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Free Early Church Resources

...gnificant historical events which may have influenced certain writings. KEY:Orange = New TestamentDark Green = Apostolic Fathers (c.70 - c.150 AD)Light Green = Ante-Nicene Fathers (pre-325 AD)Light Orange = Post-Nicene FathersBlue = Significant historical EventsBlack = Major Time PeriodsTeal = First Seven Ecumenical CouncilsRed = Widespread PersecutionsLight Red = Localised/Regional PersecutionsGrey = Disputed FactsYellow = Major Schisms * Much of the dating and research has been taken from the works of Schaff, Lightfoot, Harmer et al. Powered by Time.Graphics  ...

Should Christians get tattoos, and is it Biblical?

...I was in a discussion not so long ago about tattoos, and I was asked about the historical view on this practice. It wasn’t something I had looked into before from a Church Fathers point of view, so it was an interesting topic of study. In my searching, I found this article from a Catholic site which seems to give a pretty interesting overview of some of the views about tattoos in the earlier centuries. The following is a quote about a Church Council in the context of native Britons, who still practiced tattooing at that time for pagan ritual, something which Tertullian also gives a fleeting reference to around 213 AD in his On the Veiling of Virgins, ch. 10....

The Relationship Between Jesus and Sophia

...lical and historical views on this “Sophia”, as she isn’t a new concept at all. The caption under the Instagram post sounds nice, but it’s ever so slightly off-kilter that it misrepresents everything. Let’s look at the claims line by line: Jesus had two moms.Their names areMary and Sophia. Well, not much to say here yet, but… nope. You’ve heard about Mary, but do you know about Sophia? Well, yes, I do. Maybe you, dear reader, know as well. But I began to question whether the author of the caption did. Sophia is the Greek word for God’s Wisdom. OK, finally. Getting to some facts and less conjecture. Although I would clarify that “sop...

The Coming of Jesus: The Olivet Discourse – Part 2

...ed in the historical record, they fled! This is what is known as the “flight to Pella” (Mark 13:14-16; Matt 24:16-18; Luke 21:21). Pella was about 75 miles north of Jerusalem, which, according to Google Maps, would take you 26 hours to walk! That may seem a long way to go, but this is exactly what the Jerusalem Church did as they heeded the warnings from Jesus, and also from an angelic encounter telling them where to flee to! The people of the Church in Jerusalem were commanded by an oracle given by revelation before the war to those in the city who were worthy of it to depart and dwell in one of the cities of Perea which they called Pella. To it those...

Understanding The New Testament: Inspiration, Canonisation, And historical Context

...rmine the historical context of the apostles’ work for the Lord. Through this we can trust that what has been handed down to us, is the same things written by the apostles (as modern textual criticism can attest to), and that the New Testament contains all knowledge we need for faith and salvation in Christ Jesus.     Further Reading Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why (Plus): Amazon.co.uk: Bart D. Ehrman: 9780060859510: Books Gospel of the Hebrews — Wikipedia Philip Schaff: ANF08. The Twelve Patriarchs, Excerpts and Epistles, The Clementia, Apocrypha, Decretals, Memoirs of Edessa and Syriac Documents, Remains of...

Ancient “curse” amulet drastically changes perspective on Biblical dating

...ltar is a historical fact.” Scholars are at a near consensus that the Exodus and Israelites’ settlement in Canaan happened during the 13th century BC. But Dr. Stripling pointed out another implication brought on by this discovery, “This changes our timeline for the Exodus from Egypt and subsequent entry into Israel. The conquest would have had to take place at an earlier date”. Along with the amulet, they also discovered flat stones covered in plaster at the site of the altar. This is another confirmation for the Deuteronomy account: Deuteronomy 27:4So when you have crossed over the Jordan, you shall set up these stones, about which I am commanding yo...