The Christian System

Rating:
Summary: New Testament Christianity? Hardly!
Review: Campbell was a prolific writer, writing thousands of pages in various books and articles. The Christian System was his attempt to put his thoughts and arguments within one volume. The Christian System states the philosophical assumptions upon which he sought to restore biblical Christianity. There are, however, a few of these assumptions which must be examined in light of the effect they have on how the Christian Churches/churches of Christ perceive the Bible and their hermeneutic in interpreting it. Perhaps the most important philosophical assumption which has influenced the present day Christian Churches/churches of Christ, is Campbell's view of the Bible.

Campbell's view of the Bible as a collection of "facts to be believed" is born out of a Lockean philosophical perspective, where reason is seen as the sole arbiter of truth. If then, the Bible is a collection of facts and if human reason is all one needs to understand these facts, then there is little need of a clergy to "interpret" the Bible. It has also lead to a leveling of the Scripture to "facts to be believed" has resulted, in later years, in the reducing of all facts to equal importance, a proposition that Campbell himself would have vigorously opposed. Campbell believed that if the ancient form of the church were restored, then Christian unity would be achieved. Restoration of the church, for Campbell, was to be found in polity. When unity is based primarily on polity it tends to lead to division and stagnation because the church exists within a changing culture. An alternative is to based unity on principles, not patterns.

One can readily see the influence of the recent American Revolution on Campbell as he describes the Kingdom of God in terms of King, constitution, subjects, and laws and territories, but if unity is found in establishing the government of Christ, then we also inherit the bureaucracy which accompanies any government. It is the nature of any government to grow in size and of control of its constituents. Conspicuously absent from the Christian system is an analysis of the function and mission of the church. Campbell had an extreme distrust, if not paranoid view of the clergy. This is reflected in his analysis of the "offices" of the New Testament church in which he states that the leadership of the Christian community is composed of bishops (elders), deacons and evangelists. He goes on to say that the church is to be governed by the elders and deacons, while the evangelist holds a subordinate office, "Evangelists, however, though a class of public functionaries created by the church, do not serve it directly, but are by it sent out into the world and constitute the third class of functionaries belonging to the Christian community." (What does one do with Eph. 4:11-12 where the risen Christ appoints evangelist to lead the church?)

It is easy to see where the restoration heirs of Campbell would have set up a hierarchy where the evangelist (or preacher) is a third class citizen; the first being the elders, the second being the deacons. The role of evangelist, which Campbell saw as a church planter, was later viewed as the preacher; thus, the elders are the pastors and the pastor is the evangelist. Roles are confused, lines of authority are unclear and the seeds of conflict, stagnation and decline are sown. There is no "office" of deacon in the New Testament; in fact, the very term "office" in itself is not a New Testament word or concept.

Campbell was a son of the Enlightenment, and as such, he saw reason as supreme in the discovery and understanding of the "facts of the Bible. It is because of this that Campbell believed the role of the Holy Spirit was limited; so much so, it would be said that the operation of the Holy Spirit was the same as the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit according to Campbell was to be found chiefly in the words and arguments of Scripture, ". . . and since the Spirit himself ceased to operate in all those splendid displays of supernatural grandeur, by still keeping the disciples of Christ always in remembrance of things spoken by the holy Apostles, and by arguments derived from the antecedent blessings bestowed, working in them both to will and do according to the benevolence of God, he is still causing the body of Christ to grow and increase in stature, as well as in knowledge and favor with the Lord."

This failure to recognize the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit, reducing His influence to argument and the written Word has robbed the church of the very power it needs for renewal; thus, in many Restoration churches, even the mention of the ministry of the Holy Spirit beyond the written page is cause for concern. It is ironic that may Christian Churches/churches of Christ are ignorant of Alexander Campbell for his influence still predominates their thinking: the distrust of clergy, finding restoration in patterns rather than principles and the limitation of the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Rating:
Summary: New Testament Christianity? Hardly!
Review: Campbell was a prolific writer, writing thousands of pages in various books and articles. The Christian System was his attempt to put his thoughts and arguments within one volume. The Christian System states the philosophical assumptions upon which he sought to restore biblical Christianity. There are, however, a few of these assumptions which must be examined in light of the effect they have on how the Christian Churches/churches of Christ perceive the Bible and their hermeneutic in interpreting it. Perhaps the most important philosophical assumption which has influenced the present day Christian Churches/churches of Christ, is Campbell's view of the Bible.

Campbell's view of the Bible as a collection of "facts to be believed" is born out of a Lockean philosophical perspective, where reason is seen as the sole arbiter of truth. If then, the Bible is a collection of facts and if human reason is all one needs to understand these facts, then there is little need of a clergy to "interpret" the Bible. It has also lead to a leveling of the Scripture to "facts to be believed" has resulted, in later years, in the reducing of all facts to equal importance, a proposition that Campbell himself would have vigorously opposed. Campbell believed that if the ancient form of the church were restored, then Christian unity would be achieved. Restoration of the church, for Campbell, was to be found in polity. When unity is based primarily on polity it tends to lead to division and stagnation because the church exists within a changing culture. An alternative is to based unity on principles, not patterns.

One can readily see the influence of the recent American Revolution on Campbell as he describes the Kingdom of God in terms of King, constitution, subjects, and laws and territories, but if unity is found in establishing the government of Christ, then we also inherit the bureaucracy which accompanies any government. It is the nature of any government to grow in size and of control of its constituents. Conspicuously absent from the Christian system is an analysis of the function and mission of the church. Campbell had an extreme distrust, if not paranoid view of the clergy. This is reflected in his analysis of the "offices" of the New Testament church in which he states that the leadership of the Christian community is composed of bishops (elders), deacons and evangelists. He goes on to say that the church is to be governed by the elders and deacons, while the evangelist holds a subordinate office, "Evangelists, however, though a class of public functionaries created by the church, do not serve it directly, but are by it sent out into the world and constitute the third class of functionaries belonging to the Christian community." (What does one do with Eph. 4:11-12 where the risen Christ appoints evangelist to lead the church?)

It is easy to see where the restoration heirs of Campbell would have set up a hierarchy where the evangelist (or preacher) is a third class citizen; the first being the elders, the second being the deacons. The role of evangelist, which Campbell saw as a church planter, was later viewed as the preacher; thus, the elders are the pastors and the pastor is the evangelist. Roles are confused, lines of authority are unclear and the seeds of conflict, stagnation and decline are sown. There is no "office" of deacon in the New Testament; in fact, the very term "office" in itself is not a New Testament word or concept.

Campbell was a son of the Enlightenment, and as such, he saw reason as supreme in the discovery and understanding of the "facts of the Bible. It is because of this that Campbell believed the role of the Holy Spirit was limited; so much so, it would be said that the operation of the Holy Spirit was the same as the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit according to Campbell was to be found chiefly in the words and arguments of Scripture, ". . . and since the Spirit himself ceased to operate in all those splendid displays of supernatural grandeur, by still keeping the disciples of Christ always in remembrance of things spoken by the holy Apostles, and by arguments derived from the antecedent blessings bestowed, working in them both to will and do according to the benevolence of God, he is still causing the body of Christ to grow and increase in stature, as well as in knowledge and favor with the Lord."

This failure to recognize the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit, reducing His influence to argument and the written Word has robbed the church of the very power it needs for renewal; thus, in many Restoration churches, even the mention of the ministry of the Holy Spirit beyond the written page is cause for concern. It is ironic that may Christian Churches/churches of Christ are ignorant of Alexander Campbell for his influence still predominates their thinking: the distrust of clergy, finding restoration in patterns rather than principles and the limitation of the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Rating:
Summary: Campbell Helped Win Me Over
Review: Having been a faith-only evangelical, it was a painful discovery that the Scripture indeed teaches that immersion in water -- rather than a "sinner's prayer" -- is the proper step along with faith and repentance to "call on the name of the Lord" and be saved. Even with this knowledge and obedience of faith on my part, it was not easy to accept getting into the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ. My misperceptions confused me. However, two things happened in 1996 to win me over. First, I began supply preaching among independent Christian Churches. They were warm, friendly and always concerned to obey the Lord's instruction while preaching the Gospel of Christ. Second, I began reading Alexander Campbell's writings, including The Christian System.

In a world of relativism, emotionalism and a number of other "-isms" that make truth claims even while denying absolute truth, Mr. Campbell still speaks bearing witness that we CAN understand God's Word, and that we MUST seek to know and obey it to draw nearer to Him.

It is a great pleasure to see this book once again in print, and I hope that it will serve to address the faddish evangelicalism of our time with a clear message of understandable doctrine and a knowable God.

Rating:
Summary: Response to Reviewer Sam
Review: The use of the word clergy in my review was Campbells not mine. An avid reader of Campbell, Richardson and other Restoration authors would know that these men used the word clergy to describe professional, denominational ministers. I was merely using Campbells nomenclature to describe Campbells argument. Oh, yes, I read the Bible for myself. I am an avid Bible student, reading it from cover to cover at least a dozen times.

I find it interesting that you focus on the one minor aspect of my review leaving my criticisms of Campbell unanswered: Campbells elevation of reason over revelation; the Lockean philosophical underpinnings of his theology; an view of the Holy Spirit which seems more influenced more by the Enlightenment than the writings of Paul (come to think of it, Campbells view of the Holy Spirit is almost deitist!); the influence of the American Revolution and American democratic traditions in his understanding (I dont dare use interpretation) of the Bible; and his use of non-biblical words such as office to describe ministry and the implications this practice had in bringing into the Restoration churches such non-biblical practices and activities such as church boards, elections, and committees which have turned the focus of the church from ministry to maintenance.

I am sorry, but Campbell is not Saint Paul. He was a man who was brilliant, but flawed. His passion for New Testament Christianity is to be commended, but if we cannot recognize and deal with the flaws, contradictions and mistakes Campbell made, the Restoration Movement becomes the Restoration Monument and our churches will continue to decline both in attendance and influence.

Rating:
Summary: Response to Reviewer Sam
Review: The use of the word clergy in my review was Campbells not mine. An avid reader of Campbell, Richardson and other Restoration authors would know that these men used the word clergy to describe professional, denominational ministers. I was merely using Campbells nomenclature to describe Campbells argument. Oh, yes, I read the Bible for myself. I am an avid Bible student, reading it from cover to cover at least a dozen times.

I find it interesting that you focus on the one minor aspect of my review leaving my criticisms of Campbell unanswered: Campbells elevation of reason over revelation; the Lockean philosophical underpinnings of his theology; an view of the Holy Spirit which seems more influenced more by the Enlightenment than the writings of Paul (come to think of it, Campbells view of the Holy Spirit is almost deitist!); the influence of the American Revolution and American democratic traditions in his understanding (I dont dare use interpretation) of the Bible; and his use of non-biblical words such as office to describe ministry and the implications this practice had in bringing into the Restoration churches such non-biblical practices and activities such as church boards, elections, and committees which have turned the focus of the church from ministry to maintenance.

I am sorry, but Campbell is not Saint Paul. He was a man who was brilliant, but flawed. His passion for New Testament Christianity is to be commended, but if we cannot recognize and deal with the flaws, contradictions and mistakes Campbell made, the Restoration Movement becomes the Restoration Monument and our churches will continue to decline both in attendance and influence.

Rating:
Summary: Speaks where the Bible speaks - Silent where it is Silent
Review: To Pastor Bob:

First where is the term "clergy" found in the New Testament -- what about "laity". Keep looking.

Office in reference to Elders and Deacons -- I Timothy 3:1

Eph 4:11-12 -- Eph 4:11-12
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ

Pastors are Elders -- they oversee the flock I Timothy 3.

"Clergy" aren't to interpret for us.

I think our "pastor" (which means elder) Bob needs to study the Bible for himself instead trusting so many "clergy" to interpret the Bible for him.

TO THE BOOK:
This is a book for those who want to understand what it means to do the will of God (Matt 7:21) not the precepts of men (Matt 15:9). Christianity (and life for that matter) is based on Authority -- and the one with all the authority is Jesus Christ (Matt 28:18). This book is great. You will come out with a knowledge of God's plan of salvation like you have never had. I could type for days about the information in this book, but I won't. My only complaint is that I didn't buy it sooner.

Thanks -- Buy it

Rating:
Summary: Speaks where the Bible speaks - Silent where it is Silent
Review: To Pastor Bob:

First where is the term "clergy" found in the New Testament -- what about "laity". Keep looking.

Office in reference to Elders and Deacons -- I Timothy 3:1

Eph 4:11-12 -- Eph 4:11-12
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ

Pastors are Elders -- they oversee the flock I Timothy 3.

"Clergy" aren't to interpret for us.

I think our "pastor" (which means elder) Bob needs to study the Bible for himself instead trusting so many "clergy" to interpret the Bible for him.

TO THE BOOK:
This is a book for those who want to understand what it means to do the will of God (Matt 7:21) not the precepts of men (Matt 15:9). Christianity (and life for that matter) is based on Authority -- and the one with all the authority is Jesus Christ (Matt 28:18). This book is great. You will come out with a knowledge of God's plan of salvation like you have never had. I could type for days about the information in this book, but I won't. My only complaint is that I didn't buy it sooner.

Thanks -- Buy it