http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/protestantism/ en-us Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:04:36 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2138317/posts “Ask not for whom the bell tolls,” poet John Donne wrote, “It tolls for thee.” In this case the bells will toll for the entire earth. At least three Beverly churches will toll their bells 350 times before Dec. 15, the 350th day of the year. WickedLocalBeverly http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2138317/posts#comment Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:04:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2126984/posts It's a shame that in the largest Protestant country on Earth, as well as in many other Protestant corners of the world, people who call themselves Protestants usually know very little about the history of our faith. On the 6th of November 376 years ago, military genius and sole defender of the Lutheran faith, Gustavus Adolphus or Gustavus The Great, died at the battle of Lützen fighting the military forces of Catholicism and the Holy Roman Emperor under the command of Wallenstein. Gustavus died but Wallenstein was utterly defeated. However, the Thirty Year's war went on for decades. Thanks to... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2126984/posts#comment Thu, 6 Nov 2008 15:23:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2076850/posts World history, as most Westerners interprets it, very much revolves around nations like France, Russia/Soviet, Britain, Italy and USA. These corners of the Earth, undeniably, have played major roles in the development of mankind. BUT, there seems to be a gap in the historical knowledge of several, otherwise well educated, Westerners concerning what took place during the period of approximately 1620-1720 on European soil. A lot of people seem aware that Britain at that time was not really, yet, the world's leading power and that France, Spain, Austria and Holland excersised much of influence over world affairs. However, during this... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2076850/posts#comment Sun, 7 Sep 2008 20:11:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2048968/posts America was Methodist, once upon a time-Methodist, or Baptist, or Presbyterian, or Congregationalist, or Episcopalian. A little light Unitarianism on one side, a lot of stern Calvinism on the other, and the Easter Parade running right down the middle: our annual Spring epiphany, crowned in bright new bonnets. The average American these days would have ­trouble recalling the dogmas that once defined all the jarring sects, but their names remain at least half alive: a kind of verbal remembrance of the nation's religious history, a taste on the tongue of native speakers. Think, for instance, of the old Anabaptist congregations-how... Virtue Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2048968/posts#comment Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:44:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2032066/posts President Bush may follow in the footsteps of his brother Jeb and convert to Catholicism, several European papers are reporting. In the wake of the president’s visit to see Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican, Italian newspapers, citing Vatican sources, said Bush was open to the idea of converting to Catholicism. The Italian newspaper Il Foglio referred to such talk about Bush’s possible conversion and stated that “anything is possible, especially for someone reborn like Bush.” Noting that Tony Blair converted to Catholicism after leaving office as Britain’s prime minister last year, the paper also stated that “if anything happens,... Newsmax.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2032066/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:16:35 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2027349/posts Every nation could be described as a manifestation of a unique trait of character and most countries furthermore nurture, give emphasize to and celebrate this national identity of theirs. Some examples of such key national characters (please DO comment if you feel inclined to); USA: Liberty Italy: Creativity France: Refinement India: Spirituality Germany: Self-discipline Finland: "Sisu" (a Finnish term meaning "To have guts") Britain: Elevatedness Denmark: "Hygge" (a Danish word meaning "Good-naturedness", of mind as well as of deed) Spain: Passion China: Cultivation Russia: Chaos - just joking, I would actually say "Heart" (in the sense of having a big... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2027349/posts#comment Fri, 6 Jun 2008 22:43:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2012910/posts An Apostolic Pentecostal is a person that believes in speaking in tongues - glossolalia - as proof that a person has received the Holy Ghost. Pentecostals are people who believe in dramatic demonstrations of the Gifts of the Spirit, such as prophecy or the interpretation of tongues. Pentecostal Oneness believers reject the concept of the Trinity and are convinced salvation relies upon the literal form of baptism; dunking rather than sprinkling and repentance of one's sins. People who are not familiar with Pentecostalism may think that the following descriptions are exaggerated and shocking, however the things depicted in this article... Associated Content http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2012910/posts#comment Thu, 8 May 2008 10:34:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2000506/posts As a 17-year-old boy, I had looked for truth and answers in this world and found none. Then, to my own amazement, I found myself completely won over by the bold, unashamed witness of a group of committed Christians on my high school campus. People could have tried to be cool and win me over, but it would have never worked. I'd had enough of "cool" in the crazy home I was raised in to make me choke. I had pretty much seen it all, and nothing to me was lamer than people trying too hard to be cool. The... WND.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2000506/posts#comment Sat, 12 Apr 2008 13:43:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1994759/posts CHRISTIAN READER, I CANNOT suppose thee to be such a stranger in England as to be ignorant of the general complaint concerning the decay of the power of godliness, and more especially of the great corruption of youth. Wherever thou goest, thou wilt hear men crying out of bad children and bad servants; whereas indeed the source of the mischief must be sought a little higher: it is bad parents and bad masters that make bad children and bad servants; and we cannot blame so much their untowardness, as our own negligence in their education. The devil hath a great... Center For Reformed Theology & Apologetics http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1994759/posts#comment Tue, 1 Apr 2008 00:17:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1988404/posts From First Part, Question 1, Article 8: "Hence sacred doctrine makes use also of the authority of philosophers in those questions in which they were able to know the truth by natural reason, as Paul quotes a saying of Aratus: "As some also of your own poets said: For we are also His offspring" (Acts 17:28)." "Nevertheless, sacred doctrine makes use of these authorities as extrinsic and probable arguments; but properly uses the authority of the canonical Scriptures as an incontrovertible proof, and the authority of the doctors of the Church as one that may properly be used, yet merely... Summa Theologica http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1988404/posts#comment Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:58:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1986216/posts More than once during these talks I referred to Luther and what always occurred to me as his destructive influence. I pointed out that even in such an admirable book as Rohan Butler's “The Roots of National Socialism” the spiritual origins of Nazism and Luther's influence had not been given the necessary importance. Then I was asked if I would be prepared to elaborate to them—about a dozen of the very senior boys, that is—my own views on Luther and Lutheranism. I agreed—with the proviso that they would be my own views and nothing else. Admittedly, I had read more... Catholic Apologetics http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1986216/posts#comment Sat, 15 Mar 2008 17:17:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1917693/posts I am a Catholic who is trying to understand Protestant history and teachings, in order to better understand the history of Christianity. There is one issue that I do not understand. According to Protestant teachings, if a person becomes saved, are his future sins forgiven? Can a person lose his salvation? If not, can assurance of salvation become a license to sin? If Ted Haggard had gone to be with the Lord early last year, while in the process of getting a "massage" from his male "friend", would he have gone straight to heaven? http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1917693/posts#comment Mon, 29 Oct 2007 00:11:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1910400/posts LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - The Episcopal Church isn't the only mainline Protestant group shaken by open conflict between theological liberals and conservatives. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is facing similar trials, with traditionalist congregations planning to bolt and a conservative denomination preparing to take them in. About 30 of the nearly 11,000 Presbyterian congregations have voted to leave the national church since the denomination's national assembly session in 2006, according to The Layman, a conservative Presbyterian publication that has been tracking the breakaways. Denominational leaders say they could lose an additional 20 congregations as a result of this latest rupture. The... AOL http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1910400/posts#comment Fri, 12 Oct 2007 18:17:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1855279/posts TONY Blair told Pope Benedict XVI he will "dedicate himself" to peace in the Middle East and towards inter-religious dialogue in a private meeting between the pair in the Vatican yesterday. The 25-minute meeting came amid further rumours that Blair will become a Roman Catholic as soon as he leaves office this week, and as reports suggested he is set to be appointed a Middle East envoy. In a statement released after the meeting, the Vatican said there had been a "frank" assessment of the international situation, including such "delicate" themes as the Middle East conflict and the future of... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1855279/posts#comment Sun, 24 Jun 2007 00:38:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1847527/posts Cologne, Germany - German Muslim leaders have robustly criticized a forthright 'position papier' issued last November by the EKD, the umbrella body for 23 Lutheran churches in Germany. In characteristically Protestant fashion, the document suggested Muslims should be more critical about themselves and it starkly set out why Lutherans disagree with Islam. Coming at a time when Germans were heavily preoccupied with an alleged Islamic threat, the paper caused strains that have still not been overcome between EKD and Islamic leaders. Ayyub Axel Koehler, chairman of the Council of Muslims, and Bekir Alboga, spokesman for the DITIB religious authority, were... Monsters and Critics http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1847527/posts#comment Sat, 9 Jun 2007 15:00:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1779236/posts There is a cold hour just before dawn, when the light is the colour of lead, when the past seems a little closer and a lot more real than it does in the clearer light that comes later in the day. --SNIP-- On that day, IRA gunmen burst into a string of houses that lay along my route to the conference centre and shot dead 14 British officers and intelligence officials. The Ireland of those days was inured to brutality on all sides but there was something about these killings that shocked the Dublin public. Maybe it was the curiously... BBC http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1779236/posts#comment Mon, 5 Feb 2007 01:28:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1770834/posts THESE reasons are so strong that the most solid of your party have taken ground elsewhere than in the ordinary mission, and have said that they were sent extraordinarily by God because the ordinary mission had been ruined and abolished, with the true Church itself, under the tyrannv of Antichrist. This is their most safe refuge, which, since it is common to all sorts of heretics, is worth attacking in good earnest and overthrowing completely. Let us then place our argument in order, to see if we can force this their last barricade. First, I say then that no one... The Catholic Controversy http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1770834/posts#comment Sat, 20 Jan 2007 20:00:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1750806/posts Martin Luther, Founder of the Reform, Speaks on Mary In his sermon of August 15, 1522, the last time Martin Luther preached on the Feast of the Assumption, he stated: There can be no doubt that the Virgin Mary is in heaven. How it happened we do not know. And since the Holy Spirit has told us nothing about it, we can make of it no article of faith . . . It is enough to know that she lives in Christ. The veneration of Mary is inscribed in the very depths of the human heart. (Sermon, September 1, 1522).... This Rock http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1750806/posts#comment Sat, 9 Dec 2006 04:12:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1731840/posts On the 6th of November, Sweden – and Gothenburg in particular – remembers perhaps its most famous and successful King: Gustav II Adolf, who reigned from 1611 until his death in 1632. Monday will be the 374th anniversary of his death (aged just 37) on the battlefield in Lützen in Germany during the Thirty Years War. He is the only Swedish King to have been honoured with the title “The Great” (“Den Stora”) and the anniversary of his death is an official Swedish flag day. Related Articles 'Swede's body found' in Ireland 3rd November 2006 Viking treasure found on Gotland... www.thelocal.se http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1731840/posts#comment Fri, 3 Nov 2006 23:41:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1698503/posts Munich - Pope Benedict XVI, 79, arrived in his Bavarian homeland Saturday, entering the city of Munich to begin a six-day programme of preaching and prayer, combined with an emotionally- charged tour of well-remembered places from his earlier life. Police kept a watchful eye on the crowd that packed the city's central Marienplatz square for a welcome home and prayers at the foot of the Pillar of Mary, a 368-year-old monument to the Virgin Mary. Until he left in 1982 to become the Vatican's top doctrine official, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was archbishop of Munich, and he was to stay the... Monsters and Critics.com, UK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1698503/posts#comment Sat, 9 Sep 2006 19:26:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1698498/posts Infertile couples desperate to conceive children are turning increasingly to fertility specialists for help. Yet, widespread use of assisted reproductive technology (ART) has led to a completely unforeseen consequence: the creation of the world’s largest population of frozen human embryos. That reality has ignited a vigorous moral debate among scientists, politicians, theologians, and parents about what should be done with the surplus store of nascent human life.The challenge for pro-life evangelicals is to develop systematic moral reasoning that can be applied to a range of issues including embryo adoption, human embryonic stem cell research, ART, “therapeutic cloning,” genetic engineering,... Acton Institute http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1698498/posts#comment Sat, 9 Sep 2006 19:05:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1685052/posts Folks, I want to add some further, yet brief reflections that I think are connected to those I did about the Holy Trinity last week (here and here). I belief there are a few connections between the process which resulted in the Trinitarian settlement in the 5th century AD, the settlement of the Canon of Scripture, and the Protestant idea of sola scriptura. First, let's define a few key terms: Sola scriptura is a Latin phrase meaning "Scripture Alone" and refers to the foundational Protestant tenets that the Bible, and the Bible alone is to be the sole rule of... Vivificat! - A Personal Catholic Blog of News, Commentary, Opinion, and Reflections http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1685052/posts#comment Thu, 17 Aug 2006 02:47:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1670672/posts NEW YORK, JULY 22, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Far from fading away in the shadow of modernity and prosperity, religious fervor is, in fact, growing. This is the argument of an article, "Why God is Winning," published in the July-August issue of the magazine Foreign Policy. The authors, Timothy Samuel Shah and Monica Duffy Toft, explain that one of the most recent confirmations of their thesis was the win last January of the Hamas party in the Palestinian elections. After the election, one supporter of Hamas replaced the flag flying over the parliament with a banner proclaiming Mohammad. Soon afterwards the violent... Zenit News Agency http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1670672/posts#comment Sun, 23 Jul 2006 00:54:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1669593/posts To the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, and Bishops of the Catholic World in Grace and Communion with the Apostolic See. The race of man, after its miserable fall from God, the Creator and the Giver of heavenly gifts, "through the envy of the devil," separated into two diverse and opposite parts, of which the one steadfastly contends for truth and virtue, the other of those things which are contrary to virtue and to truth. The one is the kingdom of God on earth, namely, the true Church of Jesus Christ; and those who desire from their heart to be united with... Vatican http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1669593/posts#comment Fri, 21 Jul 2006 02:09:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1631958/posts DAN BrownÂ’s bestseller, The Da Vinci Code, was first published in 2003. By April 2005 it had sold 17 million copies in 44 languages and it is still selling well, as any traveller by plane, bus or train will confirm. It is a novel of the popular, conspiracy theory type. The central thesis is that “the Church” has covered up the fact that Mary Magdalene married Christ. ChristÂ’s divinity was a myth invented by Roman Emperor Constantine in the 4th century AD and the pair had descendants. Brown suggests that Mary MagdaleneÂ’s character was unjustly impugned by “the Church” in... Ian Paisley dot Org http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1631958/posts#comment Sun, 14 May 2006 08:45:57 GMT