Daily union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1865-1866, 1866-03-14
ALExANDER CAMPBELL.
A sketch of His Life and Public
Career.

For months past he had been in failin
health, but his end was accelerated by re
cent severe cold, against the fatal effects G
which his long overtaxed energies struggles
in vain. He began to sink very noticeable
more than week ago, but up to the yer,
last his wonderful vitality resisted the ap
proach of death, and, in the language of on,
who watched with him, the struggle was gi
gantic TO the close. Few naen ever possessed
greater rtrength of constitution. He haC
never known until recently, what it was {,
suffer bodily ailment For more than forty
years, at one time in his life. he had no
been confined TO his bed by illness a singl,
day. And yet no man ever taxed hi
strength more constantly or Inpre severely
From his earliest manhood And for NOR,
than sixty years of his life, early and late
Mr. Campbell was an incessant worker Hi,
endurance was wonderful Very little res
suficed for him, SO perfect and harmonious
was the organization Of his physical and
mental powers
The result of his lifelong labors are ia.
miliar to the reading religious world. His
leading works are on the shelves Of every
book store, and in the library Of almost every
clergyman. Those most generally known 10
the public are his debates, especially those
with Archbishop Purcell on Roman Cathol-
icism, with Robert Owen, the celebrated
Sceptic and Socialist; and with DIR. n. L.
Rice well known Presbyterian clergyman.
| OF his miscellaneous works, those most
widely circulated are the christian System"
| his work on Baptism, and his translation
of the New Testament. But il was not as
the author of any special book, or as par
ticipant in any of his great debates, that Mr..
Campbell was chiefly and most prominent
| ly known TO the world. He was the recog-
nized lead of a new religious sect, as it was
generally esteemed, called familiarly the
Campbellite Baptist tdenomination-but call
| ed by himself and the membership of the
church, the Disciples. This denomination
took its origin from the teachings of himself
and father more than half century ago,
and now numbers, il is said, well nigh half a
million of adherents, who are especially
numerous in the States of Ohio, Indiana
Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennes-
see. Their peculiarities as people are that
they discard all human creeds and confes-
sions of faith, and take the Bible alone as a
perfect and all-suflicient rule of faith and
practice, esteeming all commandments and
traditions Of men as necessarily fallible. su-
pererogatory, and in derogation of the all
sufiiciency as well as the express injunctions
of the Word of God.
Another popularity is that they partake
Of the Sacrament of the Lords supper every
week. They believe also, that Christian
baptism can only be performed by INNER
sion-and that there is no warrant either in
the example of Christ himself or in the
teachings and practice of his Apostles, for
any other baptism. Infant baptism they re-
ject because the command is to repent and
be baptized" and baptism, therefore, they
hold, can only follow repentance.
The foregoing is a very brief outline of
the views first taught and expounded by
Alexander Campbell and his father, as re-
ligious reformers, half century ago, and
since adopted, as we have seen, by a large
mass of people in this country and in Eu-
rope. The arguments and details of these
views are TO be found in work called the
"Christian System the fundamental work,
so TO speak, Of the Disciples as a denomina-
tion. The same views, especially as regards
baptism, are also amplifed and discussed in
another work known as the christian Bap-
tist," first published in serial form, and since
revised and collated as a sort Of text book by
the denomination.
Alexander Campbell was born in the
county of Antrim, ireland, in the year 1889,
and was educa' ed, as was his father before
him, at the University of Glasgow, Scotland
both of them as Presbyterian clergymen.
Thomas Campbell, the poet, was relative
and classmate of his father. On the one
side his ancestry was Of Scotch origin, and
on the other Huguenot French. He immi-
grated to this country in the year 1909, two
years after his father, bringing with him
his mother and younger brothers and sisters,
and settled at first in Washington county,
Pennsylvania, near the spot in this State to
which he soon afterward removed, and on
which he has lived continuously for more
than half century. That spot, now the
village of Bethany, was then wild and Sc
cluded locality amid the hills, shut out al
most from the world by the abrupt cliffs
that overhang it, and the sharp windings of
Buffalo Creek, which, at that day, being un
bridged, were often not fordable. 1t was in
this romantic and remote spot in the new
world to which he had come, amid peaceful
agricultural pursuits, and in the prosecution
of those studies beftting his calling as a
minister of the Gospel, that Alexander
Campbelrs long and eventful public career
began, without a suspicion on his part, we
may add that he was TO become one of those
great pioneers in the world of reform that
have appeared atrare intervals in the history
of mankind, and have had power by the
sole lever of thought" to upheave the
weights of ancient traditions, long accepted
formulas and consecrated theories from the
mind of society.
He began as Martin Luther and John
Wesley began, not as a would-be revolu-
zionist, but as a reformer of his own imme-
dia.e "household Of faith" He looked for
ward TO no new denomination, but simply to
the correction Of vital errors and innovations
that had been fastened upon the primitive
gospel as preached in the pulpits Of that day.
Martin Luther proclaimed justification by
faith" and the echo and effects of that then
startling proclamation went far beyond his
own conception and control. And thus
Alexander Campbell in like manner, startled
those with whom he was in communion, by
the declaration that Christian Union can
result from nothing short of the destruction
of creeds and confessions of faith, inasmuch
as human creeds and confessions have de-
stroyed Christian Union" That whenever
the setting aside Of creeds and confessions
shall be attempted, Christians Will give TO
the world and to angels, and TO themselves,
proof that they do believe the word of God"
- MS was MT Aduhl hAob SlSat Nio-
tinctive enunciation or dogma.
He held also the following to be self-evi-
dent truths, viz THAT nothing ought TO be
received into the faith of worship of the
church, or be made term of communion
among Christians, that is not ss the New
Testament. Nor ought anything TO be adj
mitted as of Divine obligation in the church
or management save what is
enioined by the authority of our Lord Jesus
Christ and his Apostles upon the New Tes-
lament church, either in express terms or by
precedent"
On the foregoing declarations Mr.. Camp
bell took his stand, and the consequence was,
that after having been arraigned as the set
ter forth of strange doctrines" and the would
be founder Of new sect, which accusations
he repelled by saying that there is nothing
new in Christianity" he separated from the
Presbyterian communion, and began to APP
pear in public in defense of his views and in
of his entire orthodoxy. We |
have not space in brief memeir like this |
20 follow Mr.. Campbelrs career as a religious |
both in print and the pulpit. |
Neither would it be proper for us to attempt |
beyond such an outline as beits
secular paper and affords an intelligent |
glance az the views of a man famous at the |
time Of his death throughout the Christian |
world. His debates in the regular order Of |
their occurrence, were as follows; With the |
Rev. John Walker, a minister Of the Seces-
sion Presbyterian church in the State Of |
Ohio hold ~ Monof picasopf IN the xaar Il