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Did the Early Church invent the Trinity?

The doctrine and concept of the Trinity is encapsulated in Matthew 28:19, where Jesus instructs the apostles: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. John, who was very close to Jesus and obviously knew him well, alludes to this teaching frequently in his Gospel, too. For example: John 1:1; John 8:58; John 10:30; and John 10:38. Yet, despite this, and numerous other examples throughout the New Testament which point towards the threefOld nature of God, plenty of myths and legends abound online and in books which state that the divinity of Jesus (and therefore the Trinit...

Lent: Day 2 - Mathetes to Diognetus, pt. 1

...from the Old Testament. Maybe superstition meant something else back then than it does today? This reading then finishes with a description of how Christians live and intermingle with society, yet are distinct from the world around them. I found this challenging and wondered if the description still applies to what we see today in the Church? [The Christians] display to us their wonderful and confessedly striking method of life. They dwell in their own countries, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things with others, and yet endure all things as if foreigners. Every foreign land is to them as their native country, and every land of the...

Lent Day 32: Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures: Lecture XXI

...ed in the Old Testament through Moses “bathing [Aaron] in water, he anointed him … and made him High-priest”. To them however these things happened in a figure, but to you not in a figure, but in truth; because you were truly anointed by the Holy Ghost. Christ is the beginning of your salvation Cyril closes this lecture by encouraging his students to remain “unblemished” in this gift, pressing on in the good works of the Spirit, “for this holy thing is a spiritual safeguard of the body, and salvation of the soul”....

The Reality of Sin

...ew in the Old Testament? Leviticus 14:45He shall have the house torn down, its stones and timber and all the plaster of the house, and taken outside the city to an unclean place. Pretty drastic, right? But it's a serious thing! And sin is an even more serious thing to God, much more than mOld in a house, but if WE are that house and WE have that mOld then how much more serious will God take that? How much more will God tear down our bodies in order to save us from the disease festering in our lives? Look at what Paul tOld the Corinthian church to do with a man living in sin: 1 Corinthians 5:5you are to hand this man over to Satan for the destruction o...

8 Most Controversial Topics In The Church Today

...What are Christians' thoughts on homosexual marriage? Are spiritual talents biblically sanctioned? Can Christians have alcohol? These are some of the issues that frequently spark passionate debate inside the church today. Christians hOld widely varied views on these matters, and both sides cite Scripture to buttress their positions. Even within a community of Christians in today's world, discernment is unquestionably required. Whatever your thoughts are on each of those issues, studying this list of areas wherein the church regularly reviews division will hopefully inspire us as Christ-followers to strive for unity within our personal church buildings or even a...

An ancient fragment mentions Jesus' wife!?

...UPDATE (3rd May 2014): It is now believed to have been confirmed as a hoax/fake; read the full story on The Wall Street Journal. Ancient and not a fake according to scientists IMAGE: HARVARD UNIVERSITY, KAREN L. KING/ASSOCIATED PRESS A little while ago, there was some hoopla in the news about a newly discovered fragment of papyrus from ancient times which contained the phrase "Jesus said to them, 'my wife...,'". Obviously, and not surprisingly, the media made a big deal out of this. Atheists and the like, saw it as a blow to Christianity and conspiracy theorists everywhere thought it confirmed their views that the Vatican and the Catholic Church wer...