New blog adress http://thisweekinchristianhistory.blogspot.com/

the new blog address is http://thisweekinchristianhistory.blogspot.com/

My new book, would you do what they did great Christian leaders from our past is now available to order from Amazon.com here is the link: Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

This Week in Christian History for the week of October 20-26th 2013, 2013- Ignatius Loyola was Born

 Ignatius Loyola was born a wealthy family in the Basque region of Spain. He joined the army and fought many duels, including one with a Moor that denied the divinity of Jesus, who he ended up killing. He successfully endured battles with no injury. It was when he was defending the fortress of Pamplona that things changed. The French had cannons, they did not. Ignatius argued that they should not surrender until they could withstand no more, anything else would disgrace them, this was not popular with the other troops. He was wounded when his legs were hit by a cannonball.

After the battle Ignatius was sent to one of his families castles to recover. While recovering he would spend a lot of time reading, but there were not many books on knights errant that he enjoyed since he was a boy. He only had religious texts to read. He experienced a profound religious conversion, gave away his riches, and undertook a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He formulated “The Spiritual Exercises” which is still used today.

Upon reaching Jerusalem he was told to go home by the Franciscans there, one reason was because of his lack of education. He went to Paris University. It was there that he form what would be known as The Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits.

For more information on the Jesuits, read my blog The Jesuits were formed

My new book, would you do what they did great Christian leaders from our past is now available to order from Amazon.com here is the link: Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net Thank you for reading.

New book

Here is the link for my new book.

My new book, would you do what they did great Christian leaders from our past is now available to order from Amazon.com here is the link: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1936746646/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1936746646&linkCode=as2&tag=wwwwilliamdea-20">Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past</a><img src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=wwwwilliamdea-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1936746646" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

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It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith.

 I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

This Week in Christian History for the week of October 13th-19th, 2013- Bill Bright was born October 19th 1921

Bright was born in Coweta Oklahoma and graduated from Northeastern State University. He moved to Los Angeles and founded a company called Bright’s California Confections. It was while attending a Presbyterian church that he became saved and took graduate classes in theology, although he never obtained a degree. It was while he was attending Fuller that he felt called to share his faith with other students.

It was a domestic disturbance that led Bill and his wife Vonnette to write a covenant to God that they were slaves to Christ. This attitude in their lives was what led them to found the Campus Crusade for Christ. The foundation has been a huge success. It operates in 190 countries utilizing 27,000 full-time, and 225,000 trained volunteers. He chaired the National Year of the Bible in 1983 and won the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion, a cash prize which he donated to charity.

Bill wrote more than 100 books and booklets and thousands of articles and pamphlets. He produced a film in 1979 called, “The Jesus Film.” While a financial failure, it was a very accurate portrayal of the life of Jesus. It is estimated that 139 million people have come to know Christ because of his Campus Crusade and his film. Bill has talked to audiences of more than one million people.

My new book, would you do what they did great Christian leaders from our past is now available to order from Amazon.com here is the link: Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

This Week in Christian History for the week of October 6th-12th, 2013- on October 12th, 1518 Martin Luther refuses to recant his 95 thesis

Martin Luther was born on the 10^th of November 1483. His father wanted him to become a lawyer and sent him to college to pursue that occupation. He enrolled at Erfurt and changed his focus to philosophy, although he found not to be what he was looking for. During a ride home he was caught in a thunderstorm and a lightning bolt struck a nearby tree.

He entered into a monastery and began to fast and pray trying to earn his way into heaven, but always found that he was still a sinner. His superior pointed him to salvation by grace. He was ordained into the priesthood and earned a doctorate in theology. He taught at the University of Wittenberg where he had earned his degree.

While hearing a confession, he found out that a man had been selling indulgences and had claimed that solely by giving money a person would go to Heaven. Luther responded by nailing his 95 theses to a church and mailing a copy to the Archbishop Albrecht. While there was some slightly rebellious langue, the note was to try and insure the Catholic Church was sound theologically. In a few months his friends has published copies of the text and it was widely distributed throughout Europe in a matter of months.

The archbishop didn’t respond to the letter, but sent it to Rome. The pope responded slowly and deliberately. He eventually sent legate Cardinal Cajetan to try and arrest him. The trial broke down into a shouting match. Luther slipped away in the night. 

The rest of Martin Luther’s story can be found in My new book now available to order from Amazon.com - here is the link: Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

This Week in Christian History for the week of September 29- October 5, 2013 - on the 30th of September 430 Jerome died

Jerome was born Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus around 347 in Stridon. He went to Rome to pursue philosophy, but was alienated by the Hedonistic culture there. He would sometimes engage in the wanton behavior, but was always repentant afterwards. He wandered around the crypts of the martyrs and apostles and began to see their tombs as a picture of Hell.

He moved to Trier with his friend Bonosus and he started his theological studies. He travelled and became friends with many Christians. He became ill and two of his friends died. He was strongly affected by this and so he exclusively wrote on Christian topics. He went into the desert to live the life of a hermit and to study and write. He became associated with influential people, but was not popular in Rome because he did not hold back criticism of the clergy and forbade mourning of the dead in excess.

He was ordained a bishop and travelled through a few sees. It was during this time that he started on his greatest work, the Vulgate version of the Bible. It was written in the vulgar, or common form, of Latin. He was advised by many of his friends not to focus on the Hebrew and Greek texts, since the Septuagint was considered the best form of the Bible at the time. Jerome also wrote many commentaries on the Bible. He was also an accomplished historian who has written and also copied many important works. He died in the area around Bethlehem on September the 30^th, 430.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

Bio of Johnny Appleseed who was born September 26 - This Week in Christian History for the week of 9-22-28, 2013

On September 26^th 1774 Jonathan Chapman was born. Johnny Appleseed, as he is known, left his father after he turned 18 to go west with his younger brother Nathaniel. Eventually his father moved to Ohio and Nathaniel moved back with their father and his family. Johnny Appleseed started to work in an orchard for a Mr. Crawford.

 

Johnny Appleseed planted nurseries of apples for settlers. The settlers had to plant pears or apples to secure their rights to the land, since apples and pear are not native to the Americas. The nurseries were very popular. He also preached as he travelled around. His theology was like The New Church, which placed an emphasis on nature.

He preached in exchange for a place to sleep. He was regarded as having a great eloquence, although it was in a unique way. He told stories to children, sometimes of his travels and some old stories from Sweden that his parents used to tell him. A traveling preacher once was preaching about poverty and repeatedly asked where the humbly dressed barefoot Christian’s were, Johnny Appleseed put his bare foot on a stump to show it and said, “Here’s your primitive Christian.”

Johnny Appleseed once noticed mosquitoes getting burned by his campfire and doused the campfire to protect them. He also slept in the snow rather than disturb a bear and her cubs. There are many stories about his which are mythical, like the picture of him wandering around aimlessly spreading apple seeds. Due to this tendency, the exact details of his death are not known, there are several different versions. This only proves the love that people had for the man who loved God and nature.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

William F. Albright died on September 18th 1971 - This Week in Christian History for the week of September 15-21, 2013 -

William Albright was an archeologist who was a leader in substantiating the accuracy of the Bible. He graduated from Upper Iowa University, as did a certain blogger who shall remain nameless. Albright did not believe that the Bible was inspired by God, but he did confirm the accuracy of many of the passages of the Bible and viewed the Bible as being a reliable source of history. Because of this viewpoint he has been recently attacked by more liberal archeologists who doubt historical events portrayed in the Bible.

He was the creator of Biblical Archeology, which uses conventional archeological methods to study sites which have some relationship to the Bible. He is considered to be one of the last orientalists, which means that he studied the culture, language, and history of the Middle East at one time to gain a further understanding of their interrelationships.

Albright was an expert in many fields besides archeology and he applied his knowledge of ceramics to able to more accurately pin down dates at dig sites. He also mastered 26 ancient and modern languages. He contributed to many different fields because of the breadth of his knowledge and published 1,100 articles, books, notes and journals.

He excavated many Biblical sites, and was instrumental in dating the Dead Sea Scrolls. Albright was also the editor of the Bulletin of the American School of Oriental Research. He was the first non-Jewish person to win the title of “Worthy One of Jerusalem.” Many of his students became famous scholars due to his influence.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

On 11th September 910, William I, Duke of Aquitaine founded Cluny Abbey - This Week in Christian History for the week of September 8-14, 2013

On 11^th September 910, William I, Duke of Aquitaine founded Cluny Abbey. He had gained power through inheritance and a series of wars and his lands stretched from Austrasia to Toulouse (in France). At the time most monasteries were privately owned, however he made the abbey responsible only to the pope. This meant that his family couldn’t nominate abbots and other officials.

William I nominated Berno as the first abbot of Cluny. Berno had been a monk at St. Martin’s Abbey and was later sent to Baume Abbey to reform it. He held Cluny Abbey to the Benedictine Rule. Although the rule would become the main rule of monasteries during the middle ages, it was not intended for monasteries in the modern sense of the word; it was intended to be a rule for communities.

This was the first of the Cluniac Reforms. The reforms were necessary because of widespread corruption in the Church. One of the most common was called Simony, or paying to receive sacraments. The most common form of this was to pay for a position within the church. Since a monastery required land, it needed to be sanctioned by the local lord. The lord would demand rights that interfered with religious duties. The lord might also want his associates and family appointed to posts.

The Cluniac Reforms spread through France and into England, Spain and Italy. In the end more than a thousand monasteries adopted the new format. This enabled the monasteries to follow the Rule of Saint Benedict more strictly.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

J. R. R. Tolkien died on September 2, 1973 - This Week in Christian History for the week of September 1-7- 2013

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born on January 3^rd 1892 in what would become South Africa. When he was a child he was bitten by a spider, which some speculate influenced his later works. After the death of his father, his family moved back to England where they moved around a lot. His mother, Mabel, joined the Catholic Church, much to the dismay of her Baptist family, who stopped supporting her and J. R. R..

Mabel died in 1904 when J. R. R. was only 12. He was raised by Father Morgan. He graduated with honors from Exeter College with an emphasis on English and Literature. Tolkien met Edith, a protestant woman, whom his guardian vehemently objected to and forbade him to see her until he was 21. On turning 21 he professed his love, and they were married after she converted to Catholicism.

Tolkien joined the army after the outbreak of WWI, serving in trenches. His considerable health problems kept him from being in the field much of the time, and this probably saved his life. He wrote that all of his childhood friends but one had been killed. After the war he worked for The Oxford English Dictionary and then became a professor. It was while he was serving as a fellow at Pembroke College that he wrote “The Hobbit” and the first part of “The Lord of the Rings.” It took a few years to catch on and it was during the 60’s that he became wildly popular.

Tolkien was instrumental in converting C.S. Lewis to the Christian faith, although he was disappointed Lewis chose to join the Church of England. He was also a member of the Inklings, a literary group which had Christian tendencies. While Tolkien didn’t use the overt Christian themes that Lewis employed, the Bible influenced some of the scenes in his stories. Tolkien died on September 2, 1973.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

Augustine of Hippo August 25th - This Week in Christian History for the week of August 25-31, 2013

Augustine of Hippo was born in Thagaste Africa as a Roman citizen on November 13, 354. At age 11 he went to school and became familiar with philosophy and other Latin literature. His mother raised him a Christian, but he became a Manichaeist, a popular religion at the time. Augustine moved to Carthage to continue his education. He sought relationships with women and it was at this time he said his prayer, “Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet.”

He began an affair with a woman in Carthage and was with her for 13 years, and had a son with her. Augustine began to teach at Carthage, but was disturbed by the behavior of the students there and moved to Rome. After being disappointment by the students there he secured a position as a professor of rhetoric at the imperial court. He began to drift towards Christianity, and his mother arraigned a marriage for him, although the girl was only 11 at the time. He broke off the engagement before the girl became of age.

Augustine heard a childlike voice which told him to read a passage from Romans and became saved. He and his son were baptized and he moved back to his family estate in Africa. His mother passed away on the trip and his son joined her soon after. Augustine sold all of the estate and gave the money to the poor. He kept the house where he started a monastery for a group of friends.

Augustine became a priest and then a bishop. He spent all of his time trying to convert the people of Hippo, especially those who had adopted the Manichaeism.  Augustine died on August 25th 430 during a siege of Hippo by the Vandals. The Vandals would eventually burn the town, except for Augustine’s cathedral and library.

Augustine is most remembered for his books, which were important in shaping Western philosophy. His “City of God” and “Confessions” are still popular today. His views on original sin and just war shaped views for centuries. Even Protestants view him as being theologically important due to his teachings on grace and salvation.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

 

Francis Asbury was born August 20 or 21 1745 - This Week in Christian History for the week of August 18-24, 2013

On August 20 or 21 1745 Francis Asbury was born in Hamstead Bridge England. His mother read the Bible to him for an hour every day as he was growing up. When he was 12 he dropped out of school to become a blacksmith’s apprentice. At age 16 he converted to Methodism and started to preach at 18. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, appointed him to be a travelling preacher. He volunteered to go to America in 1771. When the war broke out he had to hide for a while, otherwise he would have been forced to enter the war, but he remained neutral. He was the only English born preacher to remain until the end of the war.  

Asbury quickly became the American head of the Methodist Church, eventually getting the title of Bishop, although John Wesley was against this title. He travelled tirelessly through the new nation, preaching with great zeal. He organized districts to pastor to people in small town which were tended by riding circuit preachers. He pushed to spread the circuits to towns farther to the west, although they faced illness and Native American attacks.

He rose every morning at five to read the Bible. Asbury opened five schools and promoted Sunday school. He preached wherever he could, even if it was in the opened air. When he had started to preach in America there had been about 600 Methodists, but when he was done they numbered 200,000. While this was certainly not all his own doing, John Wesley himself preached along with about 4,000 other ministers. Asbury traveled about 6,000 miles a year on horseback.

He was also responsible for ordaining the first black minister in the United States. He was strongly opposed to slavery and petitioned George Washington to end it. He was saddened by the fact that some Methodist sold slaves and publicly stated so despite this not being popular at the time.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

The Jesuits were formed August 15th 1534 - This Week in Christian History for the week of August 11-18, 2013

Ignatius of Loyola and six other students founded a group they called “The Company of Jesus” at Paris University on August 15th 1534.  Ignatius had gone to the university because he had tried to preach on his own, but had come under scrutiny by the Inquisition. The only fault they found in him was his lack of education. It might have been this lesson that helped to make education a central focus of their later work.

They went to Pope Paul II to gain approval, which they received. The group eventually became “The Society of Jesus,” or as it is known, the Jesuits. They wanted to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, but were prevented from doing so by war. They concentrated on preaching and helping the poor. The group became an official order and Ignatius, as the head of the order, sent them throughout Europe to found schools. They also sent missionaries around the globe to preach the Gospel to those who had not heard it.

After a few years they added to their mission to try and stop the wave of Protestantism that had sprung up. The Jesuits saw the need to reform the Catholic Church, but saw the individual as key to achieving that end. They were vigilant against corruption, and this had made their popularity with pope and others vary considerably. These efforts helped to win back converts to Catholicism, especially in Poland and Lithuania. Jesuits became important members of Royal courts and most Catholic kings had a Jesuit confessor.

The school network was a resounding success. They had a reputation as being some of the best colleges for the time. They offered an education that was wider in scope than most of the other colleges. Today there are Jesuit schools in over a hundred countries.

Jesuits have been controversial at times. They have been accused of having too much power, especially when they were confessors to kings, and have even been outlawed by the pope for a few years. The Jesuits have survived and have had a positive influence on the Catholic Church overall.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

Adoniram Judson was born August 9th 1788 - This Week in Christian History for the week of August 4-10, 2013

On August 9th 1788 Adoniram Judson was born to a congregational minister in Massachusetts. Judson enrolled in the college now known as Brown University at age 16, and graduated as Valedictorian at age 19. While there he befriended Jacob Eames who was a deist. Judson adopted the deist philosophy, which rejects miraculous events, but believes there is a god. It was the death of Eames that shocked Judson back into the Christian faith.

Judson joined a group of students known as “the Brethren” who were interested in missionary work. He went to London, but his ship was captured by pirates and he ended up in France. He crossed the channel to England and visited the missionary seminary before returning to New York. He was commissioned to do missionary work and was married. The couple arrived in India, but the local authorities and the English did not want them to evangelize Hindus and they were thrown out of the country.

Judson ended up in Burma, there had been a few missionaries who had come before him, but none had stayed there for long. It took Judson three years to learn Burmese. It was a year after that when he made his first public speech. Soon after he made his first convert, but the work was slow and any convert faced the possibility of the death penalty for converting.

Judson wrote a book about Burmese grammar and translated the Gospel of Matthew into Burmese. A printing press aided him and after ten years his congregation numbered 18. Brittan got into a war with Burma, and since he spoke English he was not trusted and accused of being a spy. Judson was imprisoned for almost two years in dreadful conditions. Soon after his release his wife died.

Judson fell into depression over the death of his wife, but after British war there was a change in the limitations that had been put on the missionaries. Judson and fellow missionaries contacted the Karen, people who are scattered throughout the jungles of Burma. They were much more receptive to the Gospel, and once converted willing to help spread it. Judson eventually got over the passing of his wife and remarried. He finished translating the Bible into Burmese. His wife died going back to America and Judson married yet again. His legacy still continues to this day as there are still large numbers of Christians in the region.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

The New American Standard Version of the Bible NASB was published on July 31th 1971 - This Week in Christian History for the week of July 28-August 3rd, 2013

On July 31^st 1970 the complete New American Standard Version of the Bible was first published by the Lockman Foundation. The Bible is regarded as the most literal 20^th century version. The Revised Standard Version was also an update of the American Standard Version, but was less literal than the original, which was the main reason that people saw a need for a new version of the Bible. The New American Standard Version was designed to be true to the original languages, be grammatically correct, understandable, and give glory to Jesus.  It has been revised to a newer version by the Lockman Foundation mostly because of the discovery of better manuscripts, especially the Dead Sea Scrolls, but also due to some readability issues.

Where did the Lockman Foundation come from? It was during a tent meeting that Dewey Lockman was saved, and a few years later than he underwent a realization based on Malachi 3:10 that giving to the LORD based on faith will bring blessings. He started with a 10% tithe, but the size of the tithe increased as the years went along. He eventually gave 40% of his income to God. When he had a few lean years as a farmer, he kept account of how much he owed and paid it back later.

Lockman was so blessed that he was able to give away 75% of his land to establish the Lockman Foundation. The Foundation was to reach God’s people throughout the world. They taught adult and children Bible classes. The bought Foundation Press to enable them to publish tracs, Gospels, and other Christian literature.

The foundation turned to Bible translation when it published the New Testament Amplified Bible in 1958. But it was obvious that a more general Bible was needed, and this is where the New American Standard Version came from. After it was published, the Old Testament of the Amplified Bible was released. Besides working on English Bibles, the foundation has published original translations of the Bible in many other languages. The Lockman Foundation continues today although its founder has passed away. More study Bibles are based on the NASB than on any other translation.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

John Newton composer of Amazing Grace was born July 24t, 1725 - This Week in Christian History for the week of July 21-27, 2013

John Newton was born on July 24, 1725 in London. At age 11 he went to sea with his father after his mother died of tuberculosis. He sailed with his father six times before his father retired. He was fired from his first job due to unruly behavior. When John was visiting some friends he was pressganged into service in the Royal Navy. He attempted to escape and was whipped and sent to work on a slave ship. He continued to be a troublemaker and the ship left him in Africa under the care of one of the slave traders, who treated him like one of his slaves. John had to beg for food to survive. John’s father asked a captain to keep on the lookout for him and he was saved and brought back to England.

It was during the trip home while a terrible storm was raging that John first considered Christianity. He became a mate then a captain on several slave ships hoping to restrain the worst of the trade. While he was sick with fever he prayed to God and was saved. John quit the slave trade and became a tax collector. In his spare time he learned Greek and Hebrew and gave Bible studies in his home. He wanted to become a priest in the Church of England and accomplished the goal in seven years. He published a pamphlet against slavery.

John Newton is most famous today for him hymns. He began to collaborate with poet William Cowper to create a volume published as the Olney Hymns in 1779. The song included are "Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken," "How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds!," "Let Us Love, and Sing, and Wonder," "Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Prepare," "Approach, My Soul, the Mercy-seat.” He is best known for a song he wrote himself based on his own life, “Amazing Grace.”

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

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The Great Schism (Eastern-Western) July 16th 1054 - This Week in Christian History for the week of July 14-20, 2013

The Great Schism (Eastern-Western) was when the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church split apart. The date that is chosen, 1054 July 16^th, is when Pope Leo IX sent legates to deliver the excommunication of Michael Cærularius, Patriarch of Constantinople. The Patriarch, the head of the eastern church, reacted by excommunicating the legates. This was not the beginning of the story.

When Constantine legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire, he gave more authority to the sees of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem.  The Roman Empire was sometimes one country, but at other times it was divided into eastern and western halves. During his reign Constantine effectively moved the capital of Rome to Constantinople in the East.

In the fourth century the emperor took control of the church and the local bishop (in Constantinople) was made Patriarch. This title in time came to mean that his see was considered second, only behind Rome in eminence. The other sees protested this, especially Rome. During this time Rome increasingly saw itself as being the head of the other churches. Then the Roman Empire was permanently split and the former eastern portion of the Roman Empire became the Byzantine Empire. This helped create further differences between the two churches.

After the fall of the Roman Empire to Germanic tribes, the Byzantine Emperor declared to have complete authority over the church, but acknowledged he could not influence the church in the former western half of the empire. After the fall of the empire a greater language barrier grew. The western half spoke Latin and the eastern spoke Greek. Most educated men spoke both before the fall, but after the fall very few would learn both languages. Theology and rituals gradually drifted apart. Three of the original five sees fell to Muslim Arabs, thus leaving the two great sees of Rome and Constantinople.

Years after this happened the mutual excommunication took place. Afterwards the churches have largely gotten along, but did not recognize each other’s councils, which was not all that different than what it was like for years before the schism. In 1965 Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I met to declare an end to the schism.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

John Calvin was born July 10th 1509 - This Week in Christian History for the week of July 7-13, 2013

On July 10 1509 John Calvin was born in France. Be broke with the Catholic Church, but eventually had to flee to Switzerland due to religious tensions. It was in Basel Switzerland that he published “The Institutes of the Christian Religion,” which became very influential in Protestant thinking. He was sent to reform the church in Geneva. One of his ideas had been to insist that all member of the church would have to take a vow of confession, but most had not done so yet and they didn’t want to force anyone. Also they didn’t have the Eucharist during the Easter services, which caused quite a tumult. This caused the City Council to reject his ideas.

Martin Bucer invited Calvin to Strasbourg, where he became the minister to a French church. Eventually Geneva became more cooperative and allowed him to lead. Calvin preached over 2,000 sermons when in Geneva, two sermons on Sunday and three other times a week. His sermons would usually last an hour and he did not use notes and although there had been some attempt at recording his sermons by secretaries, very little of these sermons survive.

Being one of the first protestant leaders, Calvin faced much opposition. A group, sometimes known as the Libertines, opposed Calvin from a different angle. They argued that if we were saved by grace then there should not be subject to ecclesiastic or civil authority. This group was composed of the wealthy and powerful, and harassed Calvin through his time in Geneva. With more French refugees coming into the city, Calvin’s political position improved and the Libertines tried to burn down a house filled with Frenchmen, but this backfired and they fled form the city or in some cases tried and killed.

John Calvin was also instrumental in the trial and execution of Michael Servetus, who denied the Trinity and infant baptism. He was wanted by the Inquisition and wrote letters to Calvin. He stopped in Geneva and was recognized, tried, and burned at the stake. Calvin pressed to have him beheaded instead. This helped him to secure a position as a lead reformer and give him political stability at home. He varied with Martin Luther on several points and was dismayed that the reformers were not united. He worked on reforming and expanding his “The Institutes of the Christian Religion,” and finished the final version shortly before his death.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

Video Version of This Week in Christian History 07 07-13 2013

The Gideons were formed July 1st - This Week in Christian History for the week of June 30-July 6, 2013

The Gideons came about after two of their founders ended up having to share a room in a crowded hotel. John Nicholson and Samuel Beliot joined found that they had much in common, including a love of God. On the night of their meeting in Boscobel Wisconsin the men decided to form an association. In May of the next year they met again in Beaver Damn Wisconsin and they called a meeting in Janesville on July 1^st at the Y.M.C.A..

At this meeting they were joined by William Knights. They chose their name, which was inspired by Judges Chapters six and seven. All three men were business travelers and wanted to know how they might impact people who were in hotels. In 1908 they came up with the goal to put a Bible in every hotel room in the United States. Only two months later a minister in Cedar Rapids Iowa was the first to support “the Bible Project,” as it was then called, and provide the Bibles for all of the local hotels.

Since then the Gideons have expanded their outreach to hospitals, convalescent homes, medical offices, domestic violence shelters, prisons and jails. The Gideons also place Bibles in the hands of students in 5^th grade or above and emergency service personnel. The Gideons have placed more than 1.7 billion Bibles and New Testaments in over 190 countries.

In a stament about their ministry on their website, the Gideons say, “Having God's Word can and does lead people to faith in Christ, and those new Christians then grow by studying their Scriptures and even use them to share their faith with others. For this reason, we focus on distributing complete Bibles or New Testaments. These copies of God's Word are printed in more than 90 languages.”

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

Evangelist Lester Roloff was born on June 17, 1914 - This Week in Christian History for the week of June 23-29, 2013

June 17, 1914 Evangelist Lester Roloff was born in Dawson Texas. To help pay for his education he brought a cow with him and milked it to pay for his room and board. Early in his ministry Lester preached in small towns and in revival meetings. During World War II he became the pastor of Park Avenue Baptist Church, and his popularity spread.

Soon after he started a radio broadcast, “The Family Altar,” which is still a successful program even years after Lester’s death. He eventually left Park Avenue to become a full-time evangelist on the radio and in revivals. He would later found Alameda Baptist Church is Corpus Christi as a base of operations for his ministry.

Lester founded the “City of Refuge” for alcoholic men and their families. Lester is quoted as saying, “this is a work of faith, entirely dependent upon the gifts of God’s people. You talk about an opportunity for evangelism! This is it, when we have men, women, boys and girls for at least ninety days to preach the gospel of deliverance to them. Some have suggested that we appeal to the state for funds, but his is a work of faith and there must be no strings attached that would keep us from preaching a full gospel and ministering to the spiritual needs of people. This is not a social institution. This is a salvation institution.”

This need to be disconnected to the state would later prove troubling for his later works.

He founded the “Lighthouse for Boys,” and the “Rebekah Home” for girls. These provided a place for troubled children, some who were homeless, addicted to drugs, alcoholic or pregnant. These homes were put under pressure because Lester didn’t want to license the homes. He argued that he didn’t take a penny from the state of Texas; they shouldn’t be able to tell him how to run his homes. Lester was willing to serve two short jail sentences to stand for his beliefs.

Fighting legal battles took a toll on Lester, and he announced on one of his last “Family Altar” programs that he had not only taken all of the money out of the bank, but had also taken a loan to keep the ministry going. Shortly after he crashed a plane he was piloting, he passed away along with his three passengers. The National Religious Broadcasters indicted Lester into their Hall of Fame.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

John Wesley was born June 17th 1703 - Weekly Christian History for the week of June 16-22, 2013

On June 17 1703 John Wesley was born. While he always considered himself a loyal member of the Church of England, he and his brother Charles founded the Methodist Church. The name Methodist came from their original legalistic viewpoint and tireless generosity and was given to “The Holy Club” by other students at Oxford University.

When John was about five he was rescued from a fire, the fire devastated his family financially. His mother, Suzanna, always told John he was “A Brand Plucked out of the Fire.” His mother taught him and the rest of the siblings, 24 were born but only 10 lived. John’s father was the rector of Epworth.

John decided to go to America to try and convert American Indians, and on the way a terrible storm struck and the mast of the ship collapsed. While John was terrified for his soul, he discovered Moravians, German Protestants who were also travelling to America, were not afraid to die, and were calm during the calamity. This was even true of their children. He was deeply affected by the contrast and began to listen to their theology.

John found himself entangled in a romantic affair, which ended with the target of his romantic attention being married to another man. He left for England soon after. Charles and John also had trouble because of their strict, legalistic ways. As time passed John doubted his own salvation, but kept on seeing how what the Moravians taught seemed to be what the Bible said. John was saved; he felt a warming of his heart when he heard Martin Luther’s Preface to Romans.

This was just the beginning; he kept his vigorous schedule and travelled throughout England, Ireland, and America spreading the Word of God. He read the Bible or other books while he was riding, he wasn’t the type of man to rest. Stephen Tomkins wrote that he "rode 250,000 miles, gave away 30,000 pounds ... and preached more than 40,000 sermons.”

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

Big Week for Presbyterian Churches - This Week in Christian History June 9-15, 2013

There were several important developments in the Presbyterian Church this week in history. As a background, here is a brief history of the Presbyterian Church. The Presbyterian Church formed in large part due to John Knox’s visiting John Calvin’s Geneva. He was impressed with it and based his theology on it. The National Church of Scotland was formed in 1560 which was basically the first Presbyterian Church. The theology spread to England and was no longer illegal in 1647 (we live in great times where we can decide for ourselves what religion to follow).

The Presbyterian Church of Wales was made of Calvinistic Methodists ministers, who were originally known as the Calvinist Methodist connexion. Scottish immigrants to Ireland helped spread the Presbyterian Church there. The name Presbyterian is not used in France, but is known as Calvinist or the Church of Scotland. There are also Presbyterians throughout the world.

This relates to this week because of the following events:

6-13-1876

The Presbyterian Church in England merged with the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland to form the Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scotland.

06-10-1925

The United Church of Canada was formed from Methodist, Presbyterian, and 3,000 independent churches. Currently there are about 200,000 people who attend services.

06-11-1936

The Presbyterian Church of America (PCA) was organized in Philadelphia, now called the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. The church was formed from objections to modern and liberal changes to the church. Modernism here means to study scriptures as you would other writings, not as the literal word of God.

6-10-1983

The United Presbyterian Church (UPCUSA) and the Southern Presbyterian Church (PCUS) reunited to form The Presbyterian Church (USA). This denomination has almost 2,000,000 members today and is the largest Presbyterian denomination.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net

Thank you for reading.

On 6-5-1967 the Arab Israeli Six Day War started - This Week in Christian History

 

On 6-5-1967 the Arab Israeli Six Day War started. While this was of more immediate importance to our Jewish friends, it was an important fulfilling of Bible prophecy. The war started when the Israeli air force bombed Egyptian air fields by surprise in response to terrorist and guerilla attacks from the PLO. There were also tensions from land and water disputes. The airstrike was very successful and it gave Israel air superiority for the rest of the war.

Meanwhile three brigades entered Egyptian territory and attacked. The Israelis thought that Egypt would be prepared for a similar attack that Israeli forces had used in the past, so they attacked with surprise timing, different routes (some were thought to be impassable) and alternative methods. While they did suffer casualties, they were successful in capturing the Sinai Peninsula.

Jordan was initially reluctant to join the war but shelled Israel. Israel contacted King Hussein telling him that Jordan would not be targeted if they stayed out of the war. Jordan escalated the fighting, joined by a few forces from Iraq. Israel captured Old Jerusalem and then overtook the rest of the West Bank.

Syria entered the war, encouraged by Egyptian propaganda claiming they were winning the war. A few of Syria’s aircraft were shot down and an airfield attacked, however when they figured out the reports that they had heard about Israel’s forces being almost completely destroyed were false, they diverted the aircraft to positions farther away from the conflict. Syria offered a cease fire, but since they had been largely responsible for the terrorist and guerrilla attacks, it was decided to attack them. Israel captured the Golan Heights area.

God has given the land of Israel to the Jewish people and has promised to restore its cities; the Six Day War was part of a series of conflicts that has enabled the Jewish people to reclaim their land.

This blog is more focused in Christian history than Bible prophecy, but when I saw the Six Day War was in the week I knew I had to include it because of its huge significance.

My new book is now available to order from Amazon.com Would You Do What They Did? - Great Christian Leaders From Our Past
It is also available to order now or shortly from anywhere that sells books. It is a creative nonfiction collection of biographies of Martin Luther, Francis of Assisi, John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and Thomas Becket. Come, tame a wolf, flee from the wrath of the king, feel the horror of impending doom on a ship, and the uncertainty of one’s own salvation with these great heroes of the faith. I have excepts of the book on my website williamdeanhamilton.net