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Christadelphians (From the Greek "Brothers in Christ") are a religious group that developed in the United Kingdom and North America in the 19th century. The name was coined by John Thomas, who was the group's founder. There are an estimated 50,000 Christadelphians^[1] in 120 countries.^[2]

Beliefs

Christadelphians state that their beliefs^[3] are based wholly on the Bible, and they accept no other texts as inspired by God. They believe that God is the creator of all things and the father of true believers, that he is a separate being from his son, Jesus Christ, and that the Holy Spirit is the power of God used in creation and for salvation. They also believe that the phrase Holy Spirit sometimes refers to God's character/mind, depending on the context that the phrase is in.^[4]

Christadelphians assent that Jesus is the promised Messiah, in whom the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament find their fulfilment. They believe he is the Son of Man, in that he inherited sin-prone human nature from his mother, and the Son of God by virtue of his miraculous conception by the power of God and, although tempted, he committed no sin, and was therefore a perfect representative sacrifice to bring salvation to sinful humankind. They believe that God raised Jesus to immortality, and he ascended to Heaven, God's dwelling place. Christadelphians believe that he will return to the earth in person to set up the Kingdom of God in fulfilment of the promises made to Abraham and David. This includes the belief that the coming Kingdom will be the restoration of God's first Kingdom of Israel that was under David and Solomon. For Christadelphians, this is the focal point of the Gospel taught by Jesus and the apostles.

Christadelphians believe that people are separated from God because of their sins, but can be reconciled to him by becoming disciples of Jesus Christ. This is by belief in his teachings, through repentance, and through baptism by total immersion in water. While they are saved by faith in God's grace, believers are expected to live a life consistent with Bible teaching. After death, believers are in a state of non-existence, knowing nothing until the Resurrection at the return of Christ. Following the judgement at that time, the accepted receive the gift of immortality, and live with Christ on a restored Earth, assisting him to establish the Kingdom of God and to rule over the mortal population for a thousand years (the Millennium). Christadelphians believe that the Kingdom will be centred upon Israel but Jesus Christ will also reign over all the other nations on the earth. Some believe that the Kingdom itself is limited to the land of Israel, but has a worldwide empire. ^[5]

Marriage and family life are important. Sexual relationships are limited to heterosexual marriage between baptised believers. A recent challenge to Christadelphian views on homosexuality^[6] was strongly opposed by the community.^[7]

Christadelphians reject a number of doctrines held by many other Christians, notably the immortality of the soul, trinitarianism, the pre-existence of Jesus Christ, the baptism of infants, the personhood of the Holy Spirit and the present-day possession of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. They believe that the words devil and satan are references to sin and human nature in opposition to God. These terms according to them are used in reference to specific political systems or individuals in opposition or conflict. Hell is understood to refer to death and the grave, rather than being a place of eternal torment.^[8] Christadelphians believe the doctrines they reject were introduced into Christendom after the 1st century^[9], and cannot be demonstrated from the Bible. However, some non-christadelphians regard these differences as evidence that Christadelphians are a cult.^[10] ^[11]

Practices

Christadelphians are organised into local congregations, that commonly call themselves ecclesias.^[12] Congregational worship, which usually takes place on Sunday, centres on the remembrance of the death and celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ by the taking part in the "memorial service". Additional meetings are often organised for worship, prayer, evangelism and Bible study.

Most ecclesias are involved in evangelism in the form of public lectures on Bible teaching,^[13] college-style seminars on reading the Bible,^[14] and Bible Reading Groups. Correspondence courses^[15] ^[16] are also used widely, particularly in areas where there is no established Christadelphian presence.

Only baptised believers are considered members of the ecclesia. However, the children of members are encouraged to attend Christadelphian Sunday Schools and youth groups. Interaction between youth from different ecclesias is encouraged through regional and national youth gatherings.

Christadelphians understand the Bible to teach a distinction between the roles of male and female members. In most ecclesias, women are not eligible to teach in formal gatherings of the ecclesia when male believers are present, and do not sit on ecclesial arranging committees. They do, however, participate in other ecclesial and inter-ecclesial committees. Women also participate in discussions, teach children and non-members, perform music, discuss and vote on business matters, and engage in most other activities.

There are ecclesially-accountable committees for co-ordinated evangelism, youth and Sunday School work, military service issues, care of the elderly, and humanitarian work. These do not have any legislative authority, and are wholly dependent upon ecclesial support. Ecclesias in an area may regularly hold joint activities combining youth groups, fellowship, preaching, and Bible study.

Christadelphians are conscientious objectors.^[17]^[18]^[19]

There is a strong emphasis on personal Bible reading (most Christadelphians use the Bible Companion to help them systematically read the Bible each year), Bible study, prayer, and morality.

Worship

Christadelphians are a non-liturgical denomination. Christadelphian ecclesias are autonomous and free to adopt whatever pattern of worship they choose. However, in the English-speaking world, there tends to be a great deal of uniformity in order of service and hymnody.

Christadelphian hymnody makes considerable use of the hymns of the Anglican and British Protestant traditions (even in North American ecclesias the hymnody is typically more British than American). In many Christadelphian hymn books a sizeable proportion of hymns are drawn from the Scottish Psalter and non-Christadelphian hymn-writers including Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley, William Cowper and John Newton. The first hymn book published specifically for the use of Baptised Believers in the Kingdom of God (an early name for Christadelphians^[20]) was published by George Dowie in Edinburgh in 1864^[21]. In 1865 Robert Roberts published a collection of Scottish psalms and hymns called The Golden Harp (which was subtitled "Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs, compiled for the use of Immersed Believers in 'The Things concerning the Kingdom of God and the Name of Jesus Christ'") ^[22]. This was replaced only five years later by the first "Christadelphian Hymn Book" (1869), and this was revised and expanded in 1874, 1932 and 1964. A thorough revision by The Christadelphian Magazine and Publishing Association resulted in the latest (2002) edition ^[23]which is almost universally used by Christadelphian ecclesias. In addition some Christadelphian fellowships have published their own hymn books.

A more contemporary worship style is now popular in some quarters. The publication of the Christadelphian Praise the Lord book^[24] gave access to contemporary worship songs which are consistent with Christadelphian theology.

In the English-speaking world, worship is typically accompanied by organ or piano, though in recent years a few ecclesias have promoted the use of other instruments and the involvement of worship leaders. This trend has also seen the emergence of some Christadelphian bands^[25] and the establishment of the Christadelphian Arts Trust^[26] to support performing, visual and dramatic arts within the Christadelphian community.

In other countries, hymnbooks have been produced in local languages, sometimes resulting in styles of worship which reflect the local culture.

History

Origins

Many beliefs now held by Christadelphians emerged during the Radical Reformation, particularly among the Socinians and other early Unitarians. The Restoration movement and Adventist movements in the mid-19th century resulted in small groups in many parts of the United Kingdom and North America which held the beliefs outlined above, and who were loosely associated with one another. One example is the Church of the Blessed Hope. The beginning of the Christadelphians as a distinct group can be dated to the publication in 1850 of John Thomas' work, Elpis Israel^[27] in which he laid out his understanding of the main doctrines of the Bible. Groups associated with him met under various names, including Believers, Baptised Believers, the Royal Association of Believers, Baptised Believers in the Kingdom of God, Nazarines (or Nazarenes) and The Antipas^[28] until the time of the American Civil War. At that time, church affiliation was required to register for conscientious objector status and in 1865 Thomas chose for registration purposes the name Christadelphian.

Early years: 1865-1914

The diverse groups that had associated themselves with Thomas' views were consolidated into a community as a degree of uniformity in belief and practice was established, largely due to the organisation of Robert Roberts. The denomination grew in the English-speaking world, particularly in the English Midlands and parts of North America.

A number left in 1873 and became known as the Nazarene Fellowship, a separate religious denomination still in existence. In 1884-5 a dispute arose concerning the inspiration of the Bible. Robert Ashcroft, a leading member, wrote an article which challenged commonly held views about inspiration and split off from the main body once again. This group formed a new ecclesia which later met in Suffolk Street, Birmingham. Other ecclesias throughout the world which supported them became known as the Suffolk Street Fellowship. A third division occurred in 1898 and centred on whether the Judgement at the return of Christ would be limited to baptised believers, or would apply to anyone who had "heard" the Gospel message. The majority, who held the latter view, amended their Statement of Faith to clarify this, and became known as Amended Christadelphians. Those who associated on the basis of the original Statement of Faith became known as the Unamended Fellowship. The group from which the Unamended and Suffolk Street fellowships had seceded became generally known as the Temperance Hall or (in North America) Amended Fellowship.

The World Wars: 1914-1945

The Christadelphian position on conscientious objection came to the fore with the introduction of conscription during the First World War. Varying degrees of exemption from military service were granted to Christadelphians in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. In the Second World War, this frequently required the person seeking exemption to undertake civilian work under the direction of the authorities. Military service was one of several issues which led to a further schism in the Temperance Hall Fellowship in 1923. This resulted in the formation of the Berean Fellowship, which subsequently divided over divorce and remarriage, the majority becoming known as the Dawn Fellowship.

The Post-War period: 1945-present

In the early 1950s the majority of the Berean Fellowship re-joined the Temperance Hall Fellowship, with the remainder continuing as a separate community. In 1957-1958, there was further reunion with the Suffolk Street Fellowship, which had already incorporated many of the Unamended Fellowship outside North America. This re-united group, which now included a large majority of Christadelphians, became known as the Central Fellowship ^[29] named after the Birmingham Central ecclesia. Those who held that the reasons for separation from the Suffolk Street Fellowship remained, opposed the re-union and formed the Old Paths Fellowship.^[30]

The post-war period saw an increase in co-operation and interaction between ecclesias, resulting in the establishment of a number of week-long Bible schools and the formation of national and international organisations such as the Christadelphian Bible Mission ^[31] (for preaching) and the Christadelphian Meal-A-Day Fund^[32] (for pastoral and humanitarian work). This was accompanied by expansion in the developing world, which now accounts for around 40% of Christadelphians.^[33]

Organisation

There is no central Christadelphian organisation or hierarchy. Ecclesias are autonomous and co-operation between most of them is based on a common acceptance of a statement of faith. Christadelphians do not have paid ministers. Most male members are eligible to teach and perform other duties, and these are usually assigned on a rotation basis, rather than having a designated preacher. Governance typically follows a democratic model, with an elected arranging committee for each individual ecclesia. This unpaid committee is responsible for the day-to-day running of the ecclesia and is answerable to the rest of the ecclesia's members. The relative uniformity of organisation structures is undoubtedly due to the influence of a booklet, written early in Christadelphian history, called A Guide to the Formation and Conduct of Christadelphian Ecclesias.^[34]

The majority of Christadelphians co-operate on the basis of Birmingham Amended Statement of Faith^[35] and are known as the Central Fellowship. Anyone who publicly assents to the doctrines described in this statement and is in good standing in their "home ecclesia" is generally welcome to participate in the activities of any other ecclesia.

Other groups which are separated to a greater or lesser degree from the Amended Christadelphians use statements of faith which differ in some regard. The Unamended Fellowship uses the Unamended Statement of Faith^[36]. The Dawn Fellowship^[37] use a statement of faith which is based on the original 1886 statement of faith, but has four additions addressing issues that have arisen since that time. Despite periodic efforts at reuniting the offshoots, there are still a number of groups who remain separate from other bodies of Christadelphians. These include the Berean Fellowship^[38], the Dawn Fellowship, the Old Paths Fellowship^[39], the Companion Fellowship^[40] and the Maranatha Fellowship^[41]. These differences are, to some degree, localised. The Unamended Fellowship exists only in North America, and some of the others are confined to the English-speaking world.

Inter-ecclesial organisations co-ordinate the running of, among other things, Christadelphian schools^[42] and elderly care homes, the Christadelphian Isolation League (which cares for those prevented by distance or infirmity from attending an ecclesia regularly) and the publication of Christadelphian magazines.

Location and statistics

There are established Christadelphian ecclesias in many countries throughout the world,^[43] along with isolated members. No official membership figures are published. Census statistics are available for some countries. Estimates for the main centres of Christadelphian population are as follows: United Kingdom (18,000),^[44] Australia (9,987),^[45] Malawi (7,000), United States (6,500),^[46] Canada (3,375),^[47] Mozambique (2,500), New Zealand (1,746),^[48] Kenya (1,700), India (1,300) and Tanzania (1,000).^[49]

References and footnotes

^ 'Christadelphians', The Columbia Enclyclopedia. Available online
^ CBM Worldwide Guide 2006, Christadelphian Bible Mission (UK), 2006
^ A Declaration of the Truth revealed in the Bible (Birmingham: Christadelphian Magazine and Publishing Association). An early summary of Christadelphian beliefs. Available online
^ Broughton, James H. The Trinity: True or False?. UK: The Dawn Book Supply. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
^ See What is the true Gospel?, available online
^ Michael Ashton, Homosexuality and the Church: Bible Answers to Moral Questions (Birmingham: Christadelphian Magazine and Publishing Association). Available online
^ Gay Christadelphians - a response - a Christadelphian site replying to inherit-the-kingdom
^ Doctrines to be Rejected - an appendix to the Christadelphian statement of faith
^ Answering Common Questions about the Christadelphians from Christadelphian Articles
^ 'Christadelphians confirm cult status', The Christian Expositor. Available online
^ Christadelphianism page at Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry
^ Hyndman, Rob (1999). The Christadelphians (Brothers and Sisters in Christ): Introducing a Bible-based Community. Beechworth, VIC: Bethel Publications. ISBN 81-87409-34-7.
^ Examples of lecture titles at thepositiveword.com
^ For example: Learn to Read the Bible Effectively
^ For example: This is Your Bible
^ Key Bible Lessons
^ Norris, Alfred. The Gospel and Strife. Birmingham, UK: Christadelphian Magazine and Publishing Association.
^ Watkins, Peter. War and Politics: The Christian's Duty. Birmingham, UK: Christadelphian Auxiliary Lecturing Society.
^ While Christadelphians are conscientious objectors they are not pacifists, saying the time will come when military coercion and and conflict will be required to establish Christ's kingdom.
^ Peter Hemingray, John Thomas: His Friends and His Faith 2003 p. 235
^ Andrew Wilson, History of the Christadelphians 1864-1885: the emergence of a denomination 1997 p. 326
^ Peter Hemingray, John Thomas: His Friends and His Faith 2003 p. 195
^ The CMPA online bookshop
^ Praise the Lord (Hoddesdon Christadelphian Service, 1993, 2000)
^ An example is the Christadelphian folk rock band Fisher's Tale
^ Christadelphian Arts Trust
^ John Thomas, Elpis Israel: an exposition of the Kingdom of God with reference to the time of the end and the age to come (London: 1850). Available online
^ Peter Hemingray, John Thomas: His Friends and His Faith 2003 p. 235
^ The first use of the term "Birmingham (Central) fellowship" in The Christadelphian magazine was in volume 70, 1933, p. 376. The term was used to distinguish those ecclesias in fellowship with the Birmingham (Central) ecclesia from those in the "Suffolk Street fellowship". By 1939 the word "Birmingham" was dropped and the term "Central fellowship" was thereafter used with some regularity (342 times between 1939 and 2000) in the magazine
^ Old Paths Fellowship
^ History of the Christadelphian Bible Mission
^ The Christadelphian Meal-A-Day Fund
^ Based on figures from CBM Worldwide Guide 2006, Christadelphian Bible Mission (UK), 2006
^ Robert Roberts, A Guide to the Formation and Conduct of Christadelphian Ecclesias (Birmingham: 1883). Available online
^ Birmingham Amended Statement of Faith. Available online
^ Birmingham Unamended Statement of Faith. Available online
^ Dawn Christadelphians
^ Berean Christadelphians
^ Old Paths Christadelphians
^ Companion Christadelphians
^ Maranatha Christadelphians
^ For example: Christadelphian Heritage College, Cooranbong and Christadelphian Heritage College Sydney, Kemps Creek (also see List of non-government schools in New South Wales)
^ Ecclesias Around the World from Christadelphia World Wide
^ UK Christian Handbook 2004, as quoted in 'Focus on Christadelphian Community', Multicultural Matters, October 2004 (London: Building Bridges, 2004). Available online
^ Religious Affiliation - Australia: 2001 and 1996 Census
^ 'Christadelphians', The Columbia Encyclopedia. Available online,
^ 'Christadelphians', The Canadian Encyclopedia. Available online
^ 1996 Census figures from Adherents.com
^ Statistics for Malawi, Mozambique, Kenya, India and Tanzania from CBM Worldwide Guide 2007, Christadelphian Bible Mission (UK), 2007

@@ Line 75: / Line 75: @@
 There are established Christadelphian ecclesias in many countries throughout the world,<ref>''Ecclesias Around the World'' from [http://www.christadelphia.org/ecclesia.htm Christadelphia World Wide]</ref> along with isolated members. No official membership figures are published. [[Census]] statistics are available for some countries. Estimates for the main centres of Christadelphian population are as follows: [[United Kingdom]] (18,000),<ref>UK Christian Handbook 2004, as quoted in 'Focus on Christadelphian Community', ''Multicultural Matters'', October 2004 (London: Building Bridges, 2004). Available [http://www2.ntu.ac.uk/eqo/October2004.doc online]</ref> [[Australia]] (9,987),<ref>[http://www.omi.wa.gov.au/WAPeople%5CSect1%5CTable%201p06%20Aust.pdf Religious Affiliation - Australia: 2001 and 1996 Census]</ref> [[Malawi]] (7,000), [[United States]] (6,500),<ref>'Christadelphians', ''The Columbia Encyclopedia''. Available [http://www.bartleby.com/65/ch/Christad.html online],</ref> [[Canada]] (3,375),<ref>'Christadelphians', ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. Available [http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0001609 online]</ref> [[Mozambique]] (2,500), [[New Zealand]] (1,746),<ref>1996 Census figures from [http://www.adherents.com/Na/Na_147.html#898 Adherents.com]</ref> [[Kenya]] (1,700), [[India]] (1,300) and [[Tanzania]] (1,000).<ref>Statistics for Malawi, Mozambique, Kenya, India and Tanzania from ''CBM Worldwide Guide 2007'', Christadelphian Bible Mission (UK), 2007</ref>
-==  Schisms ==
-The Christadelphian community has experienced a number of schisms over its history.  Some of the major schisms are described in this section.
-===  The Berean Schism ===
-The Berean schism took place in 1923<ref>{{cite web | last =Phillips | first =Jim |  title =The Berean Christadelphians: Why the Bereans? | url =http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/Bereans/wbp4.html | accessdate =2008-01-19 }}</ref> over the nature of Christ and the atonement.<ref>{{cite web | last = The Berean Fellowship | title = The Berean Restatement  | date = 1960 | url=http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/Bereans/Sof/brs.html | accessdate = 2008-01-19 }}</ref>  As a result of disagreement with the standard Christadelphian position, a large group of Christadelphians withdrew from the main body and identified themselves as the Berean fellowship.  This schism held to a view of fellowship which required entire ecclesias to withdraw from any other ecclesia in fellowship with individuals or ecclesias in error.<ref>Julio Scaramastro and Jim Phillips, ''The Doctrine of Fellowship'' 1982</ref>  This position radicalised the Berean fellowship, and has contributed to a number of other schisms from the Berean fellowship itself (including the Family Journal schism,<ref>{{cite web | last =Phillips | first =Jim |  title =The Berean Christadelphians: Why the Bereans? | url =http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/Bereans/wbp3.html#Family | accessdate =2008-01-19 }}</ref> the Dawn schism,<ref>{{cite web | last =Phillips | first =Jim |  title =The Berean Christadelphians: Why the Bereans? | url =http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/Bereans/wbp3.html#Dawn | accessdate =2008-01-19 }}</ref> the Four Point schism, and the Antipas schism<ref>{{cite web | last =Phillips | first =Jim |  title =The Southern California Division | url =http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/Bereans/Myfiles/davis.html | accessdate =2008-01-19 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last =Phillips | first =Jim |  title =The Berean Christadelphians: Why the Bereans? | url =http://www.angelfire.com/bc2/Bereans/wbp4.html#Another | accessdate =2008-01-19 }}</ref>).  The resulting attrition has caused Berean numbers to decline to around 400 individuals.
-Over time the Bereans have developed a culture and a set of doctrines which differentiate them radically from mainstream Christadelphians.  Some of these doctrines are shared with the Unamended fellowship (but not the Central fellowship), particularly beliefs on the atonement and the nature of the flesh.  Some of these doctrines constitute beliefs which the original Bereans held, whilst others are the development of original beliefs.  A number of these beliefs are not held by any other Christadelphian fellowship, which the Bereans take as indicative that they alone hold the correct understanding of the gospel.
-The following is a list of the beliefs which differentiate the Bereans radically from mainstream Christadelphians:
-*  The Berean position on fellowship (described above)
-*  That sin is a physical substance which is the cause of moral transgression, disease and death<ref>'Sin's Flesh, the flesh in which the Diabolos, SIN, resided in every cell and fibre', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref><ref>'As a race, we ARE Sin. Everything we do naturally is Sin. Sin is the very fiber of our being', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref><ref>', 'The term "sin" is scripturally extended by the process called "metonymy" (extending a name to include a related thing) to include the evil, corrupt, death-bringing principle in every cell and particle of human flesh - the diabolos - that causes all diseases and death and disharmony with God', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That babies die because they are made of this physical substance which is sin (and so inherit the wages of sin)<ref>GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That although the Bible uses the word 'sin' in two different senses, it always refers to only one thing and not two separate things since sin and the cause of sin are one and the same<ref>'Let us not be squeamishly afraid to give the name SIN to the very root of sin', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref><ref>'We are told by some that we must not link transgressions and sin-in-the-flesh in the same "category," as two "aspects" of the same basic sin constitution. That is, we must not link "the Devil" (Diabolos) "and his works."  But the Scriptures do', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That God treats both sin and the cause of sin in the same way<ref>'When God condemned Sin by condemning the Diabolos in the sinless Christ, He inseparably linked all aspects of sin together - or active sin was not condemned', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That Jesus, through his miraculous birth and divine parentage, was enabled to resist sin to an extent normal human beings are incapable
-*  That Jesus, though he could be tempted, was not tempted as we are and was not prone to sin as humans are, since 'his proneness was to doing the Father's will not prone to sin'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>
-*  That Jesus earned the wages of sin<ref>'And seeing that the wages of sin is death—whether it be physical or moral sin—all must die', ''Simplified Atonement", adapted from "God’s Way Of Atonement", by Frank Jannaway</ref>
-*  That John Thomas was raised up by God to restore the Truth to the earth, and was chosen by God because of his unique fitness to the task<ref>'brother Thomas was providentially selected as the best instrument for the work at hand, namely, the recovery of the Truth within the Divinely foreordained limits of the non-inspirational era in which he lived. For the accomplishment of this task, we wholeheartedly believe that the Lord chose one who possessed great spiritual capacity, and was totally meet for the challenge', Bob Widding, "Contending for the Faith: A Command for 21st Century Saints" from the Berean Bible Journal, January 2008</ref>
-*  That God requires a sacrifice for 'sinful nature', and that Christ therefore had to make a sacrifice both for his sinful nature and for the sinful nature of humanity<ref>'It was necessary that Jesus should offer for himself for the purging of his own nature, first, from the uncleanness of death', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That human nature is physically defiled by sin even before personal transgression has taken place<ref>'God ordained sacrificial blood-shedding for the cleansing of mankind from the defilement brought on the race through Adam', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That even without personal transgression, man is an abomination unto His Creator and has need for redemption through the shedding of blood<ref>GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref>
-*  That those who do not value the writings of the 'Pioneers' are on their way back to the apostasy
-*  That the true body of believers is to be identified by how closely the adhere to the teachings of the 'Pioneers'
-*  That the 'Pioneers' should be the first reference for any interpretation of Scripture, and are authoritative in their interpretation of Scripture<ref>'We urge all to deeply study the sound writings of our pioneers on this subject, in their faithful expounding of Scripture', GV Growcott, ''The Purifying of the Heavenly'' 1978</ref><ref>'Given brother Thomas' place in the revival of God's Truth, it is only logical that we thoughtfully consider his works when contending for the faith becomes necessary', Bob Widding, "Contending for the Faith: A Command for 21st Century Saints" from the Berean Bible Journal, January 2008</ref><ref>'A careful study of their works reveals a depth in understanding that is scarcely found in this age', Bob Widding, "Contending for the Faith: A Command for 21st Century Saints" from the Berean Bible Journal, January 2008</ref>
-*   That 'We are Christadelphians because we believe the truth was rightly divided by our early brethren'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>
-The Berean attitude to the writings of John Thomas and Robert Roberts is almost unique, though shared by some in the Unamended fellowship, and a very few in the Central fellowship.  They believe that the Bible should be interpreted according to the writings of these two early Christadelphians (to whom they refer as 'the Pioneers'), and that all Scripture must be harmonized with the interpretations in these writings.  Whilst denying that they believe either man was inspired, they do profess the belief that both men were raised up by God, and that John Thomas in particular was specifically chosen by God as being unique among men on the earth in his day.
-For reasons which are unclear, many Bereans prefer to John Thomas as 'Doctor Thomas' rather than 'Brother Thomas' (as male members of the Christadephians usually are).  John Thomas is described as 'the equivalent to Einstein in religious matters'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>, and as a result of this his understanding of the Greek and Hebrew languages is considered superior not only to all his contemporaries, but to all subsequent scholars of these languages.  Modern Greek and Hebrew lexicons and linguistic authorities are largely rejected by the Bereans, being viewed as inaccurate or inadequate when compared with the knowledge of John Thomas, despite the fact that John Thomas was not an authority on either language and a number of his conclusions on both languages are demonstrably wrong.  Among Bereans it is believed that 'to get away from Dr. Thomas is to get away from the Bible, for the Truth is with him always'. <ref>Statement quoted by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>  Bereans also doubt that the Bible alone is sufficient to teach the gospel, believing that the writings of either John Thomas or Robert Roberts are necessary for a correct understanding of the Scriptures, or at least some Christadelphian writing ('Is it possible for an individual to come to a knowledge of the Truth independent of Dr. Thomas' (or Christadelphian) expositions? Is the Bible all that is necessary?'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>).  The writings of John Thomas and Robert Roberts are considered authoritative expositions in the Berean fellowship, and Bereans will often quote them in discussion of Biblical issues instead of quoting the Bible.
-The high regard for John Thomas and Robert Roberts leads many Bereans to reject as inadequate most Christadelphian exposition which was written after both men died.  Some Berean authors are considered to have written valuable works (especially Rene Growcott), but expositions produced by authors other than 'the Pioneers' are generally dismissed as valueless ('Admittedly, I've read the odd non-pioneer book such as Parables of the Messiah by John Carter and then thought, what a waste of time that was and go straight back to Nazareth Revisited etc'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>).  Bereans are wary of discussions of the Bible alone without reference to the works of 'the Pioneers', and believe that 'To say "you really need to be getting back to the Bible" is a smokescreen to error'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>.  The 'Pioneer works' are used as the measure of orthodoxy, since it is believed that 'The difference between truth and error' is identifiable by 'the difference in attitudes towards the pioneer works'<ref>Statement by a Berean Christadelphian on an online discussion forum</ref>.
-Bereans typically use a method of Biblical interpretation which is highly anagogical, with a heavy emphasis on typology and conjectural exposition.  This is the method used commonly by early Christian expositors such as [[Origen]] and [[Augustine]], and Berean exposition often resembles that of [[Origen]] in its appeal to anagogue and typology.   Literal events described in the Bible are commonly declared to be typological of later events, and there is much speculation over the identity of the 'anti-type'.  Discussions of this kind of exposition sometimes take place on online forums in a 'Mars Hill' format, in which conjectural exposition is proposed and encouraged.  Conclusions are generally accepted without challenge, and rarely disputed.  It is considered unnecessary to provide evidence for such conjectures, since this method of exposition is itself considered 'Scriptural', and is assumed to produce accurate results.
 ==References and footnotes==