Tag: EarlyChristianity

Tom Holland on the changing meaning of the word ‘saint’

By Graham Harter I was interested recently to see that historian Tom Holland, in his new book Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind, refers to the change in the meaning of the word ‘saint’ down the centuries of Christianity. Anybody who has read the New Testament will be aware that, there, the term ‘saints’

For Irenaeus (c. 180 A.D.), Christian faith is biblical faith

Last week I commented on a beautiful passage by the second-century Christian theologian Irenaeus (c. 180 A.D.) showing his belief in both the full humanity and the full divinity of Christ. One of the things that comes across loud and clear in that passage is that, for Irenaeus, Christian faith is biblical faith. Before we

Why I Am A Christian (#3): The Diversity of New Testament Voices

[<<] [Contents] [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6] [Part 7] [Part 8] [Part 9] [Part 10] [Part 11] [>>] The Christian faith is not infrequently derided as irrational, delusional, fairyland. Though such arguments are sometimes made in an intellectually vigorous manner, I would argue that at least as often

Ignatius of Antioch’s Epistle to the Church of Smyrna [Part #3]

[Chapters 1—3] [Chapters 4—8] [Chapters 9—13] Contents Introduction Chapter 1. Thanks to God for your faith Chapter 2. Christ’s true passion Chapter 3. Christ possessed a body after his resurrection Chapter 4. Beware of these heretics Chapter 5. Their dangerous errors Chapter 6. Unbelievers in the blood of Christ shall be condemned Chapter 7. Let

Ignatius of Antioch’s Epistle to the Church of Smyrna [Part #2]

[Chapters 1—3] [Chapters 4—8] [Chapters 9—13] Contents Introduction Chapter 1. Thanks to God for your faith Chapter 2. Christ’s true passion Chapter 3. Christ possessed a body after his resurrection Chapter 4. Beware of these heretics Chapter 5. Their dangerous errors Chapter 6. Unbelievers in the blood of Christ shall be condemned Chapter 7. Let

Ignatius of Antioch’s Epistle to the Church of Smyrna (c. 107 AD)

[Chapters 1—3] [Chapters 4—8] [Chapters 9—13] Amongst the very earliest Christian writings we have in our possession after the New Testament itself, are seven letters written by Ignatius, bishop of Antioch in Syria, who was martyred by being fed to wild beasts in Rome around A.D. 107. Whilst on his way to Rome, under Roman

Tertullian on God’s power to raise the dead

If you’ve read certain bestselling conspiracy novels, you may be forgiven for thinking that the earliest centuries of Christianity are shrouded in mystery, rather like the Dark Ages, and we really can’t know what the earliest Christians believed. “History is always written by the winners,” as the character Sir Leigh Teabing scurrilously claims in one