| A theological seminar presented on behalf of the Training and Recording Committee of Wilmington Yearly Meeting | |
| By David Goff | |
| April 17, 2004 |
Church History from a
Friend’s Perspective
| Introduction and Overview | |
| The Growth of the Scriptures or | |
| How We Got the Bible! | |
| A History of the Ministry or Why Do We Have Pastors Anyway? |
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| Splits, Schisms, Heresies and Cults or A History of the Denominations |
Part One: Introduction and Overview
| Keep in mind this is an INTRODUCTION to some of the major ideas and issues that are important to understanding the development of the church. It is by no means a complete or exhaustive study. | |
| Furthermore, this seminar is meant to be PRACTICAL. The purpose of this seminar is to equip modern believers to minister more effectively through having a better understanding of the history of the church. |
MAJOR PERIODS OF CHURCH HISTORY
| The History of the Church is generally recognized as having the following major divisions, periods, or ages. | |
| Apostolic Period | |
| Patristic Period | |
| Medieval Period | |
| The Reformation Period | |
| The Modern Church |
| The Apostolic Church is a term used to describe the church from the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost through the death of the last of the original twelve who were called by Jesus Himself. |
| The Patristic Period is the period of the early “Church Fathers.” These “Church Fathers” were the disciples of the original Twelve, and their successors during the developmental period of the church. This period of the church can be viewed as ending with the legalization of the Christian religion under Constantine in the 313 Edict of Milan which demanded religious toleration for Christians. |
| The Medieval Church, which had its beginnings during the reign of Constantine, still exists with only minor changes in the Roman Catholic Church. It was during this period that the church was wedded to the state and became institutionalized with a paid priesthood, possession of wealth and property, and the development of established creeds and ritualized forms of worship. |
| The political, intellectual and cultural changes of the Renaissance led to a spiritual awakening that has been referred to as the Protestant Reformation. Though sweeping changes were attempted within the Catholic Church, the changes demanded were to drastic to be permitted within the institutions of the church. This led to the rise of denominational churches, a Radical Reformation (The Anabaptist Movement), and the Counter-Reformation in the Catholic Church (The Society of Jesus or Jesuits). |
| The so-called Modern Church has remained virtually unchanged since the rise of denominationalism during the Reformation. Though there have been periodic spiritual awakenings, the structures and functions of modern churches are little different from those developed during the Reformation. It remains to be seen whether new spiritual awakenings will lead to the establishment of “new wineskins” or whether the church will continue to function as a status-quo institution. |
| The greatest hope for the Modern Church may exist in the declining Quaker Movement and it’s moral and spiritual ally, the Anabaptists. These two groups possess as their heritage many elements that speak to the needs of our Postmodern society. The question is, do we (and they) have the courage to reach out and begin a new spiritual awakening or will we fade into obsolence and leave our responsibilities in the hands of others? |
| It is my personal hope that by looking at the history of the Christian Church, we as Quakers will be challenged to stand up and reassert our spiritual heritage and be in the forefront of a new spiritual awakening that is so desperately needed in the Church of Jesus Christ! |