The Brethren movement
Brethren · 1827 · Ireland, England; North America; worldwide
Looking for the group most often called the Exclusive Brethren today? See Raven–Taylor Brethren (PBCC).
In late 1827 J. N. Darby, E. Cronin, J. G. Bellett and F. Hutchinson began breaking bread in Dublin, holding that the Lord's table belongs to all His people and that ordained clergy is not a New Testament requirement. The meeting moved to Aungier Street in 1830, and the work reached Plymouth in 1831.
The Brethren movement was formed in 1827. The Brethren movement continues today.
At a glance
- Formed
- In 1827
- Family
- Brethren
- Region
- Ireland, England; North America; worldwide
- Key figures
- J. N. Darby, Edward Cronin, J. G. Bellett, Francis Hutchinson, G. V. Wigram, J. B. Stoney, W. M. Sibthorpe
- Cause tags
- Doctrine, Governance
- Also known as
- Plymouth Brethren (exonym); Assemblies; Tunbridge Wells Brethren; Exclusive Brethren (London, 1848–1890); Closed Brethren; Darbyites (exonym)
What it teaches
Those gathered to the Lord's name since 1827 hold that the Holy Spirit gathers believers to Christ's name alone, on the ground of the one body. They own no clergy, break bread each Lord's day, and hold that the unity of the body and separation from evil belong together.
- Church government. No clergy and no appointed elders today; the assembly acts under the Lord in the midst. (The Ruin of the Church, Eldership, and Ministry of the Word by Gift, compiled by R. A. Huebner (PTP), pt. 2; E. Dennett, The Step I Have Taken (1875), Letters 4–5)
- Lord's Supper. The Lord's Supper is taken every Sunday. (R. A. Huebner, John Nelson Darby: Precious Truths Revived and Defended, vol. 1, Revival of Truth, 1826–1845 (PTP, 2nd ed., 2004), p. 54)
- Ministry. Ministry is by gift from the risen Lord, exercised in responsibility to Him. (E. Dennett, The Step I Have Taken (1875), Letters 4–5, 7)
- Fellowship. "The unity of the body, and separation from evil, are vital points." (R. A. Huebner, Precious Truths Revived and Defended Through J. N. Darby, vol. 2, B. W. Newton and Bethesda (PTP), p. 140)
Is the Brethren Movement Biblical?
On divine ground.
November or December 1827. J. N. Darby, E. Cronin, J. G. Bellett and F. Hutchinson began breaking bread at 9 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin. The meeting moved to Aungier Street in May 1830, and breaking of bread began at Raleigh Street, Plymouth, about December 1831.
They gathered to the Lord's name alone, on the ground of the one body (Matthew 18:20; Ephesians 4:3–4), having judged that neither the Church of England nor the dissenting bodies met that test. It was a recovery of the ground, not of the church's first state. The line continued by bowing to the assembly actions of 1845, 1848, 1881, 1884, 1885, 1890 and 1909, and in 1986 it did not accept the action against Shrewsbury NJ. It keeps its name through each division, because only those who left took a new one. This is said with sorrow, for the divisions are its shame as well. Those who understand the ruin are ‘a weeping people.’
“We cannot meet as being the one assembly, because a great number of Christians are outside of us, but we meet on the principle of that unity.”
Sources: R. A. Huebner, John Nelson Darby: Precious Truths Revived and Defended, vol. 1, Revival of Truth, 1826–1845 (PTP, 2nd ed., 2004), pp. 27–31, 48, 53–54; R. A. Huebner, Precious Truths Revived and Defended Through J. N. Darby, vol. 2, B. W. Newton and Bethesda (PTP), pp. 21–27; R. A. Huebner, How the Leaven of Evil Mergers by the KLCs Came About (PTP, 2nd ed., 2007), pp. 1–5; The Ruin of the Church, Eldership, and Ministry of the Word by Gift, compiled by R. A. Huebner (PTP), p. 9; The Ruin of the Church, Eldership, and Ministry of the Word by Gift, compiled by R. A. Huebner (PTP), p. 24, section heading.
The professing church left the ground as clergy and human order displaced the Spirit's ministry, but the ground itself remained. In 1827 it was taken up again, a recovery of the ground and not of the church's first state, as set out in How the ground was lost and recovered.
This verdict concerns the ground of gathering, not the salvation of any individual. Whoever truly believes on the Lord Jesus Christ is a member of the one body, wherever they gather; ‘[The] Lord knows those that are his’ (2 Timothy 2:19).
“It is not a question of life or salvation. Thousands are saved by Christ that do not own Him as their center.”
The assembly meeting in Scripture
- Gathered to
- The Lord's name alone, on the ground of the one bodyMatthew 18:20; Ephesians 4:3–4; Rossier pt. 2
- Who presides
- The Lord Jesus, personally in the midst. No man presides.Matthew 18:20; Psalm 22:22; Rossier pt. 3; Kingscote pp. 10–11
- Lord's Supper
- Every first day of the week. It is the main object of the gathering.Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 10:16–17, 11:18–26; Rossier pt. 4; Miller p. 95
- Who administers the Supper
- No one. "The very idea of a person standing apart and claiming to administer it as a right alters and ruins the Supper."Kelly, in Huebner pp. 40–41
- Who takes part audibly
- Brothers, as the Spirit leads, one by one. Two or three speak and the others judge.1 Corinthians 14:26–33; Rossier pt. 6; Kingscote pp. 12–13
- Women
- Silent in the assembly1 Corinthians 14:34–35; Kingscote p. 13
- Order of service
- None arranged beforehand. Liberty of the Spirit, with dependence on the Lord.1 Corinthians 14:26, 33; Dennett Letter 6
- Ministry
- By gift, exercised in responsibility to the Lord. Not by election to an office.Romans 12:6–8; 1 Peter 4:10–11; Ephesians 4:11–12; Dennett Letters 4–5, 7
- How ministers are appointed
- Gifts are given by the risen Lord. Elders were appointed only by apostles or their delegates, and there are none today.Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; Dennett Letters 4–5; Ruin pt. 2
- Kinds of assembly meeting
- Worship (the breaking of bread), prayer, and the open meeting for edificationRossier pts. 3–6
- Who may break bread
- Every believer not under scriptural discipline for walk or doctrineDennett Letters 6, 8; 1 Corinthians 5
What it separated from
- Separated from Church of England. Founders withdrew severally from the Church of Ireland/England and dissenting bodies; not an expulsion.
Bodies organized out of it or separated from it: Bethesda (Open Brethren), Kelly Brethren, Grant Brethren, Stuart Brethren, Raven–Taylor Brethren (PBCC), Lowe-Continental Brethren, Newton's company, KLC with ex-Tunbridge Wells, Addison.
On the tree
Solid lines are separations and unions; dashed lines are renewals that began inside a body; dotted gray lines are national organizations of one communion; a diamond marks a fork event where neither side is drawn as the one that left. Every line runs back to the post-apostolic church; no body descends from the assembly of Acts 2. Dashed gray boxes mark the institutional line after the apostles, shown as departure; no line of descent is drawn from Pentecost. A verdict appears on a box once its section is published.
Scriptures
Sources
- R. A. Huebner, John Nelson Darby: Precious Truths Revived and Defended, vol. 1 (PTP, 2004), pp. 27-31, 48, 53-54 — courtesy of Present Truth Publishers
- R. A. Huebner, Precious Truths Revived and Defended Through J. N. Darby, vol. 2 (PTP), pp. 21-27 — courtesy of Present Truth Publishers
- R. A. Huebner, How the Leaven of Evil Mergers by the KLCs Came About (PTP, 2007), pp. 1-5 — courtesy of Present Truth Publishers
- J. Gregoire, A Visit to Tunbridge Wells, England (1910; PTP reprint)
- Letter from the assembly at Addison, Illinois, May 18, 1986
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth_Brethren
Quotations from assembly writings: R. A. Huebner, courtesy of Present Truth Publishers (free PDF).
Research compiled July 2026. Page data built 2026-10-31.