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Creedal Christians: The Nicene Creed

The Nicene Creed — what is it and why is it called that? This creed gets its name from a time and place: the first ecumenical Church council held at Nicaea, which is now known as İznik in northwestern Turkey, in 325 AD. Now that may raise another question for you: what is an ecumenical council? Well, to explain more about the Nicene Creed, we are going to have to take a look at The First council of Nicaea in order to better understand why this creed was written. First things first though; an “ecumenical council” is ideally a Church-wide meeting where all the Bishops from all across the Church come together to hold a very large and very important meetin...

Does Easter Have Pagan Origins?

Much like any major Christian holiday, there are the usual arguments and accusations about how it’s all just pagan festivities with a “Christian mask”. Easter is no different, and usually gets hit the hardest over its so-called “pagan roots”, or in the month or so preceding it, Lent being some “invention of the Catholic Church”. Table of Contents The Lenten Fast The Easter controversy and why we celebrate it when we do Is the Name “Easter” really the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre? Chocolate eggs and bunnies? Concluding Thoughts Further Reading and Sources I like to try and observe Lent, as it is one of the most ancient custom...

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

Pope Francis has recently expressed the Catholic Church’s willingness to accept a unified date for Easter, a move aimed at fostering greater Christian unity, particularly with the Orthodox Church. This long-standing issue arises from the different calendars used by Western and Eastern Christian traditions — the Gregorian and Julian calendars — leading to discrepancies in Easter celebrations. Talks between Catholic and Orthodox leaders have intensified, hoping a common date could be agreed upon. However, this raises important questions for Protestant denominations regarding whether they would adopt the unified date or risk falling out of alignment w...

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

A myth that never seems to fade away: the idea that the council of Nicaea, convened in 325 AD under the authority of Roman Emperor Constantine, played a pivotal role in establishing the Biblical canon. This notion suggests a conspiracy and power play orchestrated by a select group of elite bishops; a narrative popularised by works like Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code. However, a closer examination reveals a lack of historical basis for this claim. The council of Nicaea and the Canon Contrary to popular belief, there is no evidence that the council of Nicaea discussed or established the Canon of Scripture, leading to the creation of the Bible. Early Christian cano...

A Journey Through Church History

After many, many months of working on this in between COVID and other “life events” that kept me busy, I’ve finally released the Third Edition of my book, 40 Day With the Fathers: A Journey Through Church History! The Third Edition includes: a foreword by Paul Pavao (author of Decoding nicea), updated content and also a new chapter about the council of Nicaea explaining what did (and didn’t) happen there. “I cannot imagine there is a better way to get familiar with 350 of the most important years of church history in seven hours spread over 40 days.” — Paul Pavao, author of Decoding nicea If you are unfamiliar with my previous editions...

The Real St. Nicholas: A Man of Virtue, Not Violence

When we think of St. Nicholas, two contrasting images often emerge: the cheerful, gift-giving Santa Claus and the fiery bishop who supposedly punched Arius at the council of Nicaea. The latter story, popularised through memes and tales of “righteous anger,” portrays Nicholas as a defender of truth through violence. But how much of this tale is rooted in fact? St Nicholas of Myra slapping Arius at the council of Nicaea.Fresco from the Soumela Monastery (Turkey) The truth is both simpler and more profound: St. Nicholas embodied the teachings of Christ, not through impulsive acts of aggression, but through a life of love, generosity, and devotion. Sepa...