James L Harris

Early Life and Background

James Lampden Harris was born on 13 February 1793, the fifth son of John Harris of Radford, near Plymouth, and one of a very large family. He received a formal education and was duly ordained in the Church of England, entering the Anglican ministry during a period of growing evangelical concern over the state of the Church.

He became perpetual curate of Plymstock, a position that gave him both pastoral responsibility and public standing. Harris was recognised early as a man of scholarship and seriousness, qualities that later deeply shaped his influence within the Brethren movement.

Separation from the Established Church

In 1832, through obtaining a fuller and more searching knowledge of Scripture, Harris reached the solemn conviction that he could no longer continue within the Established Church. Acting in obedience to conscience, he gave up his living and deliberately associated himself with believers who were meeting “in simplicity”, outside ecclesiastical systems.

This step involved real sacrifice and placed him among the earliest Anglican clergymen to align practically with what soon became known as the Brethren movement. His presence immediately strengthened the young gatherings, particularly in the Plymouth area.

Role in the Early Brethren Movement

James Lampden Harris quickly emerged as one of the chief men among the early Brethren, both by reason of his personal stature and his extensive connections with leading figures such as Benjamin Wills Newton and John Nelson Darby.

In 1834, the first Brethren periodical, The Christian Witness, was started under his editorship. This publication became a principal means for expressing early Brethren convictions, and the later magazine The Witness consciously followed its original spiritual and doctrinal lines, frequently reprinting Harris’s early papers.

For many years, Harris held weekly Bible readings at Plymouth, attended by people of all classes. He was a good scholar, possessed a large Hebrew Bible, and translated freely from it. His judgment on difficult passages of Scripture was frequently sought and highly valued, even by leading students of the Word.

Writings and Literary Ministry

Harris was a prolific and spiritually weighty writer, and his works remain among the most valuable legacies of the early Brethren era. His writings are marked by clarity, depth, and a fragrance of Christlike spirit that survived the controversies of his day.

Books and Pamphlets (Selected)

Among his many works were:

• On Worship

• By Faith Ye Stand

• Not I But Christ; or, Law and Grace as Reviewed in the Epistle to the Galatians

• Jewish Bondage and Christian Freedom; or, Jewish and Christian Worship Contrasted

• What Is a Church? (1840)

• Heavenly-Mindedness

• Thoughts on the Spiritual Nature of the Present Dispensation

• Power in the World and Power in the Church (Matt. 22:16–22)

• The School of God

• The Zeal of Jehu

These works address worship, grace, ecclesiology, dispensational truth, and spiritual formation, and they continue to be read long after the controversies that occasioned some of them have faded.

Historical and Controversial Writings

Harris was deeply involved in the Newton Controversy, which began in 1847 after notes from a lecture by Newton on Psalm 6—lent to Mrs. Harris—became the catalyst for prolonged doctrinal dispute. Harris’s own work, The Sufferings of Christ as Set Forth in a Lecture on Psalm VI, stands at the centre of this debate.

This controversy, with its assertions, withdrawals, reassertions, and explanations, became one of the most complex and enduring disputes in Brethren history. Yet, as later generations recognised, the enduring question increasingly became simply: “What saith the Scriptures?” (Rom. 4:3).

Stand Against Clericalism

Although Plymouth developed a settled order of ministry, with Newton and Harris ministering alternately, Harris was nevertheless one of the barriers against a drift toward clericalism. It was said that people knew “Newton’s day” and “Harris’ day” and planned attendance accordingly—an arrangement later seen as inconsistent with open ministry.

In this context, Harris’s position illustrates both the transitional character of the early movement and his own desire to preserve spiritual liberty while maintaining order. His presence helped restrain tendencies that might otherwise have hardened into clerical structures.

Later Life and Final Years

Harris was a deep prophetic student and took a leading part in the important Freemasons’ Hall meeting in London in May 1864, reflecting his continued engagement with wider Christian testimony.

He married twice; his second wife was a daughter of Legh Richmond, author of The Dairyman’s Daughter. The couple lived successively at Plymstock, Plympton, and later Weston-super-Mare, moving there at the earnest request of his old friend Percy Francis Hall.

James Lampden Harris died on 9 October 1877, leaving behind a name deeply respected and revered.

Legacy

Harris’s legacy rests above all in his writings, which outlived the sorrows and divisions of his time and continue to breathe the spirit of Christ. He is remembered as:

• a scholar of Scripture

• a formative editor and teacher

• a conscientious leader in times of crisis

• a steadfast witness against clericalism

• a man whose work remains when controversy has passed

As long as his books are read, the name of James Lampden Harris will continue to be revered.