The 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation

Today marks the 500th anniversary of the event that launched the Protestant Reformation: the nailing of Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, by a young monk and scholar named Martin Luther. As with all important historical events, this one is debated. Did Luther intend to cause the greatest schismContinue reading “The 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation”

A Brief History of Communion: Five Reformation Views

This post is part of an ongoing series on the history of communion. The Reformation Church With the outbreak of theological reforms in the 16th century came considerable revisions and specifications of the theologies and practices of Communion. Essentially, five major views solidified: Tridentine, Consubstantial, Reformed, Via Media, and Memorialist.

Book Review: Lord Jesus Christ (Hurtado)

Magnum opus remains a term best reserved for the crowning achievement of a scholar’s life and work, the pinnacle at the top of decades of research, writing, and sharpening arguments. These great works comprehensively examine and engage their field of work and, at their best, even redefine the field for years to come. Such isContinue reading “Book Review: Lord Jesus Christ (Hurtado)”

Book Review: Fields of Blood (Armstrong)

For many people living in the West, an assumption exists that religion is inherently violent. After all, they say, just look at the evidence: religion has caused wars, the Crusades, terrorism, religion has made people hate and kill others for nothing more than the ideas that were in their heads. According to this view, religionsContinue reading “Book Review: Fields of Blood (Armstrong)”

Luther and Zwingli on the Lord’s Supper

It has been widely noted that few events in the history of the Christian Church have dramatically impacted the course of western culture and civilization as the Age of Theological Reformation in the 16th century. Within the myriad of events that transformed a relatively institutionally monolithic Catholic Church into a plethora of competing theological claims,Continue reading “Luther and Zwingli on the Lord’s Supper”