Highlights in Restoration History . . .

HE WAS ONCE LIKE THE INDIAN’S TREE

We all admire the person that can admit he was wrong. To be able to say I goofed not only blesses the goofee but the goofer as well. It is disarming when a great man, whom we presume to be beyond stooping, says that he blew it. This is especially the case with the great ones in religion, for those “who are somewhat” have a way of never being wrong. They are infallible or something akin to that. Even when they know they’ve erred, they seem to follow some such rule as Never say that you were wrong, as if it might hurt their credibility with their followers.

One might be surprised, therefore, to read the following from none other than Alexander Campbell himself:

“I was once so straight that, like the Indian’s tree, I leaned a little the other way. I was so strict a Separatist that I would neither pray nor sing praises with anyone who was not as perfect as I supposed myself to be.” (Christian Baptist, 1826)

He was referring to his years as an Anti-Burgher Seceder Presbyterian, a sect that would not fellowship other Christians, not even other Presbyterians. While a student in Glasgow, Scotland he was influenced by some of the reformers of that country, and soon became intolerant of the sectarianism of his own church. When he walked out of a restricted communion service (without partaking), he took his first step away from his sectarian past.

So he went on to say: “In this most unpopular course I persisted until I discovered the mistake and saw that on the principle embraced in my conduct, there never could be a congregation or a church upon the earth.”

How true! Those who cannot pray and sing with those “in error” but only with those who are “right” about everything will soon discover, if they are consistent, that they have no one to pray and sing with except themselves. And they will finally have to withdraw fellowship from themselves! Campbell is right in saying that there can never be a church founded on such an attitude. He concludes his statement with:

“This plan of making my own nest, and fluttering over my own brood; of building our own tent, and confining all goodness and grace to our noble selves and the ‘elect few’ who are like us, is the quintessence of sublimated pharisaism.”

It isn’t everyone that can confess to pharisaism, sublimated pharisaism at that. That is one reason why Campbell became a reformer. He could indulge in self-examination and self-criticism. He could be wrong! Reformations have to begin within those who would lead them, those who will first reform their own lives. Lord, reform your church, beginning with me makes for a good prayer.

It is an easy thing to be a Pharisee. Religious pride is the worst of all pride. It is pride that causes us to flutter over our own brood and build our own tent, “confining all goodness and grace to our noble selves.” We have made an art of trying to go to heaven on other people’s sins.

It was a different Alexander Campbell who said to his opponent in the Campbell-Rice debate: “Our doctrine is catholic, very catholic. Not Roman catholic nor Greek Catholic, but simply catholic.” He went on to speak of his people having a catholic creed, the confession that Jesus is the Son of God; a catholic name, Christian; a catholic baptism, immersion; a catholic Table, spread for all Christians.

When he was asked about opinions and differences, he said: “Where we cannot agree in opinion, we will agree to differ; and a free intercourse will do more to enlighten us and to reform all abuses than years of controversy and volumes of defamation.”

How blessed it is that men can change their minds — and their hearts — and their lives.—the Editor