Introduction

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Anthony Briggman
Keyword(s):  
Early Church ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Thought

When it comes to the history of Christian thought, Irenaeus is most famous as the greatest opponent of Gnosticism in the early Church. For that reason his polemic has received considerable attention and at times his polemical significance has overshadowed his importance as a theologian. But a focus on his polemical significance was not the only thing that discouraged nuanced analysis of his theological account. For his theological ability and even intelligence have been impugned for generations. As a result central aspects of Irenaeus’ thought have gone unexplored—especially the metaphysical dimension of his theology. This Introduction locates this study within the scholarly conversation about Irenaeus that has taken place over the past two centuries, and then summarizes the themes and chapters that constitute the study proper.

Church Historians of the Early Twentieth Century: Adolf von Harnack (1851–1930)

2001 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. C. FREND
Keyword(s):  
Historical Development ◽  
Principal Factor ◽  
Early History ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Divine Revelation ◽  
History Of Christianity ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Great Complexity

As in every other branch of learning, the study of the early history of Christianity has undergone massive changes during the last century. This has been due not only to the vast accumulation of knowledge through new discoveries, but to new approaches to the subject, together with the rise of archaeology as a principal factor in providing fresh information. The study of the early Church has as a result moved steadily from dogma to history, from attempts to interpret divine revelation through the development of doctrinal orthodoxy down the ages, to research into the historical development of an earthly institution of great complexity and of great significance in the history of mankind over the past two thousand years.

scholarly journals Our Common Breath: ‘Conspiration’ from the Stoics to the Church Fathers

2021 ◽  
pp. 55-68
Author(s):  
Phillip Sidney Horky
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
The Third ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Thought ◽  
The Church

AbstractThis essay tracks a brief history of the concept of ‘co-breathing’ or ‘conspiration’ (συμπνοία), from its initial conception in Stoic cosmology in the third century BCE to its appropriation in Christian thought at the end of the second century CE. This study focuses on two related strands: first, how the term gets associated anachronistically with two paradigmatic philosopher-physicians, Hippocrates and Pythagoras, by intellectuals in the Early Roman Empire; and second, how the same term provides the early Church Fathers with a means to synthesize and explain discrete notions of ‘breath’ (πνεῦμα) through a repurposing of the pagan concept. Sources discussed include figures associated with Stoic, Pythagorean, and early Christian cosmologies.

Saint Stephen and the Jerusalem Temple

1951 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcel Simon
Keyword(s):  
Speech Acts ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Jerusalem Temple ◽  
Golden Calf ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Law ◽  
Christian Thought ◽  
Theological Thought ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Holy Place

It has often been noted that St. Stephen stands, at first sight, as an isolated figure in the history of the early Church. His theological thought, as expressed in his speech (Acts vii), is very personal and, if compared with other forms of primitive Christian thought, almost completely aberrant. Its main characteristic is a strongly antiritualistic trend, and a fierce hostility towards the Temple, which he obviously considers almost as a place of idolatry. The building up of the Temple by Solomon seems in his eyes to stand on the same plane as the making of the Golden Calf. It is the last of those many and grievous sins and apostasies which mark the whole course of Israelite history. He thus clearly demonstrates that the accusations produced against him by so-called ‘false witnesses’, and which motivated his trial, were perfectly well founded: lie had indeed spoken ‘blasphemous words against this holy place’ and, ipso facto, against at least part of the Law.

Using the Past against the Papacy: Luther’s appeal to Church History in his Anti-Papal Writings

2013 ◽  
Vol 49 ◽  
pp. 132-143
Author(s):  
Charlotte Methuen
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Martin Luther ◽  
Church History ◽  
Early Church ◽  
The Past ◽  
Church Life ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

It is well known that Martin Luther found ultimate authority sola scriptura. The evangelical endeavour which he initiated and exemplified focused on the return to the gospel and the rediscovery of a church modelled according to scriptural lines. For the Reformers, the truly catholic church was that church which adhered most closely to the church established by Scripture. The early church, being chronologically closest to that established in Scripture, was more authentic, not yet affected by innovation. But how were the details of that church to be discovered? Scripture was not always informative on practical questions of church life and ecclesiastical order, and for these an appeal to church history was necessary. Drawing particularly on Scott Hendrix’s study of Luther’s attitude towards the papacy, and the studies by John Headley and others of Luther’s view of, and appeal to, church history, this essay explores the ways in which Luther used his knowledge of church history to define and support his developing critique of the papacy. It focuses on his early writings to 1521, but will also consider the later work Von den Consiliis und Kirchen (1539), a testimony to Luther’s growing interest in the history of the church.

Theosis

2020 ◽  
pp. 568-585
Author(s):  
Aristotle Papanikolaou
Keyword(s):  
Basic Question ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Red Flags ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Understanding ◽  
Mystical Theology ◽  
Christian Thought

For certain Christians, the word theosis raises red flags. The very mentioning of theosis inevitably conjures up images of Zeus or Thor, as well as many other mythological themes and stories that blur the boundary between the divine and the human. A closer look at the history of Christian thought will reveal that theosis is very closely linked to the basic question that Jesus himself posed: ‘who do you say that I am?’ If Christianity begins with the proclamation of Jesus as the Messiah, Christian thought throughout the centuries is a history of debate on the answer to this basic question. The Christian affirmation of theosis emerges as a particular response to this question, one that experiences the messianic message of Jesus as the presencing of the divine, both in the person of Jesus and in the human being. This Christian understanding of theosis thus constitutes one of the clearest examples of ‘mystical theology’ both in the sense of how the experience of Jesus as the Christ informed particular Christian expressions about God, and how, in turn, such theological articulations continued to shape the Christian experience of the presencing of the divine. This chapter will look to the past to demonstrate how theosis was at the heart of the amplification of the Christian understanding of God as Trinity and the Christian understanding of virtue.

Nature and Scripture: Demise of a Medieval Analogy

1995 ◽  
Vol 88 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Willemien Otten
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Biblical Interpretation ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Scriptural Interpretation ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Ecclesiastical Authority ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Thought

Throughout the history of Christian thought the theological role of scripture as source of transcendent meaning has exercised considerable influence on the art and manner of biblical interpretation. In the early church the problems revolved mostly around the canon, specifically although not exclusively the New Testament, as defining the confines of scripture. The question arose, therefore, which biblical writings were divinely inspired and which were of doubtful origin. The latter were unacceptable for the Christian communities that had broken away from their ancestral Judaic religion. Even before the canon was fixed, however, the problems shifted from the divinely inspired composition of the Bible to its intrinsic signification; interpreters saw scriptural language itself as infused with theological content. As exegetical positions led to the development of credal statements that solidified into theological dogma, the early church established a link between biblical interpretation and sound doctrine. By enforcing sanctioned interpretations through effective excommunication, an ever more powerful church sealed the dominance of orthodoxy over heresy with the nearly divine force of ecclesiastical authority. In the church-dominated culture of the Middle Ages, the adequacy of scriptural interpretation—its method, its content, the credentials of its practitioners—often depended on its conformity with an expanding theological tradition.

On The Possibility of an Autonomous History of Modern Southeast Asia

1961 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 73-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R. W. Small
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Contemporary History ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of

It is generally accepted that history is an element of culture and the historian a member of society, thus, in Croce's aphorism, that the only true history is contemporary history. It follows from this that when there occur great changes in the contemporary scene, there must also be great changes in historiography, that the vision not merely of the present but also of the past must change.

Stellar Evolution

1962 ◽  
Vol 11 (02) ◽  
pp. 137-143
Author(s):  
M. Schwarzschild
Keyword(s):  
Solar System ◽  
Stellar Evolution ◽  
Space Craft ◽  
New Techniques ◽  
Substantial Body ◽  
Individual Stars ◽  
The Past ◽  
Evolution Of Galaxies ◽  
History Of ◽  
Fast Flow

It is perhaps one of the most important characteristics of the past decade in astronomy that the evolution of some major classes of astronomical objects has become accessible to detailed research. The theory of the evolution of individual stars has developed into a substantial body of quantitative investigations. The evolution of galaxies, particularly of our own, has clearly become a subject for serious research. Even the history of the solar system, this close-by intriguing puzzle, may soon make the transition from being a subject of speculation to being a subject of detailed study in view of the fast flow of new data obtained with new techniques, including space-craft.

A 200-Year History of the Study of Childhood Language Disorders of Unknown Origin: Changes in Terminology

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence B. Leonard
Keyword(s):  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Language Disorders ◽  
Unknown Origin ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Many

Purpose The current “specific language impairment” and “developmental language disorder” discussion might lead to important changes in how we refer to children with language disorders of unknown origin. The field has seen other changes in terminology. This article reviews many of these changes. Method A literature review of previous clinical labels was conducted, and possible reasons for the changes in labels were identified. Results References to children with significant yet unexplained deficits in language ability have been part of the scientific literature since, at least, the early 1800s. Terms have changed from those with a neurological emphasis to those that do not imply a cause for the language disorder. Diagnostic criteria have become more explicit but have become, at certain points, too narrow to represent the wider range of children with language disorders of unknown origin. Conclusions The field was not well served by the many changes in terminology that have transpired in the past. A new label at this point must be accompanied by strong efforts to recruit its adoption by clinical speech-language pathologists and the general public.

Suicidal Ideation Among Medical Students in Dammam, Saudi Arabia

Crisis ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Mohammed Madadin ◽  
Ritesh G. Menezes ◽  
Maha A. Alassaf ◽  
Abdulaziz M. Almulhim ◽  
Mahdi S. Abumadini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
General Health Questionnaire ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Eastern Province ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Past ◽  
Depression Subscale ◽  
History Of

Abstract. Background: Medical students are at high risk of suicidal ideation. Aim: We aimed to obtain information on suicidal ideation among medical students in Dammam located in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the College of Medicine affiliated with Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Suicidal ideation in the past 12 months was assessed based on responses to four questions in the depression subscale of the General Health Questionnaire 28 (GHQ-28). In addition, data were collected to examine the association of suicidal ideation with various factors. Results: We found that 1 in 3 medical students in the study had suicidal ideation in the past 12 months, while around 40% had lifetime suicidal ideation. Suicidal ideation was associated with feelings of parental neglect, history of physical abuse, and dissatisfaction with academic performance. Limitations: The cross-sectional nature of this study limits its ability to determine causality regarding suicidal ideation. Conclusion: These rates are considerably high when compared with rates from studies in other countries around the world. This study provides a reference in the field of suicidology for this region of Saudi Arabia.

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