The Unfinished Business of the Protestant Reformation: Alexander Campbell's Relationship to Protestantism

Alexander Campbell identified three forms of Protestantism: (1) political, (2) ecclesiastical, and (3) evangelical. He defended the first, denied the second, and affirmed the third. Protestant ecclesiasticism added creeds to the evangelical narrative and thereby undermined any hope of the visible unity of the church. Campbell believed Protestants could find unity in their evangelical beliefs that could become visible through the restoration of the ancient order. However, Campbell viewed restoration as communal sanctification rather than a condition of evangelical unity.