There are many nicknames applied to the Two by Two Church/Sect (aka 2×2), and this is the most common one in North America.
“Two by Twos” is not a newly coined name. The descriptive term is often shortened to “2x2s” and has become a very commonly used name for this church which claims it does not assume an official name. It was coined by outsiders using one of the Church’s notable practices; that of its preachers traveling in pairs, “two and two” as Jesus sent his disciples.
Mark 6:7: And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two;
Luke 10:1: After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two
Some church members consider the term condescending, derisive or derogatory. The descriptive term is favored by many due to its ease and convenience–with no intention to be offensive. “Two by Twos” works well for identification purposes, uses the fewest number of words, and can even be shortened to three keystrokes: 2×2, which will arrest the attention of almost anyone who has ever been associated with this church.
Wikipedia contains a page titled “Two by Twos.” Wiki requires that articles be titled with the name most often used in third-party references, and the name “Two by Twos” met their requirement.
The US Library of Congress maintains a database of terms used in library records for authors, corporate bodies and subject headings. The authorized form of the name for the Two-by-Two sect in this authority file is “Two-by-Two’s (Christian sect).” So, if you are looking for materials in a library’s catalog by subject headings, use this term instead of “Christian Conventions,” “Cooneyites,” “Go-Preachers” or “Nameless Ones.”
The Encyclopedia of American Religions states: “The group of Christians called ‘Two-by-Twos’ in this text are also referred to as ‘Cooneyites,’ ‘Go Preachers,’ and ‘Tramp Preachers,’ but they claim no name but Christian. All of these names have been placed upon this somewhat anonymous group by outsiders.” The author goes on to state: “The distinctive feature of the movement has been sending forth, two by two, unmarried teams of preachers who, ‘as they go, preach’ (Matt. 10:7).” (Dr. J. Gordon Melton (2003), “The Two-by-Two’s,” Encyclopedia of American Religions, Gale Research, Inc., p. 611)
The earliest printed mention of the term found to date is a book printed in 1925 titled “Through Western Canada in a Caravan.” Subsequent books used the term in 1938, 1941, 1952, 1952 and 1955 and “The Apostles’ Doctrine & Fellowship” in 2003. An encyclopedia about various Christian Fellowships used the term in: “Profiles in Belief – The Religious Bodies of the US and Canada” in 1979 by Arthur C. Piepkorn.
Books written exclusively about the Two by Twos were first printed in 1968 with the booklet titled “They Go About Two by Two,” followed by “The Secret Sect” in 1982.
“The Church Without a Name,” published in 1990, was the first book to refer to the church as “Two by Twos” throughout the entire book.
“Has the Truth Set You Free” was published in 1991.
Three books were published by Research & Information Services during 1993–1996.
“The Church with No Name” published in 1996,
“In Vain They Do Worship” published in 2000.
“Two by Two: The Shape of a Shapeless Movement” published in Ireland in 2012 (used Two by Two in its title)
Newspaper articles used the term in articles published in 1941, 1983, 1992, 1994, 2000 and 2001. The term was applied on November 4, 2010, in a printed announcement placed by Tommie Gamble, Overseer of Ireland, in the Church Notice section of the Tyrone County Constitution (a Northern Ireland weekly newspaper) regarding Gospel Meetings held by “The Present Day 2 by 2 Apostles T. Gamble and H. McKnight.”
Authors writing about the 2×2 Church HAVE to use a name for identification purposes.
Cherie Kropp-Ehrig chose to use “Two by Two” in her book “Preserving the Truth,” because currently, that is the most commonly used term, the one used by Wikipedia and the US Library of Congress.
Compiled by Cherie Kropp-Ehrig, 2022