Joseph Marsh (Adventist)
Encyclopedia
Joseph Marsh was an American Millerite
preacher, and editor of The Advent Harbinger and Bible Advocate.
, on December 6, 1802. When he was 16 the family moved to Genesee County, New York
, where his parents were disfellowshipped by the Methodist Episcopal Church
for rejecting the Trinity
. From the ages of 19 to 21 he and his brother Josiah tried their hand at farming, first in Monroe Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio
, then in Springfield Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania
.
In 1823 he joined his brother James in Rochester, New York
. Marsh took up the faith of the Christian Connection
he was baptized in the Genesee River
"a little above the falls". He then began several years as an itinerant preacher, while working as a carpenter to supplement his income. On August 4, 1830, he married Sarah Mariah Adams (born Sennett, New York
, on November 27, 1808). They had three girls; Sarah Eliza (b.1832), Mary Maria (b.1834) and Permelia Jane (b.1836) From 1839 Marsh was pastor of a Christian Connection
church in Union Mills
and editor of The Christian Palladium, till in 1843 he took up the teaching of William Miller
that Christ would return in 1843.
Following resignation from his pastorship and editorship, he supported Charles Fitch
in the call for Millerites
to leave established churches. In January 1844 he started publishing The Voice of Truth, and in September 1844 he supported the "seven month movement". After the Great Disappointment
he criticised movements towards the establishment of an Adventist
denomination, and advocating "Age to come" doctrine, renamed his magazine The Advent Harbinger and Bible Advocate then in 1850 The Prophetical Expositor.
In 1849 Marsh published The Bible Doctrine or True Gospel Faith, following Millerite views of the millennium
, but in 1851 in The Age to Come repudiated some of these and adopted the views of John Thomas
in Elpis Israel
concerning a national regathering of Israel to Palestine.
Thomas, who had been rebaptised following his break with Campbellites in 1847 urged Marsh to also be rebaptised, as had another associate of Thomas, Benjamin Wilson
, in 1851. Thomas and Marsh now agreed in belief in a kingdom on earth and the restoration of Israel, but disagreed on whether this was essential for baptism. Thomas considered that it was, and if it was essential for baptism, therefore it was also essential for fellowship and communion. The tension over rebaptism continued from 1852 to 1860. Marsh and Nathaniel Field
of Jeffersonville, Indiana
in the Prophetical Expositor, and Thomas in the Herald of the Kingdom conducted an increasingly heated exchange of articles on whether the return of the Jews, and understanding of the promises to Abraham, was a prerequisite for a valid baptism, and therefore communion.
In 1855 and 1856, Field hosted in Jeffersonsville two conferences at which Marsh was a major speaker. They failed however to form a denomination, and Field reduced his involvement.
By 1860 two clearly defined groups existed in Rochester, and several other towns, with those who had been rebaptised since breaking with Millerism and Campbellism, like Thomas, in one group, and those, who did not see the need for a strict doctrinal continuity between belief at the time of baptism and communion, such as Marsh, in the other.
Marsh sold the Prophetical Expositor to Thomas Newman in 1860, and left stocks of his books and hymnbook The Millennial Harp for Newman to sell on his behalf.
Marsh's family was in Rochester for the 1860 census. His daughter Jane Marsh Parker records that "In 1860 Marsh moved to Milby, Canada. In the same year to Oshawa
, Canada. He returned to the "Christians"
shortly before his death in 1863." Yet Church of God records indicate that in 1863 he had just been appointed state evangelist in Jeffersonville, Indiana, Nathaniel Field's church, when he died at his daughter's home in Tecumseh, Michigan on 13 September 1863, of typhoid fever.
Marsh's death had little direct impact on the loose association of churches that subscribed to what was now Newman's magazine. Further Benjamin Wilson had a leading role in the Church of God grouping through his own magazine The Gospel Banner 1855-1869, then Herald of the Coming Kingdom (Despite his agreement with John Thomas on rebaptism, Wilson had himself separated from Thomas in 1863 over the judgement).
The American Civil War
provided an impetus to define church boundaries, as in 1865 it was necessary to register for conscientious objection. Many Church of God churches, including those associated with Wilson, took the name Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith
. However the Age to Come believers who had been rebaptised, joined with those congregations who had come out of the Campbellite
movement with Thomas, and took the name Christadelphians
.
The printing press was destroyed in the 1871 Great Chicago Fire.
In 1921 the Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith split with the majority becoming the Church of God General Conference (CoGGC), and the minority, who followed more closely to Wilson's views on fellowship and an allegorical devil, separating to become the Church of the Blessed Hope
(CGAF). This smaller group now fellowships with the Christadelphians
and not with CoGGC.
Millerite
Millerite is a nickel sulfide mineral, NiS. It is brassy in colour and has an acicular habit, often forming radiating masses and furry aggregates...
preacher, and editor of The Advent Harbinger and Bible Advocate.
Life
Joseph Marsh was born in St. Albans, Franklin, VermontFranklin, Vermont
Franklin is a town in Franklin County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,268 at the 2000 census.The original name was Huntsburgh but the name was changed to Franklin in 1817.-Geography:...
, on December 6, 1802. When he was 16 the family moved to Genesee County, New York
Genesee County, New York
Genesee County is a county located in Western New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 60,079. Its name is from the Seneca Indian word Gen-nis'-hee-yo meaning "The Beautiful Valley." Its county seat is Batavia.- History :...
, where his parents were disfellowshipped by the Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...
for rejecting the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
. From the ages of 19 to 21 he and his brother Josiah tried their hand at farming, first in Monroe Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio
Monroe Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio
Monroe Township is one of the twenty-seven townships of Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,268 people in the township.-Geography:Located on the northeastern edge of the county, it borders the following townships and city:...
, then in Springfield Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania
Springfield Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania
Springfield Township is a township in Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,378 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 37.8 square miles , of which, 37.7 square miles of it is land and...
.
In 1823 he joined his brother James in Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
. Marsh took up the faith of the Christian Connection
Christian Connection
The Christian Connection or Christian Connexion was a Christian movement which began in several places during the late 18th and early 19th centuries and were secessions from three different religious denominations. The Christian Connection claimed to have no creed, instead professing to rely...
he was baptized in the Genesee River
Genesee River
The Genesee River is a North American river flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York. The river provided the original power for the Rochester area's 19th century mills and still provides hydroelectric power for downtown Rochester....
"a little above the falls". He then began several years as an itinerant preacher, while working as a carpenter to supplement his income. On August 4, 1830, he married Sarah Mariah Adams (born Sennett, New York
Sennett, New York
Sennett is a town in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 3,595 at the 2010 census. The town is named after a public official and early settler, Daniel Sennett....
, on November 27, 1808). They had three girls; Sarah Eliza (b.1832), Mary Maria (b.1834) and Permelia Jane (b.1836) From 1839 Marsh was pastor of a Christian Connection
Christian Connection
The Christian Connection or Christian Connexion was a Christian movement which began in several places during the late 18th and early 19th centuries and were secessions from three different religious denominations. The Christian Connection claimed to have no creed, instead professing to rely...
church in Union Mills
Union Mills
Union Mills is a village in the parish of Braddan on the A1, the primary road which connects Douglas and Peel in the Isle of Man, close to the River Dhoo.-History:...
and editor of The Christian Palladium, till in 1843 he took up the teaching of William Miller
William Miller (preacher)
William Miller was an American Baptist preacher who is credited with beginning the mid-nineteenth century North American religious movement now known as Adventism. Among his direct spiritual heirs are several major religious denominations, including Seventh-day Adventists and Advent Christians...
that Christ would return in 1843.
Following resignation from his pastorship and editorship, he supported Charles Fitch
Charles Fitch
Charles Fitch was an American preacher in the early 19th century, who rose to prominence for his work with the Millerite movement.-Early years :...
in the call for Millerites
Millerites
The Millerites were the followers of the teachings of William Miller who, in 1833, first shared publicly his belief in the coming Second Advent of Jesus Christ in roughly the year 1843.-Origins:...
to leave established churches. In January 1844 he started publishing The Voice of Truth, and in September 1844 he supported the "seven month movement". After the Great Disappointment
Great Disappointment
The Great Disappointment was a major event in the history of the Millerite movement, a 19th-century American Christian sect that formed out of the Second Great Awakening. Based on his interpretations of the prophecies in the book of Daniel The Great Disappointment was a major event in the history...
he criticised movements towards the establishment of an Adventist
Adventist
Adventism is a Christian movement which began in the 19th century, in the context of the Second Great Awakening revival in the United States. The name refers to belief in the imminent Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It was started by William Miller, whose followers became known as Millerites...
denomination, and advocating "Age to come" doctrine, renamed his magazine The Advent Harbinger and Bible Advocate then in 1850 The Prophetical Expositor.
In 1849 Marsh published The Bible Doctrine or True Gospel Faith, following Millerite views of the millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
, but in 1851 in The Age to Come repudiated some of these and adopted the views of John Thomas
John Thomas (Christadelphian)
Dr. John Thomas was the founder of the Christadelphian movement, a Restorationist religion with doctrines similar in part to some 16th century Antitrinitarian Rationalist Socinians and the 16th century Swiss-German pacifist Anabaptists.-Early life:John Thomas M.D., born in Hoxton Square, Hackney,...
in Elpis Israel
Elpis Israel
Elpis Israel - An Exposition of the Kingdom of God is a theological book written by John Thomas, founder of the Christadelphians, in 1848-1849 and published in 1849.The book was based on a series of lectures given by Thomas in 1848 and is written in three parts, The...
concerning a national regathering of Israel to Palestine.
Thomas, who had been rebaptised following his break with Campbellites in 1847 urged Marsh to also be rebaptised, as had another associate of Thomas, Benjamin Wilson
Benjamin Wilson (Biblical scholar)
Benjamin Wilson was an autodidact Biblical scholar and writer of the Emphatic Diaglott translation of the Bible...
, in 1851. Thomas and Marsh now agreed in belief in a kingdom on earth and the restoration of Israel, but disagreed on whether this was essential for baptism. Thomas considered that it was, and if it was essential for baptism, therefore it was also essential for fellowship and communion. The tension over rebaptism continued from 1852 to 1860. Marsh and Nathaniel Field
Nathaniel Field (Adventist)
Nathaniel Field M.D was an American abolitionist, and Adventist preacher.-Life:Field was born in Jefferson County, Kentucky on the 7th of November, 1805. He graduated from Transylvania medical school, Lexington, Kentucky, and practiced medicine in Alabama for three years. In 1829 he removed to...
of Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville is a city in Clark County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It is directly across the Ohio River to the north of Louisville, Kentucky along I-65. The population was 44,953 at the 2010 census...
in the Prophetical Expositor, and Thomas in the Herald of the Kingdom conducted an increasingly heated exchange of articles on whether the return of the Jews, and understanding of the promises to Abraham, was a prerequisite for a valid baptism, and therefore communion.
In 1855 and 1856, Field hosted in Jeffersonsville two conferences at which Marsh was a major speaker. They failed however to form a denomination, and Field reduced his involvement.
By 1860 two clearly defined groups existed in Rochester, and several other towns, with those who had been rebaptised since breaking with Millerism and Campbellism, like Thomas, in one group, and those, who did not see the need for a strict doctrinal continuity between belief at the time of baptism and communion, such as Marsh, in the other.
Marsh sold the Prophetical Expositor to Thomas Newman in 1860, and left stocks of his books and hymnbook The Millennial Harp for Newman to sell on his behalf.
Marsh's family was in Rochester for the 1860 census. His daughter Jane Marsh Parker records that "In 1860 Marsh moved to Milby, Canada. In the same year to Oshawa
Oshawa
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario approximately 60 kilometres east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of both the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe. It is now commonly referred to as the most...
, Canada. He returned to the "Christians"
Christian Connection
The Christian Connection or Christian Connexion was a Christian movement which began in several places during the late 18th and early 19th centuries and were secessions from three different religious denominations. The Christian Connection claimed to have no creed, instead professing to rely...
shortly before his death in 1863." Yet Church of God records indicate that in 1863 he had just been appointed state evangelist in Jeffersonville, Indiana, Nathaniel Field's church, when he died at his daughter's home in Tecumseh, Michigan on 13 September 1863, of typhoid fever.
Beliefs
- Marsh probably took opposition to the Trinity and the immortality of the soul from his parents.
- Marsh was initially opposed to having a creed or formal church organisation
- Marsh rejected Seventh-Day doctrine when it came forward in 1850.
- Although Marsh adopted Thomas' view on the Abrahamic promises and Israel, he did not share Thomas' view on the importance of certain doctrinal requirements for baptism and communion.
- It appears that Marsh shared the views of John Thomas and Benjamin Wilson against the supernatural devil.
Legacy
Having rejoined the Christian ConnectionChristian Connection
The Christian Connection or Christian Connexion was a Christian movement which began in several places during the late 18th and early 19th centuries and were secessions from three different religious denominations. The Christian Connection claimed to have no creed, instead professing to rely...
Marsh's death had little direct impact on the loose association of churches that subscribed to what was now Newman's magazine. Further Benjamin Wilson had a leading role in the Church of God grouping through his own magazine The Gospel Banner 1855-1869, then Herald of the Coming Kingdom (Despite his agreement with John Thomas on rebaptism, Wilson had himself separated from Thomas in 1863 over the judgement).
The American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
provided an impetus to define church boundaries, as in 1865 it was necessary to register for conscientious objection. Many Church of God churches, including those associated with Wilson, took the name Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith
Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith
Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith may refer to the following two modern Christian groups that had the same origin and common history from 1850s to 1921:* Church of God General Conference or "CoGGC"...
. However the Age to Come believers who had been rebaptised, joined with those congregations who had come out of the Campbellite
Campbellite
Campbellite refers to any of the religious groups historically descended from the Restoration Movement, a religious reform movement in the early 19th century in the United States...
movement with Thomas, and took the name Christadelphians
Christadelphians
Christadelphians is a Christian group that developed in the United Kingdom and North America in the 19th century...
.
The printing press was destroyed in the 1871 Great Chicago Fire.
In 1921 the Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith split with the majority becoming the Church of God General Conference (CoGGC), and the minority, who followed more closely to Wilson's views on fellowship and an allegorical devil, separating to become the Church of the Blessed Hope
Church of the Blessed Hope
The Church of the Blessed Hope is a small first-day Adventist Christian body.-Background:...
(CGAF). This smaller group now fellowships with the Christadelphians
Christadelphians
Christadelphians is a Christian group that developed in the United Kingdom and North America in the 19th century...
and not with CoGGC.