This little book is a surprising gem. Meticulously researched and well-illustrated, it is not only a history (in much detail) of the ecclesia and its members, but is an account of one of the most complex fellowship histories any ecclesia could have. Founded in the 1850’s by followers of John Thomas, we read of its near demise in the American Civil war, and its revival amid frequent visits by John Thomas, these due at least partially to the presence in Washington at one time or another of his father and three of his siblings. Many prominent Christadelphians also visited the city, so among the stories of its members we have brief glimpses such brethren as Robert Roberts, Robert Ashcroft, and Henry Sulley.
But the most interesting story to me is the way the little ecclesia fell into the fold of firstly Thomas Williams, and so joined what we would now call the Unattended fellowship. It then aligned with AH Zilmer (of the Faith Fellowship), for which it was dis fellow shipped by the larger Unattended group. The tiny little group it was joined with then only consisted of the Baltimore “Faith” Ecclesia, a group in Richmond, and the Bethany Ecclesia in rural Virginia. It also shared some fellowship at one time with Robert Huggins, a former Christadelphian who was pastor of the CGAF church in Cleveland. Finally, it joined the Amended fellowship in 1954. (The Faith Fellowships’ only remnant is now the First Christadelphian Church of Catonsville, near Baltimore).
Many other prominent Christadelphians have passed through the city, so it is not just an account of the local ecclesia, but a microcosm on the community, written in a thoroughly engaging way.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One