Christian Union (Monroe County, Tennessee, 1886)

On August 19, 1886, Baptist minister Richard G. Spurling gathered a small company of believers in Monroe County, Tennessee, and helped form the Christian Union. Meeting in the rugged hills of East Tennessee, they sought to end quarrels over party names and return to the “plain teaching of Scripture,” believing the church should be known by Christlike faith and obedience rather than by human creeds. Their aim echoed the Lord’s prayer for His people: “that all of them may be one” (John 17:21).

The early fellowship was modest in numbers but strong in resolve. In an era when isolation, poverty, and denominational suspicion often pressed hard on rural congregations, their choice to pursue unity, holiness, and prayer required moral courage. They emphasized repentance, disciplined Christian living, and brotherly love, trusting that the Holy Spirit would guide believers who bowed together under God’s Word.

Key Figures and Early Trials

Spurling’s leadership blended pastoral care with reforming conviction. He called people to measure doctrine and practice by Scripture, and to keep the church’s conscience tender before God. As the work spread through neighboring communities, other devoted leaders joined, preaching in homes, small meetinghouses, and outdoor gatherings. Traveling mountain roads, facing misunderstanding, and enduring seasons of scarcity, they labored to keep the faith simple and sincere—marked more by prayer meetings than publicity, and by repentance more than reputation.

Revival, Organization, and Lasting Influence

Through hardship and seasons of revival, the movement endured and matured. A hunger for holiness and evangelism shaped its identity, with believers urged to live the apostolic pattern of devotion: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42). In 1923 the movement took the name Church of God, later establishing its headquarters in Cleveland, Tennessee. From humble beginnings in the Appalachian region, it has grown to nearly 500,000 members, continuing to call people to peace, purity, and steadfast love: “Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).