of Virginia."

"The Louisville Post Office" Dallas Morning News, 1886-05-02, Page 6 col
2.
"Mrs. Thompson is the daughter of Alexander Campbell, the founder of the
Campbellite or Christian Church."


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