CHRISTIANS (kris'chans improperly pro. nounced rist-iansl, a denomination usually styled "The Christian Connection" or sometimes "The Christian Church." Among the minor denominations in the United States and Canada. there is a people rejecting all names hut Christian.
(1) General Position. Their real attitude to ward the religious world is such that some of their own ministers contend that they are not a denomi nation, except in the sense of being named. Speak ing as one of them. the writer states their gen eral position as follows: "The Bible is our only rule of faith and practice, to the exclusion of hu man statements, creeds or confessions; Jesus Christ is our only leader ; we accept no name hut Christian; Christian character is our only test of fellowship; individual interpretation of the Scriptures is allowed to everyone; and we seek the union of the followers of Jesus." This last purpose has been expressed more prominently within a few late years than before. In the be ginnine. the assertion was rather of liberty.
(2) Origin. On November 1, t7qz. a General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church was held at Baltimore. During the session Rev.
James O'Kelly, a presiding elder, offered a reso lution providing that ministers dissatisfied with the charges to which they were assigned might appeal to the conference, and if the appeal were sustained, the bishop should make another assign ment. The resolution was lost, after animated de bate. The next day O'Kelly and about thirty other ministers resigned from the conference. The next year, Christmas day, they met at Manakin, N. C., and organized a body known as "Repub lican Methodists," not intending fully to cut them selves off from the Methodist Church. But within a year, at Lebanon Church, Surry county, Virginia, at the suggestion of Rev. Rice Haggard, they voted to bear only the name "Christian," to take the Bible as their only creed, and to allow each church to govern itself.
In the year 18ot, Rev. Abner Jones, trained among the Baptists, organized the first Christian church in New England, at Lyndon, Vt. In 18ot and 18o2, occurred the great Caneridge revival, in Kentucky, following which Barton W. Stone, Da vid Purviance, and others of the Presbyterian Church, came out on the ground virtually occu pied by the brethren of the east and south already spoken of. These western ministers were largely influenced by the conduct of many young converts of the revival, who, when solicited to unite with the churches, hesitated; expressing the wish to remain simply Christians, to take Christ for their only leader, and the Bible for their only creed, and to have equal fellowship for all Christians.
These three bodies of people, in their several districts, were ignorant of the springing up of a people in any other locality teaching the same doctrines. A few years later, when learning of each other, they recognized their oneness, and organized somewhat loosely. There was thus what was practically a simultaneous revolt against the three great American churches; against the Methodists in North Carolina and Virginia, against the Baptists in New England, and against the Presbyterians in Kentucky and Ohio. They are the manifestation of an important relig ious movement that is wholly American. Yet the common phrase, "the Bible our only creed," ever drives us for inspiration, for law, and for doctrine, to Palestine. Though we sprang up in the wilder ness, we refer to chapters xi. xii and xiii of Reve lation for explanation of that fact. Yet though our origin has been largely rural, our history has shown a spirit of leadership not merely in early home missionary activities, but a pioneer ship in subjects of public thought. We estab lished the first religious newspaper ; we estab lished the first college (Antioch) giving fully equal rights and honors to both sexes, etc.
J. J. S.