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How Polycarp (And Others) Show The Early Use Of The New Testament

...owing two quotes give us some great, and rare, insights: But Polycarp also was not only instructed by apostles, and conversed with many who had seen Christ, but was also, by apostles in Asia, appointed bishop of the Church in Smyrna, whom I also saw in my early youth, for he tarried [on earth] a very long time, and, when a very old man, gloriously and most nobly suffering martyrdom, departed this life, having always taught the things which he had learned from the apostles, and which the Church has handed down, and which alone are true. — Against Heresies (Book III, 3.4) For I have a more vivid recollection of what occurred at that time than of recent eve...

American Gun Violence and the Early Church on War and Violence

...h, as the quotes above point out. We have documented teaching from the first two centuries by those who were taught by the Apostles and who followed in their (and Jesus') instructions, rejecting any and all forms of violence and weapon bearing.  So where did it all go wrong and change?   See more early Church quotes on war and violence here: rogueminister.wordpress.com/.../quotes-the-early-church-on-war-and-violence/ Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.   Further Reading: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/oct/02/las-vegas-shooting-what-we-know-so-far http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/one-mass-shooting-every-day-seven-facts-gun-...

Does Christmas have pagan origins?

...then, the quotes from Early Fathers so far have merely been speculation about the time and date for information’s sake really, with no mention of it being a celebrated event. When was December 25th celebrated? December was already a period of festivities in the Roman Empire for a variety of reasons, one such event being Saturnalia. This was a festival in honour of the god Saturn and was held on December 17th originally, but later extended to the 23rd. It involved gift giving and feasting, so you can see where some of those influences still appear today! Early Christians spoke against the pagan festivals of the day, and usually just lumped them all together...

Did the Early Church invent the Trinity?

...ection of quotes from Apostolic period onward showing that Christians everywhere for all time have believed Jesus was the divine Son and Word of God, incarnate in flesh, yet still recognised him as God and creator. quotes From the Early Church The Didache (c. 70) And concerning baptism, baptise this way: Having first said all these things, baptise into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in living [running] water. … But if you have neither, pour out water three times upon the head into the name of Father and Son and Holy Spirit. — Didache 7:1, A.D. 70. Clement of Alexandria (c. 95-140) Do we not have one God and one Ch...

Did the Qumran community predict the coming of Jesus?

...with the quotes from the Qumran scroll below: When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”   Here's an excerpt from the article I read, with some quotes from the scroll: We now have an unambiguous statement that “raising the dead” was one of the key expectatio...

Lent: Day 13 - Justin Martyr: First Apology, Chaps. 12-23

...o present quotes from Christ's teaching to prove that “He was no sophist, but His word was the power of God”! For clarity, since words have changed meaning over time or fallen into disuse, being a “sophist” and speaking “sophistically” was a form of teaching and arguing in Greek philosophy and was a way of reasoning with clever, but false arguments, that just sounded good – whether or not they were accurate was besides the point. The Teachings of Jesus Justin lists out a whole page full of quotes from Jesus, all of which we’d recognise from the Gospels, from his teachings on looking at a women with lust, to divorce, to praying for your enemies...