Tag: History of Christianity
-
Are the Gospels Reliable Sources? Part Two: ‘Handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses…’ – The Gospels as Eyewitness Accounts Part A
Written by Alex Smith. In this second part of his new series on historicity of the Gospels, Alex Smith discusses the importance of eyewitness accounts in their creation and examines some of the prevailing scholarship regarding personal testimonies.
-
Are the Gospels Reliable Sources? Part One: ‘Who is This Man?’
Written by Alex Smith. As the first part of his new series on historicity of the Gospels, Alex Smith introduces the historical study of Christianity and Christian sources, laying the baseline and historiography of the critical study of Biblical sources.
-
The Epistemic Mystery of the Cathars
Written by Inge Erdal. A Christian sect deemed heretical by the Catholic Church and routinely persecuted, the history of the Cathars is a complicated one. With regional variations and conflicting historiography, approaching this particular moment in religious history requires an understanding of the mutability of the human experience.
-
Interpreting the Donatist Schism
Written by Nikita Nandanwad. The Donatist sect, centred in Carthage, and resulting schism is a prominent facet of Late Antique Christian history. Expunged by the Roman Catholics, the Donatists were deemed an isolated sect, and yet rose up against their opppressors through acts of martrydom and unwavering faith.
-
The Rise and Fall of Liberal Evangelicalism in the United States
Written by Jess Womack. The evangelical Christian right in US politics holds immense influence today, but there was a time when liberal evangelicalism was similarly influential. Why did evangelical Christians align with the left? And how did this position change so drastically?
-
Historical time and the Enlightenment Re-imaginings of Moses and Solomon
Written by Inge Erdal. The nature of historical time has always been contested. Through the Enlightenment and nineteenth century, as European empires spread across the globe, writers slid between the boundaries of fiction and history, trying to unpack stories from the Bible.
-
Lay Conflicts and Responses to the Protestant Reformation
Written by Nikita Nandanwad. Lay responses to the Protestant Reformation were wide-ranging. Some responded with violent iconoclasm whilst others syncretised their religious beliefs.
-
Navigating the Voyage of St. Brendan
Written by Jack McGlone. Voyaging into the unknown was a constant for the early Medieval explorer. What drove them? What did they write down? And, might their hope offer inspiration for us today?
Retrospect Journal 