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The Niagara Bible Conference (officially called the "Believers' Meeting for Bible Study") was held annually from 1875 to 1897, with the exception of 1884.

History

The Conference was founded as the Believers' Meeting for Bible Study in 1875 by evangelical pastors in the United States. The driving force behind the meeting was James H. Brookes, a Presbyterian minister from St. Louis. Brookes publicized the meeting through his magazine Truth, and devoted substantial space to summaries of the speeches.

Most of the speakers were dispensationalists, and the Niagara Conference introduced many evangelical Protestants to dispensationalist teaching. The messages generally centered on the doctrines of Christ, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, missions and prophecy. Premillennialism and dispensationalism were defended and taught.

In 1878, 14 fundamental creeds were established by evangelical pastors. The Niagara Creed does not explicitly affirm dispensationalism, but it refers to several key dispensationalist beliefs, including the reality of the millennium, the restoration of Israel, and the distinction between the judgment of the saved and the damned.

Starting in 1883, it was held in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario at the Queen's Royal Hotel and its pavilion. In 1890, the Niagara Creed was officially adopted.

References

1. David S. New, Christian Fundamentalism in America: A Cultural History, McFarland, USA, 2014, p. 113
2. Brenda Brasher, Encyclopedia of Fundamentalism: Volume 3 of Religion & Society, Berkshire Publishing Group, USA, 2001, p. 56-57
3. Donald W. Dayton, The Variety of American Evangelicalism, Univ. of Tennessee Press, USA, 2001, p. 11
4. Gary J. Dorrien, The Remaking of Evangelical Theology, Westminster John Knox Press, USA, 1998, p. 15
5. Khatab, Sayed (2011-12-15). Understanding Islamic Fundamentalism: The Theological and Ideological Basis of al-Qa'ida's Political Tactics. American University in Cairo Press. doi:10.5743/cairo/9789774164996.003.0002. ISBN 978-977-416-499-6.
6. David S. New, Christian Fundamentalism in America: A Cultural History, McFarland, USA, 2014, p. 113
7. Frances FitzGerald, The Evangelicals: The Struggle to Shape America, Simon and Schuster, USA, 2017, p. 82

Further reading

• In Pursuit of Purity: American Fundamentalism Since 1850, by David O. Beale, BJU Press, 1986 ISBN 0-89084-351-1

• Christian fundamentalism in North America
• Recurring events established in 1876
• Recurring events disestablished in 1897
• Christian conferences
• 19th-century church councils
• Protestant councils and synods