Who are the “Disciples of Christ”?

It's a long name, isn't it? We often call ourselves "Disciples" for short.

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) professes no doctrine or dogma beyond belief in Jesus Christ; all other matters are therefore open to individual interpretation. We have opted strongly for the right of every Christian to read the scriptures for himself or herself and to decide on matters of opinion.

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is one of the largest religious bodies that had its origins on American soil. The church goes its start on the American frontier, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, as a movement to unify Christians who were divided mainly over issues that developed in Europe and had little relevance on the American frontier. The movement's purpose was to get worship practices back to those of the very early Christian church, and to unify true Christians, not divide them.

The name "Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)" stems from its frontier origin. Barton W. Stone, a former Presbyterian, chose simply the name "Christian" for the Kentucky branch. He wanted to emphasize the putting away of denominational divisiveness and the blend into the body of Christ at large. Alexander Campbell, also of Presbyterian background, preferred the name "Disciples" for his western Pennsylvania movement; he felt it was less presumptuous than calling oneself "Christian." The two groups joined forces in 1832.

The "Christian" movement actually consists of three present-day groups that grew out of the same frontier roots: The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ); "Churches of Christ"; and the so-called "independent" Christian Churches. The Churches of Christ are distinguished in part by their opposition to the use of musical instruments in worship and to church organization beyond the local congregation. The independent Christian Churches pulled away gradually in more recent years and now list themselves separately in the Yearbook of American Churches.

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is congregationally governed. It is unique in that there is no pyramid of authority running from the congregation up to the international, or general, level.

A central part of Christian (Disciples of Christ) worship is the weekly gathering at the Table to share the Lord's supper, open to all Christians.

Women are ordained in some of our congregations (and in fact, Edenside's pastor is a woman). In matters such as divorce, birth control and other controversial views, the old Disciples rule is: where the scriptures speak, we speak; where they are silent, we are silent.

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) does not believe that ours is the only true religion. We do believe ours to be the most nearly in accord with the practices of the early Christian churches. "We are not the only Christians, but are Christians only."

-- excerpted from "Religions of America" edited by Leo Rosten

Some good links and references:
www.disciples.org
www.trydisciples.org
www.ccsw.org

Barton W. Stone

Alexander Campbell