Download or read book The Formation of the Christian Church An Alternate Biblical History written by Richard Hayes and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2017-02-13 with total page 74 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A book beginning with the life of Jesus, the Christ; the first 300 years of the Christian Church history and of the history of the Caldees Christian church, the Catholic church, and other Christian churches; and the spread of Christian beliefs.

Download or read book Alternative Christianities Volume I written by Vince Nicola and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2014-02-17 with total page 685 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Alternative Christianities is a series of books, articles, and lectures. This is only Volume I which introduces the many ancient Christian sects that were ostracized and had their Sacred Scriptures (what they were taught by one Jesus direct Disciples) not only left out of the New Testament but also suppressed, banned, and destroyed in the early centuries of Christianity by the emerging universal (catholic) Christian Church. Vince Nicolas is a historian not a theologian. Vince is a teacher not a preacher. Vince extensively researched this subject from the works of the best university religious studies professors in the United States. Additionally in compiling his treatise, Vince learned how the New Testament, besides more Sacred Scriptures were consciously being left out than included, many of the texts that were included had been repeatedly changed either accidentally or intentionally to suit the emerging Christian church and their "preferred Christian teachings;" then to accommodate the numerous and compounded Protestant Reformations. Consequently today there is not ONE Christian Bible or ONE Christian religion but dozens of versions of the Christian Bible and thousands of iterations of Christian religions, denominations, sects, and cults. Christianity is a hodgepodge disaster as viewed by outsiders! A 20th century discovery of these discarded ancient texts brought them back to light. More amazing are the differences from the traditional Christianity being taught and followed today. This made many of todays Biblical scholars, theologians, and university professors question whether we all have been led down the wrong Christian path for the past 2,000 years. In fact, these ancient discarded Alternative Christianities even make more sense in todays world and brings Christianity back to being a religion of "Good News"! Maybe these recent discoveries were a Divine intervention to adjust Christianity back onto its right path; the real path that was intended by Jesus Christ? Maybe people now can have a fresh and refreshing new look at Christianity? Volume I is guaranteed to pique your interest, get you hooked, and make you want to go more in depth in Volumes II and III. This treatise is not only very enlightening and educational for Christians but also for our intertwined Abrahamic-descendant Judaism and Islam relatives. This is an ecumenical book; it is not meant to convert anyone, promote any religion, or disseminate anyones beliefs. This series is a MUST READ for any serious theology or religious studies student to have a complete comprehension of the Bible and Christianity, especially if they are going to teach or preach it intelligently and correctly; or just for your own education. WARNING: This series will ruffle many feathers among the ultra-conservative and closed-minded communities and promises to be very controversial! GET YOUR CORRECT FACTS HERE.

Download or read book Formation of the Bible the Story of the Church s Canon written by Lee Martin McDonald and published by Hendrickson Publishers. This book was released on 2012 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Well-known for his scholarly works on the formation of the biblical canon, Lee McDonald has written a carefully researched and reasoned explanation on the history of the formation of the Bible expressly for the interested pastor and curious layman. Combining a lifelong commitment to the Scriptures, both as a pastor and as a scholar, McDonald approaches his task with sensitivity to the importance of these sacred texts as well as with the thoughtful practice of a person steeped in the process by which these texts were brought together to form the Bible as the church knows it now. From the collection (and translations) of the Hebrew Scriptures through the collection of the New Testament Scriptures, and finally the process of settling on the final forms for these collections, McDonald leads his reader right up to the present moment.

Download or read book A Concise History of the Early Church written by Norbert Brox and published by Burns & Oates. This book was released on 1995 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A standard work which offers an illuminating alternative to sometimes more conservative Anglo-American works, this accessible history provides a lucid and highly readable, up-to-date study of the early Christian church, from its beginnings to the Council of Chalcedon in 451 C.E. Includes full bibliographies for each section.

Download or read book Who Created Christianity written by Craig Evans and published by Hendrickson Publishers. This book was released on 2021-10-05 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Who Created Christianity? is a collection of essays by top international Christian scholars who desire to reinforce the relationship that Paul had with Jesus and Christianity. There is a general sense today among Christians in certain circles that Pauls teachings to the early Christian church are thought to be "rogue," even clashing at times with Jesus words. Yet these essays set out to prove that the tradition that Paul passes on is one received from Jesus, not separate from it. The essays in this volume come from a diverse and international group of scholars. They offer up-to-date studies of the teachings of Paul and how the specific teachings directly relate to the earlier teachings of Jesus. This volume explores with even greater focus than ever before the tradition from which Paul emerges and the specific teachings that are part of this tradition. This collection of essays proposes a complementary work to the work of David Wenham and his thesis that Paul was indeed not the founder of Christianity or the creator of Christian dogma; instead he was a faithful disciple and a conveyer of a prior Christian tradition. Key points and features: • Includes essays by well-known Christian scholars such as Craig Blomberg, Alister McGrath, N. T. Wright, Michael Bird, Greg Beale, and more. CONTRIBUTORS: 1. Paul and Jesus: Issues of Continuity and Discontinuity in Their Discussion by Stanley E. Porter 2. How and Why Paul Invented "Christian Theology" by N. T. Wright 3. The Origins of Pauls Gospel by Graham H. Twelftree 4. When Paul Met Jesus: How an Idea Continues to Be Lost in History Past and Present by Stanley E. Porter 5. Paul and the Jesus Tradition: An Old Question and Some New Answers by Rainer Riesner 6. Continuity and Development in the Ministries of Jesus and of Paul by Christoph W. Stenschke 7. Pauls Significant Other in the "We-Passages" by Joan E. Taylor 8. Whose Gospel Is It Anyway? The Glory of Christ in the Prophetic Ministry of Paul according to His "My Gospel" and "Our Gospel" by Aaron W. White 9. David Wenham, "The Little Apocalypse," Pauland Silas by Bruce Chilton 10. The Parallels between 1 and 2 Thessalonians against the Background of Ancient Parallel Letters and Speeches by Armin D. Baum 11. Metanoia: Jesus, Paul, and the Transformation of the Believing Mind by Alister McGrath 12. You Would Not Believe If You Were Told: Eschatological Unbelief in Early Christian Apologetics by Peter Turnill 13. Paul on Food and Jesus on What Really Defiles: Is There a Connection? by Craig A. Evans 14. Gospel Women Remembered by Sarah Harris 15. Women in the Pauline Epistles: Lessons from the Jesus Tradition by Erin Heim 16. Twelve Theses on Matthew and Paul: The Jewish Gospel and the Apostle to the Gentiles by Michael F. Bird 17. Paul and the Paternoster: Some Mainly Matthew Observations about a Pauline Prayer by Nathan Ridlehoover 18. The Rediscovery of David Wenhams Rediscovery: Reflections on a Pre-Markan Eschatological Discourse Thirty-Six Years on by Craig Blomberg 19. Portraits of Jesus and Paul through the Lukan Lens by Steve Walton 20. "Every Sin That a Person Commits Is Outside the Body" (1 Corinthians 6:18b): Pauls Likely Dependence on the Jesus Tradition by John Nolland 21. Jesus Is Lord: The Rhetorical Appropriation of the Teaching of Jesus in 1 Corinthians 5 by Peter Davids 22. The Temple and Anti-Temple at Colossae by Greg Beale 23. Filling up What Is Lacking in Christs Afflictions: Isaiahs Servant and Servants in Second Temple Judaism and Colossians 1:24 by Holly Beers

Download or read book A History of the Early Church written by Norbert Brox and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A standard work for European students, which has already been reprinted four times in the original German, this history is a lucid and highly readable, up-to-date account of the early church from its beginnings to the Council of Chalcedon which offers an illuminating alternative to sometimes more conservative British works.

Download or read book From Jesus to the Church written by Craig A. Evans and published by Presbyterian Publishing Corp. This book was released on 2014-02-07 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Did Jesus intend to found a church separate from Judaism? Who were the very first followers of Jesus? And how did a clash between two families--the family of Jesus on one hand and the family of high priest Annas and their aristocratic allies on the other--eventually lead to the formation of Christianity? In this study, best-selling author Craig A. Evans looks at how a tumultuous chain of events from 30-70 CE--beginning with Jesus's entry into Jerusalem and subsequent crucifixion and ending with the destruction of the temple--led to the separation between the followers of Jesus and other Jews. Topics include the following: 1) whether Jesus actually intended to found the Christian Church; 2) the ways in which Jesus's proclamation of the “Kingdom of God†relate to the Christian Church; 3) the role of James, brother of Jesus, in the new movement in Jerusalem; 4) the tension between James and Paul in the matter of law and works; 5) the conflict between the families and followers of Jesus and those of the high priest Annas before the destruction of the temple; and 6) the aftermath of the Jewish rebellion, whereby the Church moved away from its Jewish roots. An appendix further explores the reasons behind the rift between the Jesus movement and the synagogue. This fascinating volume is suitable for historical Jesus and early church studies, along with anyone else interested in learning about the very first followers of Jesus.

Download or read book Christian History Made Easy written by Timothy Paul Jones and published by Rose Publishing Inc. This book was released on 2009 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christian History Made Easy summarizes the most important events in the history of the church, from the time of Jesus to modern day. Christian History Made Easy explains early church history, the Church Councils, the Great Schism, the Crusades, Francis of Assisi, John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformation, and more. Christian History Made Easy presents key church history events and great Christian leaders everyone should know, along with full-color church history timelines, photos, pictures, and maps. The study guide and worksheets in the back makes this book an excellent Bible Study, adults Sunday school topics, or homeschool curriculum. Author Timothy Paul Jones makes Christian history refreshingly fun while at the same time informing Christians about the history of the Christian faith.Full-color, 224 pages, paperback, 6 x 9 inches. Theologian J. I. Packer says Christian History Made Easy is, ...a beautifully simple, beginner-friendly telling of Christian history, a precious heritage. Christian History Made Easy Covers Major Events in Church History Early Church History The Early Church--Peter and Paul, the Age of the Apostles, The Destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem scatters Christians Early Church Fathers Persecution of Christians--Emperor Nero and Domitian, Martyrdom of Peter, Paul, Ignaitius, Polycarp, Justin Martyr Christianity legalized in the Roman Empire, Emperor Constantine, Christianity the official religion in the Roman Empire The Byzantine Era The Council of Nicaea, The Nicene Creed Augustine, Jerome translates the Bible into Latin, St. Patrick Fall of the Roman Empire, rise of the Eastern Orthodox Church Gregory the Great, Rise of Monasticism Rise of Islam and the Islamic Conquest in Europe, Charles Martel, Charlemagne East/West Church Schism (Photian Schism), Leif Ericson converts to Christianity Great Schism, Hildebrand reforms the church, the Crusades, Lateran Councils, Richard the Lionheart Pre-Reformation Church History Middle Ages, Bubonic Plague, John Wycliffe, the Wycliffe Bible The Renaissance, Jan Hus, Joan of Arc, Ottomans capture the Christian city of Constantinople, Johann Gutenberg's printing press The Protestant Reformation Erasmus, Martin Luther, 95 Theses, Ulrich Zwingli, William Tyndale, King Henry VIII, The Geneva Bible, The Matthew's Bible, Church of England history, John Knox, Queen Mary Tudor, Queen Elizabeth I, King James Version Bible Galileo, Pilgrim's Progress, Quaker founded, first Protestant missionary societies The Great Awakening and Church History in America and Europe John and Charles Wesley, George Whitefield, Handel writes the Messiah, Sunday school is developed, John Newton writes Amazing Grace. Divisions over slavery in Baptist history Abolition, William Wilberforce, Charles Finney leads revivals, George Muller's faith orphanage, YMCA an YWCA founded, Charles Spurgeon, Salvation Army founded Church History in the 20th and 21st Century Amy Carmichael, Irish missionary to India, Azusa Street, Scofield Bible, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Billy Graham, Discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, Modern political State of Israel C.S. Lewis, major evangelistic crusades in Latin America and Korea, Roman Catholic church apologizes for lack of leadership during the Holocaust Each Chapter of Christian History Made Easy Includes Key events Key concepts Names you should know Terms you should know Bible maps and time-lines Things to think about Clarification of words At the end of each chapter is a student guide, student worksheet, learning activity and quiz Endorsement for Christian History Made Easy Rose's product line includes a wonderful collection of high quality, visually attractive materials that lend themselves to learning the basics of the Christian Faith. In most areas where alternative views exist, they are faithfully presented leaving the reader to decide which best fits their understanding of scripture....I have used Christian History Made Easy for my Sunday school class and found it to be very well done. This book has a great collection of auxiliary Study Guide questions. The author, Timothy Paul Jones is obviously a practiced teacher. I used an early edition. The recent upgrade of this package looks even better... --Dr. Gene A. Stringer, Elder, Christian Church of Ashland, Oregon Endorsements and biography for Author Timothy Paul Jones Dr. Timothy Paul Jones is a brilliant young biblical scholar who helps simplify the complex. His [resources] are great and sorely needed during our time when many are biblically illiterate and know even less about Church history. --Dr. Jerry Newcombe, author, TV host, and spokesperson for Truth that Transforms with Dr. D. James Kennedy (formerly The Coral Ridge Hour) About the Author: Dr. Timothy Paul Jones Timothy Paul Jones serves as a professor of Christian ministry and as associate vice president at the Southern Baptist Theological seminary, where he teaches courses in applied apologetics and family ministry. Before teaching at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, he led churches in Missouri and Oklahoma as pastor and associate pastor. Dr. Jones has authored or contributed to more than a dozen books, including PROOF; Conspiracies and the Cross; and, Christian History Made Easy. In 2007, Charles Colson listed him as one of "four names you need to know" when responding to the new atheists and in 2010, Christian Retailing magazine selecte

Download or read book Kingdom of Fools written by Nick Page and published by Hodder & Stoughton. This book was released on 2012-05-10 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fools. Rebels. Ignorant peasants. That's how the Roman world saw the first Christians. Led by fishermen, tax collectors and renegade Pharisees, the first Christians shunned power and welcomed the poor and uneducated. Roman commentators mocked their upside-down values, but the apostle Paul - himself a Roman citizen, and a Pharisee to boot, affirmed that 'God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise.' Its followers were persecuted and its leaders killed, yet this ragged collection of lowly tradesmen, women, slaves - and a smattering of turncoat high-born Jews - created a movement that changed the world. How did this happen? How did the kingdom of fools conquer the mighty empire that was Rome? In this fascinating new biography of the early church, Nick Page sets the biblical accounts alongside the latest historical and archaeological research, exploring how the early Christians lived and worshipped - and just why the Romans found this new branch of the Jewish faith so difficult to comprehend. THE KINGDOM OF FOOLS is a fresh, challenging, accessible portrait of a movement so radical, so dangerous, so thrillingly different that it outlasted the empire that tried to destroy it and went on to become the driving force of our cultural development - and claims more followers today than ever before in history.

Download or read book Alternative Christianities Volume Ii written by Vince Nicolas and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2018-12-30 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Welcome to Volume II of Alternative Christianities. For those that have read Alternative Christianities – Volume I: Early Christian Sects and the Formation of the Bible, Welcome Back and I hope you enjoy Alternative Christianities – Volume II: The Validity of Today’s Christian Teachings and the Lost Gospels of the Other Disciples. If you have not read Volume I, I do hope you pick it up or order it. It is well-worth reading. For those new readers to whom I have not introduced myself in Volume I: I am Vince Nicolas. I am a “historian” not a “theologian.” I am writing these books as a “historian” not as a “theologian.” I want to make that very clear.

Download or read book A History of the Bible written by John Barton and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2020-08-04 with total page 642 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A literary history of our most influential book of all time, by an Oxford scholar and Anglican priest In our culture, the Bible is monolithic: It is a collection of books that has been unchanged and unchallenged since the earliest days of the Christian church. The idea of the Bible as "Holy Scripture," a non-negotiable authority straight from God, has prevailed in Western society for some time. And while it provides a firm foundation for centuries of Christian teaching, it denies the depth, variety, and richness of this fascinating text. In A History of the Bible, John Barton argues that the Bible is not a prescription to a complete, fixed religious system, but rather a product of a long and intriguing process, which has inspired Judaism and Christianity, but still does not describe the whole of either religion. Barton shows how the Bible is indeed an important source of religious insight for Jews and Christians alike, yet argues that it must be read in its historical context--from its beginnings in myth and folklore to its many interpretations throughout the centuries. It is a book full of narratives, laws, proverbs, prophecies, poems, and letters, each with their own character and origin stories. Barton explains how and by whom these disparate pieces were written, how they were canonized (and which ones weren't), and how they were assembled, disseminated, and interpreted around the world--and, importantly, to what effect. Ultimately, A History of the Bible argues that a thorough understanding of the history and context of its writing encourages religious communities to move away from the Bible's literal wording--which is impossible to determine--and focus instead on the broader meanings of scripture.

Download or read book How to Be a Christian without Going to Church written by Kelly Bean and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2014-06-24 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As many--young people especially--leave the traditional church in droves, they often still long for a genuine Christian community in which to practice their faith and share their spiritual journeys with others. They want to be faithful but struggle to find a place where they flourish. Whether they've already left the church behind or are merely considering it, readers will find here both heartfelt encouragement and practical steps for finding or creating a community of faith that honors God and offers rest, love, and communion with other believers. Author Kelly Bean broadens our definition of church to include many alternative forms of Christian community. With true stories of those who have given up on church and what they're doing now, this book is also helpful for pastors and churchgoers to help them understand why people leave the church--and what might be done to help them stay.

Download or read book Finding the Roots of Christianity written by Luke Painter and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2017-06-05 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Finding the Roots of Christianity is for people who are curious about the historical Jesus, his followers, and the movement they began. Who were they, and how was their message understood by those who heard them? Where did the New Testament of the Bible come from? In a personal, thoughtful style, Luke Painter brings into focus the life and times of the Jewish prophet Jesus of Nazareth, bridging the gap between personal study of the Bible and academic scholarship. Sources outside the Bible, including the ancient historian Josephus and recently discovered "lost scriptures" such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, reveal the diversity of early Christian beliefs. Roman religious beliefs influenced how the Christian message was understood during the transition from Jewish sects to the official religion of the Roman Empire. Clear and concise, and based on careful historical research, this book guides the reader through what is known about the earliest origins of Christianity as well as recent discoveries and debates. The author's personal journey of faith and passionate interest in the people behind the New Testament enliven the facts of history, illuminating their meaning for their own time as well as today.

Download or read book Silence written by Diarmaid MacCulloch and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2013-09-12 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A provocative meditation on the role of silence in Christian tradition by the New York Times bestselling author of Christianity We live in a world dominated by noise. Religion is, for many, a haven from the clamor of everyday life, allowing us to pause for silent contemplation. But as Diarmaid MacCulloch shows, there are many forms of religious silence, from contemplation and prayer to repression and evasion. In his latest work, MacCulloch considers Jesus’s strategic use of silence in his confrontation with Pontius Pilate and traces the impact of the first mystics in Syria on monastic tradition. He discusses the complicated fate of silence in Protestant and evangelical tradition and confronts the more sinister institutional forms of silence. A groundbreaking book by one of our greatest historians, Silence challenges our fundamental views of spirituality and illuminates the deepest mysteries of faith.

Download or read book The Many Faces of Christ written by Philip Jenkins and published by Basic Books. This book was released on 2015-10-13 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The standard account of early Christianity tells us that the first centuries after Jesus' death witnessed an efflorescence of Christian sects, each with its own gospel. We are taught that these alternative scriptures, which represented intoxicating, daring, and often bizarre ideas, were suppressed in the fourth and fifth centuries, when the Church canonized the gospels we know today: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The rest were lost, destroyed, or hidden. In The Many Faces of Christ, the renowned religious historian Philip Jenkins thoroughly refutes our most basic assumptions about the Lost Gospels. He reveals that dozens of alternative gospels not only survived the canonization process but in many cases remained influential texts within the official Church. Whole new gospels continued to be written and accepted. For a thousand years, these strange stories about the life and death of Jesus were freely admitted onto church premises, approved for liturgical reading, read by ordinary laypeople for instruction and pleasure, and cited as authoritative by scholars and theologians. The Lost Gospels spread far and wide, crossing geographic and religious borders. The ancient Gospel of Nicodemus penetrated into Southern and Central Asia, while both Muslims and Jews wrote and propagated gospels of their own. In Europe, meanwhile, it was not until the Reformation and Counter-Reformation that the Lost Gospels were effectively driven from churches. But still, many survived, and some continue to shape Christian practice and belief in our own day. Offering a revelatory new perspective on the formation of the biblical canon, the nature of the early Church, and the evolution of Christianity, The Many Faces of Christ restores these Lost Gospels to their central place in Christian history.

Download or read book Early Church History written by Verlyn D. Verbrugge and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 1998 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume in the Zondervan Quick-Reference Library is designed to give the reader an essential grasp of the history of the early church. Dozens of topics of vital interest are covered in handy one-page bits of information. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

Download or read book Paul written by and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: