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Praise God, that we are saved by grace alone. Works without faith are utterly without merit. This is not merely a Protestant notion. Such has been the persistent teaching of the saints throughout the ages. Yet a whitewashing of Martin Luther has led to many people, even Catholics, fundamentally misunderstanding the Catholic Church's criticism of him. Please understand that what I write here is no ad-hominem attack on Luther for any purpose, including the slander of Protestantism. Attacking the moral character of Martin Luther is gainless, for no-one supposes Luther to be imbued with the gift of infallibility. But when...

WITTENBERG, Germany -- Martin Luther, a renegade monk, triggered the Reformation here five centuries ago . . . Today, fewer than one in five people identify themselves as Christian . . . " . . . east Germany is perhaps the most atheistic region in the world" . . . The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the second-largest Lutheran body in the United States, has bought a building next to the old Town Church, where Luther used to preach . . . plans to start a congregation . . . "In east Germany, you actually have to go up to people and...

For the non-Calvinists or anti-Calvinists among us who may worry that this issue of WORLD has several articles about John Calvin, be not afraid: It happens only once every 500 years. July 10 brings the 500th anniversary of John Calvin's birth—and the great theologian, even with his warts, deserves a better press than he has typically received in recent decades. Calvin was a fallen sinner, as all of us are, but was he especially mean-spirited? He taught that God created the world out of love and loved the world so much that Christ came down from the glorious kingdom of...

Who were the Huguenots? John Calvin (1509 - 1564), religious reformer. The Huguenots were French Protestants who were members of the Reformed Church which was established in 1550 by John Calvin. The origin of the name Huguenot is uncertain, but dates from approximately 1550 when it was used in court cases against "heretics" (dissenters from the Roman Catholic Church). There is a theory that it is derived from the personal name of Besançon Hugues, the leader of the "Confederate Party" in Geneva, in combination with a Frankish corruption of the German word for conspirator or confederate: eidgenosse. Thus, Hugues plus...

As a Baptist Sunday School and Bible study teacher, one of the questions that used to nag at me incessantly was this: Why, after such painstaking deliberation in dictating an institutional religion that pleased Him in the Old Testament and that was designed to lead the people to recognize the Messiah when He came, would God then introduce a system in the New Testament Church that was so completely unlike the one He established in the Old? There are innumerable examples of how ridiculous this complete “change” would be, but take the priesthood, for instance.Priests were the officiators of worship...

June 15, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - This article presents the Christian attitude toward abortion before the first ecumenical council, that is, until A.D. 325. Because the New Testament does not comment on the morality of abortion, this article considers the writings of the first generations of Christians after the apostles, for they indicate that opposition to abortion (1) was shared at a time when the writers — or Christians not many generations earlier — personally knew the apostles or their first disciples and thus benefited from their unwritten teachings and interpretations of Scripture, (2) comes from a date so early that...

Dr. E. T. Hiscox, author of the Baptist Manual, wrote the following which was taken from a photostatic copy of a notarized statement by Dr. Hiscox: “There WAS and IS a command to keep holy the Sabbath day, but that Sabbath day was NOT Sunday. It will however be readily said, and with some show of triumph, that the Sabbath WAS TRANSFERRED from the Seventh to the First day of the week, with all its duties, privileges and sanctions. Earnestly desiring information on this subject, which I have studied for many years, I ask, where can the record of...

Should historical amnesia be an option for the average Christian? Knowing church history, particularly as it relates to the early years of Christianity and the theological issues which faced leaders in that age is important for all believers, essayists in the summer edition of the Southern Baptist Journal of Theology argue. The latest SBJT examines the early church and encourages Christians to learn from important church fathers such as Athanasius, Augustine and Irenaeus. Essayists include Southern Seminary professor Michael A.G. Haykin, author and pastor John Piper, Westminster Theological Seminary professor Carl Trueman, Western Seminary professor Todd L. Miles, and Scottish...

A Rhode Island author claims in his book that Islamic violence against Jews and Christians has been part of the religion since its origins 1,200 years ago. Andrew Bostrom, associate professor of medicine at Brown University, wrote in his book, The Legacy of Islamic Anti-Semitism: from Sacred Texts to Solemn History, that Muslim governments dating back 1,000 years forced Jews and Christians to show deference to Muslims and wear clothing that distinguished them from followers of the official state religion, IsraelNN.com reported Friday. Bostrom claimed the Koran itself is anti-Semitic, with references to the prophet Mohammed's poisoning death at the...

Vatican City, Jul 14, 2008 / 02:34 pm (CNA).- L’Osservatore Romano published an article last week explaining how Pope Pius VII decided in 1808 that the Vatican colors would be white and yellow.  Historian Claudio Ceresa explained the history behind the Pope’s choice.In an article entitled, “Two centuries of yellow and white as the papal colors,” Ceresa explained that in order to understand why the colors were chosen, one must consider the “occupation of the city by Napoleonic troops in February of 1808.”“The commander of the French forces, General Miollis, posted notices on the walls informing that the Pope’s army...

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In the beginning of the church (first ten years) all the believers were Jews. The church began and was established in Jerusalem where Jesus did a good portion of his preaching and was crucified and raised. The gospel went out from Jerusalem "you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth" Acts 1:8 Luke 24:47-48 that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. (see Acts 10:36-37) It wasn’t until years later that the gospel went to the Gentiles...

Chapter 2Apostasy and Restoration "Mormonism has no claim to be a viable religion in the present unless it has been a viable religion in the past."- Truman Madsen1The simple fact is that had there been no "apostasy," or "falling away," from Christ's original Church, there would have been no need for God to restore the Church through Joseph Smith. In this chapter we will establish the fact that there was, indeed, such an apostasy and describe its history and some of its effects.2 Finally, we will present evidence that a restoration of the gospel was also predicted in the early...

My mother-in-law, a Roman Catholic, was at it again. Just before Christmas, I was informed that the Church of England was started by Henry VIII because he wanted a divorce, and that the reason that the Episcopal Church has its homosexual problem is all due to married clergy. Thank God for monogamy, because one mother-in-law is quite enough. The saddest man in the Bible had to have been King Solomon with about a thousand of them to deal with. It should have been enough to put a king off of sex, since each bride probably had a mother. But, enough...

Q:I saw a magazine article that mentioned discrimination against Coptic Christians in Egypt. Are Coptic Christians a separate church or is that just a name for Christians in Egypt. Do they belong to different Christian churches? — Lakesha, Oklahoma City A:The Christian Coptic Orthodox Church is a separate church that is part of the little-known group of Christians called the Oriental Orthodox. Oriental Orthodox churches are not the same as the more familiar Eastern Orthodox group, which includes the Greek and Russian Orthodox churches. Most Americans are aware of the split in Christianity caused by the Reformation led by Martin...

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced Monday morning it will establish a new imprint for publishing works relating to its origin and growth— the Church Historian's Press. "The claims the church makes are in its history," Elder Marlin K. Jensen, church historian and member of the Seventy, said. "It seems logical to have a Church Historian's Press." Although this publishing effort may never have its own separate printing facilities, its staff and efforts will utilize those of church-owned Deseret Book initially and perhaps someday even the facilities of the church's own existing printing services too. "We don't...

Church's pre-historic past unearthed Feb 14 2008 By Tony Henderson Work on a town’s church has revealed that the site may have been used for ritual and worship for thousands of years. Major refurbishment work on the Grade I-listed St Michael and All Angels church in Houghton-le-Spring, Tyne and Wear, began last month and has involved digging up the floor to install a new heating system. The church, dating back to Norman times, is the oldest building in the town. A carved stone above a tiny doorway, featuring a carving of mysterious intertwined animals known as the Houghton Beasts, may...

Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is the last hurrah before the Catholic season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. It also has links to the Christmas season through the period known as Carnival.Mardi Gras' Catholic Roots Mardi Gras, literally "Fat Tuesday," has grown in popularity in recent years as a raucous, sometimes hedonistic event. But its roots lie in the Christian calendar, as the "last hurrah" before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. That's why the enormous party in New Orleans, for example, ends abruptly at midnight on Tuesday, with battalions of streetsweepers pushing the crowds out of the French...

Once there was a Pope named Peter? One day Jesus asked two questions to his disciples. The first: Who do men say that the Son of Man is? (Matthew 16:13). The second more personal "But you, who do you say that I am?" Do you believe what the people’s opinion are of him or do you have one of your own. In v.16 Peter spoke up and answered “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus now turned to Peter and made a series of statements. One is where the revelation came from. Jesus tells him that...

Christmas Definition and Summary Christmas, also known as the Feast of the Nativity, literally means "Christ Mass." The feast celebrates Jesus' birth and the Incarnation of the Son of God on December 25. Christmastide is another name for the Christmas season, and currently extends from the first Vespers of Christmas Eve until the Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord. Prayers: Christmas Prayers Basic Facts Liturgical Color(s): White Type of Holiday: Solemnity; Holy Day of Obligation; Season Time of Year: December 25th until the Baptism of Our Lord (Sunday after Jan. 6th) Duration: Christmas: one day; Christmastide: varies, see above...