Release of revised David Lipscomb biography to be celebrated at panel discussion

The original work, published by Lipscomb in 1979, is the only comprehensive biography of David Lipscomb, a co-founder of Lipscomb University and editor of the Gospel Advocate. The 2011 revision delves into the times in which Lipscomb lived and explores how circumstances in those times shaped his thinking and in turn helped shape today’s religious bodies that grew from the Stone-Campbell Movement.

 

“The interest in David Lipscomb’s ideas is now higher than ever, especially among younger historians and theologians,” said Hooper, who has continued to teach at Lipscomb each fall since retiring in 1998. “Although he lived in the last half of the 19th century, Lipscomb’s Civil War-influenced theology, with emphasis on the kingdom of God and the lordship of Jesus, is resonating well within today’s religious circles.”

 

The book includes a new afterword and a new organization that highlights how Lipscomb’s ideas are shaping modern churches and theologians.

 

Hooper is also the author of “A Distinct People: A History of the Churches of Christ in the 20^th Century” and “Willard Collins: The People Person.”

 

The Stone-Campbell Movement, also known as the American Restoration Movement, was an effort beginning in the early 19th century to discard creeds and return to New Testament Christianity. As editor of the Gospel Advocate, Lipscomb was one of the most influential voices in the movement, which resulted in today’s Churches of Christ, independent Christian Churches and the Disciples of Christ.

 

His views on the essential role of spiritual formation in a rigorous, well-rounded education led him to co-found in 1891, with James A. Harding, what is now Lipscomb University.

 

“There is a new generation unfamiliar with Lipscomb’s story, and a new generation of theologians being influenced by his religious and political beliefs,” said G. David England, project manager for the revision and associate vice president for advancement at Lipscomb University. “Rather than just republish, the book has been reorganized and includes new material dealing with David Lipscomb’s influence as it is perceived today. Although the first edition was published in 1979, this really is a new book in many ways.”

 

“Thirty years ago, ‘Crying in the Wilderness’… revealed Lipscomb as the whole person,” said McGarvey Ice, former director of public services for the Disciples of Christ Historical Society. “In its second edition, it has stood the test of time and remains an invaluable first-read for anyone wanting to know David Lipscomb… and Churches of Christ in his day.”

 

Hooper became particularly interested in Lipscomb when he wrote his dissertation on the Nashville-based historical leader during the 1960s, a violent time in America’s history. Lipscomb lived during the time of the Civil War, which created in him a strong opposition to war.

 

“Here I was, writing this (dissertation) in one of the most volatile decades in the history of the country, writing about a man who was opposed to war as well. He was dealing with the same issues we were at that time, but from a religious perspective,” Hooper said.

 

“He believed strongly that you do what the Bible says, but his emphasis was on the kingdom of God as opposed to the kingdoms of the world,” Hooper said. “He was totally involved in what was going on in the world, but he would not participate in government or war, believing that we are under the lordship of Jesus.”

 

“Within the development of the Stone-Campbell Movement, David Lipscomb was a very independent thinker and an independent voice,” England said. “He was a strong student of scripture with a close relationship with God, and that’s what he wanted all people to have. His writings are very much from his own study and not from a rote acceptance.”

 

“No individual had a more profound and lasting influence on the shape of Churches of Christ in the twentieth century than David Lipscomb,” said Douglas A. Foster, professor of church history and director of the Center for Restoration Studies at Abilene Christian University in Texas. “This is a classic study of a profoundly important thought-shaper, essential reading for any who would understand Churches of Christ and the Stone-Campbell Movement.”