RICHMOND, Tuesday, February 27, 1832.      

Mr. Alexander Campbell,

      MY DEAR SON--BEFORE this comes to hand you will have received my last of the 18th instant, and will also have received the Religious Herald of this place up to the date hereof, by which, from the 3d to the 24th inclusive, you will have seen the combined result of attack upon you and me by the anti-reforming interest of this part of the state. Upon you, for your obituary notice of the death of brother Semple: upon me, for my friendly visit, and exhibition of documents, of which, I suppose, you will have received the numbers I ordered to be forwarded to you. You will also perceive upon the whole of the premises, that after all their clamor, they might as well have held their peace; for their pompous declamation has amounted to just nothing. Nay, they have evidently confirmed what they meant to invalidate.

      With respect to the envied documents, which I submitted for the avowed purpose of correcting mistakes, &c. brother Broaddus, after all his admonitions to the churches, acknowledges and inculcates them. See the close of his admonition to the Baptist churches in the Religious Herald of the 3d instant. "We have long avowed these principles," (says he,) and adds, "Let us press these principles on that part of the christian community which may not have adopted them, (and many there be that have not.") In so far, then, he kindly takes the work off our hands. As for his allegation against me, for "proposing these documents to the acceptance of the churches," it is perfectly gratuitous, as the publication itself evidently demonstrates: besides, there is not a person or church in existence that can say that I ever presented these documents for any purpose but that avowed in the publication itself. But supposing I had presented these documents for the reception of all the Baptist churches in Virginia, what need for this lengthy admonition, seeing the Baptist churches have long avowed them. Here it is, lest "some individual or individuals may be decked with the honor of having effected an extensive reformation among the Baptists." "I therefore, for one, (says he,) must enter my protest against the measure." Hence we see it was the jealousy of honor that impelled our friend first to surmise, and then to caution.

      But this is not all that brother Broaddus has conceded in favor of the reformation: in his admonition for ministers, in the Religious Herald of the 17th inst. he says, "We are annoyed with the conceit that God is teaching all necessary truth by visions, voices, and impulses, styling the Holy Spirit the vehicle of divine knowledge; consequently, excluding every other." But still farther, brother Ball, the Baptist oracle of this state, carries the alone sufficiency of the Holy Scripture to its ne plus ultra; see his plea, for the superior utility of [169] camp meetings in his paper of the 10th instant; wherein he ascribes the superior success of protracted meetings in making converts, to the "mind's being kept fixed upon the truth till it is constrained to yield to its all-subduing influence." Thus the sheer moral influence of the word, unaccompanied with any spirit but the breath of the speaker, is supposed competent to constrain the mind to yield to its all-subduing influence. Indeed it is the only tolerable answer he could have given to the supposed case; for it would have shocked credulity itself to have preferred protracted meetings in behalf of the Spirit, as affording him a more favorable opportunity to perform the converting operation. There remained, therefore, no other divine cause to impute it to, but the word. Sic stat sententia. What a pity, by the bye, that brother Ball had not lived in the apostolic age, when the means of converting the world were a settling! How easy would it have been to have recorded brother Ball's preferential reasons for protracted meetings; in consequence of which how many more millions of souls might have been saved. By what spirit has brother Ball made the discovery? for it was unknown to, or neglected by the Spirit that guided the Apostles?

      But to come nearer home, you will perceive by the documents before me, that every nerve has been strained to invalidate my relation of the friendly interview that took place between myself and brother Semple. And that, upon the whole, they might as well have let it alone. Brother George F. Adams' letter goes to substantiate my report in every thing material, but what took place at our parting, and that was in a few words, inter nos, to the amount of what brother Henley stated in his letter to you. I had scarce reached Richmond on my arrival from Essex, with R. Y. Henley, when it was in circulation that my report of the friendly reception I met with from brother Semple was not true, but the reverse. Upon hearing this brother Bootwright wrote to brother R. B. Fife and brother Leitch of Fredericksburg to know the truth of the matter, upon which he received the following letter, viz.--

Fredericksburg, January, 1832.      

      "Brother Bootwright--Your favor of the 16th instant has just been handed me by brother Leitch, in which, you request us to state whether in the interviews between brother Semple and brother Campbell any thing like hostility existed. Far from it; every thing that passed in my presence was of the most friendly nature. Brother Campbell stayed at my house whilst he remained in this place, except when invited out to dine, or spend the evening, and had but two interviews with brother Semple, one of which took place at my house on the Sabbath morning on which brother Campbell preached. I was present and heard every thing that passed. On this occasion little passed between them, it being within a few minutes of the time at which preaching commenced when brother Semple called. They both went to the meeting house. Brother Semple took a seat by the stove, and remained there till he thought brother Campbell had nearly got through with his discourse; he then went into the pulpit, and after brother [170] Campbell thought he had detained the people long enough, reserved the remainder of his discourse till night. Brother Semple remarked that he had no fault to find with what had been said, but thought that more might have been said (respecting the work of the Holy Spirit) and concluded, commending it as the gospel; and prayed most fervently that the blessing of God might accompany the truth that had been delivered; and also for brother Campbell, that God might spare his life many years, and go with him wherever he went, and bless him abundantly in his labors. After preaching they both went to brother Leitch's, where they dined together; [having company at my house I could not be present.] In the evening the Lord's supper was administered. Brother Semple and brother Adams officiated, and brother Campbell was invited to commune with us. Indeed, throughout the service brother Semple seemed to be filled with the love of God. I saw nothing throughout the service that had the slightest appearance of hostility, in matter or manner, in brother Semple to brother Campbell. Brother Adams states that in a conversation he had with brother Semple, that he (brother S.) expressed himself well pleased with brother Campbell.

      "Please excuse any mistakes in composition, as this was done in haste in my school. Yours in the Lord,

"R. B. FIFE."      

      "I concur with the above statement made by brother Fife, in regard to what took place in the meeting-house. Brother Semple and brother Campbell dined with me on Sabbath day, and I saw nothing like unkind feelings existing between brother Semple and brother Campbell, but friendship and brotherly affection. Something was said on church government, and I think all present differed with brother Semple--he thinking something more than the New Testament necessary for the government of the church.

      "Affectionately yours,

"ABNER LEITCH."      

      Elder John Kerr, of the First Baptist Church in this city, has, after three weeks hard labor, been successful to thrust out 67 of his flock for the, indefinite charge of C-------ism. This ejectment was not achieved till, I believe the fifth or sixth meeting, which took place on the night of the 24th instant, at which time they gave in their names an quietly withdrew under the sanction of a request to that purpose, which had been carried by vote on the 14th. The part thus voted out contains many of the most influential characters in said church. They commenced a subscription for building a place of worship the next day, and in the course of two days had upon it, I think, about two thousand dollars.

THOMAS CAMPBELL.     

[The Millennial Harbinger (April 2, 1832): 169-171.]

      Thomas Campbell's Letter to Alexander Campbell, February 27, 1832, was first published in The Millennial Harbinger, Vol. 3, No. 4, April 2, 1832. The electronic version of the letter has been produced from the College Press reprint (1976) of The Millennial Harbinger, ed. Alexander Campbell (Bethany, VA: A. Campbell, 1832), pp. 169-171. This letter is included in Alexander Campbell's "Facts and Documents Concerning the Obituary Notice of R. B. Semple, in Reply to the Attempts of Messrs. Broaddus and Ball," pp. 161-177

      Pagination 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 letter.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 28 November 1997.
Updated 9 July 2003.