FROM

THE

MILLENNIAL HARBINGER.

NEW SERIES.

VOLUME IV.-----NUMBER II.

B E T H A N Y, VA. FEBRUARY, 1840.

      THERE is no evil of the present day more to be deprecated, and to be avoided, than that of partyism in the Christian kingdom; and to such an extent has it obtained in these latter days, that Christianity, in matter and form, has almost been exiled from the world; and although millions are to be found who are called Christians, as distinct from Jews and Pagans, yet scarcely a vestige of original Christianity can now be found exhibited on earth. The diligent student of the word of God in vain attempts to find in the New Testament the sectarian parties which now, constitute all, (I was about to say) of the church of Christ on earth. He sees among us separate and distinct organizations, voluntary associations, party names, different creeds, arrayed in hostile attitude against each other; and while in the spirit of pride and self-sufficiency each believes that his own party is in the truth, he denounces all the others as being in error. Thus mutually hating and being hated is the order of the day, and the necessary result of the present divided state of Christianity in the world.

      In the New Testament we see a most attractive object presented before us in the church of Christ united and compacted in every part, like a well-formed, full-grown, healthy human body. The spirit of union and of brotherly kindness are among the most striking features; and nothing awakens so much concern and meets with so prompt a reprobation as the idea of schism or division in this divine institution. In all the Epistles this subject is adverted to, and exhortations of the most solemn and impressive kind are laid before the brethren. It must be obvious that the occasions for divisions in the primitive church were greater and of a more serious character than those which exist in the present day. We venture to affirm that no sectarian institution now on earth could give the one-tithe part the reason for separation from the body of Christ, as could the Jewish converts in the original churches, for separation from the Gentile Christians, or the reverse; and yet with what jealousy did the Apostles guard this point, and how sedulously did they labor to preserve the unity of the spirit by the bond of peace. In the apostolic age no separation was made on this account; and, indeed, none obtained until the times of Adrian, when the Nazarenes, seceded from the Christians, very much to their own prejudice, and against the exhortations of their brethren, who greatly disapproved of their conduct in this affair. For many ages the Jewish Christians entertained a warm attachment for the obsolete institutions of Moses. They circumcised, observed the Sabbath, and yet no schism was occasioned by it, and no one thought seriously of dividing the church or of denouncing their brethren on these accounts; but now the spirit of intolerance is so high, and the zeal for partyism so rife, that nothing of the kind could be borne: revolt and division would [66] instantly obtain under such a state of things. Indeed I have been credibly informed that in a city of the West a congregation was divided in twain upon the ground of introducing the practice of giving out two lines of the Psalm instead of the one, which the clerk in the solemn, which is the nasal tone of the conventicle, was wont to do. And if the history of divided Christendom was now faithfully written, it would be found that in most cases the different sects were made pretty much in the same way. We have seen sufficient in our day among those who have professed the ancient faith, to convince us that the bond of union may easily be broken by those who attach undue importance to matters of opinion or of expediency, or things even lawful; for be it remembered that a thing may be lawful, and yet not expedient; and the most unmanageable and restless spirits that we have met with, are those who denounce as temporizers their brethren who exercise moderation in relation to those subjects which, although lawful, are not absolutely necessary to the existence of Christianity, and which, if imposed upon the brethren, would, without adding any thing to the influence of religion, tend to disturb the peace and comfort of the disciples. It was certainly lawful for the Gentile Christians to protest against the Jewish converts for their adherence to the antiquated ordinances of the Jewish law, and doubtless this was done by a few hot-headed flaming bigots; but the apostolic rule in relation to all such cases, was, "Him that is weak in the faith receive without regard to differences of opinion. Destroy not with thy meat him for whom Christ died. Now walkest thou not charitably." Sectarianism is one of the works of the flesh. Compare 1 Cor. iii. 3, 4.; Gal. v. 20; Rom. xiv. 17.; 1 Cor. xii. 12.; Eph iv. 3. The Apostle commands us to mark them who cause divisions, contrary to the teaching which he gave, and to avoid them; and has also named in the same line, and strung on the same thread, sects and factions, with uncleanness, sorcery, brawlings, intoxications, revilings, murders, &c.; for they are all of the same family--they are of their father the devil, and the doom of perdition awaits them. We are, then, warned by these considerations against any thing which would have a tendency to separate the body of Christ. We should occasion ourselves to look at such a result as one of the greatest calamities which could befall I us, and as under the highest obligations to preserve the unity of the church after the example and upon the same principles as exerted in the apostolic age. On one occasion the British monarch desired to make Arnold known to the high-minded Earl of Balcarras: after the usual ceremony of introduction Arnold extended his hand to the Earl. "What, sir," said the latter to the King, at the same time drawing himself up to his proudest height, "Is this the traitor Arnold?" and refused to reciprocate the honor. "The hand of Douglas was his own."

      In the same manner would an Apostle have treated even a co-laborer if he had proved recreant to the cause, and have attempted to betray the interest of the Christian kingdom at the shrine of a party, or into the hands of the enemy. All the divisions that can obtain among us will have their origin in difference of opinion in relation to doctrine, form of government, discipline, or order of worship, or in matters of expediency. Let us, then, habituate ourselves to think and to speak in favor of union, as the only ground upon which truth can triumph over [67] error, light can dissipate the darkness, and the church can save the world. Let this be our motto; and whatever we give up, let us not part with "the unity of the spirit." We may differ about things lawful and expedient, whether repentance precedes faith, or faith repentance; about standing or kneeling in prayer; about what we shall call our public speakers, preachers, teachers, or evangelists; or whether we shall have any such persons or not, or need them; or about how we shall raise funds in the congregation, or how much may be needed; or about the imposition of hands, if now necessary, and for whom; or about singing, whether grave or gay, the old tunes of our fathers', or those of modern date, whether by note or by memory. We may differ about the name Christian and Disciple, as the great patronymic of the citizens of the kingdom of God. We may express ourselves with freedom upon all of these subjects, and may honestly differ; but "let all our works be done in love;" and no evil, but good will be the result.

JAMES CHALLEN.      

[The Millennial Harbinger (February 1840): 66-68.]

      James Challen's "Partyism" was first published in The Millennial Harbinger, New Series, Vol. 4, No. 2, February 1840. The electronic version of the essay has been produced from the College Press reprint (1976) of The Millennial Harbinger, ed. Alexander Campbell (Bethany, VA: A. Campbell, 1840), pp. 66-68.

      Pagination in the electronic version has been represented by placing the page number in brackets following the last complete word on the printed page. I have let stand variations and inconsistencies in the author's (or editor's) use of italics, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling in the essay. Emendations are as follows:

            Printed Text [ Electronic Text
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
 p. 66:     their own [ their own
 p. 67:     recipro- the [ reciprocate the
 

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 25 June 1998.
Updated 2 July 2003.