In the spring of 1823 Alexander Campbell began publication of the Christian Baptist. The name was suggested by Walter Scott, together with Thomas Campbell. Scott felt that since at this time most of the work was being done among the Baptists, a title like the Christian Baptist would do much to put down prejudice among the very people that he hoped to reach. Alexander Campbell himself was in favor of calling the paper simply the Christian, but he yielded to the suggestion of Walter Scott and Thomas Campbell.
     The Christian Baptist continually berated an attitude of warfare. It waged a relentless war against the kingdom of the clergy. In the early days the paper was largely the work of Walter Scott and Alexander Campbell. Scott wrote under the title of “Philip.” He considered Alexander Campbell the Martin Luther of this new reformation and himself as the Philip Melancthon. This relationship was not only interesting, but very accurate also. Many years ago Martin Luther, comparing himself to Philip Melancthon, wrote the following:
     I was born to fight with mobs and devils, and so my books are very stormy and warlike. I must remove trees and stumps, cut away thorns and thickets, and fill up quagmires. I am the rough woodsman who must blaze the way and clear the path. But Master Philip comes along gently and quietly, builds and plants, sows and waters, with joy, according to the gifts God has richly bestowed on him.
     By the year 1829 Campbell had determined to cease the publication of the Christian Baptist. His reasons for doing so seemed to be twofold. It is often suggested that Campbell yielded to the influence of friends who told him that he was incurring too much antagonism because of the fiery spirit which the Christian Baptist assumed. Then again the reason, which is more likely, for his dropping the Christian Baptist and starting another paper was the fact that Campbell was fearful that those who believed like himself would be given the sectarian name of “Christian Baptists.” He did not want a group of people to arise which would be given this title, and so thought it best to have the Christian Baptist die and another paper begin.
     On Monday, January 4, 1830, the first copy of the Millennial Harbinger was issued. The first volume consisted of over six hundred pages, and each number made about forty-eight pages. The cost was $2.50 a year, except those who paid in advance, and to them the paper came for $2.00. It was a monthly publication, and was to be put out on the first Monday of every month.
     The name of the paper is particularly significant. What were Alexander Campbell’s reasons for calling it the Millennial Harbinger? The answer to this question is found in a study of some of Campbell’s remarks on this subject.
     In his “Prospectus,” Campbell makes some observations on this point. First, he tells us that the paper “shall have for its object the development and introduction of that political and religious state of society called the millennium, which will be the consummation of that ultimate amelioration of society proposed in the Christian Scriptures.” From this it can be seen that Campbell’s idea of the millennium would be the final perfection or improvement of society which is brought about by men’s adherence to the teaching of the word of God. But how shall this be done? Campbell believed that all of the sectarian establishments known on the earth were in reality but hindrances to this end. He believed that the creeds and the confessions of faith had prevented men from having an accurate understanding of the Holy Scriptures. He believed that all political governments were unjust when contrasted with the justice which Christianity proposes. Therefore, it would be seen that the millennium cannot come, or society in general cannot be brought to obedience of the Scriptures, until all sectarian churches were destroyed, creeds and confessions of faith overthrown, and the original gospel allowed to have its full and complete sway in the hearts of men.
     Campbell could rightfully boast that there was no other organization proposed in the Christian world with the same design and embracing the same outline.
     In the spring of 1840 the New England section of our country became extremely excited over the teachings of William Miller. From that time forward for the next four or five years thoughts of Miller were prevalent everywhere in religious circles. Some men began to cast questioning eyes at the Millennial Harbinger and to wonder about its emphasis upon the millennium. Campbell then wrote:
     “We have often rather jeeringly been asked: ‘Wherein consists the millennial characteristics of the Harbinger?’ The querists imagine that a millennial harbinger must be always discussing or preaching millenniary affairs. When we put to sea under this banner, we had the port of Primitive Christianity, in letter and in spirit, in profession and practice, in our eye; reasoning that all the millennium we could scripturally expect was not merely restoration of the Jerusalem church in all its moral and religious characters, but the extension of it through all nations and languages for one thousand years. To prepare the way for such a development of Christianity, several things are essential.

1. The annihilation of partyism.
2. The restoration of a pure speech.
3. The preaching of the original gospel.
4. The restoration of the Christian ordinances.
5. Larger measures of the Holy Spirit, as promised to those who seek for it in the appointed way.”
 
    Alexander Campbell goes on to suggest in this same article that he has kept the Millennial Harbinger clear from any theory of the millennium because of three reasons. The first reason was that he wanted to understand more fully the prophecies before writing on them. The second reason was his reluctance to identify the cause of restoration with any theory of a millennium, for fear that men might lose sight of the restoration principles in the millennium theory. In the third place, Campbell suggested that he had not written on any theories, because he had too many other matters that he considered more important to write about.
 From these points of consideration there are some particularly interesting things. Up to the spring of 1840 Campbell had been silent regarding many theories of a future thousand-year reign. His whole idea up to this time seems to be that there would come a time when the influence of the Scripture—in short, of Christianity—would be predominant on the earth, and this would be brought about when sectarianism was destroyed and the pure original gospel was proclaimed. Consequently, Campbell’s entire attention was given to proclaiming the original gospel and destroying sectarian establishments. Because his paper was to be the announcer of these facts, Campbell then appropriately called it the Millennial Harbinger. —Gospel Advocate (March 10, 1949)