The political and religious developments of eighteenth-century New England are some of the most investigated artifacts of history. The First Great Awakening is a major feature of these developments, and several authors have revivified our interest in how best to understand this complex scene of historical events, characters, and interests. It is clear that democratization … Read more
Two significant contributions of the holiness revivalist Phoebe Palmer (1804-1874), often cited by scholars, include her holiness theology and as Donald Dayton has noted, her “incipient feminism.” In the decades following her death, Palmer failed to receive much attention from scholars. Nevertheless, as Dale Simmons states, “the explosion of literature on Palmer in the 1970s … Read more
The word ἐπίνοια was used in a technical sense later than the writings of Athanasius. Basil used the word in his writings of The Eunomian Controversy. This paper will demonstrate that Athanasius use the word in his work, Contra Arianos to demonstrate that the Arians invented a new concept of Christ that is not found … Read more
As a dichotomy of faith communities competed, the so-called Paschal Controversy first emerged in the mid-first century and became a primary dynamic for inter-ecclesiastical politics and doctrinal development through the mid-fourth century. This two-sided dynamic would morph into a three-way struggle with the latter emergence of the eastern Arian-Lucian school. Soon after the council at … Read more
Church discipline in the 20th century consisted of an array of practices among congregations. Like the present age, some congregations did not actively practice church discipline in any form, while other congregations engaged in extreme or even corrupted forms of church discipline, excommunicating members for practices such as “laughing,” “whispering,” or “playing the ‘fiddle.’” Were … Read more
In his inaugural sermon in the newly built Metropolitan Tabernacle, Charles Haddon Spurgeon unabashedly declared to his congregation: “I am never ashamed to avow myself a Calvinist… I do not hesitate to take the name of Baptist… [B]ut if I am asked to say what is my creed, I think I must reply: ‘It is … Read more
George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards were two of the most consequential ministerial figures to serve the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. One can scarcely conceive of 18th-century America without considering the colossal impact of these two formidable theological minds. However, while Whitefield and Edwards shared the common attribute of being formidable preachers of enormous … Read more
An analysis of John Chrysostom’s exegetical homilies reveals an understanding of the church as a holy people set apart unto God and distinct from the world, including other religious communities. Deeply concerned that his congregation reflect the Church’s holiness practically, Chrysostom drew sharp distinctions between what a Christian is and is not. To be a … Read more
This presentation is concerned with the formation and evolution of national and imperial identity among the Black Baptist community in Nova Scotia in the latter half of the nineteenth century and the early years of the twentieth. What is quickly apparent when reading the association minutes is that much of the national and imperial identity … Read more
Baptist scholars in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries have interpreted the 1833 New Hampshire Confession, the most influential Baptist confession of the past two centuries, as a blend of Calvinist and Arminian doctrines. Calvinist Baptists in upper New England, according to the standard interpretation, were losing ground to the Arminian Free Will Baptist movement and … Read more