The ''Christian Messenger'' was a religious magazine established by the early

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 ...

leader Barton W. Stone in 1826.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 Messenger'', pp. 194-195Douglas 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 ''Journalism'', pp. 435–438 The paper was a key means of communication for the "Christians" led by Stone and a primary source of unity in the movement, but consistently struggled for survival. It also played a key role in promoting the merger of the "Christians" with the "Disciples" led by

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

and Alexander Campbell.

History

From the beginning of the movement, the free exchange of ideas among the people was fostered by the journals published by its leaders. Alexander Campbell published the '' Christian Baptist'' and the ''

Millennial Harbinger The ''Millennial Harbinger'' was a religious magazine established by the early Restoration Movement leader Alexander Campbell in 1830.Douglas A. Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church ...

'' while Stone published the ''Christian Messenger''.Garrison, Winfred Earnest and DeGroot, Alfred T. (1948). ''The Disciples of Christ, A History'', St Louis, Missouri: The Bethany Press The first issue was printed in November 1826, and early themes included opposition to sectarianism, Christian liberty, and the right of individual Christians to read and interpret the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

for themselves independently of any creeds. Stone also stressed the need for Christian unity based on the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

alone. The cornerstone for the Stone movement was Christian freedom, which led them to a rejection of all the historical creeds, traditions and theological systems that had developed over time and a focus on a primitive Christianity based on the Bible.C. Leonard Allen and Richard T. Hughes, ''Discovering Our Roots: The Ancestry of the Churches of Christ'', Abilene Christian University Press, 1988, During the period from 1831 through 1834 the ''Messenger'' actively promoted the union with the

Disciples of Christ (Campbell Movement) The Disciples of Christ (Campbell Movement) 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 Christia ...

. Stone also used the ''Messenger'' to encourage Christians to free their slaves and support the

American Colonization Society The American Colonization Society (ACS), initially the Society for the Colonization of Free People of Color of America until 1837, was an American organization founded in 1816 by Robert Finley to encourage and support the migration of freebor ...

.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 ''Stone, Barton Warren'', pp. 700–720 The ''Messenger'' had several co-editors over the time it was published, including John T. Johnson, Jacob Creath Jr., T. M. Allen and D. P. Henderson. After Stone died Henderson continued the paper for a few months, after which it was merged with ''The Bible Advocate'' in 1847.

References

{{Authority control 1826 establishments in the United States Weekly magazines published in the United States Christian magazines Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1826 Magazines disestablished in 1845 Magazines published in Illinois Restoration Movement Magazines published in Kentucky Religious magazines published in the United States