Abstract
On October 5, 1829, prominent Virginia leaders gathered in Richmond to debate amending the state constitution originally adopted in 1776. One of the delegates was clergyman Alexander Campbell from Brooke County (now West Virginia), a noted reformer and contrarian. His service at the convention reflected his realistic and decidedly non-triumphalist view of the American Revolution, one informed by the Christian theology undergirding his reform movement, the Disciples of Christ. Campbell believed tensions were an inescapable feature of natural human life. Life in Christ did not make them all disappear; rather, it made them clearer, although still not completely understood or resolved. Only Christians could truly appreciate the limitations of this world precisely because they recognized the perfection of the kingdom. This is the case with the American Revolution and its legacy. Campbell knew the Revolution made America the best the world had to offer, but that did not mean it was the best God had to offer.
Recommended Citation
Super, Joseph Francis
(2026)
"Alexander Campbell: The Legacy and Limits of the American Revolution,"
Bound Away: The Liberty Journal of History: Vol. 8:
Iss.
3, Article 33.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/ljh/vol8/iss3/33