Thomas Campbell was a Presbyterian minister

Minister of religion

In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community...

 important in the Second Great Awakening

Second Great Awakening

The Second Great Awakening was a Christian revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1800, had begun to gain momentum by 1820, and was in decline by 1870. The Second Great Awakening expressed Arminian theology, by which every person could be...

 of the United States. Born in County Down

County Down

-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...

, northern Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, he began a religious reform movement on the American frontier. He was joined in the work by his son Alexander Campbell. Their movement, known as the "Disciples of Christ"

Disciples of Christ (Campbell Movement)

The Disciples of Christ were a group arising during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century. The most prominent leaders were Thomas and Alexander Campbell. The group was committed to restoring primitive Christianity...

, merged in 1832 with the similar movement

Christians (Stone Movement)

The Christians were a group arising during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century. The most prominent leader was Barton W. Stone. The group was committed to restoring primitive Christianity...

 led by Barton W. Stone

Barton W. Stone

Barton Warren Stone was an important preacher during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century. He was first ordained a Presbyterian minister, then was expelled from the church after the Cane Ridge, Kentucky revival for his stated beliefs in faith as the sole prerequisite for salvation...

 to form what is now described as the American Restoration Movement

Restoration Movement

The Restoration Movement is a Christian movement that began on the American frontier during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century...

 (also known as the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement).

Role in the early Restoration Movement

The Campbell wing of the movement was launched when Thomas Campbell published the Declaration and Address of the Christian Association of Washington

Declaration and address

The Declaration and Address was written by Thomas Campbell in 1809. It was the founding document for the Christian Association of Washington, a short lived religious movement of the 19th century. The Christian Association ultimately led to what is now known as the Restoration Movement. In many...

in 1809. The Presbyterian Synod had suspended his ministerial credentials. In The Declaration and Address he set forth some of his convictions about the church of Jesus Christ, as he organized the Christian Association of Washington

Christian Association of Washington

The Christian Association of Washington was an organization established by Thomas Campbell in 1809 to promote Christian unity. It was a study group that Campbell formed with like minded friends and acquaintances in the local neighborhood of Washington, Pennsylvania. The group sought to foster...

, in Washington County, Pennsylvania

Washington County, Pennsylvania

-Government and politics:As of November 2008, there are 152,534 registered voters in Washington County .* Democratic: 89,027 * Republican: 49,025 * Other Parties: 14,482...

, not as a church but as an association of persons seeking to grow in faith. On May 4, 1811, the Christian Association reconstituted itself as a congregationally governed church. With the building it constructed at Brush Run, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, it became known as Brush Run Church

Brush Run Church

The Brush Run Church was one of the earliest congregations associated with the Restoration Movement that arose during the during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century...

. When their study of the New Testament led the reformers to begin to practice baptism by immersion, the nearby Redstone Baptist Association invited Brush Run Church to join with them for the purpose of fellowship. The reformers agreed, provided that they would be "allowed to preach and to teach whatever they learned from the Scriptures."

Thomas and his son Alexander worked within the Redstone Baptist Association during the period 1815 through 1824. While both the Campbells and the Baptists shared practices of baptism by immersion and congregational polity

Congregationalist polity

Congregationalist polity, often known as congregationalism, is a system of church governance in which every local church congregation is independent, ecclesiastically sovereign, or "autonomous"...

, it was soon clear that the Campbells and their associates were not traditional Baptists. Within the Redstone Association, some of the Baptist leaders considered the differences intolerable when Alexander Campbell began publishing a journal, The Christian Baptist, which promoted reform. The Campbells anticipated the conflict and moved their membership to a congregation of the Mahoning Baptist Association in 1824.

Theological influences

Thomas Campbell was a student of the Enlightenment philosopher

Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...

 John Locke

John Locke

John Locke FRS , widely known as the Father of Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, he is equally important to social...

. While he did not explicitly use the term "essentials," in the Declaration and Address, Campbell proposed the same solution to religious division as had been advanced earlier by Herbert and Locke: "[R]educe religion to a set of essentials upon which all reasonable persons might agree." The essentials he identified were those practices for which the Bible provided "a 'Thus saith the Lord,' either in express terms of by approved precedent." Unlike Locke, who saw the earlier efforts by Puritans as inherently divisive, Campbell argued for "a complete restoration of apostolic Christianity." Thomas believed that creeds served to divide Christians. He also believed that the Bible was clear enough that anyone could understand it and, thus, creeds were unnecessary.

Thomas Campbell combined the Enlightenment approach to unity with the Reformed and Puritan traditions of restoration. The Enlightenment affected the Campbell movement in two ways. First, it provided the idea that Christian unity could be achieved by finding a set of essentials that all reasonable people could agree on. The second was the concept of a rational faith that was formulated and defended on the basis of a set of facts derived from the Bible.

Life events

• Born February 1, 1763 in County Down
  County Down
  -Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
  
  , Ireland
  Ireland
  Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
  
  .
• Immigrated to the United States in 1807, settling in western Pennsylvania
  Pennsylvania
  The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
  
  .
• In 1809, Campbell published The Declaration and Address of the Christian Association of Washington
  Declaration and address
  The Declaration and Address was written by Thomas Campbell in 1809. It was the founding document for the Christian Association of Washington, a short lived religious movement of the 19th century. The Christian Association ultimately led to what is now known as the Restoration Movement. In many...
  
  , a document stating his ideas about how the Christian faith should be practiced. It was a starting point for the Campbell–Stone Movement, which led to development of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
  Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
  The Christian Church is a Mainline Protestant denomination in North America. It is often referred to as The Christian Church, The Disciples of Christ, or more simply as The Disciples...
  
  , the Churches of Christ and the Christian churches and churches of Christ.
• In 1812 Thomas Campbell joined his son Alexander and began practicing baptism
  Baptism
  In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
  
   by immersion.
• Shortly after his oldest son, Alexander Campbell, was ordained in 1812, Thomas began playing a supporting role to Alexander. Thomas was generally less radical than his son, and was a stabilizing influence on the movement
  Restoration Movement
  The Restoration Movement is a Christian movement that began on the American frontier during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century...
  
  .
• Thomas died on January 4, 1854 and was buried next to his wife in the Campbell family cemetery.

Further reading

• History of the Disciples at the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
  Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
  The Christian Church is a Mainline Protestant denomination in North America. It is often referred to as The Christian Church, The Disciples of Christ, or more simply as The Disciples...
  
  

External links

• Thomas Campbell texts at the Restoration Movement Pages at the Memorial University of Newfoundland
  Memorial University of Newfoundland
  Memorial University of Newfoundland, is a comprehensive university located primarily in St...