The Christadelphians

Denomination·Founded 1848 CE·Around 50,000 worldwide in roughly 120 countries is the figure usually cited, from the Columbia Encyclopedia and repeated widely. There is no central body and no census: each ecclesia keeps its own roll and no one aggregates them, so the number is an estimate and should be read as one. Substantial communities exist in Britain, Australia, North America, Malawi, Mozambique and India.

Judaism → Christianity → Catholicism → Protestantism → The Christadelphians

Christadelphia — the community's shared siteArchiveDisciples of Christ Historical Society

Branch
Overview Belief 3How to Live 1Practice 1Stories & Scripture 2 You × The Christadelphians Discussion
Story of The Christadelphians

A vow made in an Atlantic storm.

Thomas was twenty-seven and crossing to America when the ship came close to sinking. He realised he did not know what would become of him if he drowned, and vowed that if he lived he would find out for himself from the Bible and take no one else's word for it. He kept the vow with unusual literalness.

Add to My Beliefs →
Where it is toldChristadelphian histories and Thomas's own account
Who appearsJohn Thomas; the ship in the Atlantic storm, 1832
What it teachesThat the movement began with a vow made by a frightened passenger
Understanding it — context, not catechism: how this passage is held

The storm at sea in 1832 is the founding anecdote and Christadelphians tell it plainly and with a certain dry relish, because it is not a vision or a call — it is a young man frightened into deciding that second-hand religion was not good enough. What followed was thirty-nine years of extraordinarily stubborn textual work and a corresponding unwillingness to defer to anyone, including his own past self: Thomas changed his mind about central doctrines twice and was rebaptised as a result. The community's culture still carries that. Christadelphians expect ordinary members to argue doctrine from chapter and verse, run public lectures on prophecy in hired halls, and treat a person who has not examined the case for themselves as not yet a proper member — which is why baptism is preceded by an examination that can run for hours.

The same ground, other faiths

claims that share this one's ideas
The golden calf. Judaism Read it in full →
Baptism is a vow, so it cannot be given to an infant. The Mennonites · core tenet Go deeper →
Savitri follows Death, and argues. Hinduism Read it in full →
No one made this, and no one is running it. Buddhism · core tenet Go deeper →
The Tirthankaras cannot help you. Jainism · core tenet Go deeper →
There is a judgment, and something is at stake in it. Christianity · core tenet Go deeper →

The conversation

argument stays attached to the claim it is about All discussion →

Sign in to open the first thread. Everything here is attributed.

Where next

The Christadelphians's Stories & Scripture roomback up one layer Propose a change to this passageone button — it routes to the review pool

Numbers count Panfaith activity only — never real-world adherence.

Built on Hatchable