Christadelphians

Christadelphians, or 'Brethren of Christ,' a small religious body claiming to represent the true faith and practice of apostolic times, as revived by Dr John Thomas, Brooklyn, U.S., who was born in 1805 and died in 1871, and was the leading advocate of their views. (After him they are sometimes called Thomasites.) They deny the existence of a personal devil, and the immortality of the soul, believing in 'Conditional Immortality' (q.v.), to be bestowed upon the faithful of all ages when Christ returns. They insist on the plenary inspiration of the Bible, the real death of Christ as a sacrifice for sin, his resurrection and ascension; and look for his return to the earth to reign on the throne of David over the converted and restored twelve tribes of Israel and all nations. They believe that death is a state of entire unconsciousness, terminated by a corporeal resurrection for those who have become related to Christ through faith and obedience, or are responsible for his rejection. Those accepted after the judgment reign for ever with Christ over the nations, those rejected die the second death. Communities of Christadelphians exist in the principal towns of Great Britain, Ireland, the United States, and the colonies, but no statistics as to numbers exist. Probably the members amount to a few thousands. Their leading organ is The Christadelphian, published monthly in Birmingham, and founded by Robert Roberts, whose work, Christendom Astray, along with Elpis Israel and Eureka by John Thomas, M.D., furnish full details as to creed.