Photo of the Week

Give us the wings of faith to rise

within the veil, and see

the saints above, how great their joys,

how bright their glories be.

We ask them whence their victory came:

they, with united breath,

ascribe their conquest to the Lamb,

their triumph to his death.

- from a hymn by Isaac Watts

Quote of the Week

"The true treasure of the church is the most holy gospel of the glory and grace of God."

- Martin Luther, from his 95 Theses

A Prayer from Desmond Tutu

Disturb us, O Lord

when we are too well-pleased with ourselves

when our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little,

because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, O Lord

when with the abundance of things we possess,

we have lost our thirst for the water of life

when, having fallen in love with time,

we have ceased to dream of eternity

and in our efforts to build a new earth,

we have allowed our vision of Heaven to grow dim.

Stir us, O Lord

to dare more boldly, to venture into wider seas

where storms show Thy mastery,

where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars.

In the name of Him who pushed back the horizons of our hopes

and invited the brave to follow.

Amen

Church History: The Reformation's Second Wave (mid-16th century)

(Click here for the church history series page)

Lecture audio: The Reformation's Second Wave

(click here to listen or right-click to download)

Lecture Notes Outline

-        The Anabaptists (the Radical Reformation)

o   Beginnings in Zwingli’s Zurich – Conrad Grebel & Felix Manz

o   Distinctives: peace, simplicity, religious liberty, congregational polity, and believer’s baptism

o   The Hutterites & the Bruderhof in Germany and eastern Europe

o   Michael Sattler & the Schleitheim Confession

o   The Munster Rebellion

o   Menno Simons

-        John Calvin & the Reformed Churches

o   Conversion to Protestantism & flight to Basel

-  Writes Institutes of the Christian Religion

-  Doctrinal focus on the sovereignty of God

o   William Farel invites Calvin to Geneva

o   Strasbourg sojourn & return to Geneva

o   Heinrich Bullinger & the Helvetic Confessions

o   Reformed churches in France and the Netherlands

o   John Knox in Scotland

Photo of the Week

It is not death to fling aside this sinful dust,

And rise, on strong exulting wing, to live among the just.

Jesus, thou Prince of life, thy chosen cannot die!

Like thee, they conquer in the strife, to reign with thee on high.

- from a hymn by Cesar Malan

Quote of the Week

"The gospel is the proclamation of God's free love; the revelation of His boundless charity. Nothing less than this will suit our world; nothing else is so likely to touch the heart, to go down to the lowest depths of depraved humanity, as the assurance that the sinner has been loved -- loved by God, loved with a righteous love, loved with a free love that makes no bargain as to merit, or fitness, or goodness."

- Horatius Bonar

PhD Oral Defense Coming Up

Dear readers,

I've been hard at work preparing for the final hurdle of my PhD studies--the oral defense, which comes up this next Tuesday. I'll be presenting on my dissertation, "The Emergence and Development of Missiological Themes in Early Nonconformist Hymnody (1706-1755)," and then answering questions on my research. I'll take a few days off from the blog while that's going on, but I should be back in a week or so. 

Photo of the Week

Lord, her watch Thy Church is keeping:

When shall earth Thy rule obey?

When shall end the night of weeping?

When shall break the promised day?

Gone for ever parting, weeping,

Hunger, sorrow, death, and pain;

Lo! her watch Thy Church is keeping;

Come, Lord Jesus, come to reign!

- from a hymn by Henry Downton

Quote of the Week

"To gather with God's people in united adoration of the Father is as necessary to the Christian life as prayer."

- Martin Luther

A Prayer from John Wesley

O God, seeing as there is in Christ Jesus an infinite fullness of all that we can want or desire, may we all receive from him, grace upon grace; grace to pardon our sins, and subdue our iniquities; to justify our persons and to sanctify our souls; and to complete that holy change, that renewal of our hearts, which will enable us to be transformed into the blessed image in which you created us. O make us all acceptable to be partakers of the inheritance of your saints in light. Amen.

Church History Series: The Reformation's First Wave (early 16th century)

(Click here for the church history series page)

Lecture audio: The Reformation's First Wave

(click here to listen to right-click to download)

Lecture Notes Outline

-        Roots of the Reformation

o   Early reform movements – John Wyclif in England, Jan Hus in Bohemia

o   Decay in Catholic morals among clergy & monastics

o   The sale of indulgences

o   Papal involvement in political tensions

o   Invention of the printing press

o   Reappropriation of the biblical Greek & Hebrew text traditions – Erasmus

-        Martin Luther & the German Reformation

o   Life as an Augustinian Catholic monk

o   Life as a theology professor

o   The 95 Theses

o   The Reformation solae: Scripture alone, faith alone, grace alone

o   Confrontations with the Pope & the Holy Roman Emperor

o   Time in hiding & translation of the Bible into German

o   Public ministry and writing in Reformation Germany

o   The Peasants’ Revolt

o   Philip Melanchthon & the Augsburg Confession

-        Ulrich Zwingli & the Swiss Reformation

o   Pastoral ministry in Zurich

o   Returning to biblical practice

o   Views of Communion

o   Seeking unity among Protestants—Martin Bucer

Photo of the Week

Oh, my soul is all aflame,

How I love the precious name,

Jesus, the King of Glory;

Unto Him my praise I give,

For His kingdom I will live,

Jesus, the King of Glory.

- from a hymn by Charles Reign Scoville

Quote of the Week

"Do not let your heart become troubled by the sad spectacle of human injustice. Even this has its value in the face of all else. And it is from this that one day you will see the justice of God rising with unfailing triumph."

- Padre Pio