Restorationism

==Other groups originating in the nineteenth century==
===Bible Students===
{{Main|Bible Student movement}}
[[File:Charles Taze Russell sharp.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Charles Russell in 1911]]
In the 1870s, a Bible study group led by [[Charles Taze Russell]] formed into what was eventually called the [[Bible Student movement]]. Russell's congregations did not consider him to be the founder of a new religion,<ref>Jehovah's Witnesses – Proclaimers of God's Kingdom. chap. 31 p. 707 "A biography of Russell, published shortly after his death, explained: "He was not the founder of a new religion, and never made such claim. He revived the great truths taught by Jesus and the Apostles,"</ref> but that he helped in restoring true Christianity from the [[apostasy]] that Jesus and the [[Apostle Paul]] foretold. They believed that other Churches departed in a [[Great Apostasy]] from the original faith on major points, and that the original faith could be restored through a generally literal interpretation of the Bible and a sincere commitment to follow its teachings. They focused on several key doctrinal points that they considered a return to "primitive Christianity",<ref>{{Cite journal|journal=The Watchtower|date=15 July 2001|page=11|title=Be Joyful Harvest Workers!}}</ref> derived from their interpretation of the Bible, including active [[Proselytism|proselytization]]; strict neutrality in political affairs;<ref>"Militarism and Navalism - How Long?" by Charles Taze Russell, ''Watch Tower'', January 1, 1916, page 5, "We see wrongs perpetrated in every direction; Divine Laws entirely set aside by these so-called Christian nations--Christendom. ...God's nation--is in the world, but not of it. Its members cannot be loyal to the prince of this world [Satan], and to the Prince of Glory, both. ...Indeed, we entreat all the Lord's dear people to remember that there are but the two great Masters; and that we have enlisted on the side of our God and His Christ, and are to prove loyal to these in the midst of a crooked and perverse people, blinded by the god of this world and filled with his spirit of pride, boastfulness, animosity, hatred and strife. It should be our desire to be neutral as between these contending factions of Satan's empire. ...Let us never forget our ''neutrality''. Let us be just toward all, kind, generous. Let us ''avoid as far as possible any discussion of these matters'' with those who would not be able to understand and appreciate our position."[italics added][http://mostholyfaith.com/bible/reprints/Search_Result.asp#Z5:10 Retrieved 2010-12-20] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410033346/http://mostholyfaith.com/bible/reprints/Search_Result.asp#Z5:10 |date=2016-04-10 }}</ref> abstinence from warfare;<ref>"Bible Students and the Future", ''Watch Tower'', April 1, 1915, page 101, "In all the Continental Armies our Brethren, known as Bible Students, are to be found--not willingly, but by conscription. ...Before the war we recommended to the Brethren that in the event of hostilities they should, so far as possible, if drafted, request positions in the hospital service or in the supplies department, where they could serve the Government efficiently; whereas, if they were ordered to the firing line, they would not be obliged to shoot to kill. We have reasons for believing that these suggestions are being followed... We have exhorted the brethren to strict neutrality so far as the combatants are concerned, whatever might be their natural inclination through accident of birth or association."[http://mostholyfaith.com/bible/reprints/Search_Result.asp#Z101:1 Retrieved 2010-12-20] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410033346/http://mostholyfaith.com/bible/reprints/Search_Result.asp#Z101:1 |date=2016-04-10 }}</ref> a belief in the imminent manifestation of the [[Kingdom of God]] (or [[World to Come]]) on Earth, and a rejection of [[trinitarianism]], the [[immortality of the soul]], and the definition of [[Hell]] as a place of eternal torment.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Reasoning From The Scriptures|publisher=Watchtower|year=1988|page=169}}</ref>

====Jehovah's Witnesses====
[[Jehovah's Witnesses]] emerged as a distinct religious organization, maintaining control of Russell's [[Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania|Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society]] and [[Corporations of Jehovah's Witnesses|other corporations]]. They continued to develop doctrines that they considered to be an improved restoration of [[first century Christianity]], including increased emphasis on the use of ''[[Jehovah]]'' as God's personal name.<ref>''The Watchtower'', April 15, 1983, pg 29, "Why is God's name, Jehovah, missing from most modern translations of the Bible? Superstition that developed among tradition-bound Jews caused them to avoid pronouncing God's personal name, Jehovah. This has contributed to worldwide ignorance regarding the divine name."</ref>

===Plymouth Brethren===
{{Main|Plymouth Brethren}}
[[File:JohnNelsonDarby.jpg|thumb|150px|right|John Nelson Darby]]
The Plymouth Brethren is a [[conservative]], [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical]], restorationist movement whose origin can be traced to [[Dublin]], [[Ireland]], in 1827.<ref>{{cite web |first=Shawn |last=Abigail |date=June 2006 |title=What is the history of the 'Brethren'? |url=http://brethrenonline.org/faqs/Brethren.htm#3 |work="Plymouth Brethren" FAQ |access-date=12 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160518150855/http://brethrenonline.org/faqs/Brethren.htm#3 |archive-date=18 May 2016 }}</ref><ref name=mackay1981>{{Cite book |first=Harold |last=Mackay |title=Assembly Distinctives |publisher=Everyday Publications |location=[[Scarborough, Toronto|Scarborough]], [[Ontario]] |year=1981 |isbn=978-0-88873-049-7 |oclc=15948378 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/assemblydistinct0000mack }}{{Page needed|date=September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|first=John Gifford |last=Bellet |author-link=John Gifford Bellet |title=Interesting Reminiscences of the Early History of "Brethren" in and around 1827 |publisher=bruederbewegung.de |url=http://www.bruederbewegung.de/pdf/reminiscences.pdf |access-date=12 June 2009|display-authors=etal}}</ref> The title, "The Brethren", is one that many of their number are comfortable with, in that the [[Bible]] designates all believers as "brethren". The first English assembly was in [[Plymouth]] in 1831,<ref>{{Cite book|first=Jonathan D. |last=Burnham |year=2004 |title=A Story of Conflict: The Controversial Relationship Between Benjamin Wills Newton and John Nelson Darby |chapter=The Emergence of the Plymouth Brethren |publisher=[[Paternoster Press]] |location=[[Carlisle, Cumbria|Carlisle]] |isbn=978-1-84227-191-9 |oclc=56336926}}{{Page needed|date=September 2010}}</ref> where the movement became well known and assemblies diffused throughout Europe and beyond.<ref>{{Cite book|first=William Blair |last=Neatby |title=A History of the Plymouth Brethren |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Hodder and Stoughton |year=1902 |page=24 |oclc=11627558}}</ref> It was organised primarily by [[George Wigram]], [[Benjamin Wills Newton]] and [[John Nelson Darby]].<ref>{{Cite book|first=Elizabeth A. |last=Livingstone |year=2000 |title=The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=[[Oxford]] |isbn=978-0-19-280057-2 |oclc=46858944}}{{Page needed|date=September 2010}}</ref>  The movement soon spread throughout the UK. By 1845, the first English assembly in Plymouth had over 1,000 souls in fellowship.<ref>{{Cite book|first=Napoleon |last=Noel |year=1936 |title=The History of the Brethren |publisher=Knapp |location=[[Denver]] |page=46 |oclc=2807272}}</ref>

They became known as "the brethren from Plymouth", and were soon simply called "Plymouth Brethren". By 1848, divergence of practice and belief led to the development of two separate branches. The rift was caused primarily by a difference of opinions between [[John Nelson Darby]] and [[Benjamin Wills Newton]] in regards to [[eschatology]]. Despite more divisions, assemblies are still often generalized into two main categories: "[[Open Brethren]]" and "[[Exclusive Brethren]]".<ref>{{cite web |publisher=Philip H. Van Amerongen |first=Grant |last=Steidl |year=c. 1988 |title=Schematic Diagram of Brethren History |url=http://pnavce.tripod.com/brethrenhistory/id2.html |access-date=12 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207112358/http://pnavce.tripod.com/brethrenhistory/id2.html |archive-date=7 December 2008 }}</ref> [[John Duncan (theologian)|John Duncan]] criticized the Brethren movement saying "To end sectarianism, the [[Plymouth Brethren]] began by making a new sect, and that sect, of all sects, the most sectarian".<ref name="peebs">{{cite web |url=http://peebs.net/maint.html |title=Welcome |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216104645/http://peebs.net/maint.html |archive-date=2013-02-16 }}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=February 2013}}