Use this tag for questions about the history of Christianity and the church.
6
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0answers
15 views
Is there any evidence that Romans viewed Christian teachings sexual restraint as a liberating influence?
Sarah Ruden (via John Stonestreet) makes an interesting claim about the Roman Empire in the time of Paul:
Dreher cites classics scholar Sarah Ruden, whose book “Paul Among the Gentiles” was the ...
2
votes
0answers
30 views
Is it possible the Biblical and scientific timelines for the age of the earth could link up? [duplicate]
In many versions of the Bible I have e read, in fiitnotes/endotes they say the Hebrew term for "day" could also mean "period of time." So if you took period of time to mean oh say, a billion years, ...
3
votes
1answer
28 views
Who produced the first Concordance?
Prior to this new-fangled electronic thing called the internet, people who were looking to find a particular verse in the Bible resorted to a manual index called a concordance. In such a book, ...
3
votes
1answer
96 views
Did the city of Nazareth exist in the time of Jesus?
The question stems from this video. Additionally, I would like to know any books, articles and other credible sources that deals with this question for further reading*. Thank you for your time.
* ...
6
votes
1answer
48 views
To what are the scriptures referring when they speak of the books of the “chronicles of the kings”?
In the books of 1 and 2 Kings, there are quite a few places where the author refers to "the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah" or "the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel".
...
4
votes
1answer
40 views
Did the American Constitution and independence from England usher in the first full separation of Church and state?
I have noticed that even among theologians that postulated full separation of church and state, like Luther, they did not force the subject so fully as our modern world understands. In fact there was ...
5
votes
1answer
90 views
What happened to the two trees in the Garden of Eden?
In Genesis 2, we are told that there were two named trees in the Garden of Eden--the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life.
When Adam and Eve ate fruit from the Tree of the ...
4
votes
1answer
48 views
Why didn't Syriac Christianity keep Aramaic as their liturgical language?
Syriac Christianity (as well as with other oriental orthodoxy denominations) today use Arabic as their liturgical language. It is known that they have been using Arabic since the times of Muslim ...
4
votes
1answer
90 views
Was the mode of execution for Jesus required to be crucifixion?
Did Jesus need to die on a cross or were there alternative endings? Would being stabbed with a sword or if he died during the beatings have been good enough?
Specifically, are there prophecies held ...
1
vote
3answers
133 views
Are the early followers of Christ considered Christians or Jews in today's context? If not, when was the religion created? [duplicate]
From sometime after 4 BC and up to and sometime between the destruction of the Second Temple (C. 70) and Council of Nicaea (AD 325), Christians were considered Jewish with Jesus as their leader. When ...
12
votes
3answers
172 views
Why is Rome the holy city?
Why did Rome become the seat of the Pope and the central location for the Church? I would think that Jerusalem would be the first choice. There are also a number of other cities that I would ...
8
votes
3answers
107 views
Why did the conclave elect Pope Stephen I, when he died prior to taking office?
According to Wikipedia, Pope Stephen I was elected to the papacy in March of 752 A.D., but died a few days later, prior to being installed. As I understand it, Catholic teaching indicates that God's ...
2
votes
3answers
98 views
Did God ever talk about his other creations?
I have always been a lover of all things "Science", space, other life forms, etc. I excelled in Science in School but a few years ago I started questioning things and now believe that "Science" and ...
2
votes
3answers
59 views
When was the title of “Mother of God” first ascribed to Mary?
I understand that the phrase "Mother of God" appears in the prayer commonly referred to as the "Hail Mary" prayer. I'm wondering, though, what the origin is of the phrase "Mother of God". Did it ...
5
votes
3answers
166 views
Why was the New Testament Written in Greek?
New Testament was written in Greek. But Jesus lived in Israel and was supposed to be the next King of Israel. I think it is probably fair to assume that he and his twelve apostles spoke Hebrew. Then ...
11
votes
4answers
183 views
At what point did Judaism and Christianity diverge?
At what point did Judaism and Christianity diverge? Christianity and Judaism share the Old Testament (The Hebrew Bible), so it should be safe to assume they are the same people at least during the Old ...
1
vote
1answer
46 views
Conversion of Romans and Bible Portrayal of Romans
I have trouble understanding how Romans converted to Christianity. In the Bible, Romans weren't portrayed very nicely. For example, Herod the Great did quite a lot of awful things. Jesus was crucified ...
3
votes
1answer
69 views
Persecution of Jewish by Christians in Middle Ages?
I want to apologize ahead if my questions sound disrespectful to anybody. This isn't my intent. I grew up in East Asia which has very few Christians, but I have been very interested in the history of ...
6
votes
2answers
98 views
Has the Church historically considered biblical texts concerning slavery to be transcultural or finite?
How have the Bible's passages concerning slavery been interpreted and applied throughout Christian history, especially passages such as Exodus 21:2-11, Leviticus 25:44-46, and 1 Timothy 6:1-2?
Have ...
2
votes
2answers
70 views
Did Zachariah ask for a son to God?
This is related to this question.
I found this verses from Qur'an.
Surah 19:1-7
Kaf- Ha-Ya-'Ain-Sad.
(This is) a mention of the mercy of your Lord to His slave Zakariya (Zachariah).
When ...
0
votes
3answers
165 views
The Popes Prophecy of St. Malachy [closed]
I am a young Christian and at times I fall into traps that I read one thing that isn't written in the bible then I believe it.
I read the Prophesy of St Malachy and now I am convincing myself that ...
6
votes
1answer
139 views
Are there any secular historical references to the natural phenomenon that occurred at the crucifixion and resurrection?
The Scriptures record that there was three hours of darkness during the crucifixion of Jesus. This is a pretty significant meteorological event. Furthermore, the morning of Jesus' resurrection, the ...
8
votes
1answer
140 views
Are there any references to “four canonical Gospels” prior to 100 AD?
According to the "Institut für neutestamentliche Textforschung" eleven manuscripts of NT are from within the second century alone, which include: P52 (100-150), P90, 104 (2nd century), P66 (c. AD ...
1
vote
0answers
58 views
Was Satan an Angel [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Where in the Bible does it say that Lucifer is an angel?
Of what nature is Satan?
Most people refer to the following scripture as support for the fact that Satan was ...
4
votes
2answers
144 views
Were witches ever executed by the Eastern Orthodox Church?
If we don't count lynchings, were people ever executed for witchcraft be the Eastern Orthodox Church?
In western Christianity, the execution of witches was condemned until 1484, four centuries after ...
1
vote
1answer
86 views
What does it means INRI in Jesus Cross? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What does INRI stand for?
In Jesus Cross there is symbol like INRI, What does it exactly means and why they are keeping this still in cross any conditions or story ...
8
votes
1answer
48 views
Where did the dates at the bottom of the pages in the Book of Mormon come from?
From these images of an original copy of the Book of Mormon, it appears that the dates and chapter summaries that appear in modern printings do not appear in the original.
When exactly did these ...
5
votes
3answers
1k views
What is significant about the swaddling clothes with which Jesus was wrapped as a baby?
Luke gives the account of Jesus' birth and mentions that Mary wrapped Him in "swaddling cloths".
And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling
cloths and laid him in a ...
7
votes
5answers
238 views
Was Jesus a poor man, in economic sense?
I saw a video of Cesar Vidal and he said, that probably, Jesus was a middle-high class in economic sense, during the period of life before public ministry. I need historical references.
4
votes
1answer
62 views
Does an understanding of how the Bible was written, play a strong role in any Christian sect?
There is sometimes a misunderstanding or differing opinion of who wrote what in the Bible. Is this issue relevant to any particular Christian sect? Does the topic play an important role?
7
votes
1answer
56 views
How much time did medieval Christians devote to prayer?
I was critiqued on this answer concerning it taking less time out of the day for someone to be a Muslim than a Christian, and that may be untrue for a majority of Christians today.
But how much ...
8
votes
1answer
112 views
How many witnesses are there who physically saw and/or touched the golden plates from which the Book of Mormon was reportedly translated?
I understand the Book of Mormon has a list of witnesses. However, I have heard that these witnesses may not have actually ever seen the gold plates that contained the original manuscripts for the ...
3
votes
1answer
378 views
When did the practice of Confession in the Catholic Church begin?
Confession, specifically the practice of confessing one's sins to a priest, is a quite common practice in the Catholic Church. When and how did this sacrament first originate and become codified as ...
10
votes
4answers
294 views
When did the one-way monologue sermon first become a normal feature of church assemblies?
Of course Jesus preached a lot of monologue sermons, but I have noticed that Jesus did not usually preach sermons like nearly every church does today. He never seems to have, or at least rarely ...
13
votes
1answer
60 views
Are there any surviving hymns from the Valdensian movement?
The Valdensians preached and celebrated the Lords Supper in the native tongue of the people, not in Latin. However, every source I've read about their customs focus on what was spoken, and I also want ...
3
votes
2answers
120 views
When did the gathered church stop singing choruses?
I read a few years ago, that the early church (1st - 2nd century) would start their gatherings by singing choruses and that this went on for a while, before the rest of the liturgy.
Unfortunately, my ...
8
votes
2answers
360 views
Is it true that early Christians were baptised naked?
I was told that people were baptised naked in the early Christian church. Is this true? If so, could you provide references please? I would like to investigate this for myself.
Regards,
Walid
7
votes
2answers
153 views
What evidence is there that the Apostle Paul had been a member of the Sanhedrin?
I remember hearing someone make the claim that Paul had been a member of the Sanhedrin prior to his conversion to Christianity. Is there any evidence for this claim? If so, what is it?
4
votes
2answers
81 views
What is the basis for ascribing any fiscal policy to Jesus?
In the United States, specifically on the Right, many Republican / Tea-Party, Evangelical Christians have very little problem in ascribing a moral motive for a tight fiscal policy which restricts ...
4
votes
1answer
50 views
What is the origin of the doctrine of perspecuity?
Fundamentally, Catholics and Protestants read Scripture differently.
Catholics believe that any private interpretation of Scripture is subject to the teachings of the church, whereas Protestants, ...
6
votes
2answers
144 views
Was Billy Sunday the first evangelist to equate the “altar call” with salvation?
According to this article from the The Society for Effective Evangelism:
Up until Billy Sunday, altar calls were invitations for seekers to come to an after-meeting or inquiry room where ...
5
votes
3answers
203 views
What is God's shape or form?
How do we describe God? Does He have a shape or form? Is He human-like, a light, or something else? Does He have a shape? What does Christianity say about it?
13
votes
2answers
1k views
When did “tithing” come to mean “giving 10% of your gross income to the Church”?
I know the word "tithe" has "tenth" built into it, and so some Christians assume that every usage of the word "tithe" in Scripture is referring to "giving 10% of your gross income to the church." But ...
4
votes
1answer
988 views
Why Lot's daughters seduced their father?
According to the Bible, when Lot escaped out of Zoar, he went up to the mountains and settled in a cave. While in there, he was seduced by his daughters so that they could bear children and save ...
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Where Catholicism lost influence and property during the reformation, what did Luther think should be done with the acquired assets?
As a man protesting against the mass of wealth accumulated by the Pope I was wondering what Luther proposed to do with all the lands and endowments obtained in those regions where the Catholic church ...
4
votes
3answers
232 views
What does the Bible have to say about dinosaurs?
Archaeology has found many dinosaur fossils. Does the Bible have anything to say about the existence of dinosaurs?
4
votes
1answer
38 views
How did Luther view pilgramages?
From what I understand there are many people from vaious denominations who imagine certain places on the earth are 'holier' than other places and that it is good to travel long distances to visit ...
2
votes
2answers
108 views
Why was Yeshoua interpreted as Jesus in the new Testament
Inspired by What is the significance of the name "Jesus"?, and previous readings about the name, the interpretation of Yeshoua means Joshua in the old testament and Jesus in the new ...
1
vote
1answer
144 views
Is it true that Luther claimed Popes and priests commonly practiced sodomy?
This is a simple historical Q & A question regarding the rumor that Luther made this fairly inflammatory accusation. The question is simple. Is there any solid proof that Luther really thought ...
2
votes
1answer
172 views
How do Reformed Theologians view Hypnosis?
In particular:
is it Biblical?
is it Demon possession?
is it basically a bad idea?
is it Orthogonal to Christianity? (i.e. the question is equivalent to "How do Reformed Theologists think about ...
