Blog Search Results

Before The Pumpkins: The Day Two Women Defied Rome

...it” as Jesus taught (Matt 16:18). These women stood firm, not as warriors or rulers, but as mothers, daughters, and servants whose hope burned brighter than whatever devices the devil used to end their lives. They remind us that the cloud of witnesses includes every kind of believer — rich and poor, male and female, young and old — all joined by the same unshakable confession: “Jesus is Lord”. As we remember them today, may we find courage for our own smaller trials, and be inspired by those who stood on the sand of the arena before us: standing on the shoulders of giants, and walking in the steps of Christ, who first endured the Further R...

Lent Day 31: Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechetical Lectures: Lecture XX

...to Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? … since you are not under law but under grace. Now, these people that Cyril was teaching had already gone through the act of baptism, so now he was going over the symbolism and realities of what that meant to them personally. In describing the baptism rite to make one of his points, Cyril gives us a small insight into how the Church in the fourth century performed this, which I always find interesting to see how things have changed or stayed the same over the centuries. Before entering the waters, the one being baptised would strip of their tunic, symbolising “putting off the old man with his deeds” (Co...

Kirk Cameron And The Biblical Case For Annihilationism

...37:20) Jesus Himself warns that God can “destroy both body and soul in Gehenna” (Matt. 10:28). This is not language of preservation, but of finality. Revelation describes the ultimate fate of the wicked as the second death (Rev. 20:14–15). Death, by definition, is the loss of life — not life in another mode. Hence why it is “second”: the first being physical death from the body, the second being spiritual death from existence. Fire, in biblical imagery, does not preserve what it judges. It consumes chaff (Matt. 3:12), destroys the weeds (Matt. 13:40), and leaves nothing remaining. The only exception to this is when God’s fire is refining a...

On the Feast of the Nativity, a sermon by Leo the Great

...d, Christ Jesus. On the Feast of the Nativity, I. I. All share in the joy of Christmas Our Saviour, dearly-beloved, was born today: let us be glad. For there is no proper place for sadness, when we keep the birthday of the Life, which destroys the fear of mortality and brings to us the joy of promised eternity. No one is kept from sharing in this happiness. There is for all one common measure of joy, because as our Lord the destroyer of sin and death finds none free from charge, so is He come to free us all. Let the saint exult in that he draws near to victory. Let the sinner be glad in that he is invited to pardon. Let the gentile take courage in that he is...

A Historic Easter Change Is Coming — But Will Protestants Get On Board?

...faith, as Jesus prayed for us in John 13:34–35 and 17:21–23. I do wonder how it will affect the commercialisation side of things too and whether secular society will follow suit with the changes. Interesting times ahead, it seems! Sources and Further Reading Pope Francis: The Catholic Church is willing to accept a common date for Easter in the East and West | America Magazine Archbishop Justin Welby hopes for fixed Easter date — BBC News Justin Welby: Archbishop of Canterbury quits over abuse scandal — BBC News Creedal Christians: The Nicene Creed | The Sacred Faith: Timeless Truths for Modern Minds Council of Nicea, AD 325 | Patristi...

Before the Pumpkins: The Barbecued Deacon

...e thanked Jesus and then gave up his spirt and died. Decius is said to be left very confused by it all and just walked away, leaving the body burning, likely feeling a slight tinge of defeat in that his torments didn’t have the desired effect. Reflection The story of Lawrence might seem almost unbelievable if it were not so deeply embedded in the memory of the early Church. Within a century, churches were being built in his honour. Augustine preached sermons on his feast day, calling him “victor in suffering, lover of the poor, and steward of the heavenly treasury.” His name was included in the Roman Canon, the most ancient part of the Eucharistic prayer...