Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-06-27
ALEXANDER CAMPBELL.
The Great Religious Leader and the
Church He Founded.

New York Tribune, june q.
a general informal cOnvocation Of
the leaders Of the large sect known as
Complexities or Disciples of Christ
took place last week in Bethany, West
Virginia, the motive being the unveil-
ing Of a statue of their founder, Alex
ander Campbell, and a discourse upon
his life and work by Judge jeremiah
Black, of Pennsylvania. The selection
of the orator was a wise one, Judge
Black and Bishop Campbell being
alike prominent types Of a class of
Western men which unfortunately is
fast dying out; men of exceptional size
and endurance in both body and mind;
OF shrewd insight and stern integrity;
who made bold grasps at, truth and
then forever after defended their opin-
ions with an obstinate, downright force
which belonged to their ScOtch-Irish
blood and Western training.
Alexander Campbell had all the in
stlncts and qualities of a military lead
er; fate made him a scholar, and a pO-
lemical scholar, and the result may be
easily guessed. He became, as many
such men become in the Church, the
founder of a new SET. and not satisfied
with the executive d, * and contests
which this position entailed upon him,
he necessarily sought occasion to de-
fend orthodox Christianity, or Protest
antism, against all corners. His public
debates with Owen and Bishop Purcell,
and his fierce attacks upon Communism
and Catholicism, interested the whole
religious world forty years ago. His
Scotch thOroughness made him pro-
found scholar in his own lines of re-
search, he was undoubtedly one of the
best philolOgists the country has pro-
duced, while the same sincerity
and antipathy to sham forced him to
thrust aside al mere dogmas and creeds
and lead his followers to the broad
basis of simple belief in Christ as a
Saviour. Immersion was, however,
urged as a necessary cOrollary to this.
Upon this foundation each believer was
permitted to erect what doctrines he
pleased. This liberal creed, and per-
haps the personal influence of its
teacher, caused the sect to increase
with great rapidity during his life, es-
pecially in the Southern and South
western States. At the time of his
death it numbered over five hundred
thousand members in this country, be-
sides influential churches in Great Bri-
tain and Australia. Probably there is
no other sect, which IN proportion to
its size, can boast of a larger number
of colleges or of publications devoted
to its interest.
The Church of the Disciples also
bears strongly the impress Of the
peculiar mind of its founder. Its mem
bers are apt to be logical, argumenta-
tive Christians; each individual being
driven to the Bible for his doctrines,
an exceptional familiarity with Holy
Writ is the rule among them; and as
there is necessarily a great diversity
In these doctrines, each man stands
ready to defend the peculiar faith that
is in him at the shortest notice. Re
hgious training Of this kind is an edu-
cation in itself, which fact offers an
explanation of the exceptionally small
number of illiterate members of the
sect.
No man of his time, probably, ex-
erted a more direct or widespread per-
sonal influence than Alexander Camp
bell; and now that he is silent forever
it seems but fit, even at this late day,
that his disciples and friends should
have assembled at his old home to do
him honor.