THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR THE RISE OF OLD LANDMARKISM
by Louis Keith Harper
May 1986
ABSTRACT
THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR THE RISE OF OLD LANDMARKISM
by Louis Keith HarperThis thesis is a study of the historical factors that led to the rise of "Old Landmarkism," a nineteenth century religious movement that affected Baptists in the South. The introduction of this work introduces certain Baptist principles that early Landmarkers thought were important and briefly sketches the genesis of the movement. Chapter One is an historiographical essay that draws on the scholarly, historical studies of the movement to date. Chapter Two demonstrates that the American religious scene of the early 1800's was characterized by controversy over the question of religious authority. Chapter Three employs suggestions made by other historians and details four specific controversies within the ranks of Baptists that defined the issues and produced the spirit from which Landmarkism was ultimately developed.
This study develops two major points. First, it demonstrates that Landmarkism had a generic similarity to other early nineteenth century American religious movements, particularly with regard to the search for ultimate religious authority. Second, it demonstrated that in addition to providing Baptists with a platform for polemics, Landmarkism also offered a strong ideological and theological basis for the defense of Baptist doctrine.
TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction 1 II. Chapter One: The Historiography of Old Landmarkism 11 III. Chapter Two: Controversy and the Question of Authority 29 IV. Chapter Three: Controversy and the Baptists 50 V. Bibliography 76 ______________ The Thesis is in PDF Format here.
==============[A Thesis presented to the Faculty of the Department of History, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky, May, 1986 - in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts. Used with the permission of the author.]
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