The American Christian Missionary Society (ACMS) was the first

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

organization associated with the

Restoration Movement The Restoration Movement (also known as the American Restoration Movement or the Stone–Campbell Movement, and pejoratively as Campbellism) is a Christian movement that began on the United States frontier during the Second Great Awakening (17 ...

.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, Churches of Christ'', Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004, , , 854 pages, entry on ''American Christian Missionary Society'', pages 24-26

History

Prior to the establishment of the American Christian Missionary Society (ACMS), Alexander Campbell had actively opposed missionary societies on the basis that they preempted the church's role in missions and served as a focus for division, insisting that the church itself should be the only missionary society. (Examples of such missionary societies were the

American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) was among the first American Christian missionary organizations. It was created in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College. In the 19th century it was the largest and most imp ...

American Missionary Association The American Missionary Association (AMA) was a Protestant-based abolitionist group founded on in Albany, New York. The main purpose of the organization was abolition of slavery, education of African Americans, promotion of racial equality, and ...

, American Home Mission Society, and the

American Baptist Home Mission Society The American Baptist Home Mission Society is a Christian missionary society. Its main predecessor the Home Mission Society was established in New York City in 1832 to operate in the American frontier, with the stated mission "to preach the Gospe ...

.) This opposition was reflected in his writings in the ''

Christian Baptist The ''Christian Baptist'', established in 1823 by Alexander Campbell, was the first magazine associated with the early Restoration Movement.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian ...

''.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, Churches of Christ'', Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004, , , 854 pages, entry on ''Christian Baptist, The'', pp. 174-175 Over time, Campbell came to encourage greater cooperation between congregations and used his later journal the '' Millennial Harbinger'' to advance that view.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, Churches of Christ'', Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004, , , 854 pages, entry on ''Millennial Harbinger, The'', pp. 517-518 The ACMS was formed in October 1849. A representative was sent to

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast� ...

in 1854 and to

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispa ...

in 1858, but for various reasons, both efforts were short-lived. Work in Jamaica and Liberia was later taken up by the

Christian Woman's Board of Missions The Christian Woman's Board of Missions (CWBM) was a missionary organization associated with the Restoration Movement.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Ch ...

. The ACMS made a decision in 1863 to support the Union during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

. Controversy over that and other issues, coupled with the war's economic and social disruption, almost led to the collapse of the ACMS. The ACMS recovered after the war and established a number of standing committees and service boards l, including the Christian Women's Board of Missions in 1874, a planning committee for the

Foreign Christian Missionary Society Foreign Christian Missionary Society (FCMS) was a Christian missionary society established by the Disciples of Christ.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of ...

in 1874, a Committee on Church Extension in 1883, a Board of Negro Education and Evangelization in 1890, a Board of Education in 1894, and a Board of Temperance and Social Service in 1907. The Foreign Christian Missionary Society expanded the number of overseas mission efforts during the 1880s. The ACMS was incorporated into the United Christian Missionary Society when it was formed in 1919.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, Churches of Christ'', Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004, , , 854 pages, entry on ''United Christian Missionary Society'', pages 750-753

Impact on Restoration Movement

While there was no disagreement over the need for

evangelism In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are ...

, many believed that missionary societies were not authorized by scripture and would compromise the autonomy of local congregations.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, Churches of Christ'', Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004, , , 854 pages, entry on ''Missionary Societies, Controversy Over'', pp. 534-537 That became an important factor leading to the separation of the

Churches of Christ The Churches of Christ is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations based on the '' sola scriptura'' doctrine. Their practices are based on Bible texts and draw on the early Christian church as described in the New Testament. ...

from the

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...

References

{{Presbyterian Church in the United States of America Christian missionary societies Restoration Movement