Modern History
One of the greatest Baptist preachers of all time was Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Stephen McCaskell has put together a documentary that will help you to understand more about this influential pastor.
Year: 2020
Book Reviews, Heresies
Who are the Gnostics and where did they come from? Often they are thought of as a Christian heresy but it may be more complicated then that. Carl Smith looks at these questions in his book No Longer Jews: The Search for Gnostic Origins. The title gives it away that he sees a Jewish connection. … Read More “No Longer Jews – Review” »
General History
I recently did a Twitter poll on influential Christians of the past. It was an eclectic list ranging from theologians to musicians. I tried hard to include some women, but since women have not traditionally had the same opportunities, they were underrepresented. There were some surprises. Some people like John Calvin and C.S. Lewis were … Read More “And the Most Influential Christian of the Past is …” »
Heresies, New Testament
One of the greatest and earliest challenges to what would become orthodox Christianity was Gnosticism. But where did Gnosticism come from and how does it relate to the New Testament. Pheme Perkins, author of Gnosticism and the New Testament, is a New Testament scholar. She argues that there was a pre-Christian form of Gnosticism that … Read More “Gnosticism and the New Testament” »
Church Fathers
I love this quote from the church father Irenaeus. Things have not changed at all in the centuries since he wrote this. “Error, indeed, is never set forth in its naked deformity, lest, being thus exposed, it should at once be detected. But it is craftily decked out in attractive dress, as as, by its … Read More “Attractiveness of Error” »
Church Fathers
I have just finished a section on the podcast on the Apostolic Fathers. Ryan Reeves does an excellent video on the Apostolic Fathers that will give some important context.
Byzantium
The Hagia Sophia has been in the news lately as this historic church turned museum has now become a mosque. This short documentary gives a nice introduction to the Hagia Sophia. For more about this period of history, I recommend The History of Byzantium.
Book Reviews
One of the most intriguing figures in Christian history for me is Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer argued for complete nonresistance and yet was implicated in a plot to assassinate Hitler. Bonhoeffer was too conservative for liberals and too liberal for conservatives. Eric Metaxas attempted to turn him into an evangelical culture warrior in his bestselling biography. … Read More “Letters and Papers from Prison” »
Book Reviews, Heresies
One of the biggest threats to what would become orthodox Christianity was Gnosticism. There had been other theological innovations in the early church but Gnosticism was the most radical. And the most confusing. A helpful book for moderns readers to understand this complex movement is The Gnostics: Identifying and Early Christian Cult by Alastair H. … Read More “The Gnostics – Review” »
Theology
Anicius Manlius Severinus Boëthius (477-524) was born approximately fifty years after the death of Augustine of Hippo. Like Augustine, Boethius was a Christian philosopher who was heavily influenced by Hellenistic philosophy. You may enjoy this short video on Boethius’s most famous work, Consolation of Philosophy.