History:

The Church of Christ, Disciples of Christ began as an organized fellowship in America in the mid-1800s as a branch of the restoration movement. Restorationists sought to restore the church to New Testament teachings and practices by following the Bible as its rule and guide, dropping denominational contrivances such as creeds and non-Biblical rituals. In North Carolina the preaching of James O'Kelly, Barton Stone, Joseph Thomas (the White Pilgrim), and Thomas Campbell delivered the message of Discipleship to the Carolina coast and across to central North Carolina. Churches that came out of their evangelism were the forerunners of Disciple congregations among African American believers.