Patheos
  • GO
  • Beliefs
    • Buddhist
    • Catholic
    • Contemplative
    • Evangelical
    • General Christian
    • Hindu
    • Jewish
    • Latter-day Saint
    • Muslim
    • New Visions
    • Nonreligious
    • Pagan
    • Progressive Christian
    • More Voices
  • Topics
    • Entertainment
    • Book Club
    • Docs/ology
    • Movie Club
    • Family and Relationships
    • Life Events
    • Politics Blue
    • Politics Red
    • Public Square
    • More Topics
    • Trending Now

    • Identity Politics vs. Transactional Politics
      Gene Veith
    • How Jesus Empowered Women (And Christians Re-Enslaved...
      Keith Giles
  • Columnists
  • Library
    • NEW! Patheos Answers
    • Faith Leaders Database
    • Research Tools
    • Comparison Lens
    • Preacher Resources
    • Teacher Resources
    • Anglican/Episcopalian
    • Baha'i
    • Baptist
    • Buddhism
    • Christianity
    • Confucianism
    • Eastern Orthodoxy
    • Hinduism
    • Holiness and Pentecostal
    • ISKCON
    • Islam
    • Judaism
    • Lutheran
    • Methodist
    • The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
    • New Age
    • Paganism
    • Presbyterian and Reformed
    • Protestantism
    • Roman Catholic
    • Scientology
    • Shi'a Islam
    • Sikhism
    • Sufism
    • Sunni Islam
    • Taoism
    • Zen
    see all religions
  • newsletters
  • Ad-Free LogIn
  • More
    • Pastors and Church Leaders Resource Center

    • Church and ministry leadership resources to better equip, train and provide ideas for today's church and ministry leaders, like you.

      visit section now
    • Resources For the Faith Seeker
    • E-Books and Other Special Offers
    • 7 Day Prayer Challenge for Spouses
    • A Different Kind of Christian
    • Jesus Is Love
    • Pastors and Church Leaders
    • Prayer Devotional
    • The Saints We Love
    • Who Is God?

RELIGION LIBRARY

Disciples of Christ

  • Overview
  • Origins
  • History
  • Beliefs
  • Rituals and Worship
  • Ethics and Community

Beginnings

The origins of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) lie in the United States' Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century, when reformers from Kentucky, Virginia, and Pennsylvania began actively working for the union of the Christian churches.

Influences

Inspired by American revolutionary ideals of egalitarianism and religious freedom, the Restoration Movement emerged from the revival activities of Presbyterian Thomas Campbell (1763-1854), his son Alexander (1788-1866), Methodist James O'Kelly (1757-1826), Baptist Abner Jones (1772-1841), and Presbyterian Barton Stone (1772-1844).

Founders

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) was founded in 1832 through a merger of Restorationist groups led by Alexander Campbell and Barton Stone. Unable to choose between the names "Christians" and "Disciples of Christ," they adopted both names.

Scriptures

The Disciples teach that only the New Testament scriptures lead to salvation. An early source of agreement among the Restorationists was the belief that the Bible alone should be the basis for Christian faith and practice.

Historical Perspectives

Scholarship concerning the Disciples has been interested in church's role in history and in the insight that its key documents can shed on 19th-century America. Recent scholarship has been concerned with the question of interfaith dialogue.

Overview History Back to religion Library
Get Patheos Newsletters
Get the latest from Patheos by signing up for our newsletters. Try our 3 most popular, or select from our huge collection of unique and thought-provoking newsletters.
Please also opt me in for Exclusive Offers from Patheos’s Partners Privacy and Data Policy
From time to time you will also receive Special Offers from our partners that help us make this content free for you. You can opt out of these offers at any time.
see our full list of newsletters
editors picks View All Columns
Evangelical
Before You Unplug or Sign Out for Good
Guest Contributor
Evangelical
What Is the Purpose of Spiritual Gifts, and How Do You Discover Yours?
Randy Alcorn
New Visions
5 Ways to Hear What God is Telling You
Tom Rapsas
Muslim
How Awake Are We? When Waking Up is Falling Asleep
Daniel Thomas Dyer
Latter-day Saint
"The Church supports the use of vaccinations"
Dan Peterson
Evangelical
Luther and the Beauty of Christ
Guest Contributor
Entertainment
The Soul of Gospel Music Explored in New Netflix Series "Voices of Fire"
DeWayne Hamby
Contemplative
Seven Ways to Think About Christian Mysticism
Carl McColman
Evangelical
Cancelling Alice Walker?
Philip Jenkins
Evangelical
Does God Have His Own Logic?
Roger E. Olson
Patheos Logo Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Service
  • Do Not Sell My Data
  • Contact Us
  • Follow Us on Facebook
  • Find Us on YouTube
  • Manage Subscriptions
  • Unsubscribe From Notifications
Copyright 2008-2021, Patheos. All rights reserved.