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Contents
When were the Christadelphians established?
What does the name "Christadelphian" mean?
Where are Christadelphians found?
How are Christadelphians organised?
Why are Christadelphian churches called "ecclesias"?
What kind of people are Christadelphians?
What do Christadelphians do?
Why won't we worship with other Christians?
What's so different about Christadelphian beliefs?
Questions
When were
the Christadelphians established?
The origins of the modern Christadelphian movement can be traced
back to an English doctor, Dr. J. Thomas who emigrated to America
in 1832. Circumstances led him away from medicine and towards the
Bible, upon which he lectured and wrote extensively
for the last thirty years of his life. Congregations holding Christadelphian
views began to form around 1840. 
What
does the name "Christadelphian" mean?
In order to register as conscientious objectors in the American
Civil War, early members of our movement were asked to take an identifying
name. Both the English expression "Brethren in Christ"
(taken from Colossians
1:2) and the one-word equivalent "Christadelphian"
were chosen. The name "Christadelphian" is formed from
three Greek roots: Christos (Christ),
adelphoi (brethren) and the ending -ianos.
The name can be compared to others like "Christian" (one
belonging to Christ) and "Philadelphia" (city of brotherly
love). Both the names "Christadelphian" and "Brethren
in Christ" are used in our community around the world, with
the term "Christadelphian" being more common in English-speaking
countries.
Where
are Christadelphians found?
Christadelphians are located throughout the world (in something
like 120 countries at last count). Like the early Christians, we
meet in homes, rented rooms, and, in some cases, our own halls.
In the Wellington area, there are congregations meeting in Newlands,
Petone and Paraparaumu.
How
are Christadelphians organised?
We are a lay community
patterned after first century Christianity. Members of each congregation
are addressed as "Brother" and "Sister", and
all have an equal responsibility for the welfare of the congregation.
While a strong common belief (enshrined in a Statement
of Faith) binds our Brotherhood together, local congregations
(or ecclesias) are autonomous.
Why
are Christadelphian churches called "ecclesias"?
The word ecclesia is lifted from the
Greek New Testament. Its basic meaning is that
which is called out, and in our English Bibles the word is
usually translated as "church". However, over the years,
the word "church" has come to refer more to a building
than a people. Since the building in which we meet has no relevance
to our salvation (Acts
7:48-50) we call ourselves an "ecclesia",
that is, people called out to serve
God.
What
kind of people are Christadelphians?
We are made up of people from most walks of life.
We would like to think that we are normal, but our beliefs do tend
to be held with a strong conviction and this probably reflects in
our character. Our faith encourages us to be enthusiastic in our
work, loyal in our marriages, generous in our giving, dedicated
in our preaching, content in our circumstances. We tend to have
little interest in much that the modern world finds entertaining;
for example most of us would rarely, if ever, turn to the television
for comfort or relaxation.
What
do Christadelphians do?
We hold regular meetings for worship, Bible study, and preaching.
The most important of these is held every Sunday morning when all
the congregation meets together for "the breaking of bread".
This is a service in which, after an exhortational talk, baptised
Christadelphians share bread and wine in remembrance of our Lord's
sacrifice and in anticipation of his return. By doing this we are
obeying the instruction of Jesus, through the Apostle Paul, given
in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (we also call this service
our "Memorial Meeting"). The meeting is preceded by a
Sunday School (for children and young adults). We have a mid-week
Bible Class for in-depth study, and we also hold regular public
addresses to preach the gospel. We do not have a paid ministry (or
clergy); all our studies, seminars and administrative activities
are performed in turn by our own members.
Why
won't we worship with other Christians?
We are not an ecumenical movement because we believe that agreement
on doctrine is important (see for example Ephesians
4:4-6), and therefore we only break bread and drink wine with
other Christadelphians, because we share with them a common faith
and understanding of the gospel.
What's
so different about Christadelphian beliefs?
Hardly any Christadelphian belief is unique to us, but major differences
with most of Christendom would include: we do not accept the Trinity
of the Godhead; Jesus is God's son and not co-equal with the Father;
we believe existence ceases at death until a (bodily) resurrection,
which will take place when Jesus returns to the earth; we believe
that Jesus died as mankind's representative rather than as our substitute;
we look forward to the overthrow of human governments at the return
of Christ.
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