My Dear Jane,

      If you have not written to me by your Uncle Clapp, whom I expect to meet at Warren, please write me shortly at Bethany, and let me know particularly all your news: how you come on; how you like your situation; or if there be any thing you wish me to do for you. When you write you'll not forget a line or two to your Grandmother; she is often talking about you, and asking if I have heard from you. She wonders that Alicia has not written. I wish you to read the Bible intelligently and to purpose; that you may acquire that knowledge which it was specially designed to communicate, namely, the knowledge of God,--of man,--of sin,--of a Savior,--of salvation,--of glorification. The knowledge of these six comprehensive and all important topics is, and ought to be, the grand concern of every one that would read the Bible to purpose, so as to reap the benefit it is designed to confirm. Let it, then, be your great concern to obtain this all important knowledge, by strictly, distinctly, and particularly adverting to every thing the Bible declares, concerning each, and every, of these important items; so that as a diligent and successful student you will be able, in due time, to answer these six comprehensive and important questions: viz. What do the Scriptures ascribe to God, or declare concerning him? What do they declare concerning man?--concerning sin?--concerning the Savior?--concerning salvation?--concerning glorification? In order to acquire a distinct scriptural knowledge of these six topics, which constitute the great subject matter of the Bible it might be profitable to advert to the form in which these matters are presented to our consideration. The Bible, like every thing else, consists of matter & form; and the whole matter is contained in, and bounded by the form. But as the same matter is capable of being presented under different forms, we should take care lest the form should conceal the matter, or withdraw out attention from it. Allowing the matter which constitutes the Bible to consist in the above six items, we will find them presented to us in the form of histories,--of prophesies,--of doctrinal declarations,--of moral dictates,--of promises & threatenings,--of religious institutions--and devotional exercises. So that under these eight forms, we have the whole of the above six items. I mean all that is revealed concerning them. You will observe that the third form is that of "doctrinal declarations," by which I mean, declarations that things are so, or not so, when it is said, that "The Lord is holy," that "sin is a transgression of the law."--The seventh form is that of "religious institutions," by which I mean religious appointments;--such as prayer, sacrifice, baptism, the Lord's supper, &c. Now in these, as well as in other forms, we may learn much of God, of man, of sin, of the Savior, of salvation & of glorification. With this analysis of the Bible, both as to its matter and form, duly impressed upon your mind, you will be prepared to read to great advantage. You will be always prepared to answer the question--"What are you reading for"--"What are you searching for."--You can say, "for the knowledge of God, of man, of sin, of salvation, of glorification. For every thing you read, from the first of Genesis [1] to the end of Revelation is calculated to inform you upon some of these subjects. And any reading that affords you no information upon any of those important subjects is lost labor. You would do well thus before and the close of every reading to ask yourself distinctly--What have I benefited by this reading--What have I learned of all or any of the above subjects. Sometimes one single passage, one single paragraph, will teach us something of all the above items. Again we may meet with passages of different forms that will teach us the same things over again. But it is enough that we learn from any passage the things which it is calculated to teach, whether we have learned them before from some other passages or not. To illustrate the whole of this most interesting and important subject, let us take up the first chapter of Genesis. The form is historical, the subject matter of which treats is the creation. What does this teach us of God?--His inconceivable power, wisdom, and goodness.--His power in producing every thing by the ban, all of his will, expressed by his word.--God said let there be light and there was light. And so of all the rest till he comes to man.--His goodness in the conception and design of every thing--"And God saw that it was good.--And the whole when taken together were "very good."--His wisdom not only in the order of creation--beginning with light and ending with man, but also in the contrivance or structure of every creature and also in its adaptation to the place it was to fill as a part of the great whole.--Again what does this chapter teach us of man?--His special dignity, his destiny. First his special dignity, for of no other species did God say, Let us make it in our image. Second, his high destiny for of no other of the creatures did he say, Let him have dominion. Farewell.

Your affectionate Grandfather,

Thomas Campbell

[Campbell Family Papers. Letter. Author: Thomas Campbell, 1832. Recipient: Jane C. Mooney. ALS. Original. 1 letter page, both sides. 19.5 x 30.5 cm.]

      Thomas Campbell's letter to Jane C. Mooney is dated by the recipient's autograph note, "from my Grand Father, written in the year 1832." The original copy of this letter is held by: Archives and Special Collections. Campbell Collection. Private Library of Alexander Campbell. Accession number AC.0276. No. 0606. Bethany College, Bethany, West Virginia.

      Grateful acknowledgment is made to R. Jeanne Cobbs, Archivist and Coordinator of Special Collections at T. W. Phillips Memorial Library, for providing a Xerox copy of this autographed letter and for granting permission to publish this transcription as an online document.

      I have let stand variations and inconsistencies in the capitalization, punctuation, and spelling of the autographed letter.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 8 January 1998.
Updated 9 July 2003.