Green Gaia
Veteran Member
Restorationism is an attitude that typifies a religious movement which sees itself as a rediscovery and establishment of the original form of Christianity in recent times. The term has been used to describe several comparably motivated Christian religious movements, some of which originated in the British Isles, but which only began to prosper in the eastern United States and then in the American frontier, in the 19th century in the wake of the Second Great Awakening.
More generally, this attitude is referred to by the less appealing term, Primitivism (which describes many movements going back to early Christianity, and up to modern times, including Baptists, and before them, the Anabaptists). However, the religious movements referred to as Restorationists ordinarily:
* sought a restoration of primitive Christianity
* originated as distinct movements primarily in the United States
* originated between approximately 1795 and 1881, or
* may include any movement with a goal or perspective reminiscent of the 19th century restorationists
* originally tended to resist identification as a Protestant church
The term has special application to the Restoration Movement, and by comparison it is applied to other groups, whose similarity is largely coincidental. The name "Restoration" is also used by groups descended from early followers of Joseph Smith, and is preferred for a self description over the name better known to outsiders (Mormonism). These two movements have a briefly overlapping history; but other groups also are called restorationists, because of their comparable goal to re-establish Christianity in its original form, as they thought it to be.
Preparation
Leading up to the 19th century, the Calvinist and Wesleyan revival, called the Great Awakening, had established the Congregationalist, the Presbyterian, the Baptist, and the new Methodist churches on competitive footing for social influence in the new nation. However, as that great "revival of religion" began to wane, a new era of secularism began to overwhelm the social gains that had been experienced by the Evangelical churches. Furthermore, that revival had popularized the strong opinion that the Evangelical religion was weakened and divided, primarily due to unreasonable loyalty to creeds and doctrines which made salvation seem unattainable.
The Second Great Awakening made its way across the frontier territories, fed by intense longing for a prominent place for God in the life of the new nation, a new liberal attitude toward fresh interpretations of the Bible, and a contagious experience of zeal for authentic spirituality. As these revivals spread, they gathered converts to the Protestant sects of the time. However, the revivals eventually moved freely across denominational lines, with practically identical results, and went farther than ever toward breaking down the allegiances which kept adherents to these denominations loyal to their own. Consequently, the revivals were accompanied by a growing dissatisfaction with the Evangelical churches and especially with the doctrine of Calvinism, which was nominally accepted or at least tolerated in most Evangelical churches at the time.
A protest against Protestantism
Restorationists were not content with mere cooperation between denominations. The leaders of these movements did not believe that God intended to simply fatten the old institutions, and perpetuate the old divisions, with the revivals. They perceived the new religious awakening as the dawning, or at least the harbinger, of a new age. Restorationists sought to re-establish or renew the whole Christian church, on the pattern set forth in the New Testament. They had little regard for the creeds developed over time in Catholicism and Protestantism, which they claimed kept Christianity divided. Some even counted the Bible as a casualty of ancient corruption, leaving it also in need of correction.
The Protestant Reformation came about through a kind of restorationist impulse to repair the Church and return it to its original obedient pattern. But the Protestant reform movements, including the Puritans, accepted that history does have some "jurisdiction", according to historian Richard T. Hughes. Mark Noll similarly says that Protestants "apprehend the Bible's treasures as mediated through history." The Protestants believed that they must respect history, as interpreted through faith. Even John Calvin made the bold (if enigmatic) claim that the past is a "living magisterium". In contrast, restorationists sought to transcend history, to rebel against the "jurisdiction" of past historical development, in order to be free to embrace the heavenly pattern originally revealed to Christ's apostles, which is the Kingdom of God.
Restorationist organizations include Disciples of Christ, Churches of Christ, Mormons, Seventh-Day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses and others. These are widely disparate groups, and they may appear to have few similarities. But when regarded in terms of the restorationist theme, their common relationship stands out. All of these denominations arose from the belief that the true pattern of the Christian religion died out many years before and was finally restored by their churches. Some believe that they embody this restoration exclusively; others understand themselves as conforming to a rediscovered pattern of original Christianity that is now found in many churches, including their own.
More generally, this attitude is referred to by the less appealing term, Primitivism (which describes many movements going back to early Christianity, and up to modern times, including Baptists, and before them, the Anabaptists). However, the religious movements referred to as Restorationists ordinarily:
* sought a restoration of primitive Christianity
* originated as distinct movements primarily in the United States
* originated between approximately 1795 and 1881, or
* may include any movement with a goal or perspective reminiscent of the 19th century restorationists
* originally tended to resist identification as a Protestant church
The term has special application to the Restoration Movement, and by comparison it is applied to other groups, whose similarity is largely coincidental. The name "Restoration" is also used by groups descended from early followers of Joseph Smith, and is preferred for a self description over the name better known to outsiders (Mormonism). These two movements have a briefly overlapping history; but other groups also are called restorationists, because of their comparable goal to re-establish Christianity in its original form, as they thought it to be.
Preparation
Leading up to the 19th century, the Calvinist and Wesleyan revival, called the Great Awakening, had established the Congregationalist, the Presbyterian, the Baptist, and the new Methodist churches on competitive footing for social influence in the new nation. However, as that great "revival of religion" began to wane, a new era of secularism began to overwhelm the social gains that had been experienced by the Evangelical churches. Furthermore, that revival had popularized the strong opinion that the Evangelical religion was weakened and divided, primarily due to unreasonable loyalty to creeds and doctrines which made salvation seem unattainable.
The Second Great Awakening made its way across the frontier territories, fed by intense longing for a prominent place for God in the life of the new nation, a new liberal attitude toward fresh interpretations of the Bible, and a contagious experience of zeal for authentic spirituality. As these revivals spread, they gathered converts to the Protestant sects of the time. However, the revivals eventually moved freely across denominational lines, with practically identical results, and went farther than ever toward breaking down the allegiances which kept adherents to these denominations loyal to their own. Consequently, the revivals were accompanied by a growing dissatisfaction with the Evangelical churches and especially with the doctrine of Calvinism, which was nominally accepted or at least tolerated in most Evangelical churches at the time.
A protest against Protestantism
Restorationists were not content with mere cooperation between denominations. The leaders of these movements did not believe that God intended to simply fatten the old institutions, and perpetuate the old divisions, with the revivals. They perceived the new religious awakening as the dawning, or at least the harbinger, of a new age. Restorationists sought to re-establish or renew the whole Christian church, on the pattern set forth in the New Testament. They had little regard for the creeds developed over time in Catholicism and Protestantism, which they claimed kept Christianity divided. Some even counted the Bible as a casualty of ancient corruption, leaving it also in need of correction.
The Protestant Reformation came about through a kind of restorationist impulse to repair the Church and return it to its original obedient pattern. But the Protestant reform movements, including the Puritans, accepted that history does have some "jurisdiction", according to historian Richard T. Hughes. Mark Noll similarly says that Protestants "apprehend the Bible's treasures as mediated through history." The Protestants believed that they must respect history, as interpreted through faith. Even John Calvin made the bold (if enigmatic) claim that the past is a "living magisterium". In contrast, restorationists sought to transcend history, to rebel against the "jurisdiction" of past historical development, in order to be free to embrace the heavenly pattern originally revealed to Christ's apostles, which is the Kingdom of God.
Restorationist organizations include Disciples of Christ, Churches of Christ, Mormons, Seventh-Day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses and others. These are widely disparate groups, and they may appear to have few similarities. But when regarded in terms of the restorationist theme, their common relationship stands out. All of these denominations arose from the belief that the true pattern of the Christian religion died out many years before and was finally restored by their churches. Some believe that they embody this restoration exclusively; others understand themselves as conforming to a rediscovered pattern of original Christianity that is now found in many churches, including their own.