darbyism

noun

1. (uncountable)A Christian doctrine formed by John Nelson Darby (1800-1892) and followed by the Exclusive Brethren, which includes a two-stage return of Christ, pretribulation rapture, and seven time periods, called dispensations.

   “While however powerless for good, we regret to say it is not so for evil. Although feeble and emasculate, as a Church, to do any service to the cause of the Gospel, Darbyism can, in a certain degree, damage and hinder the Churches that do.”

   “Those who discern the signs of the times, will not be slow to perceive that Darbyism is but another form of the high-church ritualistic movement of the day, rising among those called “brethren,” which, though less gross and less outward than much which bears that name elsewhere, is not the less real.”

   “The effect of Darbyism upon family life is perhaps its most awful feature.”

   “One of the major strains of American conservatism that has laid claim to one of the two major political parties in the United States is a theological and political ideology known as Darbyism (dispensationalism).”