Update to First Reading Report

A few numbers has come in from individuals who were not at church Sunday but had reading to report.  With these late additions we have reached our weekly goal. 

1011 chapters read!

RDH6 - One Man Seeking Salvation

Martin Luther was born in 1483.  His father had every intention of him becoming a lawyer, but Luther gave that up to become a monk.  There are many reasons why Luther joined a monastery instead of following his Father's wishes, but none more interesting than a promise he made to St. Anne. 

During an intense lightening storm, Luther, fearing for his life, promised St. Anne that he would become a monk if she protected him from the storm.

Luther was constantly obsessed  with heaven and hell and had no certainty about where he was going.  He simply could not bear the thought of dying with such uncertainty.  The monastery provided a sense of hope.  In the monastery, perhaps Luther could find salvation.  In 1505, Luther joined an Augustinian monastery, just shy of 22 years of age.

To be continued...

Previous Reformation Day History:
RDH1 - The Great Schism
RDH2 - The Fall of Constantinople
RDH3 - Humanism
RDH4 - John Hus 
RDH5 - Erasmus of Rotterdam

First Reading Report

Wow, we read 930 chapters of the New Testament last week.  That number comes from 18 people reading.  Our goal for the month is 4000.  To reach that goal we need to average 1000 per week as a church.  We only missed it by one person reading their ten chapters a day.  We are well on or way to reaching our goal.  Keep up the good work.  If you haven't started already, start reading now so you can report on your reading this coming Sunday. 

930 chapters read!

Update to Questions

There have been several more questions submitted.  I have added them to the list. Click below to read it.

Questions Submitted So Far

RDH5 - Erasmus of Rotterdam

Now let's take another ingredient, Humanism.  We looked at how humanism brought a renewed interest in ancient writings.  This movement had its impact on the church, most notably in the life of Erasmus of Rotterdam.  His father was a priest.  That should immediately give you pause because priests did not marry.  His humble, illegitimate status may have had an impact on his life and teaching.

He taught that righteousness was more important than doctrine.  During his lifetime, the monasteries had become extremely corrupt.  He taught that the Christian should be a soldier living in holiness rather than retreating to the monastery--enjoying worldly pleasures.  His teaching reached the ears of many throughout Europe and laid some foundational work for what would eventually be the Protestant Reformation.  Erasmus would have reformed the church from within, had that been possible.

To be continued...

Previous Reformation Day History:
RDH1 - The Great Schism
RDH2 - The Fall of Constantinople
RDH3 - Humanism
RDH4 - John Hus

Questions Submitted So Far (Updated 10/19/09)

1. Where did Cain's wife come from? (Oct. 4th)
   
2. What was the mark placed on Cain by God? (Oct.18th)
   
3. Who are the sons of God in Genesis 6? (Oct. 18th)
   
4. If Judas had asked for forgiveness, would he have gone to heaven?(Oct. 18th)
   
5. What is the church's view on the theory of Evolution, and what does the Bible say about it?
   
6. What are the Septuagint, Syriac, Targum, and Vulgate texts? (Oct. 18th)
   
(Update - October 10th, 2009)
7. Why does Jesus tell people not to tell others when they were healed?
8. How is Jesus a descendant of David if Joseph(a descendant of David) was not his real father and there is no mention of Mary's ancestry?
9. What is meant by saying that John the Baptist is Elijah?
10. What is blaspheme of the Holy Spirit?
11. What do the names Mahlon and Kilion mean in the story of Ruth?
12. Why do people believe finding intelligent alien life would turn the Bible on its ear?
13. What happened to the children who died in the flood who were under the "age of accountability?"
14. At what point in the eschatological time line do we receive our glorified bodies?
(updated October 19th, 2009)
15. What happens to you when you die? (do you go immediately to heaven?)
16. If you are cremated does your body rise?
17. Why are the body and spirit reunited anyway?
18. According to 1 Corinthians 14:33-36, is it wrong for a woman to speak in church?
19. Does a woman have to have long hair?
20. Does a woman need to have her head covered in church?
    

If you want to submit another question, you can reply it to this post, or write it on the bulletin and put it in the offering.

RDH4 - John Hus

Now it's time to start mixing the ingredients.  We will start with the first ingredient, the Great (or Western) Schism.  There were two Popes, both of whom were elected by the Cardinals and both of whom claimed to be the only Pope.  Several years into the Schism, a new council was created that elected yet another Pope.  Now there were three Popes.  During that period of time, John Hus came on the scene. 

John Huss was a scholar at the University of Prague and in a region to submitted to the newest of the three Popes.  He began teaching the authority of the Bible and soon came under pressure from the third Pope (John XXIII).  Then, Hus made a declaration that signed his death warrant.  He said that an unworthy Pope was not to be obeyed.  In 1415, only a few years after the controversy had begun, Hus was burned at the stake for his beliefs by the council that had elected the Pope, who was then in prison for refusing to resign from his position. 

So what got Hus killed? He simply thought that the Pope should live a worthy lifestyle, and that if he didn't, he shouldn't be followed.  Secondly, the Bible should be the final authority for everyone.  He really hadn't said much, but it was enough to get him killed.  It is rumored that during his execution, Hus claimed that someone would rise up that would not be defeated.  Interestingly enough, Abbot Johannes Zacharias was a member of the council that had Huss executed.  Zacharias was buried in the Black Monastery in Erfurt Germany.

It just so happened that 90 years after the execution of Hus, Martin Luther laid prostrate over the burial grave of Abbot Zacharias as part of his initiation process for becoming an Augustinian Monk.  Wouldn't it be interesting that if following Hus' statement about another person raising up that would succeed at his efforts, Abbot Zacharias, among the council members, had said, "over my dead body"?  I'm sure he didn't, but it sure is thought-provoking.

To be continued...

RDH3 - Humanism

3. Humanism

We tend to have a very negative idea when we hear the word humanism, but in this case, it is not all bad. In the period of the Renaissance, humanism is most simply described as a return to antiquity--to the writings of much earlier generations. If you remember the post from yesterday, the fall of Constantinople led to an influx of Greek manuscripts into Italy, sparking an awakening to literature.

For our studies, the most important aspect of this awakening was the realization that some of the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament had small differences. Scholars began to study these changes and produced more accurate copies of the Greek New Testament. But more importantly, scholars were once again studying the Word of God. Ingredient #3

To be continued...

Previous Reformation Day History:
RDH1 - The Great Schism
RDH2 - The Fall of Constantinople

Reformation Day History - Part 2 (RDH2)

2. The Fall of Constantinople
You might not imagine that the fall of a "Christian" city to Muslims would have anything to do with Martin Luther nailing a theses to a church door just under a hundred years later, but Constantinople's loss was the West's gain. In 1453, the siege of Constantinople came to an end, and the city was left under Muslim control. The city was renamed Istanbul. The Byzantine Greek culture of the city fled as droves of people, including Greek scholars, headed for the West, Italy in particular.

These Greek exiles brought ancient manuscripts with them to the West. Some of these manuscripts were copies of the New Testament. In the West, the Latin Vulgate dominated. Many Bible scholars only read the Bible in Latin. This influx of Greek manuscripts of the Bible led many to begin a renewed study of the Scripture. Some even called for the Bible to be translated into the native languages of the people. This renewed interest in study also lead a renewed interest in all ancient thinking, especially Greek philosophy.  The fall of Constantinople helped shape the academic climate that was necessary for the Reformation to begin.  Ingredient #2

To be continued...

RDH1 - The Great Schism

Reformation Day History - Part 1

To bake a batch of chocolate chip cookies, one needs to have several ingredients and mix them in the right quantity and order.  To bring about a large scale revival in biblical thinking, even more ingredients and preparations are in order.

Let's consider three crucial ingredients that led to the Protestant Reformation.

1. The Great Schism 
2. The Fall of Constantinople
3. Humanism

1. The Great Schism
The head of the Roman Catholic Church is the Pope.  You may remember that the Cardinals elect the Pope.  At various times in history, other groups have tried to elect their own Pope but to no avail.  What would happen, however, if the same group of Cardinals elected more than one Pope, setting one against the other?

Well, in 1378, this happened.  The cardinals, under pressure from the masses to elect a Roman pope, elected Urban VI as Pope in Rome.  In the same year, unsatisfied with their choice, they elected Clement VII in Avignon.  Thus, there were two heads of the church--one in Rome and one in Avignon.  The populace was now left with the decision of which Pope to follow.  Some nations followed the Roman Pope (now the official lineage) and some followed the Avignon Pope.

The details of this story continued into the next century... eventually even having a third competing Pope.  By 1418, the schism had ended and the Roman line of Popes was re-legitimized.  Though the problem was over, the headship of the Catholic church took a major blow in the eyes of many people under the Church's authority.  Ingredient #1 (Visit Western Schism for a much more detailed history.)

To be continued...