1.
Presbyterianism
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Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism which traces its origins to the British Isles, particularly Scotland. Presbyterian churches derive their name from the form of church government. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures, Presbyterian church government was ensured in Scotland by the Acts of Union in 1707 which created the Kingdom of Great Britain. In fact, most Presbyterians found in England can trace a Scottish connection, the Presbyterian denominations in Scotland hold to the theology of John Calvin and his immediate successors, although there are a range of theological views within contemporary Presbyterianism. The roots of Presbyterianism lie in the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, most Reformed churches which trace their history back to Scotland are either presbyterian or congregationalist in government. In the twentieth century, some Presbyterians played an important role in the ecumenical movement, many Presbyterian denominations have found ways of working together with other Reformed denominations and Christians of other traditions, especially in the World Communion of Reformed Churches. Some Presbyterian churches have entered into unions with other churches, such as Congregationalists, Lutherans, Anglicans, Presbyterian history is part of the history of Christianity, but the beginning of Presbyterianism as a distinct movement occurred during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. As the Catholic Church resisted the reformers, several different theological movements splintered from the Church, the Presbyterian church traces its ancestry back primarily to England and Scotland. In August 1560 the Parliament of Scotland adopted the Scots Confession as the creed of the Scottish Kingdom, Presbyterians distinguish themselves from other denominations by doctrine, institutional organization and worship, often using a Book of Order to regulate common practice and order. The origins of the Presbyterian churches are in Calvinism, many branches of Presbyterianism are remnants of previous splits from larger groups. Presbyterians place great importance upon education and lifelong learning, Presbyterian government is by councils of elders. Teaching and ruling elders are ordained and convene in the lowest council known as a session or consistory responsible for the discipline, nurture, teaching elders have responsibility for teaching, worship, and performing sacraments. Pastors are called by individual congregations, a congregation issues a call for the pastors service, but this call must be ratified by the local presbytery. Ruling elders are usually laymen who are elected by the congregation and ordained to serve with the elders, assuming responsibility for nurture. Often, especially in larger congregations, the elders delegate the practicalities of buildings, finance and this group may variously be known as a Deacon Board, Board of Deacons Diaconate, or Deacons Court. These are sometimes known as presbyters to the full congregation, above the sessions exist presbyteries, which have area responsibilities. These are composed of teaching elders and ruling elders from each of the constituent congregations, the presbytery sends representatives to a broader regional or national assembly, generally known as the General Assembly, although an intermediate level of a synod sometimes exists. The Church of Scotland abolished the Synod in 1993, Presbyterian governance is practised by Presbyterian denominations and also by many other Reformed churches
2.
Calvinism
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Calvinism is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice of John Calvin and other Reformation-era theologians. The term Calvinism can be misleading, because the tradition which it denotes has always been diverse. The movement was first called Calvinism by Lutherans who opposed it, early influential Reformed theologians include Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin, Martin Bucer, William Farel, Heinrich Bullinger, Peter Martyr Vermigli, Theodore Beza, and John Knox. In the twentieth century, Abraham Kuyper, Herman Bavinck, B. B, Warfield, J. Gresham Machen, Karl Barth, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Cornelius Van Til, and Gordon Clark were influential. Contemporary Reformed theologians include J. I, sproul, Timothy J. Keller, John Piper, David Wells, and Michael Horton. Reformed churches may exercise several forms of polity, most are presbyterian or congregationalist. Calvinism is largely represented by Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregationalist traditions, the biggest Reformed association is the World Communion of Reformed Churches with more than 80 million members in 211 member denominations around the world. There are more conservative Reformed federations such as the World Reformed Fellowship, Calvinism is named after John Calvin. It was first used by a Lutheran theologian in 1552 and it was a common practice of the Catholic Church to name what they perceived to be heresy after its founder. Nevertheless, the term first came out of Lutheran circles, Calvin denounced the designation himself, They could attach us no greater insult than this word, Calvinism. It is not hard to guess where such a deadly hatred comes from that they hold against me, despite its negative connotation, this designation became increasingly popular in order to distinguish Calvinists from Lutherans and from newer Protestant branches that emerged later. Moreover, these churches claim to be—in accordance with John Calvins own words—renewed accordingly with the order of gospel. Since the Arminian controversy, the Reformed tradition—as a branch of Protestantism distinguished from Lutheranism—divided into two groups, Arminians and Calvinists. However, it is now rare to call Arminians a part of the Reformed tradition, some have also argued that Calvinism as a whole stresses the sovereignty or rule of God in all things including salvation. First-generation Reformed theologians include Huldrych Zwingli, Martin Bucer, Wolfgang Capito, John Oecolampadius, scripture was also viewed as a unified whole, which led to a covenantal theology of the sacraments of baptism and the Lords Supper as visible signs of the covenant of grace. Another Reformed distinctive present in these theologians was their denial of the presence of Christ in the Lords supper. Each of these also understood salvation to be by grace alone. Martin Luther and his successor Philipp Melanchthon were undoubtedly significant influences on these theologians, the doctrine of justification by faith alone was a direct inheritance from Luther
3.
Covenant theology
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Covenant theology is a conceptual overview and interpretive framework for understanding the overall flow of the Bible. It uses the concept of a covenant as an organizing principle for Christian theology. Historical Reformed systems of thought treat covenant theology not merely as a point of doctrine or as a central dogma, as a framework for biblical interpretation, covenant theology stands in contrast to dispensationalism in regard to the relationship between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Many covenant theologians have also seen a distinct future promise of restoration for unregenerate Israel. The nature of Gods covenantal relationship with his creation is not considered automatic or of necessity, rather, God chooses to establish the connection as a covenant, wherein the terms of the relationship are set down by God alone according to his own will. Having created man in His image as a creature with knowledge, righteousness. Like Adam, they have trespassed the covenant is the reference to the covenant of works. The covenant of works, also called the covenant of life, was made in the Garden of Eden between God and Adam who represented all mankind as a federal head and it promised life for perfect and perpetual obedience and death for disobedience. Adam, and all mankind in Adam, broke the covenant, the covenant of works continues to function after the fall as the moral law. The term foedus operum was first used by Dudley Fenner in 1585, the covenant of works became common in Reformed theology by 1590, though it was not adopted by all, and some members of the Westminster Assembly in the 1640s opposed it. While John Calvin had spoken of a period for Adam, a promise of life for obedience. It has also noted that Jeremiah 33, 20–26 compares the covenant with David to Gods covenant with the day and the night. This has led some to all of creation as covenantal. The covenant of works might then be seen as the moral law component of the broader creational covenant, the covenant of grace promises eternal life for all people who have faith in Christ. He also promises the Holy Spirit to the elect to give them willingness, Christ is the substitutionary covenantal representative fulfilling the covenant of works on their behalf, in both the positive requirements of righteousness and its negative penal consequences. It is the expression of the eternal covenant of redemption. Genesis 3,15, with the promise of a seed of the woman who would crush the head, is usually identified as the historical inauguration for the covenant of grace. The covenant of grace runs through the Old and New Testaments, under the law, the sacrifices, prophesies, and other types and ordinances of the Jews signified Christ, and men were justified by their faith in him just as they would be under the gospel
4.
Greenville, South Carolina
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Greenville is the county seat of Greenville County in the upstate region of South Carolina, in the United States. The citys mayor is Knox White, who has served in that position since December 1995, with an estimated population of 64,579 as of 2015, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. The population of the area was 400,492 as of 2010. Greenville is the largest city in the Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin Metropolitan Statistical Area, the MSA had a population of 874,869 in 2015, making it the largest in South Carolina and the third largest in the Carolinas. Greenville is the largest city in the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson Combined Statistical Area, according to United States Census Bureau, the CSA had a population of 1,426,625 as of 2015, making it the largest CSA in the state. The CSA, a 10-county region of northwestern South Carolina, is known as The Upstate, Greenville is located approximately halfway between Atlanta and Charlotte, North Carolina, along Interstate 85, and its metropolitan area also includes Interstates 185 and 385. The land of present-day Greenville was once the ground of the Cherokee which was forbidden to colonists. A wealthy settler from Virginia named Richard Pearis arrived in South Carolina around 1754 trading with Cherokee, Pearis had a child with a Cherokee woman and received about 100,000 acres from the Cherokee around 1770. Pearis established a plantation on the Reedy River called the Great Plains in present-day downtown Greenville, the American Revolution divided the South Carolina country between the Loyalists and Patriots. Pearis supported the Loyalists and together with their allies the Cherokee attacked the Patriots, the Patriots retaliated by burning down Pearis plantation and jailing him in Charleston. Pearis never returned to his plantation but Paris Mountain is named after him, the Treaty of Dewitts Corner in 1777 ceded almost all Cherokee land, including present-day Greenville, to South Carolina. Greenville County was created in 1786 and was named for its physical appearance, however, other sources say Greenville is named after General Nathanael Greene in honor of his service in the American Revolutionary War. Lemuel J. Alston came to Greenville County in 1788 and bought 400 acres, in 1797 Alston used his land holdings to establish a village called Pleasantburg where he also built a stately mansion. Vardry McBee purchased Alstons land in 1816 who then leased the Alston mansion for a summer resort, McBee decided to make the mansion his home in 1835 until his death in 1864. Considered to be the father of Greenville, McBee donated land for many such as churches, academies. Furman University was funded by McBee who helped bring the university to Pleasantburg from Winnsboro, in 1853 McBee and other Greenville County leaders funded a new railroad called the Greenville and Columbia Railroad. Pleasantburg boomed to around 1,000 in the 1850s due to the growth of McBees donations, in 1831 Pleasantburg was incorporated as Greenville. In December 1860 Greenville supported a convention to debate the issue of secession for South Carolina, the Greenville District sent James Furman, William K. Easley, Perry E. Duncan, William H. Campbell, and James P. Harrison as delegates for the convention
5.
Furman University
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Furman University is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Greenville, South Carolina. Furman is the oldest and most selective institution of higher learning in South Carolina. Founded in 1826, Furman enrolls approximately 2,700 undergraduate students and 200 graduate students, representing 46 states and 53 foreign countries, the school was named for Richard Furman of Charleston, a clergyman considered one of the most important Protestant leaders in the antebellum United States. Furman Academy and Theological Institution was established by the South Carolina Baptist Convention, with 10 students meeting at Edgefield, it held its first classes January 15,1828, but moved to the High Hills of the Santee in 1829 because of financial difficulties. It was not until 1851 that South Carolina Baptists were able to raise the funds for the removal of the school to Greenville. The Furman Institution Faculty Residence serves as a reminder of the early history of Furman University. The first school building from the downtown Greenville campus was transported to the current campus, in 1933, students from the Greenville Womens College began attending classes with Furman students. Shortly thereafter, the two merged to form the present institution. In 1924, Furman was named one of four beneficiaries of the Duke Endowment. Through 2007, Furman has received $110 million from The Endowment, three other colleges — Duke, Davidson and Johnson C. Smith — also receive annual support and special grants from The Endowment. As of the late 1950s, separate but equal laws had continued to allow Furman to not admit African Americans as students, soon after Brown v. Board of Education integrated public schools, some Furman students began to press for change. In 1955, some students wrote short stories and poems in The Echo, in 1956, Furman began construction on its new campus, five miles north of downtown Greenville. Classes on the new campus began in 1958, by 1963, enough faculty were siding with the students over racial segregation that Furmans board of trustees voted for an open admission policy. Joe Vaughn, a graduate of Sterling High School, became Furmans first black undergraduate in February 1965, after the 1991-92 academic year, Furman ended its affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention and became a private, secular university, while keeping Christo et Doctrinae as the schools motto. Between 1996 and 2003,308 Furman graduates received Ph. D. degrees, David Shi, a historian, author and champion of sustainability, served as the university’s president from 1994 to 2010. Rod Smolla resigned for personal reasons after holding the top post for three years. Carl F. Kohrt held the position on an interim basis, Davis came to Furman from Baylor University in Texas, where she was Executive Vice President and Provost. Furman offers majors and programs in 42 subjects, undergraduates come from 46 states and 53 countries
6.
University of Edinburgh
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The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1582, is the sixth oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotlands ancient universities. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city of Edinburgh, the University of Edinburgh was ranked 17th and 21st in the world by the 2014–15 and 2015-16 QS rankings. It is now ranked 19th in the according to 2016-17 QS Rankings. It is ranked 16th in the world in arts and humanities by the 2015–16 Times Higher Education Ranking and it is ranked the 23rd most employable university in the world by the 2015 Global Employability University Ranking. It is ranked as the 6th best university in Europe by the U. S. News Best Global Universities Ranking and it is a member of both the Russell Group, and the League of European Research Universities, a consortium of 21 research universities in Europe. It has the third largest endowment of any university in the United Kingdom, after the universities of Cambridge and it continues to have links to the British Royal Family, having had the Duke of Edinburgh as its Chancellor from 1953 to 2010 and Princess Anne since 2011. Edinburgh receives approximately 50,000 applications every year, making it the fourth most popular university in the UK by volume of applicants, after St Andrews, it is the most difficult university to gain admission into in Scotland, and 9th overall in the UK. This was a move at the time, as most universities were established through Papal bulls. Established as the Tounis College, it opened its doors to students in October 1583, instruction began under the charge of another St Andrews graduate Robert Rollock. It was the fourth Scottish university in a period when the more populous. It was renamed King Jamess College in 1617, by the 18th century, the university was a leading centre of the Scottish Enlightenment. The universitys first custom-built building was the Old College, now Edinburgh Law School and its first forte in teaching was anatomy and the developing science of surgery, from which it expanded into many other subjects. From the basement of a nearby house ran the anatomy tunnel corridor and it went under what was then North College Street, and under the university buildings until it reached the universitys anatomy lecture theatre, delivering bodies for dissection. It was from this tunnel the body of William Burke was taken after he had been hanged, towards the end of the 19th century, Old College was becoming overcrowded and Robert Rowand Anderson was commissioned to design new Medical School premises in 1875. The medical school was more or less built to his design and was completed by the addition of the McEwan Hall in the 1880s. The building now known as New College was originally built as a Free Church college in the 1840s and has been the home of divinity at the university since the 1920s. The two oldest schools – law and divinity – are both well-esteemed, with law being based in Old College and divinity in New College on the Mound and they are also represented by the Edinburgh University Sports Union which was founded in 1866. The medical school is renowned throughout the world and it was widely considered the best medical school in the English-speaking world throughout the 18th century and first half of the 19th century
7.
New College, Edinburgh
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There are now nearly 40 full-time members of the academic staff, and they include internationally respected scholars in various specialities. New College was established as an institution to educate ministers and the Scottish leadership. New College opened its doors to 168 students in November 1843 and, under the guidance of its first principal Thomas Chalmers, during the 1930s the two institutions came together, sharing the New College site on The Mound. The current principal is the Reverend Professor David Fergusson, OBE, members of academic staff are all employees of the University of Edinburgh, and are today an international body of scholars of various persuasions in religious matters. New College is rated among the best schools of theology, philosophical theology, the college is regularly among the top five theology and religious studies departments in national newspaper league tables. The School of Divinity offers six different undergraduate degrees, the MA Theology allows students to focus on traditional areas of Christian studies. The Bachelor of Divinity prepares candidates for the ministry, the MA Religious Studies and English/Scottish Literature, the MA Philosophy and Theology, and the MA Divinity and Classics allow students to work cross-disciplinary. The School also offers several M. Th. degree programmes, there is no confessional test for staff or students. Only a portion of the students are ministerial candidates. New College is home to research centres, the Centre for the Study of World Christianity, the Centre for Theology and Public Issues. New College is located in the city centre on Mound Place, overlooking Princes Street Gardens, the National Gallery of Art, the neo-gothic building was designed by the respected 19th century architect William Henry Playfair. The New College library was founded in 1843 as the Library of the Free Church College, the library is situated in the eastern wing of New College, and its splendid reading hall was originally built as the sanctuary of the Free High Kirk. Rainy Hall is a gothic revival dining hall, adorned with heraldry and it is at the centre of college life, used by students and faculty for conversation and meals. New College, Edinburgh, A Centenary History, wright, David F. Badcock, Gary D. eds. The Disruption and the Dream, The Making of New College 1843–1861, Disruption to Diversity, Edinburgh Divinity 1846-1996
8.
John Calvin
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John Calvin was an influential French theologian, pastor and reformer during the Protestant Reformation. Various Congregational, Reformed, and Presbyterian churches, which look to Calvin as the expositor of their beliefs, have spread throughout the world. Calvin was a polemic and apologetic writer who generated much controversy. He also exchanged cordial and supportive letters with many reformers, including Philipp Melanchthon, in addition to his seminal Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin wrote commentaries on most books of the Bible, confessional documents, and various other theological treatises. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530, at the invitation of Martin Bucer, Calvin proceeded to Strasbourg, where he became the minister of a church of French refugees. He continued to support the movement in Geneva, and in 1541 he was invited back to lead the church of the city. Following his return, Calvin introduced new forms of government and liturgy. During this period, Michael Servetus, a Spaniard regarded by both Roman Catholics and Protestants as having a view of the Trinity, arrived in Geneva. He was denounced by Calvin and burned at the stake for heresy by the city council, following an influx of supportive refugees and new elections to the city council, Calvins opponents were forced out. Calvin spent his final years promoting the Reformation both in Geneva and throughout Europe, John Calvin was born as Jehan Cauvin on 10 July 1509, at Noyon, a town in Picardy, a province of the Kingdom of France. He was the first of four sons who survived infancy and his mother, Jeanne le Franc, was the daughter of an innkeeper from Cambrai. She died of a cause in Calvins childhood, after having borne four more children. Calvins father, Gérard Cauvin, had a career as the cathedral notary and registrar to the ecclesiastical court, he died in 1531. Gérard intended his three sons — Charles, Jean, and Antoine — for the priesthood, however, by age 12, he was employed by the bishop as a clerk and received the tonsure, cutting his hair to symbolise his dedication to the Church. He also won the patronage of a family, the Montmors. Through their assistance, Calvin was able to attend the Collège de la Marche, Paris, once he completed the course, he entered the Collège de Montaigu as a philosophy student. In 1525 or 1526, Gérard withdrew his son from the Collège de Montaigu, according to contemporary biographers Theodore Beza and Nicolas Colladon, Gérard believed that Calvin would earn more money as a lawyer than as a priest. After a few years of study, Calvin entered the University of Bourges in 1529
9.
Christianity
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Christianity is a Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, who serves as the focal point for the religion. It is the worlds largest religion, with over 2.4 billion followers, or 33% of the global population, Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the savior of humanity whose coming as the Messiah was prophesied in the Old Testament. Christian theology is summarized in creeds such as the Apostles Creed and his incarnation, earthly ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection are often referred to as the gospel, meaning good news. The term gospel also refers to accounts of Jesuss life and teaching, four of which—Matthew, Mark, Luke. Christianity is an Abrahamic religion that began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the mid-1st century, following the Age of Discovery, Christianity spread to the Americas, Australasia, sub-Saharan Africa, and the rest of the world through missionary work and colonization. Christianity has played a prominent role in the shaping of Western civilization, throughout its history, Christianity has weathered schisms and theological disputes that have resulted in many distinct churches and denominations. Worldwide, the three largest branches of Christianity are the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the denominations of Protestantism. There are many important differences of interpretation and opinion of the Bible, concise doctrinal statements or confessions of religious beliefs are known as creeds. They began as baptismal formulae and were expanded during the Christological controversies of the 4th and 5th centuries to become statements of faith. Many evangelical Protestants reject creeds as definitive statements of faith, even agreeing with some or all of the substance of the creeds. The Baptists have been non-creedal in that they have not sought to establish binding authoritative confessions of faith on one another. Also rejecting creeds are groups with roots in the Restoration Movement, such as the Christian Church, the Evangelical Christian Church in Canada, the Apostles Creed is the most widely accepted statement of the articles of Christian faith. It is also used by Presbyterians, Methodists, and Congregationalists and this particular creed was developed between the 2nd and 9th centuries. Its central doctrines are those of the Trinity and God the Creator, each of the doctrines found in this creed can be traced to statements current in the apostolic period. The creed was used as a summary of Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in the churches of Rome. Most Christians accept the use of creeds, and subscribe to at least one of the mentioned above. The central tenet of Christianity is the belief in Jesus as the Son of God, Christians believe that Jesus, as the Messiah, was anointed by God as savior of humanity, and hold that Jesus coming was the fulfillment of messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. The Christian concept of the Messiah differs significantly from the contemporary Jewish concept, Jesus, having become fully human, suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, but did not sin
10.
Augustine of Hippo
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Augustine of Hippo was an early Christian theologian and philosopher whose writings influenced the development of Western Christianity and Western philosophy. He was the bishop of Hippo Regius, located in Numidia, Augustine is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers in Western Christianity for his writings in the Patristic Era. Among his most important works are The City of God and Confessions, according to his contemporary, Jerome, Augustine established anew the ancient Faith. In his early years, he was influenced by Manichaeism. After his baptism and conversion to Christianity in 386, Augustine developed his own approach to philosophy and theology, accommodating a variety of methods and perspectives. Believing that the grace of Christ was indispensable to human freedom, he helped formulate the doctrine of original sin, when the Western Roman Empire began to disintegrate, Augustine developed the concept of the Church as a spiritual City of God, distinct from the material Earthly City. His thoughts profoundly influenced the medieval worldview, the segment of the Church that adhered to the concept of the Trinity as defined by the Council of Nicaea and the Council of Constantinople closely identified with Augustines On the Trinity. Augustine is recognized as a saint in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Christian Church, and he is also the patron of the Augustinians. His memorial is celebrated on 28 August, the day of his death, Augustine is the patron saint of brewers, printers, theologians, the alleviation of sore eyes, and a number of cities and dioceses. Many Protestants, especially Calvinists and Lutherans, consider him to be one of the fathers of the Protestant Reformation due to his teachings on salvation. Lutherans, and Martin Luther in particular, have held Augustine in preeminence, Luther himself was a member of the Order of the Augustinian Eremites. In the East, some of his teachings are disputed and have in the 20th century in particular come under attack by such theologians as John Romanides, but other theologians and figures of the Eastern Orthodox Church have shown significant appropriation of his writings, chiefly Georges Florovsky. The most controversial doctrine surrounding his name is the filioque, which has been rejected by the Orthodox Church, other disputed teachings include his views on original sin, the doctrine of grace, and predestination. Nevertheless, though considered to be mistaken on some points, he is considered a saint. In the Orthodox Church his feast day is celebrated on 28 August and he was an early Christian theologian and philosopher whose writings influenced the development of Western Christianity and Western philosophy. Augustine was the bishop of Hippo Regius, located in Numidia and he is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers in Western Christianity for his writings in the Patristic Era. Among his most important works are The City of God and Confessions, Augustine was born in the year 354 AD in the municipium of Thagaste in Roman Africa. His mother, Monica or Monnica, was a devout Christian, in his writings, Augustine leaves some information as to the consciousness of his African heritage
11.
Reformation
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The period is usually considered to have begun with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses by Luther in 1517 to the Thirty Years War and ended with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. The Protestant position, however, would come to incorporate doctrinal changes such as sola scriptura, the initial movement within Germany diversified, and other reform impulses arose independently of Luther. The spread of Gutenbergs printing press provided the means for the dissemination of religious materials in the vernacular. The largest groups were the Lutherans and Calvinists, Lutheran churches were founded mostly in Germany, the Baltics and Scandinavia, while the Reformed ones were founded in Switzerland, Hungary, France, the Netherlands and Scotland. The new movement influenced the Church of England decisively after 1547 under Edward VI and Elizabeth I, there were also reformation movements throughout continental Europe known as the Radical Reformation, which gave rise to the Anabaptist, Moravian and other Pietistic movements. The Roman Catholic Church responded with a Counter-Reformation initiated by the Council of Trent, much work in battling Protestantism was done by the well-organised new order of the Jesuits. In general, Northern Europe, with the exception of most of Ireland, southern Europe remained Roman Catholic, while Central Europe was a site of a fierce conflict, culminating in the Thirty Years War, which left it devastated. The oldest Protestant churches, such as the Unitas Fratrum and Moravian Church, the later Protestant Churches generally date their doctrinal separation from the Roman Catholic Church to the 16th century. The Reformation began as an attempt to reform the Roman Catholic Church, by priests who opposed what they perceived as false doctrines and ecclesiastic malpractice. They especially objected to the teaching and the sale of indulgences, and the abuses thereof, and to simony, the reformers saw these practices as evidence of the systemic corruption of the Churchs hierarchy, which included the pope. Unrest due to the Great Schism of Western Christianity excited wars between princes, uprisings among the peasants, and widespread concern over corruption in the Church, New perspectives came from John Wycliffe at Oxford University and from Jan Hus at the Charles University in Prague. Hus rejected indulgences and adopted a doctrine of justification by grace through faith alone, the Roman Catholic Church officially concluded this debate at the Council of Constance by condemning Hus, who was executed by burning despite a promise of safe-conduct. Wycliffe was posthumously condemned as a heretic and his corpse exhumed and burned in 1428, the Council of Constance confirmed and strengthened the traditional medieval conception of church and empire. The council did not address the national tensions or the theological tensions stirred up during the century and could not prevent schism. Pope Sixtus IV established the practice of selling indulgences to be applied to the dead, Pope Alexander VI was one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes. He was the father of seven children, including Lucrezia and Cesare Borgia, in response to papal corruption, particularly the sale of indulgences, Luther wrote The Ninety-Five Theses. The Reformation was born of Luthers dual declaration – first, the discovering of Jesus and salvation by faith alone, the Protestant reformers were unanimous in agreement and this understanding of prophecy furnished importance to their deeds. It was the point and the battle cry that made the Reformation nearly unassailable
12.
Synod of Dort
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Dates in this article are according to the Julian Calendar. Sources using the Old Style calendar will need to be adjusted by adding ten days, the Synod of Dort was an international Synod held in Dordrecht in 1618–1619, by the Dutch Reformed Church, to settle a divisive controversy initiated by the rise of Arminianism. The first meeting was on 13 November 1618 and the final meeting, voting representatives from eight foreign Reformed churches were also invited. Dort was a contemporary English term for the town of Dordrecht, in 2014 the first entire critical edition of the Acts and Documents of the Synod was published. There had been previous provincial synods of Dort, and a National Synod in 1578, for that reason the 1618 meeting is sometimes called the Second Synod of Dort. The acts of the Synod were tied to political intrigues that arose during the Twelve Years Truce, after the death of Jacob Arminius his followers presented objections to the Belgic Confession and the teaching of John Calvin, Theodore Beza, and their followers. These objections were published in a document called The Remonstrance of 1610, and they taught election on the basis of foreseen faith, a universal atonement, resistible grace, and the possibility of lapse from grace. The opposing Calvinists or Gomarists, led by Franciscus Gomarus of the University of Leiden, planning for a National Synod was begun by Adriaan Pauw in March 1618. Before that, there had been a debate as to whether the synod should be national, as the Contra-Remonstrants wished, or provincial for Holland and this decision was worked out in 1617, with outside input from the English ambassador Dudley Carleton. The purpose of the Synod was to settle the controversy over Arminianism and it was subsequently alleged that the outcome had already been decided. According to Frederick Calder, condemnation was determined before the national synod met, on the other hand, beyond the condemnation of the Arminians, the theological formulations of the Canons of the Synod by no means gave support to all the Gomarists wanted. The more extreme views of Dutch Calvinists were moderated in the detailed debates, the Synod had members representing Reformed groups from continental Europe, as well as from the British isles. Among these groups were also Anglican delegates from the Church of England, Simon Episcopius was spokesman of the 14 Remonstrants who were summoned before the Synod in 1618. At the opening of the synod, Episcopius asked to speak, the Arminians would not submit to this plan of procedure because it destroyed their whole scheme of argument and were thus compelled to withdraw. Upon their departure, the Synod proceeded without them, after that a month was spent on procedural matters concerning the Remonstrants. They were finally ejected from the Synod at session 57 on 14 January and these are sometimes referred to as the Five points of Calvinism. The Decision of the Synod of Dort on the Five Main Points of Doctrine in Dispute in the Netherlands, the thirteen Remonstrant ministers, including Episcopius, had been charged to remain in Dort until further instruction. Furthermore, Episcopius was commanded not to write letters or books promoting the doctrines of the Remonstrants, the Remonstrants agreed to refrain from ministering in the government-ordained churches, but confessed their duty to expound their doctrines wherever people would assemble to hear them
13.
Theology of John Calvin
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The theology of John Calvin has been influential in both the development of the system of belief now known as Calvinism and in Protestant thought more generally. There has been disagreement among scholars regarding the degree to which later Calvinism corresponds to Calvins own theology, the Encyclopedia of Christianity suggests that His theological importance is tied to the attempted systematization of Christian doctrine. He intended that the book be used as a summary of his views on Christian theology and that it be read in conjunction with his commentaries. The various editions of that span nearly his entire career as a reformer. The first edition from 1536 consisted of six chapters. The second edition, published in 1539, was three times as long because he added chapters on subjects that appear in Melanchthons Loci Communes, in 1543, he again added new material and expanded a chapter on the Apostles Creed. The final edition of the Institutes appeared in 1559, the first statement in the Institutes acknowledges its central theme. It states that the sum of human wisdom consists of two parts, the knowledge of God and of ourselves, Calvin argues that the knowledge of God is not inherent in humanity nor can it be discovered by observing this world. The only way to obtain it is to study scripture, Calvin writes, For anyone to arrive at God the Creator he needs Scripture as his Guide and Teacher. He does not try to prove the authority of scripture but rather describes it as autopiston or self-authenticating and he defends the trinitarian view of God and, in a strong polemical stand against the Catholic Church, argues that images of God lead to idolatry. Calvin viewed Scripture as being both majestic and simple, according to Ford Lewis Battles, Calvin had discovered that sublimity of style and sublimity of thought were not coterminous. Humans are unable to comprehend why God performs any particular action. The second book of the Institutes includes several essays on the sin and the fall of man, which directly refer to Augustine. He often cited the Church Fathers in order to defend the cause against the charge that the reformers were creating new theology. In Calvins view, sin began with the fall of Adam, the domination of sin is complete to the point that people are driven to evil. Thus fallen humanity is in need of the redemption that can be found in Christ, but before Calvin expounded on this doctrine, he described the special situation of the Jews who lived during the time of the Old Testament. God made a covenant with Abraham, promising the coming of Christ, hence, the Old Covenant was not in opposition to Christ, but was rather a continuation of Gods promise. Calvin then describes the New Covenant using the passage from the Apostles Creed that describes Christs suffering under Pontius Pilate and his return to judge the living, for Calvin, the whole course of Christs obedience to the Father removed the discord between humanity and God
14.
Predestination in Calvinism
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Predestination is a doctrine in Calvinism dealing with the question of the control that God exercises over the world. In the words of the Westminster Confession of Faith, God freely and unchangeably ordained whatsoever comes to pass, the former is called unconditional election, and the latter reprobation. In Calvinism, people are predestined and effectually called in due time to faith by God, by the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life, and others foreordained to everlasting death. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath He, by the eternal and most free purpose of His will, are effectually called unto faith in Christ by His Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by His power. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, John Calvin held a view on predestination sometimes referred to as double predestination. This is the view that God has actively chosen some people for damnation as well as for salvation and it is not the view of any of the Reformed confessions, which speak of God passing over rather than actively reprobating the damned. Scholars have disagreed over whether Heinrich Bullinger accepted the doctrine of double predestination, frank A. James says that he rejected it, preferring a view called single predestination where God elects some to salvation, but does not in any way predestine to reprobation. Cornelis Venema, on the hand, argues that Bullinger did not consistently articulate a doctrine of single predestination. Calvins belief in the sovereignty of God spawned his doctrines of providence. For the world, without providence it would be unlivable, for individuals, without predestination no one would be saved. Calvins doctrine of providence is straightforward, all events whatsoever are governed by the secret counsel of God. Therefore, “nothing happens but what has knowingly and willingly decreed. ”Calvin applied his doctrine of providence concerning all events to individuals, Calvin opened his exposition of predestination with an actual fact. The actual fact that Calvin observed was that even among those to whom the covenant of life is preached, although, all are called to repentance and faith, in actual fact, the spirit of repentance and faith is not given to all. Calvin turned to the teachings of Jesus for an interpretation of the diversity that some people accept the covenant of life. Pointing to the Parable of the Sower, Calvin observed, it is no new thing for the seed to fall among thorns or in stony places. In Jesus’ teaching in John 6,65 that no one can come to me unless it has granted him by my Father. For Calvins biblically-based theology, this diversity reveals the depth of the divine judgment. God offers salvation to some, but not to all, to many this seems a perplexing subject, because they deem it incongruous that
15.
Institutes of the Christian Religion
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Institutes of the Christian Religion is John Calvins seminal work of Protestant systematic theology. It vigorously attacked the teachings of those Calvin considered unorthodox, particularly Roman Catholicism to which Calvin says he had been strongly devoted before his conversion to Protestantism, the Institutes is a highly regarded secondary reference for the system of doctrine adopted by the Reformed churches, usually called Calvinism. John Calvin was a student of law and then classics at the University of Paris and he moved to Basel, Switzerland, for safety in 1535, and around this time he must have begun writing a summary of theology which would become the Institutes. His Catholic opponents sought to associate him and his associates with radical Anabaptists and he decided to adapt the work he had been writing to the purpose of defending Protestants suffering from persecution from false accusations that they were espousing radical and heretical doctrines. Soon after publishing it, Calvin began his ministry in Geneva, the Institutes proved instantly popular, with many asking for a revised edition. In 1539, Calvin published a larger work, with seventeen chapters of about the same length as the six chapters of the first edition. It includes many references to authors and Church fathers, as well as many additional references to the Bible. Calvins epistle to the reader indicates that the new work is intended for students preparing for ministry. Four chapters were added in an edition in 1543. The fifth and final edition with which Calvin was involved, Calvins theology did not change substantially throughout his life, and so the Institutes did not undergo changes as far as its substance. The title of Desiderius Erasmuss Institutio principis Christiani, which Calvin would have been familiar with, is usually translated The Education of a Christian Prince, the form of the short title of the first edition of Calvins work, published in 1536 is Christianae religionis institutio. The full title of this edition may be translated The Institute of the Christian Religion, Containing almost the Whole Sum of Piety, a Work Very Well Worth Reading by All Persons Zealous for Piety, and Lately Published. A Preface to the Most Christian King of France, in Which this Book is Presented to Him as a Confession of Faith, in the 1539 edition, the title is Institutio Christianae Religionis, possibly to emphasize the fact that this is a new, considerably expanded work. This is followed by at length truly corresponding to its title, a play on the grandiosity of the title, Institutes in its first form was not merely an exposition of Reformation doctrine, it proved the inspiration to a new form of Christian life for many. The book is prefaced by a letter to Francis I. As this letter shows, Institutes was composed, or at least completed, to meet a present necessity, to correct an aspersion on Calvins fellow reformers. ”Despite the dependence on earlier writers, Institutes was felt by many to be a new voice, and within a year there was demand for a second edition. This came in 1539, amplifying especially the treatment of the fall of man, of election and it showed also a more conciliatory temper toward Luther in the section on the Lords Supper. The opening chapter of the Institutes is perhaps the best known, there are two general subjects to be examined, the creator and his creatures
16.
Geneva Bible
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The Geneva Bible is one of the most historically significant translations of the Bible into English, preceding the King James Version by 51 years. It was the primary Bible of 16th-century English Protestantism and was the Bible used by William Shakespeare, Oliver Cromwell, John Knox, John Donne and it was one of the Bibles taken to America on the Mayflower. The Geneva Bible was used by many English Dissenters, and it was respected by Oliver Cromwells soldiers at the time of the English Civil War. Because the language of the Geneva Bible was more forceful and vigorous, in the words of Cleland Boyd McAfee, it drove the Great Bible off the field by sheer power of excellence. The Geneva Bible followed the Great Bible of 1539, the first authorized Bible in English, whittingham was directly responsible for the New Testament, which was complete and published in 1557, while Gilby oversaw the Old Testament. The first full edition of this Bible, with a further revised New Testament, appeared in 1560, over 150 editions were issued, the last probably in 1644. The very first Bible printed in Scotland was a Geneva Bible, some editions from 1576 onwards included Laurence Tomsons revisions of the New Testament. Some editions from 1599 onwards used a new Junius version of the Book of Revelation, the Geneva Bible had also motivated the earlier production of the Bishops Bible under Elizabeth I, for the same reason, and the later Rheims-Douai edition by the Catholic community. The Geneva Bible remained popular among Puritans and remained in use until after the English Civil War. The Geneva notes were included in a few editions of the King James version. Like most English translations of the time, the Geneva Bible was translated from editions of the Greek New Testament. The English rendering was substantially based on the translations by William Tyndale. However, the Geneva Bible was the first English version in all of the Old Testament was translated directly from the Hebrew. The Geneva Bible was the first English Bible to use verse numbers based on the work of Stephanus and it also had an elaborate system of commentary in marginal glosses. This annotation was done by Laurence Tomson, who translated LOiseleurs notes on the Gospels, in 1576 Tomson added LOiseleurs notes for the Epistles, which came from Bezas Greek and Latin edition of the Bible. Beginning in 1599 Franciscus Junius notes on Revelation were added, replacing the original notes deriving from John Bale, bales The Image of both churches had a great effect on these notes as well as Foxes Book of Martyrs. Both the Junius and Bullinger-Bale annotations are explicitly anti-Roman Catholic and representative of much popular Protestant apocalypticism during the Reformation, the 1560 Geneva Bible was printed in Roman type—the style of type regularly used today—but many editions used the older black-letter type. Of the various later English Bible translations, the next to use Roman type was the Douay-Rheims Bible of 1582, the Geneva Bible was also issued in more convenient and affordable sizes than earlier versions
17.
Three Forms of Unity
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From 1618 to 1619 the Dutch government, on behalf of the Dutch Reformed Church, called and convened the Synod of Dort. This same Synod then added these Canons to two other documents, both of which were in use by the Dutch Church at the time, the Heidelberg Catechism. The forms also provide a basis upon which ecumenical efforts can proceed based on whether a body accepts the essentials laid out in these forms, the different documents each serve different purposes. The Catechism is written in a format to help explain biblical teaching to children. The Confession explains various biblical teachings, the Canons are a series of technical responses to specific theological controversies raised by the Dutch Remonstrants
18.
Westminster Standards
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The Westminster Standards is a collective name for the documents drawn up by the Westminster Assembly. The Westminster Confession of Faith and Larger and Shorter Catechism have been adopted as doctrinal standards by a number of Reformed, in 1658 printers began including the full Scripture passages which are cited in the confessional documents. These collections were intended to serve as ecclesiastical manuals as well as comprehensive popular religious books, the 1728 form of the Standards continues to be printed by the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Dissenters asserted that the General Assembly had adopted these documents, but the only Westminster documents accepted by the Church of Scotland were the Confession and catechisms
19.
Canons of Dort
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At the time, Dordrecht was often referred to in English as Dort. Their continued use as a standard still forms an unbridgable problem preventing close cooperation between the followers of Jacob Arminius, the Remonstrants, and Dutch Reformed Churches and these canons are in actuality a judicial decision on the doctrinal points in dispute from the Arminian controversy of that day. Following the death of Arminius, his followers set forth a Remonstrance in five articles formulating their points of departure from the stricter Calvinism of the Belgic Confession, the Canons are the judgment of the Synod against this Remonstrance. Regardless, Arminian theology later received official acceptance by the State and has continued in various forms within Protestantism. The Canons were not intended to be an explanation of Reformed doctrine. The five points of Calvinism, remembered by the mnemonic TULIP, also see Stewarts essay in chapter 3. However there is no relationship between them, and some scholars argue that their language distorts the meaning of the Canons
20.
Heidelberg Catechism
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The Heidelberg Catechism, one of the Three Forms of Unity, is a Protestant confessional document taking the form of a series of questions and answers, for use in teaching Reformed Christian doctrine. It was written in 1563 in Heidelberg, present-day Germany and its original title translates to Catechism, or Christian Instruction, according to the Usages of the Churches and Schools of the Electoral Palatinate. Commissioned by the prince-elector of the Electoral Palatinate, it is referred to as the Palatinate Catechism. It has been translated into languages and is regarded as one of the most influential of the Reformed catechisms. Elector Frederick III, sovereign of the Electoral Palatinate from 1559 to 1576, caspar Olevianus was formerly asserted as a co-author of the document, though this theory has been largely discarded by modern scholarship. Frederick himself wrote the preface to the Catechism and closely oversaw its composition and publication, Frederick, who was officially Lutheran but had strong Reformed leanings, wanted to even out the religious situation of his highly Lutheran territory within the primarily Catholic Holy Roman Empire. The Catechism-based each of its statements on biblical source texts, Frederick himself defended it at the 1566 Diet of Augsburg as based in scripture rather than based in reformed theology when he was called to answer to charges of violating the Peace of Augsburg. The Catechism is divided into sections, called Lords Days. A synod in Heidelberg approved the catechism in 1563, in many Dutch Reformed denominations this practice is still continued. In its current form, the Heidelberg Catechism consists of 129 questions and these are divided into three main parts, This part consists of the Lords Day 2,3, and 4. It discusses, The Fall, The natural condition of man and this part consists of Lords Day 5 through to Lords Day 31. It discusses, The need for a Redeemer The importance of faith and it discusses, Conversion The Ten Commandments The Lords prayer The first Lords Day should be read as a summary of the catechism as a whole. As such, it illustrates the character of work, which is devotional as well as dogmatic or doctrinal. The first Question and Answer reads, What is Thy only comfort in life, following the War of Palatine Succession Heidelberg and the Palatinate were again in an unstable political situation with sectarian battle lines. In 1719 an edition of the Catechism was published in the Palatinate that included Lords Day 30, the Catholic reaction was so strong, the Catechism was banned by Charles III Philip, Elector Palatine. This provoked a reaction from Reformed countries, leading to a reversal of the ban, in some Reformed denominations Q&A80 has been removed, bracketed, and/or noted as not part of the original Catechism. The influence of the Catechism extended to the Westminster Assembly of Divines who, in part, likewise, the Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church lists it as an influence on United Methodism. A revision of the catechism was prepared by the Baptist minister, Hercules Collins. com
21.
Belgic Confession
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The Confession of Faith, popularly known as the Belgic Confession, is a doctrinal standard document to which many of the Reformed churches subscribe. The Confession forms part of the Three Forms of Unity of the Reformed Church, the confessions chief author was Guido de Brès, a preacher of the Reformed churches of the Netherlands, who died a martyr to the faith in 1567. The name Belgic Confession follows the seventeenth-century Latin designation Confessio Belgica, Belgica referred to the whole of the Low Countries, both north and south, which today is divided into the Netherlands and Belgium. De Brès was a Presbyterian and a Calvinist, and the text he prepared was influenced by the Gallic Confession. De Brès showed it in draft to others, including Hadrian à Saravia, Herman Moded, in 1566, the text of this confession was revised at a synod held at Antwerp. It was adopted by national synods held during the last three decades of the sixteenth century, the Belgic Confession became the basis of a counter to the Arminian controversy that arose in the following century and was opposed by Arminius himself. This revision was drafted in the French language, the Belgic Confession consists of 37 articles which deal with the doctrines of God, Scripture, humanity, sin, Christ, salvation, the Church, and the end times. The first French edition is extant in four printings, two from 1561 and two from 1562 and it appeared in Greek 1623,1653, and 1660, at Utrecht
22.
Scots Confession
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The Scots Confession is a Confession of Faith written in 1560 by six leaders of the Protestant Reformation in Scotland. The Confession was the first subordinate standard for the Protestant church in Scotland, along with the Book of Discipline and the Book of Common Order, this is considered to be a formational document for the Church of Scotland during the time. In August 1560 the Parliament of Scotland agreed to reform the religion of the country and this they did in four days. The 25 Chapters of the Confession spell out a statement of the Christian faith as understood by the followers of John Calvin during his lifetime. Although the Confession and its documents were the product of the joint effort of the Six Johns. It remained the Confession of the Church of Scotland until it was superseded by the Westminster Confession of Faith on 27 August 1647
23.
Huldrych Zwingli
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Huldrych Zwingli or Ulrich Zwingli was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. He continued his studies while he served as a pastor in Glarus and later in Einsiedeln, in 1519, Zwingli became the pastor of the Grossmünster in Zurich where he began to preach ideas on reform of the Catholic Church. In his first public controversy in 1522, he attacked the custom of fasting during Lent, in his publications, he noted corruption in the ecclesiastical hierarchy, promoted clerical marriage, and attacked the use of images in places of worship. In 1525, Zwingli introduced a new liturgy to replace the Mass. Zwingli also clashed with the Anabaptists, which resulted in their persecution, historians have debated whether or not he turned Zurich into a theocracy. The Reformation spread to parts of the Swiss Confederation, but several cantons resisted. Zwingli formed an alliance of Reformed cantons which divided the Confederation along religious lines, in 1529, a war between the two sides was averted at the last moment. Meanwhile, Zwinglis ideas came to the attention of Martin Luther and other reformers and they met at the Marburg Colloquy and although they agreed on many points of doctrine, they could not reach an accord on the doctrine of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. In 1531 Zwinglis alliance applied an unsuccessful food blockade on the Catholic cantons, the cantons responded with an attack at a moment when Zurich was ill prepared. Zwingli was killed in battle at the age of 47 and his legacy lives on in the confessions, liturgy, and church orders of the Reformed churches of today. The Swiss Confederation in Huldrych Zwinglis time consisted of thirteen states as well as affiliated areas, unlike the modern state of Switzerland, which operates under a federal government, each of the thirteen cantons was nearly independent, conducting its own domestic and foreign affairs. Each canton formed its own alliances within and without the Confederation and this relative independence served as the basis for conflict during the time of the Reformation when the various cantons divided between different confessional camps. Military ambitions gained an additional impetus with the competition to new territory and resources. The wider political environment in Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries was also volatile, for centuries the relationship with the Confederations powerful neighbour, France, determined the foreign policies of the Swiss. Nominally, the Confederation formed a part of the Holy Roman Empire, however, through a succession of wars culminating in the Swabian War in 1499, the Confederation had become de facto independent. During this time the mercenary pension system became a subject of disagreement, the religious factions of Zwinglis time debated vociferously the merits of sending young Swiss men to fight in foreign wars mainly for the enrichment of the cantonal authorities. At the same time, Renaissance humanism, with its universal values, within this environment, defined by the confluence of Swiss patriotism and humanism, Zwingli was born in 1484. Huldrych Zwingli was born on 1 January 1484 in Wildhaus, in the Toggenburg valley of Switzerland, to a family of farmers and his father, Ulrich, played a leading role in the administration of the community
24.
Martin Bucer
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Martin Bucer was a German Protestant reformer based in Strasbourg who influenced Lutheran, Calvinist, and Anglican doctrines and practices. Bucer was originally a member of the Dominican Order, but after meeting and being influenced by Martin Luther in 1518 he arranged for his vows to be annulled. He then began to work for the Reformation, with the support of Franz von Sickingen, Bucers efforts to reform the church in Wissembourg resulted in his excommunication from the Roman Catholic Church, and he was forced to flee to Strasbourg. There he joined a team of reformers which included Matthew Zell, Wolfgang Capito and he acted as a mediator between the two leading reformers, Martin Luther and Huldrych Zwingli, who differed on the doctrine of the eucharist. Later, Bucer sought agreement on common articles of such as the Tetrapolitan Confession. Bucer believed that the Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire could be convinced to join the Reformation, through a series of conferences organised by Charles V, he tried to unite Protestants and Catholics to create a German national church separate from Rome. He did not achieve this, as political events led to the Schmalkaldic War, in 1548, Bucer was persuaded, under duress, to sign the Augsburg Interim, which imposed certain forms of Catholic worship. However, he continued to promote reforms until the city of Strasbourg accepted the Interim, in 1549, Bucer was exiled to England, where, under the guidance of Thomas Cranmer, he was able to influence the second revision of the Book of Common Prayer. He died in Cambridge, England, at the age of 59, although his ministry did not lead to the formation of a new denomination, many Protestant denominations have claimed him as one of their own. He is remembered as a pioneer of ecumenism. In the 16th century, the Holy Roman Empire was a state in name only. The Empire was divided into many princely and city states that provided a check on the rule of the Holy Roman Emperor. The division of power between the emperor and the states made the Reformation in Germany possible, as individual states defended reformers within their territories. In the Electorate of Saxony, Martin Luther was supported by the elector Frederick III, Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse—whose lands lay midway between Saxony and the Rhine—also supported the Reformation, and he figured prominently in the lives of both Luther and Bucer. The Emperor Charles V had to balance the demands of his imperial subjects, at the same time, he was often distracted by war with France and the Ottoman Empire and in Italy. The political rivalry among all the players greatly influenced the developments within the Empire. As the Reformation took root, clashes broke out in cities between local reformers and conservative city magistrates. It was in an imperial city, Strasbourg, that Martin Bucer began his work
25.
Peter Martyr Vermigli
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Peter Martyr Vermigli was an Italian-born Reformed theologian. His early work as a reformer in Catholic Italy and decision to flee for Protestant northern Europe influenced many other Italians to convert, in England, he influenced the Edwardian Reformation, including the Eucharistic service of the 1552 Book of Common Prayer. He was considered an authority on the Eucharist among the Reformed churches, Vermiglis Loci Communes, a compilation of excerpts from his biblical commentaries organized by the topics of systematic theology, became a standard Reformed theological textbook. Born in Florence, Vermigli entered an order and was appointed to influential posts as abbot. He came in contact with leaders of the Italian spirituali reform movement and read Protestant theologians such as Martin Bucer, through reading these works and studying the Bible and the church fathers, he came to accept Protestant beliefs about salvation and the Eucharist. To satisfy his conscience and avoid persecution by the Roman Inquisition and he ultimately arrived in Strasbourg where he taught on the Old Testament of the Bible under Bucer. English reformer Thomas Cranmer invited him to take an influential post at Oxford University where he continued to teach on the Bible and he also defended his Eucharistic beliefs against Catholic proponents of transubstantiation in a public disputation. Vermigli was forced to leave England on the accession of the Catholic Queen Mary, as a Marian exile he returned to Strasbourg and his former teaching position. Vermiglis beliefs regarding the Eucharist and predestination clashed with those of leading Lutherans in Strasbourg, Vermiglis best-known theological contribution was defending the Reformed doctrine of the Eucharist against Catholics and Lutherans. Contrary to the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, Vermigli did not believe that the bread and wine are changed into Christs body and he also disagreed with the Lutheran view that Christs body is ubiquitous and so physically present at the Eucharist. Instead, Vermigli taught that Christ remains in Heaven even though he is offered to those who partake of the Eucharist, Vermigli is also notable for developing a strong doctrine of double predestination independently of John Calvin. Vermigli believed that Gods will includes his choice to all who are not chosen for salvation. His belief is similar but not identical to Calvins, Vermigli was born in Florence, Italy, on 8 September 1499 to Stefano di Antonio Vermigli, a wealthy shoemaker, and Maria Fumantina. He was christened Piero Mariano the following day and he was the eldest of three children, his sister Felicita Antonio was born in 1501 and his brother Antonio Lorenzo Romulo was born in 1504. His mother taught him Latin before enrolling him in a school for children of noble Florentines and she died in 1511, when Piero was twelve. Vermigli was attracted to the Catholic priesthood from an early age, in 1514 he became a novice at the Badia Fiesolana, a monastery of the Canons Regular of the Lateran. The Lateran Canons were one of several institutions born out of a religious reform movement. They emphasized strict discipline and moved from house to house rather than remaining in one place and they also sought to provide leadership in urban areas
26.
William Farel
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William Farel, Guilhem Farel or Guillaume Farel, was a French evangelist, and a founder of the Reformed Church in the cantons of Neuchâtel, Berne, Geneva, and Vaud in Switzerland. He is most often remembered for having persuaded John Calvin to remain in Geneva in 1536 and they influenced the government of Geneva to the point that it became the Protestant Rome, where Protestants took refuge and non-Protestants were driven out. Together with Calvin, Farel worked to train missionary preachers who spread the Protestant cause to other countries, Farel was born in 1489 in Gap. He was a pupil of the pro-reform Catholic priesthood, at the University of Paris, there he met the scholar Jacques Lefevre dEtaples who helped Farel obtain a professorship to teach grammar and philosophy at the Collège Cardinal Lemoine in Paris. With Lefevre he became a member of the Cercle de Meaux gathered together from 1519 by the bishop of Meaux. Farel eventually became regent of the college, by 1522 he was appointed a diocesan preacher by the Reformist bishop of Meaux, Guillaume Briçonnet. Farel now could invite a number of evangelical Humanists to work in his diocese to implement his reform program within the Catholic Church. This group of Humanists also included Josse van Clichtove, Martial Mazurier, Gérard Roussel, the members of the Meaux circle were of different talents but they generally emphasized the study of the Bible and a return to the theology of the early Church. While working with Lefevre in Meaux, Farel came under the influence of Lutheran ideas, after condemnation by the Sorbonne, Farel evangelized fervently in the Dauphiné. Farel was forced to flee to Switzerland because of controversy that was aroused by his writings against the use of images in Christian worship and he spent time at Zurich with Huldrych Zwingli and at Strasbourg, with Martin Bucer. He convinced Neuchâtel to join the Reform in 1530, Farel established himself in Geneva in 1532, where he remained as minister, drawing Calvin to the city, but breaking with him over the Eucharist. He, along with Calvin, was banished from Geneva in 1538, in part for his rigorous positions, and retired to Neuchâtel, although Farel was a friend of Calvins, he was a promoter of Lutheran ideas in his youth
27.
Heinrich Bullinger
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Heinrich Bullinger was a Swiss reformer, the successor of Huldrych Zwingli as head of the Zurich church and pastor at Grossmünster. Heinrich Bullinger was born to Heinrich Bullinger senior, dean of the capitular church, the bishop of Constance, who had clerical oversight over Aargau, had unofficially sanctioned clerical concubinage, having waived all penalties against the offense in exchange for an annual fee. As such, Heinrich and Anna were able to live as husband and wife. At 12 years of age, Bullinger was sent to the distant, in 1520–21 Bullinger felt that he needed to decide the issues for himself and, having been exposed to Luthers works, began his own reading of Peter Lombards Sentences and the Decretum of Gratian. This led him to recognize that both relied on the authority of the Church Fathers, which in turn led him to them, including Chrysostoms and Jeromes commentaries. From this reading Bullinger came to conclusion that Lutheran teaching was more faithful to the Church Fathers, in 1522, now a convinced Martinian, Bullinger ceased receiving the Eucharist, also giving up his previous intention of entering the Carthusian order and earned his Master of art degree. In 1523, he accepted a post as head of the school at Kappel. At the school, Bullinger initiated a program of Bible reading. He heard Zwingli and Jud preach several times during Reformation in Zürich, during this period, under the influence of the Waldensians, Bullinger moved to a more symbolic understanding of the Eucharist. He contacted Zwingli with his thoughts in September 1524, in 1527, he spent five months in Zurich studying ancient languages and regularly attending the Prophezei that Zwingli had set up there. While there, he impressed the Zurich authorities and they sent him with their delegation to the Bern Disputation - there he met Bucer, Blaurer, in 1528, at the urging of the Zurich Synod, he left the Kappel cloister to become a regular parish minister. In 1529 Bullingers father announced that he had been preaching false doctrines for years, as a result, his congregation at Bremgarten decided to remove him as their priest. Several candidates were invited to preach sermons as potential replacements, including the young Bullinger and his sermon was so powerful that it led to an immediate burst of iconoclasm in the church, and the congregation spontaneously stripped the images from their church and burned them. In the same year, he married Anna Adlischweiler, a former nun and his marriage was happy and regarded as a shining example. His house was filled with fugitives, colleagues and people searching for advice or help. Bullinger was a father of his eleven children who liked to play with them. All of his sons became Protestant ministers themselves, after the defeat at Battle of Kappel, where Zwingli fell, the Aargau region was forced to return to Catholicism. Bullinger and two ministers were expelled from the town, to the protest of the inhabitants
28.
John Knox
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John Knox was a Scottish minister, theologian, and writer who was a leader of the Reformation and is considered the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. He is believed to have been educated at the University of St Andrews, influenced by early church reformers such as George Wishart, he joined the movement to reform the Scottish church. He was caught up in the ecclesiastical and political events that involved the murder of Cardinal Beaton in 1546 and he was taken prisoner by French forces the following year and exiled to England on his release in 1549. While in exile, Knox was licensed to work in the Church of England and he exerted a reforming influence on the text of the Book of Common Prayer. In England, he met and married his first wife, Margery Bowes, when Mary Tudor ascended the throne and re-established Roman Catholicism, Knox was forced to resign his position and leave the country. Knox moved to Geneva and then to Frankfurt, in Geneva, he met John Calvin, from whom he gained experience and knowledge of Reformed theology and Presbyterian polity. He created a new order of service, which was adopted by the reformed church in Scotland. He left Geneva to head the English refugee church in Frankfurt but he was forced to leave over differences concerning the liturgy, on his return to Scotland, Knox led the Protestant Reformation in Scotland, in partnership with the Scottish Protestant nobility. The movement may be seen as a revolution, since it led to the ousting of Mary of Guise, Knox helped write the new confession of faith and the ecclesiastical order for the newly created reformed church, the Kirk. He continued to serve as the leader of the Protestants throughout Marys reign. In several interviews with the Queen, Knox admonished her for supporting Catholic practices, when she was imprisoned for her alleged role in the murder of her husband Lord Darnley and King James VI was enthroned in her stead, he openly called for her execution. He continued to preach until his final days, John Knox was born sometime between 1505 and 1515 in or near Haddington, the county town of East Lothian. His father, William Knox, was a merchant, All that is known of his mother is that her maiden name was Sinclair and that she died when John Knox was a child. Their eldest son, William, carried on his fathers business, Knox was probably educated at the grammar school in Haddington. In this time, the priesthood was the path for those whose inclinations were academic rather than mercantile or agricultural. He proceeded to further studies at the University of St Andrews or possibly at the University of Glasgow and he studied under John Major, one of the greatest scholars of the time. Knox first appears in records as a priest and a notary in 1540. Rather than taking up duties in a parish, he became tutor to two sons of Hugh Douglas of Longniddry
29.
Theodore Beza
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Theodore Beza was a French Protestant Christian theologian and scholar who played an important role in the Reformation. A member of the movement who opposed absolute monarchy, he was a disciple of John Calvin. Theodore Beza was born at Vézelay, in Burgundy, France and his father, Pierre de Beze, royal governor of Vézelay, descended from a Burgundian family of distinction, his mother, Marie Bourdelot, was known for her generosity. Bezas father had two brothers, Nicholas, who was member of Parliament at Paris, and Claude, who was abbot of the Cistercian monastery Froimont in the diocese of Beauvais. Nicholas, who was unmarried, during a visit to Vézelay was so pleased with Theodore that, with the permission of his parents, from Paris, Theodore was sent to Orléans in December 1528 to receive instruction from the famous German teacher Melchior Wolmar. He was received into Wolmars house, and the day on which took place was afterward celebrated as a second birthday. Young Beza soon followed his teacher to Bourges, where the latter was called by the duchess Margaret of Angoulême, at the time, Bourges was the focus of the Reformation movement in France. In 1534, after Francis I issued his edict against ecclesiastical innovations, Beza, in accordance with the wish of his father, went back to Orléans to study law, and spent four years there. The pursuit of law had little attraction for him, he enjoyed more the reading of the ancient classics, especially Ovid, Catullus, and Tibullus. He received the degree of licentiate in law August 11,1539, and, as his father desired, went to Paris, where he began to practice. To support him, his relatives had obtained for him two benefices, the proceeds of which amounted to 700 golden crowns a year, and his uncle had promised to him his successor. Beza spent two years in Paris and gained a prominent position in literary circles, in 1548 he published a collection of Latin poetry, Juvenilia, which made him famous, and he was widely considered one of the best writers of Latin poetry of his time. Some cautioned against reading biographical details in his writings, philip Schaff argued that it was a mistake to read between his lines what he never intended to put there or to imagine offences of which he was not guilty even in thought. Shortly after the publication of his book, he fell ill and his illness, gradually he came to accept salvation in Christ, which lifted his spirits. He then resolved to sever his connections of the time, and went to Geneva, the French city of refuge for Evangelicals and he was received by John Calvin, who had met him already in Wolmars house, and was married in the church. Beza was at a loss for immediate occupation so he went to Tübingen to see his former teacher Wolmar, on his way home, he visited Pierre Viret at Lausanne, who brought about his appointment as professor of Greek at the academy there in November 1549. Beza found time to write a Biblical drama, Abraham Sacrifiant, in which he contrasted Catholicism with Protestantism, the text of some verses includes directions for musical performance, but no music survives. After Clément Marots death in 1544, John Calvin asked Beza to complete his French metrical translations of the Psalms, thirty-four of his translations were published in the 1551 edition of the Genevan Psalter, and six more were added to later editions
30.
Francis Turretin
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Francis Turretin was a Swiss-Italian Reformed scholastic theologian. He was the grandson of Francesco Turrettini, who left his native Lucca in 1574, francis was born to Benoit Turretin at Geneva on 17 October 1623 and died there on 28 September 1687. He studied theology at Geneva, Leiden, Utrecht, Paris, Saumur, Montauban, in Paris he also studied philosophy under Roman Catholic Pierre Gassendi. Returning to his city, he was made pastor of the Italian church there from 1648 to 1687, of the French congregation from 1653-1687. He is the father of Jean Alphonse Turretin, who would do much to dismantle the theology his father promoted and his Institutio Theologiae Elencticae was the culmination of Reformed scholasticism. The Institutes uses the method to dispute a number of controversial issues. In it he defended the view that the Bible is Gods verbally inspired word and he also argued for infralapsarianism and federal theology. Of his other disputations, his most important are De Satisfactione Christi disputationes and he wrote the Helvetic Consensus, a Reformed confession written against Amyraldianism, with J. H. Heidegger in 1675. John Gerstner called Turretin the most precise theologian in the Calvinistic tradition, along the lines of Reformed theology, Turretin argues that after the fall human beings did not lose the faculty of will itself. The inability to do good is strongly asserted, but the essence of freedom is not destroyed and they still have liberty which is not repugnant to certain kinds of necessity. Turretin distinguishes six kinds of necessity, physical necessity, necessity of coercion, necessity of dependence on God, rational necessity, moral necessity, the first two among these six necessities are incompatible with freedom, whereas the latter four are not only compatible with freedom but perfect it. For Turretin, freedom does not arise from an indifference of the will, no rational beings are indifferent to good and evil. The will of a human being is never indifferent in the sense of possessing an equilibrium. Turretin defines freedom with the notion of rational spontaneity and it is not Scotuss notion of synchronic contingency but Aristotles modal logic which is incorporated into Turretins doctrine of freedom. Moreover, the Scotistic ideas about necessity and indifference differ greatly from those of Turretin, Turretin develops the discussion on necessity and relates it to his argument about human freedom of choice. His careful rejection of the notion of indifference in the doctrine of freedom creates a big gap between his doctrine and that of Scotus, Turretins teaching of contingency emphasizes the sovereign act of God in the process of conversion, whereas Scotuss contingency theory blurs it. Turretin is not a Scotist, but a Reformed theologian standing in a more “generic Aristotelian tradition. ”Translated by George Musgrave Giger, edited by James T. Dennison, ISBN 0-87552-705-1 The Atonement of Christ. ISBN 0-8010-8842-9 Spencer, Stephen R. TURRETIN, FRANČOIS, in Carey, Patrick W. Lienhard, Joseph T
31.
Jonathan Edwards (theologian)
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Jonathan Edwards was a revivalist preacher, philosopher, and Congregationalist Protestant theologian. Like most of the Puritans, he held to the Reformed theology and his colonial followers later distinguished themselves from other Congregationalists as New Lights, as opposed to Old Lights. Edwards is widely regarded as one of Americas most important and original philosophical theologians, Edwards theological work is broad in scope, but he was rooted in Reformed theology, the metaphysics of theological determinism, and the Puritan heritage. Recent studies have emphasized how thoroughly Edwards grounded his lifes work on conceptions of beauty, harmony, and ethical fittingness, Edwards played a critical role in shaping the First Great Awakening, and oversaw some of the first revivals in 1733–35 at his church in Northampton, Massachusetts. Edwards delivered the sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Edwards died from a smallpox inoculation shortly after beginning the presidency at the College of New Jersey. He was the grandfather of Aaron Burr, third Vice President of the United States, Jonathan Edwards was born on October 5,1703 and was the son of Timothy Edwards, a minister at East Windsor, Connecticut, who eked out his salary by tutoring boys for college. His mother, Esther Stoddard, daughter of the Rev. Solomon Stoddard, of Northampton, Massachusetts, seems to have been a woman of unusual mental gifts, Jonathan, their only son, was the fifth of 11 children. He entered Yale College in 1716, at just under the age of 13, in the following year, he became acquainted with John Lockes Essay Concerning Human Understanding, which influenced him profoundly. He was interested in history, and as a precocious 11-year-old, observed. Edwards would edit this text to match the genre of scientific literature. Even though he would go on to study theology for two years after his graduation, Edwards continued to be interested in science, Edwards was fascinated by the discoveries of Isaac Newton and other scientists of his age. Before he undertook full-time ministry work in Northampton, he wrote on topics in natural philosophy, including flying spiders, light. While he was worried about the materialism and faith in reason alone of some of his contemporaries, he saw the laws of nature as derived from God and demonstrating his wisdom and care. In 1722 to 1723, he was for eight months stated supply of a small Presbyterian Church in New York City, the church invited him to remain, but he declined the call. The years 1720 to 1726 are partially recorded in his diary and he now took a great and new joy in taking in the beauties of nature, and delighted in the allegorical interpretation of the Song of Solomon. On February 15,1727, Edwards was ordained minister at Northampton and he was a scholar-pastor, not a visiting pastor, his rule being 13 hours of study a day. In the same year, he married Sarah Pierpont, then 17, Sarah was from a storied New England clerical family, her father was James Pierpont, the head founder of Yale College, and her mother was the great-granddaughter of Thomas Hooker. Sarahs spiritual devotion was without peer, and her relationship with God had long proved an inspiration to Edwards and he first remarked on her great piety when she was 13 years old
32.
Charles Hodge
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Charles Hodge was a Presbyterian theologian and principal of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878. He was an exponent of the Princeton Theology, an orthodox Calvinist theological tradition in America during the 19th century. He argued strongly for the authority of the Bible as the Word of God, many of his ideas were adopted in the 20th century by Fundamentalists and Evangelicals. Charles Hodges father, Hugh, was the son of a Scotsman who emigrated from Northern Ireland early in the eighteenth century, Hugh graduated from Princeton College in 1773 and served as a military surgeon in the Revolutionary War, after which he practiced medicine in Philadelphia. He married well-born Bostonian orphan Mary Blanchard in 1790, the Hodges first three sons died in the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 and another yellow fever epidemic in 1795. Their first son to survive childhood, Hugh Lenox, was born in 1796, Hugh Lenox would become an authority in obstetrics, and he would remain especially close with Charles, often assisting him financially. Charles was born on December 27,1797 and his father died seven months later of complications from the yellow fever he had contracted in the epidemic of 1795. They were brought up by relatives, many of whom were wealthy, Mary Hodge made sacrifices and took in boarders in order to put the boys through school. She, with the help of the familys minister Ashbel Green, also in 1812, Ashbel Green, the Hodges old minister, became president of the college. At Princeton, the first president of the new seminary, Archibald Alexander, took a special interest in Hodge, assisting him in Greek, Hodge would name his first son after Alexander. Hodge became close friends with future Episcopalian bishops John Johns and Charles McIlvaine, in 1815, during a time of intense religious fervor among the students encouraged by Green and Alexander, Hodge joined the local Presbyterian church and decided to enter the ministry. Shortly after completing his studies he entered the seminary in 1816. Professors Alexander and Samuel Miller also inculcated an intense piety in their students, following graduation from Princeton Seminary in 1819, Hodge received additional instruction privately from Hebrew scholar Rev. Joseph Bates in Philadelphia. In 1820 he accepted an appointment as assistant professor at Princeton Seminary to teach biblical languages. In October of that year he traveled throughout New England to speak with professors and ministers including Moses Stuart at Andover Seminary, financially stable, Hodge married Sarah Bache, Benjamin Franklins great-granddaughter in the same year. In 1824, Hodge helped to found the Chi Phi Society along with Robert Baird and he founded the quarterly Biblical Repertory in 1825 to translate the current scholarly literature on the Bible from Europe. Hodges study of European scholarship lead him to question the adequacy of his training, the seminary agreed to continue to pay him for two years while he traveled in Europe to round out his education. He supplied a substitute, John Nevin on his own expense, there he also became personally acquainted with Friedrich Schleiermacher, the leading modern theologian
33.
Continental Reformed church
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A Continental Reformed church is a Reformed church that has its origin in the European continent. The term is used to distinguish these churches from Presbyterian, Congregational or other Calvinist churches, Continental Reformed churches are descended from the Protestant Reformation in respective European countries. Notably, their theology is derived from the Swiss Reformation. It was inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli, who formulated the first expression of the Reformed faith, Swiss Reformation was more fully articulated by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and John Calvin. In the sixteenth century, the movement spread to most of continental Europe, sometimes aligning and secured by monarchs and other nobles, like in Switzerland, Hungary, the first Reformed churches were established in Europe after 1519 and were part of the Protestant Reformation. Reformed doctrine is expressed in various confessions, a few confessions are shared by many denominations. Different denominations use different confessions, usually based on historical reasons, around the world many churches of Reformed tradition emerged, both by migration and missionary work. Here is a List of Reformed churches
34.
Congregational church
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Congregational or Congregationalist churches are Protestant churches practicing congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs. Congregationalism is often considered to be a part of the wider Reformed tradition, ideas of nonconforming Protestants during the Puritan Reformation of the Church of England laid foundation for these churches. Congregationalists also differed with the Reformed churches using episcopalian church governance, within the United States, the model of Congregational churches was carried by migrating settlers from New England into New York, then into the Old North West, and further. With their insistence on independent local bodies, they became important in social reform movements, including abolitionism, temperance. Congregationalist tradition has a presence in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and it has been introduced either by immigrant dissenter Protestants or by missionary organization such as the London Missionary Society. Congregationalists believe their model of church governance fulfils the description of the early church, Congregationalism is more easily identified as a movement than a single denomination, given its distinguishing commitment to the complete autonomy of the local congregation. The early Congregationalists shared with Anabaptist theology the ideal of a pure church and they believed the adult conversion experience was necessary for an individual to become a full member in the church, unlike other Reformed churches. As such, the Congregationalists were an influence on the Baptists. They differed in counting the children of believers in some members of the church. On the other hand, the Baptists required each member to experience conversion, in England, the Anglican system of church government was taken over by King Henry VIII. It declared the sovereign of England to be the only supreme head on earth of the Church in England. In the reign of Elizabeth I, this title was changed to Supreme Governor of the Church of England, an act still in effect. Robert Browne, Henry Barrow, John Greenwood, John Penry, William Brewster, Thomas Jollie, the underground churches in England and exiles from Holland provided about 35 out of the 102 passengers on the Mayflower, which sailed from London in July 1620. They became known in history as the Pilgrim Fathers, the early Congregationalists sought to separate themselves from the Anglican church in every possible way and even eschewed having church buildings. They met in homes for many years, in 1639 William Wroth, then Rector of the parish church at Llanvaches in Monmouthshire, established the first Independent Church in Wales according to the New England pattern, i. e. Congregational. The Tabernacle United Reformed Church at Llanvaches survives to this day, during the English Civil War, those who supported the Parliamentary cause were invited by Parliament to discuss religious matters. This government would last until 1660 when the monarch was restored, in 1658 the Congregationalists created their own version of the Westminster Confession, called the Savoy Declaration, which remains the principal subordinate standard of Congregationalism. The work in South America began in 1921 when four Argentine churches urgently requested that denominational recognition be given to George Geier, the Illinois Conference licensed Geier, who worked among Germans from Russia who were very similar to their kin in the United States and in Canada
35.
Anglicanism
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Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising the Church of England and churches which are historically tied to it or hold similar beliefs, worship practices and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to the Magna Carta and before, adherents of Anglicanism are called Anglicans. As the name suggests, the churches of the Anglican Communion are linked by bonds of tradition, affection and they are in full communion with the See of Canterbury, and thus the Archbishop of Canterbury, in his person, is a unique focus of Anglican unity. He calls the once-a-decade Lambeth Conference, chairs the meeting of primates, Anglicans base their Christian faith on the Bible, traditions of the apostolic Church, apostolic succession, and writings of the Church Fathers. Anglicanism forms one of the branches of Western Christianity, having declared its independence from the Holy See at the time of the Elizabethan Religious Settlement. Many of the new Anglican formularies of the mid-16th century corresponded closely to those of contemporary Protestantism, the word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English Church. Adherents of Anglicanism are called Anglicans, as an adjective, Anglican is used to describe the people, institutions and churches, as well as the liturgical traditions and theological concepts developed by the Church of England. As a noun, an Anglican is a member of a church in the Anglican Communion, the word is also used by followers of separated groups which have left the communion or have been founded separately from it, although this is sometimes considered as a misuse. The word Anglicanism came into being in the 19th century, although the term Anglican is found referring to the Church of England as far back as the 16th century, its use did not become general until the latter half of the 19th century. Elsewhere, however, the term Anglican Church came to be preferred as it distinguished these churches from others that maintain an episcopal polity, as such, it is often referred to as being a via media between these traditions. Anglicans understand the Old and New Testaments as containing all necessary for salvation and as being the rule. Reason and Tradition are seen as means to interpret Scripture. Anglicans understand the Apostles Creed as the symbol and the Nicene Creed as the sufficient statement of the Christian faith. Anglicans celebrate the sacraments, with special emphasis being given to the Eucharist, also called Holy Communion. Unique to Anglicanism is the Book of Common Prayer, the collection of services that worshippers in most Anglican churches used for centuries and it was called common prayer originally because it was intended for use in all Church of England churches which had previously followed differing local liturgies. The term was kept when the church became international because all Anglicans used to share in its use around the world, in 1549, the first Book of Common Prayer was compiled by Thomas Cranmer, who was then Archbishop of Canterbury. The founding of Christianity in Britain is commonly attributed to Joseph of Arimathea, according to Anglican legend, Saint Alban, who was executed in 209 AD, is the first Christian martyr in the British Isles. A new culture emerged around the Irish Sea among the Celtic peoples with Celtic Christianity at its core, what resulted was a form of Christianity distinct from Rome in many traditions and practices
36.
Afrikaner Calvinism
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White settlement in South Africa may be traced to the 1652 arrival of the Dutch East India Company at the Cape of Good Hope, seeking to establish a refreshment station. The Company had its headquarters in Amsterdam and it was there that it recruited and equipped voyages for the Orient, the Dutch settlement of the Cape of Good Hope was the first colonial success in South Africa. The key to success was the establishment of strict rules of trade between the settlement and the native population. No trade or Christian missionary ventures among the Africans were permitted without the permission of the company administrator, stealing or shooting cattle was especially forbidden as a cause of inevitable conflict with the natives. The early Europeans were appalled by the appearance and the customs of the Africans, the Cape was a walled garden, with Africa on the outside and Europe within. This strict order minimised conflicts with the Africans during the settlement period. Yet, many of the settlers had arrived with a missionary motive, the farmers who lived outside of the physical walls of the towns had a different arrangement than the townspeople. To them, occupation meant ownership, and ownership implied the right to protect their property, thus, the farms represented an extension beyond the towns of the wall of separation between the white and the black occupants of the land. As in the towns, plantation slavery was seen as a means of evangelism. Separation and rules of exchange were opposed very early in the Afrikaner mind to invasion, if God deems it fitting for the Gospel to be received by the natives, and taught to their children, then this is his glory. This history is essential to understanding the concept of calling that developed among the Afrikaners. These attitudes, very early adopted, went with them through later conflicts and they believed themselves preserved by Gods own wisdom and Providence. The things they suffered, and the bonds between them that were formed through it all, seemed to confirm this idea at every turn. Their history as a people has a place in forming the Boer religion. In this way, a folk character became attached to their Calvinistic beliefs. This folk religion was not articulated in a formal way and it was the experience of the Afrikaners, which they interpreted through their assurance that their absolutely sovereign Creator and Lord had shown special grace to them as a particular people. However, the French Revolution brought these habits of thought more self-consciously to the surface, the British took care of the Cape of Good Hope in 1795 and handed it back to the Batavian Republic after the Peace of Amiens. For about a year and a half, Enlightenment ideas were promoted by Janssens and De Mist, in 1806, the British Navy invaded the Cape of Good Hope on its own, and appointed British land administrators there, who were zealous propagators of the Enlightenment
37.
Huguenots
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Huguenots are the ethnoreligious group of French Protestants who follow the Reformed tradition. It was used frequently to members of the French Reformed Church until the beginning of the 19th century. The term has its origin in 16th-century France, Huguenot numbers peaked near an estimated two million by 1562, concentrated mainly in the southern and western parts of France. As Huguenots gained influence and more openly displayed their faith, Catholic hostility grew, in spite of political concessions, a series of religious conflicts followed, known as the French Wars of Religion, fought intermittently from 1562 to 1598. The Huguenots were led by Jeanne dAlbret, her son, the future Henry IV, the wars ended with the Edict of Nantes, which granted the Huguenots substantial religious, political, and military autonomy. Huguenot rebellions in the 1620s prompted the abolishment of their political and they retained religious provisions of the Edict of Nantes until the rule of Louis XIV. Nevertheless, a minority of Huguenots remained and faced continued persecution under Louis XV. By the death of Louis XV in 1774, French Calvinism was almost completely wiped out, persecution of Protestants officially ended with the Edict of Versailles, signed by Louis XVI in 1787. Two years later, with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen of 1789 and they also spread to the Dutch Cape Colony in South Africa, the Dutch East Indies, the Caribbean, New Netherland, and several of the English colonies in North America. Small contingents of families went to Orthodox Russia and Catholic Quebec, a term used originally in derision, Huguenot has unclear origins. Geneva was John Calvins adopted home and the centre of the Calvinist movement, the label Huguenot was purportedly first applied in France to those conspirators involved in the Amboise plot of 1560, a foiled attempt to wrest power in France from the influential House of Guise. The move would have had the effect of fostering relations with the Swiss. Thus, Hugues plus Eidgenosse by way of Huisgenoten supposedly became Huguenot, a version of this complex hypothesis is promoted by O. I. A. Roche, who writes in his book, The Days of the Upright, A History of the Huguenots, that Huguenot is, a combination of a Dutch and a German word. Gallicised into Huguenot, often used deprecatingly, the word became, Some disagree with such double or triple non-French linguistic origins, arguing that for the word to have spread into common use in France, it must have originated in the French language. The Hugues hypothesis argues that the name was derived by association with Hugues Capet, king of France and he was regarded by the Gallicans and Protestants as a noble man who respected peoples dignity and lives. Janet Gray and other supporters of the hypothesis suggest that the name huguenote would be equivalent to little Hugos. It was in place in Tours that the prétendus réformés habitually gathered at night
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