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Christadelphians

A Christadelphian Hall in Cheshire, England.

The Christadelphians are a Christian denomination that developed in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 19th century. They were also called the Brothers of Christ and Christ's Brethren. They were in effect founded by John Thomas, but do not consider him greater than any other teacher.

Today, there are about 55,000 to 60,000 Christadelphians. Many of them live in Britain, Australia, Africa, and the United States.

Beliefs

Christadelphian ideas are similar to other Restorationist movements like Anabaptism. They believe that Christianity spoiled when it came into contact with the Hellenic world. Therefore, they only accept teachings that can be found in the Bible. They think that the Bible was inspired by God and they accept no other texts.

They reject the idea of the Trinity, and believe that Jesus did not exist before his birth. They think Jesus is literally "Son of Man" by Mary and the "Son of God" by the holy spirit by the virgin birth.[clarification needed] They believe that Jesus was Resurrected after being dead for three days after his crucifixion. Now, according to Christadelphian beliefs, Jesus is with his Father and will come again to be king on earth.

They do not believe in Heaven or Hell. They do not believe that dead people go to heaven or hell. They say that the two words for "hell" mean (1) the grave, and (2) a valley near Jerusalem. They believe that people know nothing when they are dead.

They also believe that the devil in the Bible is a synonym for sin, which are present in the people on earth. Sin is what keeps people from being reunited with God. Christadelphians practise baptism as adults, by total immersion in water.

Different groups

Today almost all Christadelphians belong to the main "Central" fellowship. But, following some disagreements, different groups emerged. Among those still in existence today are Unamended Fellowship (which has 1,800 members in North America), the Dawn Fellowship, and the Berean Fellowship.

Community

They do not have priests or pastors. Instead each local church has a group of elders who are chosen by the members each year. Most male members take turns to speak each week.

Christadelphians Media

  • John Thomas (1805-1871).

  • Christadelphian Hall in Bath, United Kingdom

  • Gate of the Christadelphian Cemetery near Hye, Texas

  • A sign showing the times of service for a Christadelphian ecclesia in Richmond, Virginia

  • The 2002 English language hymn book

Other websites


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