The Orthodox Patriarch studied the twenty-one points of the Augsburg Confession and wrote a response: "Epicrisis on the Confession of Augsburg."
While agreeing with some Lutheran positions, the Orthodox reject many others.
Largely, the disagreement was over the role of "tradition."
Read moreWhen someone realizes that the central concern of Christianity is not our own faithfulness or obedience (do more and try harder religion), but belief and trust in a perfectly faithful God, their lives are changed forever!
Read moreIn 1 Corinthians 2.1-5, Paul contrasts Greek and Roman rhetorical practices with his own proclamation. Rhetoric is defined as the art of persuasion. Paul explains it as lofty speech and plausible words of wisdom (vv. 1, 4), or the wisdom of men (v. 5). His speech was defined not by the medium of the message but the message itself, not by clever speech but by a demonstration of the Spirit and power of God (4, 5). The difference is between persuasive speech and persuasive truth.
Read moreSo, instead of looking at prayer, Bible reading, serving, and church-going (and did I mention tithing?) as ways to inch our way closer to God's blessing and affection, Christian disciplines, to be "Christian," are pried from the hands of "you must" and "you ought" and completely redefined to be the grateful responses to God's prior love.
Read moreOn May 1, 418 over two hundred bishops meeting in Carthage declared Pelagius a heretic and refused to ordain Caelestius, Pelagius's disciple, when he would not renounce the teaching. Pelagius was a 5th century British monk who was ridiculously popular for teaching the message people wanted to hear. He held a view of original sin weak enough to allow the possibility that someone can actively contribute towards their own salvation.
Read moreYet, what could be more Anglican than understanding Christian discipleship as nothing other than an on-going, life-long commitment to regular repentance? After all, repentance lies at the heart of our liturgical life. Thomas Cranmer's final, founding liturgy has daily Morning and Evening Prayer beginning with repentance. His final service for Holy Communion has confession, absolution and the Comfortable Words in the very center, right before the ancient call to lift up our hearts.
Read moreIt is obvious to everyone that the ACNA brought extremely diverse groups together under one tent based on our common disgust and grief at what the Episcopal Church has become.
Read moreI have almost always thought that it all ended for Christians in heaven: you die, you go to heaven. But the Bible doesn't teach this. This is not a bad hope, but it's so much less than what God really has planned for us. When Christians die they go to heaven - "today you will be with me in paradise," Jesus told the thief on the cross.
Read moreThe Jerusalem Declaration
29th June 2008
The participants in the first Global Anglican Future Conference met in the land of Jesus' birth. They expressed their:
i loyalty as disciples to the King of kings, the Lord Jesus;
ii joyful embrace of his command to proclaim the reality of his kingdom which he first announced in this land;
Read moreWe often hear it taught that Christ prayed for unity above everything else, so we should strive for unity at any cost. We are hearing this now as we face a fractured Anglican Communion with divided views on identity and sexuality. 'Disagreement is a bad witness to the world. Why can't evangelicals lay differences aside?' Are evangelicals wrong to stand for apostolic truth, at the potential cost of separation, even fragmentation?
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