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141-591: ICOC may refer to: International Churches of Christ , a global family/network of churches. International Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation , also known as the "Hague Code of Conduct" International Commission for Orders of Chivalry , a scholarly organization studying chivalric orders. International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers See also [ edit ] ICC (disambiguation) , listing many organizations whose names may also be abbreviated "ICOC" Topics referred to by

282-577: A Baconian inductive manner." In recent years, changes in the degree of emphasis placed on ecclesiology and soteriology has spurred a reexamination of the traditional hermeneutics among some associated with the Churches of Christ. A debate arose during the 1980s over the use of the command, example, necessary inference model for identifying the "essentials" of the New Testament faith. Some argued that it fostered legalism , and advocated instead

423-487: A "normative model." The call for restoration is often justified on the basis of a "falling away" that corrupted the original purity of the church. This falling away is identified with the development of Catholicism and denominationalism . New Testament verses that discuss future apostasy ( 2 Thessalonians 2:3 ) and heresy (e.g., Acts 20:29 , 1 Timothy 4:1 , 2 Tim 4:1–4:4 ) are understood to predict this falling away. The logic of "restoration" could imply that

564-523: A basis for some openness to alternative approaches to understanding the scriptures. Churches of Christ are strongly anti- Lutheran and anti- Calvinist in their understanding of salvation and generally present conversion as "obedience to the proclaimed facts of the gospel rather than as the result of an emotional, Spirit-initiated conversion". Churches of Christ hold the view that humans of accountable age are lost because they have committed sins . These lost souls can be redeemed because Jesus Christ ,

705-451: A believer surrenders his life in faith and obedience to God, and that God "by the merits of Christ's blood, cleanses one from sin and truly changes the state of the person from an alien to a citizen of God's kingdom. Baptism is not a human work; it is the place where God does the work that only God can do." The term "alien" is used in reference to sinners as in Eph 2:12 . Members consider baptism

846-616: A church that he called the International Christian Church. The Christian Chronicle reports that the ICOC's reported membership peaked at 135,000 in 2002, before dropping to 89,000 in 2006. ICOC leaders reported that a mid-2012 survey revealed that membership had grown again to 97,800 members in 610 churches across 148 countries. On November 23, 1991, two Singapore Newspapers, The New Paper (English) and Lianhe Wanbao (Chinese), published articles stating that

987-546: A conservative view on modern social issues. This is evident when the Research Center questioned adherents' political ideology. In the survey, 51% identified as "conservative", 29% identified as "moderate" and just 12% identified as "liberal", with 8% not knowing. In contemporary society, the vast majority of adherents of the churches of Christ view homosexuality as a sin. They cite Leviticus 18:22 and Romans 1:26–27 for their position. Most don't view same-sex attraction as

1128-494: A cooperative leadership structure broken down into regional families that have their own representative delegates. Viewing the Bible as the sole authority, the ICOC emphasizes being a non-denominational church united under Christ. It advocates salvation through faith and baptism, rejects "faith alone", and emphasizes global unity. Historically, the church practiced exclusive baptism and strict "discipling", but since 2002, has shifted to

1269-448: A daily basis and recruited into the church. Anyone criticizing the authority of a discipler was publicly rebuked in group meetings. Those who left the ICOC were to be shunned , and disciples were told that only those baptized within the ICOC were saved; all other people were damned. Furthermore, anyone that left the church would also lose their salvation. A 1999 study found that a substantial minority of former ICOC members included in

1410-480: A deacon is often seen as preparation for the eldership. Elders and deacons are appointed by the congregation based on the qualifications found in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 , including that the persons must be male (female elders and deaconesses are not recognized, as these are not found in Scripture). Congregations look for elders who have a mature enough understanding of scripture to enable them to supervise

1551-774: A denomination was started by him or that he was the head of one in The Christian Baptist publication in 1826 and 1828, stating: "Some religious editors in Kentucky call those who are desirous of seeing the ancient order of things restored, 'the Restorationers', 'the Campbellites'... This may go well with some; but all who fear God and keep his commands will pity and deplore the weakness and folly of those who either think to convince or to persuade by such means" ( The Christian Baptist , Vol. IV, 88–89) and: "It

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1692-611: A discipling movement that arose among the Churches of Christ during the 1970s. This discipling movement developed in the campus ministry of Chuck Lucas. In 1967, Chuck Lucas was minister of the 14th Street Church of Christ in Gainesville, Florida (later renamed the Crossroads Church of Christ). That year he started a new project known as Campus Advance (based on principles borrowed from the Campus Crusade and

1833-535: A hermeneutic based on the character of God , Christ and the Holy Spirit . Traditionalists urged the rejection of this "new hermeneutic". Use of this tripartite formula has declined as congregations have shifted to an increased "focus on 'spiritual' issues like discipleship, servanthood, family and praise". Relatively greater emphasis has been given to Old Testament studies in congregational Bible classes and at affiliated colleges in recent decades. While it

1974-576: A more decentralized, voluntary discipling approach. The ICOC also promotes racial integration, opposes abortion and recreational drugs, and engages in international service through the HOPE Worldwide. David V. Barrett noted in 2001 that in the 1990s the ICOC "attracted a huge amount of criticism and hostility" from the anti-cult movement . The church has been barred from recruiting students on campuses or has been denied student organization status at numerous universities. The ICOC has its roots in

2115-661: A movement that reaches back to the period of the Second Great Awakening (1790–1870) of early nineteenth-century America. Barton W. Stone and Alexander Campbell are credited with what is today known as the Stone-Campbell or Restoration Movement . There are a number of branches of the Restoration movement, and the ICOC was formed from within the Churches of Christ . Specifically, it was born from

2256-570: A network with each congregation participating at its own discretion in various means of service and fellowship with other congregations (see Sponsoring church (Churches of Christ) ). Churches of Christ are linked by their shared commitment to Biblical restoration principles. Congregations which do not participate with other church congregations and which refuse to pool resources in order to support outside causes (such as mission work, orphanages, Bible colleges, etc.) are sometimes called " non-institutional ." Congregations are generally overseen by

2397-400: A new Christian with an older guide for personal assistance and direction. Both procedures led to "in-depth involvement of each member in one another's lives". The ministry grew as younger members appreciated the new emphasis on commitment and models for communal activity. This activity became identified by many with the forces of radical change in the larger American society that characterized

2538-406: A non-college school of preaching. Churches of Christ emphasize that there is no distinction between "clergy" and " laity " and that every member has a gift and a role to play in accomplishing the work of the church. While there is an identifiable mainstream within the Churches of Christ, there are also significant variations within the fellowship. The approach taken to restoring

2679-571: A number of universities banned ICOC recruiters; and ICOC became a prominent target of media and anticult group opposition". In 1985 a Church of Christ minister and professor, Dr. Flavil Yeakley, administered the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test to the Boston Church of Christ (BCC), the founding church of the ICOC. Yeakley passed out three MBTI tests, which asked members to perceive their past, current, and five-year in

2820-428: A passive act of faith rather than a meritorious work; it "is a confession that a person has nothing to offer God". While Churches of Christ do not describe baptism as a "sacrament", their view of it can legitimately be described as "sacramental". They see the power of baptism coming from God, who uses baptism as a vehicle, rather than from the water or the act itself, and understand baptism to be an integral part of

2961-403: A plurality of elders who are sometimes assisted in the administration of various works by deacons . Elders are generally seen as responsible for the spiritual welfare of the congregation, while deacons are seen as responsible for the non-spiritual needs of the church. Deacons serve under the supervision of the elders, and are often assigned to specific ministries. Successful service as

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3102-448: A result of the church's "aggressive evangelizing tactics" and use of 'discipling' or 'shepherding' practices, whereby new members were provided spiritual guidance and had their personal lives closely supervised by more established members. "Members were taught that commitment to the church superseded all other relationships", write Bromley and Melton. As a result, "the main branch of the Churches of Christ disavowed its relationship with ICOC;

3243-417: A similar approach to the scriptures. Members understand that a scriptural name can be used in a "denominational" or "sectarian" way. Using the term "Church of Christ" exclusively has been criticized as identifying a denomination. Many congregations and individuals do not capitalize the word "church" in the phrases "church of Christ" and "churches of Christ". This is based on the understanding that

3384-431: A sin; however, they condemn "acting on same-sex desires". The Restoration Movement originated with the convergence of several independent efforts to go back to apostolic Christianity . Two were of particular importance to the development of the movement. The first, led by Barton W. Stone , began at Cane Ridge , Kentucky and called themselves simply " Christians ". The second began in western Pennsylvania and

3525-521: A tightly structured community that returned to the doctrines and lifestyles of the first-century Christian churches, with the goal of evangelizing the entire planet within a generation". According to journalist Madeleine Bower, "the group became renowned for its extreme views and rigid teaching of the Bible, but mainstream churches quickly disavowed the group". David G. Bromley and J. Gordon Melton , sociologist and historian of religion respectively, note how International Churches of Christ grew quickly in

3666-514: Is a group dynamic operating in that congregation that influences its members to change their personalities to conform to the group norm". By the end of 1988 the churches in the Boston Movement were for all practical purposes a distinct fellowship, initiating a fifteen-year period during which there would be little contact between the CoC and the Boston Movement. By 1988, McKean was regarded as

3807-506: Is a nickname of reproach invented and adopted by those whose views, feelings and desires are all sectarian – who cannot conceive of Christianity in any other light than an ISM" ( The Christian Baptist , Vol. V, 270). He was also associated with the Baptist denomination until 1820. The term " Campbellite " is usually offensive to members of the churches of Christ because members claim no allegiance to anyone except Jesus Christ and teach only what

3948-638: Is a non-profit organization established by the ICOC that supports disadvantaged children and the elderly. It relies on donations from ICOC churches, companies and individuals and on government grants. As of September 1997 , HOPE Worldwide was operating 100 projects in 30 countries. As of 2023 , the organization reported serving on average more than one million people per year, in more than 60 countries. HOPE Worldwide received grants from US president George W. Bush 's AIDS program for its work in several countries, and arranged for Chris Rock to visit South Africa for an AIDS prevention event. The ICOC considers

4089-495: Is approximately 100 members, with larger congregations reporting over 1,000 members. In 2000, the Churches of Christ were the 12th largest religious group in the U.S. based on the number of members, but the 4th largest in number of congregations. Within the U.S., membership in the Churches of Christ has declined by approximately 12% over the period from 1980 through 2007. The current retention rate of young adults graduating from high school appears to be approximately 60%. Membership

4230-427: Is based on the belief that support of institutions and non-church activities are not proper functions of the local congregation. Approximately 2,055 congregations fall into this category. The remaining three groups, whose congregations are generally considerably smaller than those of the mainstream or non-institutional groups, also oppose institutional support as well as "fellowship halls" and similar structures (for

4371-483: Is concentrated, with 70% of the U.S. membership, in thirteen states. Churches of Christ had a presence in 2,429 counties, placing them fifth behind the United Methodist Church , Catholic Church , Southern Baptist Convention and Assemblies of God – but the average number of adherents per county was approximately 677. The divorce rate was 6.9%, much lower than national averages. "Church of Christ"

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4512-471: Is consistent with their historical roots in the Churches of Christ , which believe that Christ established only one church, and that the use of denominational creeds serves to foster division among Christians. This belief dates to the beginning of the Restoration Movement ; Thomas Campbell expressed an ideal of unity in his Declaration and address : "The church of Jesus Christ on earth

4653-514: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages International Churches of Christ The International Churches of Christ ( ICOC ) is a body of decentralized, co-operating, religiously conservative and racially integrated Christian congregations. Originating from the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement , the ICOC emerged from the discipling movement within

4794-475: Is essentially, intentionally, and constitutionally one." The ICOC is opposed to abortion, recreational drugs, and non-marital sexual relations. Homosexuals are welcome, but they must lead a life of chastity. Members' romantic partners require approval by the church. A typical Sunday morning service involves singing, praying, preaching, and the sacrament of the Lord's Supper . An unusual element of ICOC tradition

4935-438: Is in the hands of 10 elders ruling by consensus". Critics of the ICOC claim that Kip McKean's resignation sparked numerous problems. However, others have noted that since McKean's resignation the ICOC has made numerous changes. The Christian Chronicle , a newspaper for the Churches of Christ , reports that the ICOC has changed its leadership and discipling structure. According to the paper, "the ICOC has attempted to address

5076-495: Is incorporated into Christ and so becomes a child of God" (italics are in the source). Baptism is understood as a confessional expression of faith and repentance, rather than a "work" that earns salvation. The Churches of Christ generally combine the lack of any historical evidence that the early church used musical instruments in its worship assemblies with the New Testament's lack of scriptures authorizing

5217-553: Is presented in biblical texts. Alexander Campbell said the "calling of Bible things by Bible names" was important in the reformation. This became an early slogan of the Restorationist Movement. These congregations generally avoid names that associate the church with a particular man (other than Christ) or a particular doctrine or theological point of view (e.g., Lutheran , Wesleyan , Reformed ). They believe that Christ established only one church, and that

5358-477: Is still not seen as authoritative for Christian worship, church organization, or regulating the Christian's life, some have argued that it is theologically authoritative. Many scholars associated with the Churches of Christ embrace the methods of modern Biblical criticism but not the associated anti-supernaturalistic views. More generally, the classical grammatico-historical method is prevalent, which provides

5499-519: Is sufficiently plain and simple to render its message obvious to any sincere believer". Related to this is an assumption that the Bible provides an understandable "blueprint" or "constitution" for the church. If it's not in the Bible, then these folks aren't going to do it . Historically, three hermeneutic approaches have been used among Churches of Christ. The relative importance given to each of these three strategies has varied over time and between different contexts. The general impression in

5640-713: Is the lack of established church buildings. Congregations meet in rented spaces: hotel conference rooms, schools, public auditoriums, conference centers, small stadiums, or rented halls, depending on the number of parishioners. Though the church is not static, neither is it ad hoc – the leased locale is converted into a worship facility. "From an organizational standpoint, it's a great idea", observes Boston University Chaplain Bob Thornburg. "They put very little money into buildings...You put your money into people who reach out to more people in order to help them become Christians." This practice of not owning buildings changed when

5781-490: Is the most common name used by this group. In keeping with their focus of not being a denomination, using Ephesians 1:22–23 as reference to the church being the body of Christ and a body cannot be divided, congregations have identified themselves primarily as community churches and secondarily as Churches of Christ. A much earlier tradition is to identify a congregation as "the church" at a particular location, with no other description or qualifiers. A primary motivation behind

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5922-402: Is understood to mean to dip, immerse, submerge or plunge. Immersion is seen as more closely conforming to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus than other modes of baptism. Churches of Christ argue that historically immersion was the mode used in the first century , and that pouring and sprinkling emerged later. Over time these secondary modes came to replace immersion, in

6063-938: Is what humans say about the Bible; doctrine is simply what the Bible says. Regarding eschatology (a branch of theology concerned with the final events in the history of the world or of humankind), Churches of Christ are generally amillennial , their originally prevalent postmillennialism (evident in Alexander Campbell 's Millennial Harbinger ) having dissipated around the era of the First World War . Before then, many leaders were "moderate historical premillennialists" who did not advocate specific historical interpretations. Churches of Christ have moved away from premillennialism as dispensational millennialism has come more to fore in Protestant evangelical circles. Amillennialism and postmillennialism are

6204-593: The Bible alone, rather than recognizing the traditional councils and denominational hierarchies that had come to define Christianity since the first century A.D. Members of the Churches of Christ believe that Jesus founded only one church, that the current divisions among Christians do not express God's will, and that the only basis for restoring Christian unity is the Bible. They simply identify themselves as "Christians", without using any other forms of religious or denominational identification. They aspire to be

6345-485: The Bible the inspired word of God. Through holding that their doctrine is based on the Bible alone, and not on creeds and traditions, they claim the distinction of being "non-denominational". Members of the International Churches of Christ generally emphasize their intent to simply be part of the original church established by Jesus Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection, which became evident on

6486-619: The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) , in contrast to the CoC, consider permissible practices that the New Testament does not expressly forbid. The ICOC teaches that "anyone, anywhere who follows God's plan of salvation in the Bible and lives under the Lordship of Jesus, will be saved. Christians are saved by the grace of God, through their faith in Jesus Christ, at baptism." They claim that " faith alone " (e.g., saying

6627-409: The Churches of Christ in the 1970s. Kip McKean , a key figure until 2003, expanded the church from Gainesville to Boston and it quickly became one of the fastest growing Christian movements with a heavy focus on US college campuses. Under his leadership, the ICOC experienced rapid growth but also faced criticism. In March 2024, the ICOC numbered their members at 112,000. The ICOC is organized with

6768-608: The Day of Pentecost as described in Acts 2. They believe that anyone who follows the plan of salvation as laid out in the scriptures is saved by the grace of God, through their faith in Jesus, at baptism. The ICOC has over 700 churches spread across 155 nations, with each church being a racially integrated congregation made up of a diversity of people from various age groups, economic, and social backgrounds. They believe Jesus came to break down

6909-534: The Shepherding Movement ). Centered on the University of Florida , the program called for a strong evangelical outreach and an intimate religious atmosphere in the form of soul talks and prayer partners. Soul talks were held in student residences and involved prayer and sharing overseen by a leader who delegated authority over group members. Prayer partners referred to the practice of pairing

7050-486: The Sinner's Prayer ) is not sufficient unless an individual by faith obeys God and gets baptized, believing that baptism is necessary for the forgiveness of sins. The belief in the necessity of baptism is in agreement with the prevailing view in the Churches of Christ and Restoration Movement . It is in contrast with the beliefs of Baptist churches that teach that faith alone is adequate for salvation. Originally,

7191-437: The "non-institutional" Churches of Christ . This group is notable for opposing congregational support of institutions such as orphanages and Bible colleges. Similarly, non-institutional congregations also oppose the use of church facilities for non-church activities (such as fellowship dinners or recreation); as such, they oppose the construction of "fellowship halls", gymnasiums, and similar structures. In both cases, opposition

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7332-405: The "plan of salvation" ( soteriology ). The importance of theology, understood as teaching or "doctrine", has been defended on the basis that an understanding of doctrine is necessary to respond intelligently to questions from others, to promote spiritual health, and to draw the believer closer to God. Churches of Christ avoid the term "theology", preferring instead the term "doctrine": theology

7473-472: The "true" church completely disappeared and thus lead towards exclusivism. Another view of restoration is that the "true Church ... has always existed by grace and not by human engineering" (italics in the original). In this view the goal is to "help Christians realize the ideal of the church in the New Testament ;– to restore the church as conceived in the mind of Christ " (italics in

7614-485: The 1970s, McKean and the churches he has led (e.g., ICOC and its predecessors and successors) made recruiting on college campuses a priority. Churches of Christ Modern Churches of Christ have their historical roots in the Restoration Movement , which was a convergence of Christians across denominational lines in search of a return to an original "pre-denominational" form of Christianity. Participants in this movement sought to base their doctrine and practice on

7755-444: The 1980s, but that "Even as ICOC developed, however, its relationships with several established institutional sectors deteriorated". The church's "doctrine signaled the movement's self-perceived superiority to other Christian churches in teaching that it alone had rediscovered biblical doctrines critical to individual salvation and insisting on rebaptizing new members to ensure their salvation". They note that further tensions developed as

7896-557: The 2000 edition of the directory Churches of Christ in the United States , published by Mac Lynn, congregations holding premillennial views were no longer listed separately. During the late 19th century, the prevailing view in the Restoration Movement was that the Holy Spirit currently acts only through the influence of inspired scripture. This rationalist view was associated with Alexander Campbell , who

8037-404: The 90's finished. In 2000, the ICOC announced the completion of its six-year initiative to establish a church in every country with a city that had a population over 100,000. In spite of this, numerical growth continued to slow. Beginning in the late 1990s, problems arose as McKean's moral authority as the leader of the movement came into question. Expectations for continued numerical growth and

8178-400: The Bible as historically accurate and literal, unless scriptural context obviously indicates otherwise. Regarding church practices, worship, and doctrine, there is great liberty from congregation to congregation in interpreting what is biblically permissible, as congregations are not controlled by a denominational hierarchy. Their approach to the Bible is driven by the "assumption that the Bible

8319-492: The Christian community. The church and Louis were ordered to pay Impact's legal fees. In 2022, the ICOC and the International Christian Churches were named in multiple US federal lawsuits. They alleged that between 1987 and 2012, leaders of the two churches covered up the sexual abuse of children, some of whom were as young as three, and financially exploited members. The lawsuits alleged that

8460-523: The Christian. Since the early 20th century, many, but not all, among the Churches of Christ have moved away from this "word-only" theory of the operation of the Holy Spirit. As one scholar of the movement puts it, "[f]or better or worse, those who champion the so-called word-only theory no longer have a hold on the minds of the constituency of Churches of Christ. Though relatively few have adopted outright charismatic and third wave views and remained in

8601-482: The Churches of Christ apologized for use of the word "cult" in reference to the International Churches of Christ. The International Churches of Christ leaders apologized for alienating the Churches of Christ and implying they were not Christians. Despite improvements in relations, there are still fundamental differences within the fellowship. Early 2005 saw a second set of dialogues with greater promise for both sides helping one another. Founded in 1991, HOPE Worldwide

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8742-400: The Churches of Christ reject this, arguing that since faith and repentance are necessary, and that the cleansing of sins is by the blood of Christ through the grace of God, baptism is not an inherently redeeming ritual. One author describes the relationship between faith and baptism this way, " Faith is the reason why a person is a child of God; baptism is the time at which one

8883-400: The Churches of Christ. Few congregations clap hands or use musical instruments during "formal" weekly convocations. The remaining congregations may be grouped into four categories which generally differ from the mainstream consensus in specific practices, rather than in theological perspectives, and tend to have smaller congregations on average. The largest of these four categories is

9024-530: The Gempels and Bairds and other World Sector Leaders as well as hours of prayer, we have decided it is God's will for us to take a sabbatical and to delegate, for a time, our day-to-day ministry responsibilities so that we can focus on our marriage and family. Nearly a year later, in November 2002 he resigned from the office and personally apologized citing arrogance, anger and an over-focus on numerical goals as

9165-600: The ICOC and its leaders created a "system of exploitation that extracts any and all value it can from members". The lawsuits alleged that members were forced to give 10% of their income as a tithe to the church and additionally to fund twice-yearly special mission trips, which drove some to depression and suicide. The Los Angeles ICOC responded to the lawsuits by stating: "As the Church's long-standing policies make clear, we do not tolerate any form of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, or sexual coercion, and we will fully cooperate with

9306-547: The ICOC is the Ministry Training Academy (MTA). In 2013, the MTA finalized a curriculum consisting of twelve core courses that are divided into three areas of study: biblical knowledge, spiritual development, and ministry leadership. Each course requires at least 12 hours of classroom study in addition to course work. An MTA student who completes the twelve core classes receives a certificate of completion. With

9447-660: The ICOC taught that only baptisms within ICOC member churches were legitimate and hence only members of ICOC churches had had their sins forgiven and were saved. This is known as the One True Church (OTC) doctrine. In 2003, however, after the departure of McKean, the leadership of ICOC issued letters of apology stating that they had been "too judgmental" in applying this doctrine. As a consequence, many within ICOC began to accept that baptisms outside of ICOC churches, particularly those of family members who belonged to other Christian denominations, could be legitimate. This

9588-421: The ICOC was an independent worldwide movement that had grown from a small congregation to 125,000 members and had planted a church in nearly every country of the world in a period of twenty years. In his 2001 book The New Believers: A Survey of Sects, 'Cults' and Alternative Religions , David V. Barrett wrote that the ICOC was "currently causing perhaps more concern than almost any other" evangelical church in

9729-420: The ICOC was not without criticism. Other names that have been used for this movement include the "Crossroads movement," "Multiplying Ministries," and the "Discipling Movement". One Church is formed per city, and as it expands it is broken down into "sectors" that oversee "zones" which have their own neighborhood Bible study groups. Claims that this structure too authoritarian were responded to by McKean saying, "I

9870-589: The ICOC, including decentralization and a dismantling of its headquarters and central leadership. Some changes were initiated from the leaders themselves and others brought through members. Most notable was Henry Kriete, a leader in the London ICOC, who circulated an open letter detailing his feelings about theological exclusivism and authority in the ICOC. This letter affected the ICOC for the decade after McKean's resignation. Christianity Today reported in 2003 that following McKean's resignation, "leadership now

10011-489: The ICOC, together with its affiliates the International Christian Church, the City of Angels International Christian Church, HOPE Worldwide and Mercy Worldwide, "indoctrinated" the plaintiffs, keeping them isolated while they were sexually exploited and manipulated through the ICOC's "rigid" belief system. The lawsuit also named ICOC leaders, founder Kip McKean and the estate of Chuck Lucas, as defendants. The plaintiffs alleged that

10152-421: The ICOC, yet was rebuffed. Sixty-four Elders, Evangelists and Teachers wrote a letter to McKean expressing concern that there had been "no repentance" from his publicly acknowledged leadership weaknesses. McKean then began to criticize some of the changes that were being made, as he did in the 1980s toward Mainline Churches of Christ. After attempting to divide the ICOC he was disfellowshipped in 2006 and founded

10293-820: The ICOC. Sociologist Dr. Joseph E. Lee posits that the strict discipling program helped lead to a lowering of barriers between races and classes. He found this to be a general characteristic of organizations (e.g., martial arts schools) with strong formal beliefs and discipline. Kathleen Jenkins found that "Discipling [...] created tightly bound networks that threw members into frequent contact with disciples from different backgrounds who intimately and routinely intervened in all aspects of an individual's life. These intimate racially and ethnically diverse discipling networks provided members with social resources such as childcare, teen counseling, tutoring, employment opportunities, domestic help, and other kinds of assistance in day-to-day living". According to Joseph Yi, writing in 2009, with

10434-466: The Lord", "churches of Christ", "church of the first-born", "church of the living God", "the house of God", and "the people of God", while terms recognized as scriptural, such as Church of God , are avoided to prevent confusion or identification with other groups that use those designations. As a practical matter, use of a common term is seen as a way to help individual Christians find congregations with

10575-431: The New Testament church as established by Christ. Members of the church of Christ do not conceive of themselves as a new church started near the beginning of the 19th century. Rather, the whole movement is designed to reproduce in contemporary times the church originally established on Pentecost , A.D. 33. The strength of the appeal lies in the restoration of Christ's original church. Churches of Christ generally share

10716-400: The New Testament church has focused on "methods and procedures" such as church organization, the form of worship, and how the church should function. As a result, most divisions among Churches of Christ have been the result of "methodological" disputes. These are meaningful to members of this movement because of the seriousness with which they take the goal of "restoring the form and structure of

10857-502: The New Testament) (Hebrews 8: 7–13). They believe that the New Testament demonstrates how a person may become a Christian (and thus a part of the universal Church of Christ) and how a church should be collectively organized and carry out its scriptural purposes. In 2022, the total membership of Churches of Christ is estimated to be between 1,700,000 and 2,000,000, with over 40,000 individual congregations worldwide. In

10998-526: The Singapore Central Christian Church (a member of ICOC) was a "cult". The church sued the papers, alleging defamation . An initial court ruling held that what the papers had written was fair and in the public interest. An appeals court, however, overruled the lower court, stating that the papers had stated that the church was a cult as if that was a fact, when it was not a fact, but a comment. The papers were each ordered to pay

11139-516: The Son of God, offered himself as the atoning sacrifice . Children too young to understand right from wrong and make a conscious choice between the two are believed to be innocent of sin. There is no set age for this to occur; it is only when the child learns the difference between right and wrong that they are accountable ( James 4:17 ). Congregations differ in their interpretation of the age of accountability. Churches of Christ generally teach that

11280-491: The State Churches of Europe. Only those mentally capable of belief and repentance are baptized (e.g., infant baptism is not practiced). Churches of Christ have historically had the most conservative position on baptism among the various branches of the Restoration Movement , understanding that repentance and baptism by immersion are necessary parts of conversion. The most significant disagreements concerned

11421-488: The Stone movement which was characterized by radical freedom and lack of dogma . Despite their differences, the two movements agreed on several critical issues. Both saw restoring the early church as a route to Christian freedom, and both believed that unity among Christians could be achieved by using apostolic Christianity as a model. The commitment of both movements to restoring the early church and to uniting Christians

11562-614: The Tokyo Church of Christ became the first ICOC church to build its own church building. This building was designed by the Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki. This became an example for other ICOC churches to follow. A distinguishing feature of the ICOC under McKean was an intense form of discipleship . McKean's mentor, evangelist Chuck Lucas, developed this practice based in part on the book "The Master Plan of Evangelism" by Robert Coleman. Coleman's book taught that "Jesus controlled

11703-556: The United Kingdom. Barrett writes that "In the last decade ICOC has attracted a huge amount of criticism and hostility from anti-cultists", noting that it had been made aware of various criticisms "but unlike some of the other movements founded in the 1970s, does not yet have appeared to reached the point in its development where it becomes sensitive to the genuine distress of some of its members and their families have experienced, and willing to modify some of its practices to reduce

11844-545: The United States, there are approximately 1,087,559 members and 11,776 congregations. Overall U.S. membership was approximately 1.3 million in 1990 and 1.3 million in 2008. Estimates of the proportion of the US adult population associated with the Churches of Christ vary from 0.8% to 1.5%. Approximately 1,240 congregations, with 172,000 members, are predominantly African-American ; 240 congregations with 10,000 members are Spanish -speaking. The average congregation size

11985-902: The authorities in any investigations of this type of behavior". The lawsuits were voluntarily dismissed by the plaintiffs in July 2023. The International Churches of Christ are a family of over 750 independent churches in 155 nations around the world. The 750 churches form 34 Regional Families of churches that oversee mission work in their respective geographic areas of influence. Each regional family of churches sends Evangelists, Elders and Teachers to an annual leadership conference, where delegates meet to pray, plan and co-operate world evangelism. "Service Teams" provide global leadership and oversight. The Service Teams consists of an Elders, Evangelists, Teachers, Youth & Family, Campus, Singles, Communications & Administration, and HOPEww & Benevolence teams. The education and ministerial training program in

12126-641: The body, apparently the spiritual waves have begun to erode that rational rock." The Churches of Christ hold a cessationist perspective on the gifts of the Spirit . Alexander Campbell and Barton W. Stone are recognized as two of the major Reformers of the so-called "Stone–Campbell Movement." Barton Stone was staunchly non-trinitarian as he elucidates in his, "An Address to the Christian Churches in Kentucky, Tennessee, & Ohio On Several Important Doctrines of Religion ." Alexander Campbell, "rejected

12267-429: The church S$ 20,000. The New Paper had to pay the founder of the church, John Philip Louis, S$ 30,000. The papers also had to pay the legal fees of the church and its founder. In the same ruling, the appeals court held that an article that had also characterized the church as a cult, in the bi-monthly, Singapore-based, Christian magazine Impact , was written fairly from the standpoint of a Christian publication written for

12408-568: The church through modern-day challenges. The churches of Christ maintain a significant proportion of political diversity. According to the Pew Research Center in 2016, 50% of adherents of the churches of Christ identify as Republican or lean Republican, 39% identify as Democratic or lean Democratic and 11% have no preference. Despite this, the Christian Chronicle says that the vast majority of adherents maintain

12549-659: The church, McKean viewed discipling as "the most efficient way to achieve the movement's stated goal: 'to evangelize the world in one generation'". The church's emphasis on discipling during this period was the subject of criticism. A number of ex-members expressed problems with discipling in the ICOC. Critics and former members allege that discipling "involved public scorn as a way to humiliate vulnerable members, to keep them humble". Jenkins notes that "[t]his ICOC structure has been greatly criticized by anti-cult organizations, university officials (the ICOC has been banned from several campuses), and ex-members". Discipling under McKean

12690-474: The church, and he was asked by a group of long-standing elders in the ICOC to take a sabbatical from overall leadership of the ICOC. On 12 November 2001, McKean, who had led the International Churches of Christ, issued a statement that he was going to take a sabbatical from his role of leadership in the church: During these days Elena and I have been coming to grips with the need to address some serious shortcomings in our marriage and family. After much counsel with

12831-418: The classical doctrinal topics – is relatively recent and rare among this movement. Because Churches of Christ reject all formalized creeds on the basis that they add to or detract from Scripture, they generally reject most conceptual doctrinal positions out of hand. Churches of Christ do tend to elaborate certain "driving motifs". These are scripture ( hermeneutics ), the church ( ecclesiology ) and

12972-408: The congregation". There is, however, a small segment of Churches of Christ who oppose the "located minister" concept (see below). Churches of Christ hold to the priesthood of all believers . No special titles are used for preachers or ministers that would identify them as " clergy ". Many ministers have undergraduate or graduate education in religion, or specific training in preaching through

13113-407: The conversion process, rather than as only a symbol of conversion. A recent trend is to emphasize the transformational aspect of baptism: instead of describing it as nothing more than a legal requirement or sign of something that happened in the past, it is seen as "the event that places the believer 'into Christ' where God does the ongoing work of transformation". There is a minority that downplays

13254-420: The current Churches of Christ is that the group's hermeneutics are entirely based on the command, example, inference approach. In practice, interpretation has been deductive, and heavily influenced by the group's central commitment to ecclesiology and soteriology . Inductive reasoning has been used as well, as when all of the conversion accounts from the book of Acts are collated and analyzed to determine

13395-469: The departure of McKean in 2002 the ICOC transitioned from a top-down organization to a "loose federation of autonomous local churches". This led to a change in discipling practices. One of the local ICOC churches, the Chicago Church of Christ, made discipling voluntary and not mandatory. Instead of a top-down hierarchy, they adopted a "servant leadership" model. The ICOC has been accused of using

13536-413: The discipline of life in the movement too demanding or oppressive". He concluded that "There are probably far more ex-members of ICOC than current members", though noted ICOC attempts to discourage members from leaving and that communal living arrangements and the fact that the ICOC encouraged the breaking-off of friendships with non-members made it difficult for some to leave. Membership growth stopped as

13677-410: The dividing wall of hostility between the races and people groups of this world and unite mankind under the Lordship of Christ Like the Churches of Christ, the ICOC recognizes the Bible as the sole source of authority for the church and it also believes that the current denominational divisions are inconsistent with Christ's intent, believing instead that Christians ought to be united. The ICOC, like

13818-423: The early 2000's, an increasing number of congregations within the Churches of Christ have begun using musical instruments in their worship assemblies. Some of these latter describe themselves as a "Church of Christ (Instrumental)". Many leaders argue that the Churches of Christ only follow the Bible and have no "theology". Christian theology as classically understood – the systematic development of

13959-492: The extent to which a correct understanding of the role of baptism is necessary for its validity. David Lipscomb argued that if a believer was baptized out of a desire to obey God, the baptism was valid, even if the individual did not fully understand the role baptism plays in salvation. Austin McGary argued that to be valid, the convert must also understand that baptism is for the forgiveness of sins. McGary's view became

14100-460: The following concerns: a top down hierarchy, discipling techniques, and sectarianism". In September 2005, nine members were elected to serve as a Unity Proposal Group. They subsequently developed a 'Plan for United Cooperation', published in March 2006. In September 2012, it was reported that around 93% of ICOC churches supported the plan. Over time, McKean attempted to re-assert his leadership over

14241-605: The following theological beliefs and practices: In keeping with their history, the Churches of Christ claim the New Testament as their sole rule of faith and practice in deciding matters of doctrine and ecclesiastical structure. They view the Old Testament as divinely inspired and historically accurate, but they do not consider its laws to be binding under the New Covenant in Christ (unless they are repeated in

14382-516: The future personality types. While over 900 members were tested, 835 individuals completed all three forms. A majority of those respondents changed their perceived or imagined personality type scores on the three tests in convergence with a single type. After completing the study, Yeakley observed that "The data in this study of the Boston Church of Christ does not prove that any certain individual has actually changed his or her personality in an unhealthy way. The data, however, does prove that there

14523-523: The importance of baptism in order to avoid sectarianism, but the broader trend is to "reexamine the richness of the Biblical teaching of baptism and to reinforce its central and essential place in Christianity". Because of the belief that baptism is a necessary part of salvation , some Baptists hold that the Churches of Christ endorse the doctrine of baptismal regeneration . However members of

14664-499: The important initiatory rite throughout the history of the Christian Church , but Christian groups differ over the manner and time in which baptism is administered, the meaning and significance of baptism, its role in salvation, and who is a candidate for baptism. Baptism in Churches of Christ is performed only by bodily immersion , based on the New Testament's use of the Koine Greek verb βαπτίζω (baptizō) which

14805-436: The intervening centuries between the New Testament and the beginning of the Restoration Movement in the early 1800s. One effect of the emphasis placed on the New Testament church is a "sense of historylessness" that sees the intervening history between the 1st century and the modern church as "irrelevant or even abhorrent." Authors within the brotherhood have recently argued that a greater attention to history can help guide

14946-471: The late sixties and seventies. The campus ministry in Gainesville thrived and sustained strong support from the elders of the local congregation in the 'Crossroads Church of Christ'. By 1971, as many as a hundred people a year were joining the church. Most notable was the development of a training program for potential campus ministers. Among the converts at Gainesville was a student named Kip McKean who

15087-530: The leader of the movement. It was at this time that the Boston church initiated its program of outreach to the poor called HopeWorldwide. Also in 1988, McKean selected a handful of couples that he and Elena, his wife, had personally trained and named them World Sector Leaders. In 1989 mission teams were officially sent out to Tokyo, Honolulu, Washington, DC, Manila, Miami, Seattle, Bangkok, and Los Angeles. That year, McKean and his family moved to Los Angeles to lead

15228-610: The leadership of the Lexington Church of Christ (soon to be called the Boston Church of Christ). Building on Lucas' initial strategies, McKean only agreed to lead the church in Lexington as long as every member agreed to be 'totally committed'. The church grew from 30 members to 3,000 in just over 10 years in what became known as the 'Boston Movement'. McKean taught that the church was "God's true and only modern movement" and under his leadership, it "envisioned and implemented

15369-563: The lives of the apostles, that Jesus taught the apostles to 'disciple' by controlling the lives of others, and that Christians should imitate this process when bringing people to Christ." Under McKean, "discipling" entailed members being "assigned a more senior adviser who is always available and frequently present in their lives, even at intimate moments, which mentors them through relationship difficulties. In this practice, individuals interact with other group members in hierarchical relationships". According to Kathleen E. Jenkins's ethnography of

15510-602: The mainstream Churches of Christ, a 1.6 million-member body from which it grew". Growth continued globally and in 1996 the independent organisation "Church Growth Today" named the Los Angeles ICOC as the fastest growing Church in North America for the second year running and another eight ICOC churches were in the top 100. By 1999, the Los Angeles church reached a Sunday attendance of 14,000. By 2001,

15651-412: The minister and to teach, as well as to perform "governance" functions. In the absence of willing men who meet these qualifications, congregations are sometimes overseen by the congregation's men in general. While the early Restoration Movement had a tradition of itinerant preachers rather than "located Preachers", during the 20th century a long-term, formally trained congregational minister became

15792-508: The movement and left. The movement was first recognized as an independent religious group in 1992 when John Vaughn, a church growth specialist at Fuller Theological Seminary, listed them as a separate entity. TIME magazine ran a full-page story on the movement in 1992 calling them "one of the world's fastest-growing and most innovative bands of Bible thumpers" that had grown into "a global empire of 103 congregations from California to Cairo with total Sunday attendance of 50,000". A formal break

15933-399: The name is the desire to use a scriptural or Biblical name – to identify the church using a name that is found in the New Testament. Adherents are also referred to as Campbellites by academics and other denominations because it is assumed that they are followers of the teachings of Alexander Campbell, similar to Lutherans or Calvinists . Campbell himself refuted the idea that

16074-440: The new church "planted" (a euphemism the church uses for "established") some months earlier. Within a few years Los Angeles, not Boston, was the fulcrum of the movement. In 1990 the Crossroads Church of Christ broke with the movement and, through a letter written to The Christian Chronicle , attempted to restore relations with the Churches of Christ. By the early 1990s some first-generation leaders had become disillusioned by

16215-402: The norm among Churches of Christ. Ministers are understood to serve under the oversight of the elders and may or may not also be qualified as an elder. While the presence of a long-term professional minister has sometimes created "significant de facto ministerial authority" and led to conflict between the minister and the elders, the eldership has remained the "ultimate locus of authority in

16356-460: The original). Early Restoration Movement leaders did not believe that the church had ceased to exist, but instead sought to reform and reunite the church. A number of congregations' web sites explicitly state that the true church never disappeared. The belief in a general falling away is not seen as inconsistent with the idea that a faithful remnant of the church never entirely disappeared. Some have attempted to trace this remnant through

16497-459: The possibility of causing such distress". In 1998, Ron Loomis, an expert on cults and leader of a cult-awareness program at the College of Lake County , called the ICOC "the most intensive cult in existence since the mid-1970s". Barrett also noted in 2001 that as with other new religious movements , membership turnover in the ICOC was high, with "many leaving after a few months because they find

16638-407: The practice on traditional grounds, while others may have relied on a cappella simply because they lacked access to musical instruments. Alexander Campbell opposed the use of instruments in worship. As early as 1855, some Restoration Movement churches were using organs or pianos , ultimately leading the Churches of Christ to separate from the groups that condoned instrumental music. However, since

16779-489: The pressure to sacrifice financially to support missionary efforts took its toll. Added to this was the loss of local leaders to new planting projects. In some areas, decreases in membership began to occur. At the same time, realization was growing that the accumulated costs of McKean's leadership style and associated disadvantages were outweighing the benefits. In 2001, McKean's leadership weaknesses were affecting his family, with all of his children disassociating themselves from

16920-503: The prevailing one in the early 20th century, but the approach advocated by Lipscomb never totally disappeared. More recently, the rise of the International Churches of Christ , who "reimmersed some who came into their fellowship, even those previously immersed 'for remission of sins' in a Church of Christ," has caused some to reexamine the question of rebaptism . Churches of Christ consistently teach that in baptism

17061-421: The prevailing views today. Premillennialism was a focus of controversy during the first half of the 20th century. One of the most influential advocates for that point of view was Robert Henry Boll , whose eschatological views came to be most singularly opposed by Foy E. Wallace Jr. By the end of the 20th century, however, the divisions caused by the debate over premillennialism were diminishing, and in

17202-477: The primitive church". Three-quarters of the congregations and 87% of the membership are described by The Encyclopedia of the Stone–Campbell Movement as "mainstream", sharing a general consensus on practice and theology. Congregational a cappella music from hymnals (perhaps pitched from a pitch pipe), but directed by any capable song-leader motioning the time signature, is notably characteristic of

17343-529: The process of salvation involves the following steps: Beginning in the 1960s, many preachers began placing more emphasis on the role of grace in salvation, instead of focusing exclusively on implementing all of the New Testament commands and examples. This was not an entirely new approach, as others had actively "affirmed a theology of free and unmerited grace", but it did represent a change of emphasis with grace becoming "a theme that would increasingly define this tradition". Baptism has been recognized as

17484-430: The resignation of McKean, some efforts at healing between the International Churches of Christ and the mainstream Churches of Christ are being made. In March 2004, Abilene Christian University held the "Faithful Conversations" dialog between members of the Churches of Christ and International Churches of Christ. Those involved were able to apologize and initiate an environment conducive to building bridges. A few leaders of

17625-458: The same reasons as the non-institutional groups), but differ by other beliefs and practices (the groups often overlap, but in all cases hold to more conservative views than even the non-institutional groups): Churches of Christ seek to practice the principle of the Bible being the only source to find doctrine (known elsewhere as sola scriptura ). The Bible is generally regarded as inspired and inerrant . Churches of Christ generally see

17766-405: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title ICOC . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=ICOC&oldid=1000095279 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

17907-409: The source of his decision. Referring to this event, McKean said: This, along with my leadership sins of arrogance, and not protecting the weak caused uncertainty in my leadership. Ronald Enroth writes that McKean "was forced to step down because of his own rule that leaders must resign if their children leave the church". The period following McKean's departure included a number of changes in

18048-486: The steps necessary for salvation . One student of the movement summarized the traditional approach this way: "In most of their theologizing, however, my impression is that spokespersons in the Churches of Christ reason from Scripture in a deductive manner, arguing from one premise or hypothesis to another so as to arrive at a conclusion. In this regard the approach is much like that of science which, in practice moves deductively from one hypothesis to another, rather than in

18189-454: The study "reached clinically significant levels of psychological distress, depression, dissociation, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms". Two-thirds of them had sought psychotherapy after leaving the church. Nonetheless, many disciples, including some who left, got a great deal out of the structure of the discipling system. The found "meaning and community" and formed close friendships across racial and class lines within

18330-481: The style of gospel hymnody . The hymnal Great Songs of the Church , which was first published in 1921 and has had many subsequent editions, is widely used in Churches of Christ. Scriptures cited to support the practice of a cappella worship include: The use of musical instruments in worship was a divisive topic within the Stone–Campbell Movement from its earliest years, when some adherents opposed

18471-444: The tactic of " love bombing ", which David Barrett describes as "showing a great deal of love, affection and attention to prospective members to draw them in", resulting in the criticism that "vulnerable or lonely people, and this includes many students, will be attracted by this". Journalist Alasdair Belling has noted that this attention and praise "slowly becomes more conditional over time". Starting from his own college days in

18612-415: The term "church of Christ" is used in the New Testament as a descriptive phrase, indicating that the church belongs to Christ , rather than as a proper name. Church government is congregational rather than denominational. Churches of Christ purposefully have no central headquarters, councils, or other organizational structure above the local church level. Rather, the independent congregations are

18753-484: The term 'Trinity,' but Campbell did not reject the theological idea of the tri-unity of the Christian God." The fact that these two movements merged into one shows that this was not a major point of contention, even if it was a point of disagreement. The fundamental idea of "restoration" or "Christian Primitivism" is that problems or deficiencies in the church can be corrected by using the primitive church as

18894-547: The use of denominational names serves to foster division among Christians. Thomas Campbell expressed an ideal of unity in his Declaration and Address : "The church of Jesus Christ on earth is essentially, intentionally, and constitutionally one." This statement essentially echoes the words of Jesus Christ in John 17:21, 23. Other terms are derived from their use in the New Testament: "church of God", "church of

19035-606: The use of instruments in worship assemblies to conclude that instruments should not be used today in corporate worship. Thus, they have typically practiced a cappella music in their worship assemblies. The tradition of a cappella congregational singing in the Churches of Christ is deep rooted and the rich history of the practice stimulated the creation of many hymns in the early 20th century. Notable Churches of Christ hymn writers have included Albert Brumley (" I'll Fly Away ") and Tillit S. Teddlie ("Worthy Art Thou"). More traditional Church of Christ hymns commonly are in

19176-409: Was "greatly affected by what he viewed as the excesses of the emotional camp meetings and revivals of his day". He believed that the Spirit draws people towards salvation but understood the Spirit to do this "in the same way any person moves another—by persuasion with words and ideas". This view came to prevail over that of Barton W. Stone , who believed the Spirit had a more direct role in the life of

19317-672: Was converted by Chuck Lucas. McKean was introduced to the Florida Church of Christ's controversial recruitment style in 1967. Born in Indianapolis , McKean completed a degree while training at Crossroads, and afterward served as campus minister at several Churches of Christ locations. By 1979 his ministry grew from a few individuals to over three hundred making it the fastest growing Church of Christ campus ministry in America. McKean then moved to Massachusetts, where he took over

19458-400: Was led by Thomas Campbell and his son, Alexander Campbell ; they used the name " Disciples of Christ ". Both groups sought to restore the whole Christian church on the pattern set forth in the New Testament , and both believed that creeds kept Christianity divided. The Campbell movement was characterized by a "systematic and rational reconstruction" of the early church, in contrast to

19599-607: Was made from the Churches of Christ in 1993 when the group organized under the name "International Churches of Christ." This new designation formalized a division that was already in existence between those involved with the Crossroads/Boston Movement and "original" Churches of Christ. In September 1995, the Washington Post reported that for every three members joining the church, two left, attributing this statistic to church officials. Growth in

19740-433: Was mandatory. All disciples (i.e., baptized members) had to be paired with and mentored by a more mature Christian . They had to check in with their discipler frequently, such as daily or weekly, and was held accountable by them. This included the activities and Church contribution a disciple would give (typically 15-30% including "special contribution) . Disciples were also held accountable for how many new people they met on

19881-422: Was wrong on some of my initial thoughts about biblical authority". Al Baird, former ICOC spokesperson adds, "It's not a dictatorship," ; "It's a theocracy, with God on top." The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported in 1996 that "The group is considered so aggressive and authoritarian in its practices that other evangelical Protestant groups have labeled it 'aberrational' and 'abusive'. It has been repudiated by

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