Family Culture

W. Carl Ketcherside

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     When Nell and I were in Ulverston, Lancashire, England, we stayed in the home of the venerable brother, Walter Crosthwaite, while I spoke nightly to the little band of saints and a few friends who convened to hear me. It was an unforgettable experience. One evening we were invited to dine with a widowed sister whose husband had been a book lover. I was urged to inspect the remaining volumes and to select any one as a souvenir of our visit.

     Tucked away in one corner I found a little pocket-size book by Alexander Campbell, titled, "Family Culture; or Conversations in the Domestic Circle at the Carlton House." These articles were never printed in a single volume in America, but they had been gathered by Henry Hudston and brought out under the patronage of the Mayor of Nottingham in 1850. In spite of the fine print I read the 343 pages in the book on board our ship sailing back to America.

     And now I have read the book again in a wonderful large print edition of the Restoration Reprint Library. Interesting indeed is the preface by George Greenwell, penned 117 years ago. The plate of the pen-and-ink drawing of the profile of Campbell made in Glasgow is impressive.

     In the book, Campbell creates a family of Mr. Olympas and his wife Harriet, their nine children, natural and adopted, and six servants of various ages. Each morning from six to seven o'clock, this household is summoned to family devotions and Bible study. The children and domestics are divided into three groups. The little children give the facts of the lesson, the second group explains them, and the oldest draw the inferences and make the practical deductions and applications. A second session is held each evening at dusk.

     The reader is taken through a thorough study of the first twenty-two chapters of

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Genesis, and a subsequent exploration of part of the book of Luke, as Olympas questions his family and supplies answers to the deeper questions when others ask him. There is an appendix by Thomas Campbell on how to teach nursery children in which he affirms that by following his instructions parents can be sure that, "by the time the child has completed its third year, it will have become a practical deist or theist." If that seems a pretty stiff assignment for the tricycle clan, remember that his success in training his son, Alexander, lends some weight to his words. Of course, Thomas Campbell was not bothered with television!

     It is interesting beyond description to read Campbell's views on creation, the flood, the tower of Babel, the call of Abraham, etc. The profundity of his knowledge and the simplicity of his trust in the Bible are clearly exhibited through the discussion of this hypothetical family. Any person who thinks he has exhausted the possibilities of the first half of Genesis is in for a surprise. No less interesting are the discussions on Luke's account of Christ.

     One intriguing thing is the glimpse provided into problems of the early restoration movement. A good example is found in the application by Olympas of certain Old Testament principles to the discussion on "the order of worship" based on Acts 2:42. The book is a nostalgic trip into the simpler days of yesteryear when there was a daily meeting of the family at the domestic altar and when all were bound together in an almost patriarchal trust. It was a day of hard physical labor and of strong faith. The reader is seized with a pang of regret at how far our land has drifted from that which provided its pioneer courage and stability.

     After two readings of the "conversations in the domestic circle at the Carlton House," I find myself with an increased respect for Alexander Campbell, who is unquestionably the "Olympas' of the book. I also find myself drawn closer to the God of creation and providence. I am glad that this book is at last available in our United States after more than a century. I treasure it as a valuable addition to my collection of restoration literature.