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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...

American Gun Violence and the Early Church on War and Violence

...In light of the sad, recent events in the Las Vegas shooting — and similar events in America— I often see Christians across social media jumping to the defence of gun ownership whenever there is even a slight hint at gun control in America. But how has gun culture become so ingrained in American Christianity when we can observe a clear theme and pattern of thought in the first few centuries of the Church, which goes completely against this? Update 7th Nov 2017: It's so sad to have to update this post on the same subject so soon, almost a month to the day. Yet another shooting, this time in Texas where 26 people have been shot dead in a church of all pl...

Lent: Day 1 - The Didache

...Day One: the Didache (in full) Who: Written by an anonymous author, possibly multiple sources compiled into one book at a later date. The title translates as “the teaching”, or in its full tithe: Teaching of the Twelve Apostles. What: The Didache is basically a church handbook with a summarised collection of the basic teachings of the Church and Gospel, aimed at local church leaders and new converts. Why: Tradition has it as being a collection of the apostles teachings, so it was probably written to preserve this information as they grew Older or died, or moved away from the communities they planted. When: Between 70-100 AD The Didache is one of my...