C. Leonard Allen

The story often is told: “the Restoration Movement began in the 1820s with Thomas and Alexander Campbell and their theological shift away from Presbyterianism toward a reformation…”

And if this is the framework in which the Restoration Movement’s origins is framed, much has already been lost.

In Answered by Fire: The Cane Ridge Revival Reconsidered, a consortium of scholars associated with churches of Christ explore the Cane Ridge Revival of 1801: what it was, what it came from, who show more was involved, what effects it had, and the move away from such things and why. They consider not just the major players but also how Black people participated and women exhorted. They also consider what its legacy might mean for us today. The appendix provides primary and secondary sources for the Cane Ridge Revival.

What was the Cane Ridge revival? For years Presbyterians would occasionally hold large gatherings for communion, and it seems that Cane Ridge, Kentucky, was the meeting place for such a gathering in 1801. Some previous experiences had primed Cane Ridge to become what it was. An exceedingly large number in the tens of thousands gathered at Cane Ridge, and there seemed to be an outpouring of the Spirit on people in various ways: people got the jerks, had a holy laugh, would fall down as if dead and arise converted to Jesus. This was happening among some who were already somewhat religious but also among deists and those who had no religion. While it was ostensibly a Presbyterian gathering, the spirit involved was quite ecumenical: Methodist and Baptist preachers were proclaiming the gospel, and all would share in communion together.

The “pastor” of the church in Cane Ridge, Kentucky, was a man named Barton Stone, and the experience of Cane Ridge would never leave him. His goal of an undenominated movement toward unity among Christians was motivated by his Cane Ridge experience. He would never discount the work of the Spirit on account of what he saw at Cane Ridge.

In the 1830s Stone’s “Christian” movement would merge with the Campbell “Disciples” movement, for they both maintained similar aspirations. Campbell brought a more systematic concept of restoration, but also one far more entranced with Baconian rationalism, and thus did not find much room for the Spirit and His working, and looked upon such things with great skepticism. Thus it was possible for a movement which can count as part of its origins one of the most profound revival experiences in American history, sometimes called “America’s Pentecost,” to become so hyper-rationalist that it uniquely taught and emphasized the idea the Spirit only works in and through the Scriptures.

So there is a lot members of churches of Christ can gain from considering the Cane Ridge Revival, Barton Stone’s role in it, how it shaped Stone and his strand of the movement, and why our forebears so thoroughly turned away from any seeming manifestation of the Spirit among His people. We can rightly critique some excesses which can attend to “spiritual enthusiasm,” but there is also much that can be critiqued in quenching the Spirit in the name of upholding a rationalist system imposed upon the text and the faith. show less

What a joy and a peace it is to find brotherhood and a like-minded spirit with "giants" of the churches of Christ past. I particularly found much in common with T.B. Larimore and his refusal to engage in partisan squabbles, as well as with K.C. Moser and his dismay over the way Christ's saving work had been traded in for a saving plan. I think back to the letter I wrote to Maywood and imagine Moser would have wrote much the same thing. I very much enjoyed Robert Richardson's views on the show more Spirit and on formalism, and I'd like to read more from him. And, of course, it was very good to read Stone and Campbell's views, particularly regarding who is a Christian. Allen has done a great job collecting these and many others, and has wrapped them all together with great insight into the way a faith tradition cleans up its ragged edges and smoothes over the voices that don't further the mainstream story. show less

In a world and a community in which individuals are more often critiqued than praised, challenged rather than lionized, it is good to celebrate heroes of faith and honor their legacy.

Such was the goal of the Carroll B. Ellis Symposium at Lipscomb University in 2023 which has led to the compilation of Faithful Defiance: Marshall Keeble’s Life and Legacy (galley received as part of early review program), edited by C. Leonard Allen, and featuring many prominent scholars within Churches of show more Christ.

For those who are not at all familiar with him, Marshall Keeble was a powerful and prominent Black preacher in Black Churches of Christ in the twentieth century. His preaching was well regarded and renowned, and many thousands were baptized as part of his ministry. Keeble was also highly involved in the Nashville Christian Institute (NCI), a center of education for Black students. His legacy has been well secured by his “boy preachers,” the many young men whom he directly influenced through his preaching and work with the NCI.

This is an excellent work which bears witness to Keeble’s life, work, and legacy and the context in which he lived and worked. After an introduction, the work features discussions of the contexts of the Restoration Movement until the late 19th/early 20th centuries, the role of the Black preacher in churches, and the forces which shaped them. Many chapters are then presented regarding Keeble’s life and ministry: his early years, his life as a preacher, his later years, and the challenges he experienced on account of being a Black man in pre-civil rights America. Keeble’s legacy is then considered, both in terms of his own deeds and in terms of the many he influenced, focusing particularly on Fred D. Gray, noted civil rights lawyer, and W.F. Washington, a prominent preacher among historically Black Churches of Christ. The work also features an appropriate conclusion, an appendix regarding the relationship Keeble had with Willie Cato, a white man who assisted Keeble, and a great appendix presenting some of Keeble’s own writing.

Some might be offended at speaking regarding “Black” or “historically Black” Churches of Christ, but as this book well establishes, such was, and is, the historical reality, and it was and is a historical reality perpetuated by the White Christians within Churches of Christ who were more than happy to help sponsor and support Marshall Keeble and others in preaching among Black people, but often bitterly resented and derided any attempt at integrating churches and proved quite fearful of White people becoming enamored with Black preaching and close association and fraternization between White and Black believers.

The authors do quite well in terms of honoring and respecting Keeble for the choices he made: as making the firm commitment to the preaching of the Gospel, who no doubt did not appreciate the way he was often treated, but made the decision to prioritize his ministry and thus in many ways accommodated himself to the white supremacist posture of the White Christians, even (or despite) how such accommodation was lauded as him knowing “his place” and not attempting to “rise above” it. He may not have spoken out explicitly against segregation, but he certainly communicated to his fellow Black people how important it was to help one another and themselves, and deeply influenced many of his students, who would go on to resist segregation and white supremacy in their own careers and ministries.

I highly recommend this book as an opportunity to learn more about the life and work of brother Keeble, and to appreciate his ministry, work, and witness. At the same time, we must also lament and mourn the white supremacist environment which he had to navigate, and repent of all such attitudes and behaviors. We do well to celebrate all of brother Keeble’s work in the Lord; but anyone who would want to “celebrate” Keeble as one of the “good Black preachers” because he “knew his place” and/or did not explicitly speak out against segregation, especially as opposed to those who “agitated” for civil rights, have a lot for which they need to repent, because that kind of attitude never glorified or honored Jesus Christ. show less

Allen C. Leonard’s goal in this work seems lofty indeed – to find that balance between how we read and interpret the Scriptures with the application of what is rightly considered the heart of the Christian story: the Cross. Leonard begins the work with a discussion of how the traditional method of finding authority from the Scriptures has been rooted in a very scientific approach. Further, that scientific approach to biblical interpretation has taken the “Bible as a body of show more ‘facts,’” and “the traditional approach atomized Scripture or broke it up into disconnected doctrinal ‘facts’” (32). As a response to this Leonard takes the time to reintroduce the idea of historical nature and literary genres as part of the closer examination of the Scriptures. With this as the background, Leonard begins the task of examining the nature of the Church from the very Enlightenment stance that mankind can understand, explain, and categorize the truths presented in the Scriptures (as we often successfully are doing with natural phenomena). This reliance on hard scientific examination of the Scriptures has taken a very important part from the heart of the story, the unfathomably mysterious work of God in the lives of men – especially the sacrifice of the Messiah on the cross; i.e.,

“As the cross was diminished in our movement, God’s gracious and deeply personal covenant, mediated by a stunning display of suffering love, increasingly became a bare contract” (123).

What can be looked at as a theology of the Cross takes center stage as the remainder of the book seeks to inform others on the various ways in which the Church and Christians can become more cruciform.

It should be noted that this work is pointedly directed to the Church of Christ which begs two important considerations. First, the ideas included may rightly and appropriately be transferred to other denominations within Christendom and can be profitable for their growth. Second, it is highly repugnant to those of the church of Christ to think of themselves as just another denomination (and yes, that includes ME). By repeatedly pointing to and referencing the work and thoughts of Campbell and Stone early in the book, Leonard seems to present their position as pioneers in the Restoration Movement as supreme importance. This serves to distinguish the group that grew from that early work with those men as something unique to them, and not unique to the Bible from which that group of people strive to take its practice and doctrine. Of course, I also recognize the truth that everyone thinks they are in the right. So, for everyone that thinks like ME – bully! For everyone that doesn’t think like me – well, we could fix that. But surely this is one of the attitudes that Leonard is trying to expose and combat in his book (see chapter 7).

Now my head is starting to hurt … trying to think like … someone else … is … exhausting.

Of course the other point in the work is one made by other authors when discussing Biblical interpretation and application. We (the Church of Christ [see, now I’m doing it]) have never doubted that those we were seeking to convert DIDN’T believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, in fact that can no longer be taken for granted. We tended to spend more time in the evangelical trenches discussing form rather than function, doctrine rather than dedication, epistle rather than gospel. Of course the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction – which science says it always will – and people are starting to emphasize the relationship and not the praxis. In truth the heart as the seat of the spiritual person is repeatedly part of the focus in both Old Testament and New Testament, and at times taking a priority position pointing to the focus of the heart – the inner man – as the foundation of a more intimate relationship with our God. You will never find me denying the truth of this principle; yet, you will find me pointing out the fact that who we are and what we do go hand in hand.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the other undone” (Matt. 23:23, NKJV).

Bottom line: a good book well worth the read if you’re looking for a bit of introspection regarding your relationships with others either as a group or an individual. show less