Questions tagged [church-history]
The history of the Church following the book of Acts
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Have Christians in communion with the Bishop of Rome been always in the majority since St. Peter?
Demographics-wise, has the number of global Christians in communion with the Bishop of Rome (called "Catholics" for convenience in this Q) been always the majority in every generation since ...
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How is the "perpetual" excommunication of Acacius by Felix III currently understood in Catholicism?
Around AD 485, the patriarch of Constantinople, Acacius, was excommunicated by Pope Felix III, in a dispute over both theology and authority. This excommunication, however, seems unique in that it ...
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What happened with the schools of Luther and Melanchthon?
I know that Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon tried to oppose the school system introduced by the Catholic Church (according to Luther, Oxford and Cambridge model was influenced by the Paris ...
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What was the old style of penance, before modern indulgences?
In this answer, it is mentioned that the times listed for various indulgences
corresponds not to that amount of time off Purgatory, but to a remission equivalent to what one would get from performing ...
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Which prophecies does Justin Martyr claim predict Jesus' Advent? Please identify them
In his First Apology Justin Martyr writes:
We find it also predicted that certain persons should be sent by Him into every nation to publish these things, and that rather among the Gentiles [than ...
- 407
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How long has it been a custom to bow at the mention of the Incarnation?
I asked a question a few years ago and it was mentioned in a anecdote concerning the devil from 1374 that people were genuflecting at the mention of the incarnation
https://christianity.stackexchange....
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What is the earliest clear and unambiguous post-NT denial of the Holy Spirit's personhood in Christianity?
Essentially the opposite of this question:
What is the earliest recorded post-NT instance of a clear and unambiguous denial of the personhood of the Holy Spirit? When was it claimed for the first ...
user50422
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Why did the 'storm' not remove the Unitarian from the Revision Committee that produced the 1881 Revised Version?
Prior to Westcott and Hort influencing the Revision Committee which produced the 1881 Revised Version (the supposed 'revision' of the Authorised Version which, in fact, replaced the Received Text with ...
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Whence did 'with the Holy Spirit' get added to the prayer "One is Holy, One is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Amen"?
In Western Christian worship, there is a part where the faithful say "One is Holy, One is Lord, Jesus Christ, (together) with the Holy Spirit, to the glory of God the Father. Amen."
In Eastern ...
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To what extent did the Chinese government force Catholic priests to marry?
In his book The Souls of China, Ian Johnson writes about a type of religious persecution that was inflicted on some groups in China during the Cultural Revolution (1966–76):
Across the country, ...
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What was the difference between Berengar's view of the Eucharist and that of Zwingli?
Berengar of Tours played a major role in the Second Eucharistic Controversy, which took place in the 11th century. He opposed the increasing acceptance of proto-transubstantiation doctrines, arguing ...
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Was the Second Council of Quierzy (853) controlled by Hincmar against the Augustinians?
In a lecture, Reformed theologian and church historian Douglas Kelly says:
Hincmar controlled a council – it was not a really representative council. He stacked it. […] The semi-Augustinian, proto-...
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Where does Jonathan Edwards describe his expectations of the second coming of Jesus?
In a few places I've seen claims that Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758) believed in the imminence of Christ's return. For example:
[Jonathan Edwards] was convinced that the world was going to the dogs ...
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Was John Smyth, the earliest Baptist, influenced by the Anabaptists?
John Smyth, according to Bruce Shelley (CHPL, 308) and Wikipedia, was the first of the English Baptists. An Anglican priest, he came to the conclusion that infant baptism was invalid and started a ...
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Did historical protestants identify themselves as "catholics"?
Did Historical protestant churches like Lutheran, Calvinist, Anglican, etc... and their founders identify themselves as lowercase "catholic"(Universal in sense) in their founding years? or ...
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What is the earliest reference of the seven sacraments in the Orthodox Church?
In the Roman-Catholic Church, the earliest writings that explicitly mention the seven sacraments come from Peter Lombard’s “Setences”.
I am curious what are the earliest reference in Eastern-Orthodoxy ...
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What was the first infallible statement made by a pope?
According to the Catholic Church, what was the first infallible statement made by a pope, by himself, outside an ecumenical council?
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Does 19th century Canadian Presbyterian teaching prohibit wearing flowers to church?
Cross-posted from History SE, since comments there indicate this might be the more appropriate SE.
In the novel Anne of Green Gables, Anne wears a hat with flowers in it to church, and is criticized ...
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Was Chrysostom mistaken about the cessation of charismatic gifts in the late 4th century?
John Chrysostom (AD 347-407), while commenting on 2 Thessalonians 2:7, writes about how some in his day thought the prevalence of the full range of charismatic gifts functioned to restrain the coming ...
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Which Christian groups/denominations in the history of the Church have encouraged their members to earnestly desire the gift of prophecy?
I'm interested in learning more about the relevance that the spiritual gifts have had for Christians over the course of history, with special emphasis on the gift of prophecy. For the apostle Paul, ...
user50422
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Were any Popes critics of the Iberian "Blood purity" doctrines?
Spain had at one point of its history a significant Jewish population (Sephardi Jews) as well as a large Muslim minority following the conquests of Islamic realms in Iberia. Judaism and Islam were ...
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Are there any documented instances where a council settled a doctrinal debate with the assistance of the Holy Spirit, as in Acts 15?
Acts 15 tells us the story of the Jerusalem Council and the importance that the Holy Spirit had in arriving at a final resolution, which was issued to the Gentiles, concerning their obligations toward ...
user50422
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Historical letters of investiture
Am wondering if "letters of investiture" (if that is the right term), from popes to early European missionaries, are available anywhere in print, or on the web? Am particularly interested in Ansgar.
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Was the transition from establishment to voluntary church support made with "little difficulty" in the US?
In A History of American Christianity, Chapter 16, Leonard Bacon writes:
The transition from establishment to the voluntary system for the support of churches was made not without some difficulty, ...
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What is the biblical and early church basis against religious tolerance?
Christianity is very often labelled as being tolerant, especially towards other religions. But is there a biblical and historical (i.e. the church fathers) basis against so called "religious ...
user60738
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Paul using mystery cults to textualize his message to the Near East/Rome?
I've caught the tail end of a great lecture by a priest but have not been able to identify him or the venue. What I recall clearly is the very interesting point he brought up about the importance in ...
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Can the Pentecostal/Charismatic belief in "territorial spirits" and "Strategic-Level Spiritual Warfare" be traced back to prior sources?
According to the Wikipedia article on Territorial spirit:
Territorial spirits are national angels, or demons, who rule over certain geographical areas in the world, a concept accepted within the ...
user50422
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Are there any denominations that are or have been both continuationist and non-Trinitarian?
Are there any denominations currently or throughout the history of Christianity that are or have been both continuationist and non-Trinitarian?
user50422
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Are there any sources other than Acts 2 reporting Xenoglossy during the first centuries of Christianity?
Xenoglossy, the ability to suddenly speak a language one has never learned or studied, is reported to have taken place at Pentecost in Acts chapter 2. Are there any other independent sources that ...
user50422
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What is the origin of the "Fire Tunnel" ritual at Bethel Church?
According to Wikipedia:
Bethel Church is an American non-denominational hyper-charismatic megachurch in Redding, California with over 11,000 members. The church was established in 1952 and is ...
user50422
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How common is it for revivalist preachers to testify of a dramatic life-changing divine encounter as the event that sparked their revivalist ministry?
I'm starting to read up on the biographies of some the most notable revivalist preachers in Christianity. Wikipedia has an article that lists many of them. What brought my attention to this topic in ...
user50422
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Did the Early Church practice the salutation of “Peace to this House”, as had been taught by Jesus in Luke 10:5?
We Jesus instructing his disciples in Lk 10:1-5:
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them,...
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The Gospel’s message for Constantine the Great
The case has been made regarding Jesus and Lazarus, that the fact that a person of substance (Jesus) should take an interest of a person such as Lazarus is perhaps a greater miracle than Lazarus’ ...
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What is the Roman Catholic Church's position on the Eastern Orthodox Church?
What is the official Roman Catholic position on the Eastern (Greek) Orthodox Church? Obviously, there was a mutual anathema/ex-communication declared between them a long time ago - has it been updated ...
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Leadership over smaller churches in early Christianity
I have heard a claim that during the early Church, bigger churches had leadership positions over smaller churches, which later developed into the idea of a single bishop ruling a dicosese. Are there ...
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Did the early church allow statues and images in church?
Protestants are against having statues and images and often quote Exodus 20:4, but Catholics and Orthodox Christians have beautiful statues and images in their church, but did the Early Church Fathers ...
user51922
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What is the Cessationist view on miracle reports surrounding St. Macarius of Egypt?
Macarius of Egypt:
Macarius of Egypt (c. 300 – 391) was a Coptic Christian monk and hermit. He is also known as Macarius the Elder or Macarius the Great.
St. Macarius was born in Lower Egypt. A late ...
user50422
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Have other group visitations of the Holy Spirit similar to Acts 4:23-31 been reported in church history?
Acts 4:23-31 (ESV):
23 When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 And when they heard it, they lifted their voices ...
user50422
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Why does the Catholic Church hold Mary's virginity and the absence of brothers against the historians?
Jesus does not have a brother in the catholic tradition, his mother Mary is a perpetual virgin, which can hardly be compatible with having several children.
Yet in his epistle to the Galatians (1, 19)...
