“The New Light, Or, Discourses On The Christian Church” A Book Review

During my recent computer siesta, I remembered a book my father had mentioned being in his collection of antique books. He never directly pointed it out, just mentioned it and it vile contents. You might wonder why my pastor father would keep such a book in his collection all the way until the end of his life. I wondered the same, so I went poking around his collection which I inherited. And I found it, and boy, do I understand his visceral reaction to it! Its title is: “The New Light, Or, Discourses On The Christian Church, On The Evils Of Sectarianism And On The True Manner Of Becoming Christians.” It was written by Jason Darrow and published in 1846. It is available on line as a digital version of the original printing and it has been reprinted. Darrow discusses a number of challenges facing the Church during his time, some we still face today, and some which have largely gone by the wayside (or morphed into other similar issues.) One review generously describes it as

“…a compelling exploration of Christian identity and the perils of division within the faith. Darrow’s work provides a historical context for understanding the challenges faced by the early Christian church and offers insights into overcoming sectarianism.

This book delves into the essential principles of Christianity, emphasizing the importance of unity and shared belief. Darrow challenges readers to reflect on their own faith and consider the true meaning of becoming a Christian. It will appeal to anyone seeking a deeper understanding of Christian doctrine and a more unified approach to Christian living.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.”

So, why did my father and I react so negatively to this book’s content? I will get to that in a moment. I would agree with much of what Darrow had to say about sectarianism which has plagued the church since about its second century but which started to show itself during the Apostolic time. He also called for a return to the early or as he calls it “the primitive church” pattern of worship and governance. He also lays out a very clear (though written in a language style common to his own era) explanation of a “Primitive Baptist” understanding of salvation and Christian living.

OK, so what is so terribly offensive about this? Well, nothing…but I sure hope you find this offensive:

“While our country to the south and north is being agitated by the doctrines of Abolitionism and many minds are bewildered and confuse by those doctrines and the incessant harangues of stump demagogues, I have, in the following work, attempted to settle that question upon its true basis. It is plain to me, that if we are to regard the Negro Race as truly and properly human, their enslavement as we see in the United States, could not be justified…I have looked, then, not only into the condition of the negro tribes, but into their history so far as I could trace, it into their physical constitution; and the result of my investigation is this, that THEY ARE NOT HUMAN (original emphasis), or only partly so, a mixture, a mongrel tribe partly beast and partly human…”

You get the idea, and this is only the preface! He has similarly kind things to say about newborn babies who die at birth and those born with mental deficiencies.

Yes, we need to consider the time and place Mr. Darrow found himself. From what I can gather he probably lived and worked in Kentucky. The date of publication puts him squarely in the Antebellum Period. He clearly had some understanding of the key elements of the Christian faith and yet he could not see how his view on race completely distorted his thinking. He is hardly alone in this failing, it was actually quite common in the south and parts of the north at this time, even as other nations were moving away from legal slavery.

So, what is my point? That Darrow had some serious flaws in his thinking…well, that is obvious. But any honest student of history will often find examples of modern failings which mirror those of our ancestor in nearly every way. Mistreatment of a race of people still continues to this day. While living in the Chicago area, I often came across light skinned people who could barely conceal their animus towards anyone whose skin tone or nation of origin was different than their own. And now that I live in Central Tennessee, things are no different…though Yankees often still receive blame for everyone’s current and past problems.

I would assume though, that my audience has a far more “Christian” understanding of race…or do we? I got into a rather…strong conversation with a local pastor about a conservative denomination studying the issue of “Christian Nationalism” and how best to address it. My thought was that is should be as rapidly as possible delivered to the dust bin of history. It seems not everyone thinks this way. I don’t want to spend time debunking CN’s many un-Biblical ideas right now, but rather to suggest another way we may be no different than Barrow and his ilk. This nation is currently being bludgeoned over the issue of racially different “illegal” immigrants and what to do about “them.”

These folks are often described as being less human and less deserving of humane treatment than “native” residents. I doubt the loudest voices on this issue have ever met and grew to know these immigrants; so it becomes very easy to dehumanize them. Just as Darrow did in the Antebellum Period, race is used as an excuse to deny our brothers and sisters their humanity and to deny them access to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Exodus 22:21 “Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt”

Exodus 23:9 “You shall not oppress an alien, for you know the heart of an alien, seeing you

were aliens in the land of Egypt”

Leviticus 19:33-34 “‘When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The

stranger who lives as a foreigner with you shall be to you as the native-born among you, and you

shall love him as yourself; for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am Yahweh your

God”

As a final thought on this most contentious issues, remember our Lord’s words:

Matthew 25:35–41 “35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,41 you did it to me.’”

Many times and rightly so, the more liberal wing of the Church can be taken to task for outright dismissing large segments of Scripture as “inconvenient.” And now we see so much of the more conservative wing acting no different. Brothers and sisters, there is no Jew or Greek in the body of Christ. And there is no American or Mexican! Everyone is created in the image of God regardless of their melanin levels or nation of origin. As we are called to love our neighbor as our self, this is the second greatest commandment. It is not an act of love to round people up and put them into prison or worse, it is an act of hatred and I doubt “Well done, good and faithful servant” would be God’s response. It is an act of love to welcome them in, give them food and lodging and care. If they abuse that gift, that is on them, not you. But acting in a loving manner is on us!