General Flashcards
What is the value of studying church history?
- Illuminates cultural biases in our faith.
- We understand past mistakes
- We see God’s sovereignty
- Perspective - nothing we face is new
- It reminds us Christianity wasn’t invented in 1800’s America.
What are the time periods of the Church?
1) N.T./Apostles (6 B.C.-70 A.D)
2) Church Fathers (70-312)
3) Roman Christian
Empire (312-550)
4) Christian Middle Ages (550-1517)
(5) Age of Reformation (1517-1649)
6) Enlightenment & Expansion (1649-1860)
7) Modern (1860-present)
NT/Apostles Period (6 BC - 70 AD)
Major Events: Trans. from Jewish to Gentile church; Jerusalem is no longer central.
Key People: Jesus, disciples
Description: Ministry of JC; partial recording in Acts; time of expansion of Xty to ends of the world; issues re: Jews/Gentiles, early Gnosticism; apostles are largely the teachers, leaders; some martyred
Church Fathers (70-312 AD)
Major Events: (70) Destruction of Jerusalem (70-200) Gen. Persecution (250-260) EmpPers. (Decius) (303ff) Grt Pers. (Diocletian)
Key People: Apostolic Fathers & Apologists (Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Eusebius)
Description: Xty was small sect facing persecution and heresy (Gnosticism); no fixed creeds, theology or worship. Apostles are dying out; many are martyred
Roman Christian Empire (312-550 AD)
Main Events: 312 Const. Converted 313 Edict of Milan 325 C of Nicea 381 C of Constantinople 431 C of Ephesus 451 C of Chalcedon
Key People: Constantine, Arius, Athanasius, Chrysostom., Jerome, Ambrose, Augustine
Description: Constantine converted, Xty allowed freedom, church no longer underground, grows, larger structures are needed. Time of councils and creeds as diverse parts of empire come together and theology is more widespread. Eventually a “Xian” empire.
Christian Middle Ages (550-1517 AD)
Main Events: 663 Syn of Whitby 716 Boniface missionary 800 Charlemagne Crowned 1054 E/W Schism 1095 1st Crusade 1215 4th Lateran Council
Key People: Benedict, St. Patrick Gregory the Grt, Bede, Anselm, Abelaard, Bernard of Clair., Fran of Assisi, Aquinas
Description: As old Roman Emp. collapses Xty takes on a stabilizing role; missionary spread to northern Europe; rise of Islam leading to crusades; tremendous papal power leads to abuses secularism; rise of monasticism and rediscovery of Aristot. leading to scholasticism/rise of universities
Age of Reformation (1517-1649 AD)
Main Events: 1521 Luther excommunicated 1534 Henry VIII’s separation 1536 1st ed. of Institutes 1542-64 Calvin in Geneva 1545 Council of Trent starts 1618-19 Synod of Dordt 1643-49 Westminster Assem.
Key People: Hus, Wycliffe, Tyndale, Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Henry/Elizabeth, Cramner, Knox, Loyola, Spener, Simmons
Description: Sparks of reformation: papal/eccl abuse and decline leads many “pre-reformers” into action: Wycliff, Hus, etc.
Culminates in Lutheran, Swiss and English reform and RCC counter-reformation. Radical changes to doctrine, church structure; some magisterial reforms and some radical.
Enlightenment and Expansion (1649-1860 AD)
Main Events:
1735-43 1st G. Awakening
1793 Carrey to India
1795-1830 2nd G. Awakening
Key People: Puritans, Edwards, Whitfield, Wesleys, Carrey, Locke, Hume, Darwin, Finney, Spurgeon
Description: Xian confessionalism challenged by enlightenment, secular reason, higher criticism, issues of authority; also 2 Grt Awkn in NA, modern missions started.
Modern (1860-Present)
Main Events: 1830-60 OS/NS debate 1880ff flourishing of lib th. 1920ff Mod/Fund & Princ. 1924 Auburn Affirmation 1964 Vatican II
Key People: Hodge, Warfield, Moody, Machen, Taylor, Kuyper, Barth, Graham
Description: In wake of enlightenment modernist & fund. controversy which cuts across denom lines: key issue of authority; neo-orthodoxy; missions expand; rise of evangelicalism and ecumenical movmt.
What were the “solas” of the Reformation?
▪ Sola scriptura -
Ultimate authority is scripture (history, assemblies, doctrine and interpretation are all helpful and important, but they are not on an equal footing)
Don’t need the church to interpret scripture. Scripture defines the church, not the church defining scripture.
▪ Sola gratia - Basis for salvation is entire grace; it is not God taking what I can offer and then adding his share to it; it isn’t a co-operative effort.
▪ Sola fides - Means for salvation: How is grace delivered? Not by the sacraments (ala RCC) but by faith (which God also gives). Again notice it isn’t our faith, plus the things we do—works are an evidence of faith, not a means of salvation.
▪ Solus Christus - salvation is in Christ alone
▪ Soli Deo Gloria - God’s glory above all else
▪ Priesthood of all Believers -
No hierarchy of access to God: all can come directly to him; we don’t need priestly mediator.
No one is closer to God based on office.
We all have a responsibility to minister to one another.
Five Fundamentals
- Inerrancy of Scripture
- The Virgin Birth
- Substitutionary Atonement
- Christ’s Bodily Resurrection
- The Authenticity of Christ’s Miracles
Briefly discuss the development of covenant theology
- The ideas are present in Augustine’s City of God: “All humans have broken God’s covenant in that one in whom all have sinned.” Recognizes a first covenant made with Adam.
- Came to the forefront in the Reformation - Jonhannes Oecolampadius identifies three covenants
- Calvin - Federal Theology and the covenant of grace; Law and Gospel
- Developed by Ursinas, Olevianus, Cocceius, Turretin, and Witsius in the the 16th and 17th Centuries
- 18th and 19th Centuries Hodge, Warfield, Vos, Machen, and Bavinck
- Barth: No covenant of works
- Murray and Shepherd - no covenant of works
- Kline Classic view, but negative take on Mosaic law as covenant of works
