Advent Christian Church

Advent Christian Church

Infobox Christian denomination
name = Advent Christian Church


imagewidth =
caption =
main_classification = Protestant
orientation =
polity =
founder = Jonathan Cummings
founded_date = 1860
founded_place = Salem, Massachusetts
separated_from =
leader/moderator =
leader =
parent = Millerites
merger =
separations =
fellowships =
associations =
area =
hospitals =
nursing_homes =
aid =
congregations =
members =
ministers =
missionaries =
temples =
primary_schools =
secondary_schools =
tertiary =
footnotes =
The Advent Christian Church is a "first-day" body of Adventist Christians founded on the teachings of William Miller.

History

William Miller

Though the first "Advent Christian Association" was founded in Salem, Massachusetts in 1860, the church's formation is rooted in the adventist teachings began by Baptist preacher William Miller of Pittsfield, Massachusetts. For many years, Miller studied the prophecies recorded in the Old Testament book of Daniel and the New Testament book of Revelation. After many calculations, he announced in 1831 that the Second Advent would occur in 1843 or 1844. Thousands of people believed him, and sold their possessions. His followers, called "Millerites", waited for the coming of Christ and the end of the world, yet were disappointed.

The Albany Conference, which began in 1845, was one of the major groups which resulted. It included many major Millerite leaders such as Miller himself. The Advent Christian Church has its roots in this group.

Jonathan Cummings

Jonathan Cummings (1785–1867), a disciple of Miller who reset Miller's prediction of Christ's coming as 1854, was also influential on the individuals who founded the "Advent Christian Association". A third root of the Advent Christians is found in the rise of the doctrine of conditional immortality among Adventist preachers such as Charles F. Hudson (1795–1881) and George Storrs (1796–1879). Rejecting what they believed was a Greek philosophy (immortality of the soul), they taught that though man was created for immortality, that immortality had been forfeited in the fall of Adam. They believed that only the redeemed would receive eternal life; the dead unconsciously would await the resurrection and final judgment. At the time of judgment, the wicked would suffer extinction. These teachings separated them from some within the Millerite movement.

Aurora University (Aurora, Illinois) began as Mendota Seminary in Mendota, Illinois in 1893. In 1900 the church adopted a "Declaration of Principles". A small New England body, called the "Life and Advent Union" (org. 1863 by John T. Walsh and George Storrs), merged into the "Advent Christian Church" in 1964.

Beliefs

The doctrine of the "Advent Christian Church" includes belief in the Bible as the infallible rule of faith and practice, salvation available for all conditioned on repentance, faith, & faithfulness to God, and the imminent return of Jesus Christ. The doctrine of "the unconscious intermediate state of the dead" and "conditional immortality" - "We believe that death is a condition of unconsciousness to all persons, righteous and wicked; a condition which will remain unchanged until the resurrection at Christ's Second Coming, at which time the righteous will receive everlasting life while the wicked will be "punished with everlasting destruction;" suffering complete extinction of being" - separates them from a number of other evangelical Christians. This is commonly called soul sleep. The church accepts two ordinances - water baptism by immersion, and the Lord's supper.

Advent Christian theologians, such as John H. Crouse, advocated an historicist view of the Book of Revelation, regarding it as a description of events from the time of the early church up to the second coming (e.g., the rise of the Catholic Church which they believed was the "scarlet beast", the Reformation, etc).

In ministry, the church cooperates to provide missions, education, publications, homes, and a camp. The General Conference of the church meets every three years. Denominational headquarters are located in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Statistics

In 1990, the "Advent Christian Church" had 23,794 members in 329 congregations. The largest concentration of churches is on the eastern coast of the United States in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. The church holds membership in the "Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability", the "Evangelical Foreign Missions Association", and the "National Association of Evangelicals".

ee also

* Adventist, Millerites
* Joshua Vaughan Himes

References

*"Churches and Church Membership in the United States (1990)", Glenmary Research Center
*"Encyclopedia of American Religions", J. Gordon Melton, editor
*"Handbook of Denominations in the United States", by Frank S. Mead, Samuel S. Hill, and Craig D. Atwood
*"Midnight and Morning: The Millerite Movement and the Founding of the Advent Christian Church", by Clyde E. Hewitt
*cite book
last = Tarling
first = Lowell R.
authorlink =
title = The Edges of Seventh-day Adventism: A Study of Separatist Groups Emerging from the Seventh-day Adventist Church (1844–1980)
publisher = Galilee Publications
date = 1981
location = Barragga Bay, Bermagui South, NSW
isbn = 0 9593457 0 1
chapter = The Advent Christian Church
pages = 12–23

External links

* [http://www.adherents.com/Na/Na_1.html#22 Adherents.com]
* [http://www.adventchristian.org/ Advent Christian General Conference]
* [http://www.aurora.edu/ Aurora University]
* [http://www.areachurches.com/adventinfo.html The Advent Christian Church - An Introduction]
* [http://0-astatine.llu.edu.catalog.llu.edu/documents.asp?CatID=2&SortBy=0&ShowDateOrder=False "History of the Second Advent Message and Mission, Doctrine and People"] by Isaac Wellcome (1874).


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Advent Christian Church — ▪ religion       one of several Adventist churches that evolved from the teachings in the late 1840s of William Miller. It was organized in 1860. Doctrinal emphasis is placed on the anticipated Second Coming of Christ and on the Last Judgment,… …   Universalium

  • Advent Christian Church (Eau Gallie, Florida) — Infobox religious building building name= Advent Christian Church image size= 300px caption= Advent Christian Church map type= map size= map caption= location= 1598 Highland Avenue Eau Gallie, Florida geo= latitude= longitude= religious… …   Wikipedia

  • Primitive Advent Christian Church — The Primitive Advent Christian Church is a small body of Adventist Christians which separated from the Advent Christian Church. They have a common early history. Adventists who had adopted the conditional immortality views of Charles F. Hudson… …   Wikipedia

  • advent christian — noun Usage: usually capitalized A&C : a member of the Advent Christian Church organized in 1861 under the original name of the Advent Christian Association …   Useful english dictionary

  • Christian primitivism — See also: Restorationism (disambiguation) Part of a series on the History of Christian Theology …   Wikipedia

  • Church of God (7th day) — For other uses, see Church of God (disambiguation). Part of a series on Adventism …   Wikipedia

  • Church of the Blessed Hope — For other uses, see Church of God (disambiguation). The Church of the Blessed Hope (or Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith) is a small first day Adventist Christian body. Contents 1 Background 2 Faith and Practice 3 Status …   Wikipedia

  • Church of God General Conference — to be distinguished from Churches of God General Conference (Winebrenner) (CGGC) The Church of God General Conference (CoGGC) is an Adventist Christian body which is also known as the Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith and the Church of God… …   Wikipedia

  • Advent — (from the Latin word la. adventus , meaning coming ) is a season of the Christian church, the period of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus, in other words, the period immediately before Christmas. It is …   Wikipedia

  • Christian Calendar —     Christian Calendar     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► Christian Calendar      GENERALITIES     All civilized peoples and even those which seem to be only just emerging from utter barbarism keep some kind of record of the flight of time and are… …   Catholic encyclopedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”