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Fasting: A spiritual and physical discipline

...Similar, history changing events, also happened from prayer and fasting in 2 Chronicles 20, and the post-Acts early church. Here’s a quick quote from Tertullian (c.198) and Irenaeus (c.180), respectively, on the power of prayer and fasting: “When, indeed, have droughts not been put away by our kneeling and our fastings?” “When the entire church in that particular locality entreated God with much fasting and prayer, the spirit of the dead man has returned, and he has been bestowed in answer to the prayers of the saints.” The general belief about fasting, which we can see in the early writings, also shows that the Church taught not only absta...

Spiritual Disciplines of the Early Church: Ancient Practices for the 21st Century

...I was asked not so long ago what kinds of things Christians did in the Early Church (first to fourth century) as a form of spiritual discipline, on a personal level as well as a corporate one. Though the concept of an individual “personal spiritual life” would have been quite foreign to first century believers as faith and Church was very much a corporate venture that had personal implications, rather than the other way around as it can often appear to be thought of today. Much of what made Christianity structured, disciplined and set apart from society, has largely been lost in practice, or forgotten and relegated to the annals of history by many practicin...

The Coming of Jesus: The Olivet Discourse – Part 1

...know its history better and have a desire to exegete things well, rather than fob off the confusing/hard passages with catchphrases. Think of it this way: if God was going to give a prophecy and be accurate and precise in all the details, why would he then be obscure about the timing of it? With that said, lets look at the prophecy Jesus gives.   Apocalypse then (not later) Something that seems to go unnoticed, or is overlooked, in discussions about this prophecy, are the "timestamps" that Jesus uses to say when this will be fulfilled. Even in the preceding chapter in Matthew and its parallel in Luke, after Jesus has said all his woes about the Pharisee...

Jesus, Mithras and Ancient Roman Cults: Separating Fact from Fiction

...olars and history enthusiasts alike to this day, whereas Churches can be found in nearly every town and city across this country (the UK), and in many other parts of the world, because the truth of Jesus has only grown stronger and spread globally over the last 2000 years.   Further Reading Näsström.indd.pag.indd (isvroma.org) Handbuch Der Orientalistik — Google Books Philip Schaff: NPNF2–06. Jerome: The Principal Works of St. Jerome — Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org) Tauroctony — Wikipedia The Tauroctony (tertullian.org) 9 The Mithraic Mysteries as Symbol System: III. The Tauroctony | The Religion of the Mithras...

When Church history and Science Collide

...I recently saw a video on TikTok from a guy who makes videos about physics and the universe in all its complex wonder, and the video that popped up was one about a supernova that happened 1000 years ago. These things interest me in general, but this one in particular caught my eye for other reasons: it’s a pretty unique event and is known as “the supernova of 1054”. Now for some of you reading this, that year may sound very familiar if you know your church history. This is the year of The Great Schism (also known as the East-West Schism)! Why is this relevant, you might be asking yourself… Well, let me tell you what my thoughts are. My thinking went...

Debunking the Myth: The Council of Nicaea and the Formation of the Biblical Canon

...ts of the history of the canon, there is no indication that it was established by a small group of bishops at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Debunking such myths is crucial for a more accurate understanding of the historical development of the Christian Bible. Further Reading Creedal Christians: The Nicene Creed | The Sacred Faith: Timeless Truths for Modern Minds The Council of Nicaea (Nicea) and the Bible (tertullian.org) John Meade on The Biblical Canon Lists — Phoenix Seminary (ps.edu) The Council of Nicaea and Biblical Canon — Phoenix Seminary (ps.edu) Synodicon Vetus — Wikipedia Voltaire — Wikipedia Robert Taylor (Radi...