Ecclesiastical separatism is the withdrawal of people and churches from
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is a distinct Religion, religious body within Christianity that comprises all Church (congregation), church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadersh ...
s, usually to form new denominations.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the
separating puritans advocated departure from the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...
. These people became known as
dissenters
A dissenter (from the Latin ''dissentire'', "to disagree") is one who dissents (disagrees) in matters of opinion, belief, etc.
Usage in Christianity
Dissent from the Anglican church
In the social and religious history of England and Wales, an ...
.
Ecclesiastical separatism has also been associated with
Christian fundamentalism
Christian fundamentalism, also known as fundamental Christianity or fundamentalist Christianity, is a religious movement emphasizing biblical literalism. In its modern form, it began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries among British and ...
(at times other forms of
theological conservatism), and such withdrawals have been mainly due to (perceived)
theological liberalism
Religious liberalism is a conception of religion (or of a particular religion) which emphasizes personal and group liberty and rationality. It is an attitude towards one's own religion (as opposed to criticism of religion from a secular position, ...
within the established
state churches,
national churches
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, c ...
, and
mainline Protestant denominations. They have often been accompanied by a refusal to have any further association with the parent denomination/Christian fellowship with its members, or denominations cutting ties of
full communion
Full communion is a communion or relationship of full agreement among different Christian denominations that share certain essential principles of Christian theology. Views vary among denominations on exactly what constitutes full communion, but ...
or
altar and pulpit fellowship
Altar and pulpit fellowship describes an ecumenical collaboration between two Christian organizations, and is a Lutheran term for full communion, or ''communio in sacris.'' ''Altar'' refers to the altar in Christian churches, which holds the sacram ...
with other denominations.
George Marsden notes that
Arno C. Gaebelein was one of the early fundamentalist leaders to advocate ecclesiastical separation in a conference address in 1914. Gaebelein had left the
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. ...
in 1899. For
Carl McIntire
Carl Curtis McIntire, Jr. (May 17, 1906 – March 19, 2002), known as Carl McIntire, was a founder and minister in the Bible Presbyterian Church, founder and long-time president of the International Council of Christian Churches and the Amer ...
in the 1930s and 1940s, separation meant leaving liberal denominations (he formed the
Bible Presbyterian Church
The Bible Presbyterian Church is an American Protestant denomination in the Calvinist tradition.
History
Origin
The Bible Presbyterian Church was formed in 1937, predominantly through the efforts of such conservative Presbyterian clergymen as ...
) as well as organizations such as the
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, usually identified as the National Council of Churches (NCC), is the largest ecumenical body in the United States. NCC is an ecumenical partnership of 38 Christian faith groups in the Un ...
(he formed the rival
American Council of Christian Churches The American Council of Christian Churches (ACCC) is a fundamentalist organization set up in opposition to the Federal Council of Churches (now National Council of Churches).
The council's motto is Jude 3, "Earnestly contending for the Faith".
His ...
). McIntire also separated from evangelical groups, such as the
National Association of Evangelicals
The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) is an association of evangelical denominations, organizations, schools, churches and individuals, member of the World Evangelical Alliance. The association represents more than 45,000 local churches ...
, which he believed had compromised with the liberalism of the National Council of Churches.
In fundamentalism, ecclesiastical separatism is closely connection to the
doctrine of separation The doctrine of separation, also known as the doctrine of non-fellowship, is a belief among some Protestant religious groups that the members of a church should be separate from "the world" and not have association with those who are "of the world". ...
, in which Christians are urged to be personally separate from the world. This is often based on
2 Corinthians
The Second Epistle to the Corinthians is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author named Timothy, and is addressed to the church in Corinth and Christians in the ...
6:17: "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you." Dennis Costella bases his ideas of separation on God's
holiness
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
, and argues that this requires not just "withdrawal from counterfeit, apostate Christianity", but also "separation from disobedient brethren". The "refusal to associate with groups who endorse questionable doctrinal beliefs or moral practices" is known as "first-degree separation", while "second-degree separation" means "refraining from association or identification with groups or individuals who do not practice first-degree separation."
Many separatist denominations and groups still exist today. For example, the
Biblical Graduate School of Theology
Biblical Graduate School of Theology (BGST) is an evangelical theological seminary in Singapore. The current principal is Lai Pak Wah.
History and doctrine
Biblical Graduate School of Theology was established in 1989. The founding principal was ...
affirms belief "in the principle of biblical separation which calls the individual and the church to holiness, being separated to God and from the world." Its statement of faith goes on to say that "ecclesiastical separation involves rejecting any fellowship with organizations which deny the cardinal truths of Scripture in word or deed".
Peter Masters laments that "biblical Separation from denominational heresy and apostasy (nowadays including homosexual immorality) is no longer widely followed by evangelicals." He argues that this has "led to a weakened, worldly, psychological evangelicalism in Britain." Masters' congregation, the
Metropolitan Tabernacle
The Metropolitan Tabernacle is a large independent Reformed Baptist church in the Elephant and Castle in London. It was the largest non-conformist church of its day in 1861. The Tabernacle Fellowship have been worshipping together since 1650. ...
in London, separated from the
Baptist Union of Great Britain
Baptists Together (officially The Baptist Union of Great Britain) is a Baptist Christian denomination in England and Wales. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance and Churches Together in England. The headquarters is in Didcot.
Hi ...
in 1971.
References
Sources
* {{Cite book, last=Meyendorff, first=John, author-link=John Meyendorff, year=1989, title=Imperial unity and Christian divisions: The Church 450-680 A.D., series=The Church in history, volume=2, location=Crestwood, NY, publisher=St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6J_YAAAAMAAJ
Christian fundamentalism
Ecclesiology
Separatism