Reviving the Ancient Faith, 3rd Ed.: The Story of Churches of Christ in America

A balanced, well-documented history of the Churches of Christ in America

The Churches of Christ is a denomination defined by not being a denomination. These communities intended to restore a primitive Christianity, undivided by historical quarrels.

Despite this ideal, the Churches of Christ in America have a surprisingly complex history dating back to the nineteenth century. James L. Gorman's fresh edition of Richard T. Hughes's classic work, Reviving the Ancient Faith, illuminates the movement started by Barton Stone and Alexander Campbell. The authors trace the movement's sociological transformation into a denomination from the 1830s into the twentieth century. Four developments forged this new identity: the premillennialist controversy, the divide over institutions, the racial segregation of congregations and schools, and the fight over liberalism in the 1960s. New to the third edition, the final chapters bring the history of Churches of Christ from the 1960s up to 2022, analyzing the growing diversity of the movement amid intradenominational "culture wars."

Reviving the Ancient Faith, 3rd edition, challenges readers to learn the historical basis of Church of Christ identity and beliefs. Students of the history of the Church of Christ and American religion will derive from its pages a more holistic and informed understanding of the tradition.


About the Author
Richard T. Hughes is scholar in residence at Lipscomb University. He is the author of several books, including Myths America Lives By: White Supremacy and the Stories That Give Us Meaning and The Churches of Christ: Student Edition.

James L. Gorman is associate professor of history at Johnson University in Knoxville, Tennessee. He is also the author of Among the Early Evangelicals: Transatlantic Origins of the Stone-Campbell Movement.