The Nurse Theologian

It seems that many have a love-hate relationship with John Calvin, oftentimes because of his doctrine on predestination. Woodbridge said, “Despite his often negative reputation, Calvin is properly judged the great theological heir of Augustine and the theological refiner of Luther’s theological insights. He belongs in the pantheon of the greatest theologians in all of church history.”1
Let that statement sink in for just a minute. It is as though Christian theological thought reached its pinnacle in Augustine. Then began slowly declining through the medieval period, reached bottom during the 14th century with the Avignon Popes; and yet, there remained a bright and morning star shining in the likes of Wycliffe and Hus. Then theological thought began the arduous task of ascending the mountain once again with Martin Luther. Thought continued with Zwingli and Bullinger in Zurich. Bucer at Strasbourg and Peter Martyr in England, but attained to the level that it once had with Augustine in J…

Beginning with the Acts of the apostles there has been a constant struggle from within and without. The time of 1300 AD to 1500 AD is no exception. During this time the black plague ravaged much of Europe, within the papacy there was crisis, social and political order outside the church was changing. With the papacy in crisis, a Conciliar movement took authority; decreeing its own authority, and if anyone (including the pope) did not obey the authority of the council they were to be punished. Such was the case with the pre-reformer John Hus who was burned at the stake by the council of Constance for his refusal to obey their demands to recant his writings. John Hus appealed to the Lord and Judge Jesus Christ and stood on scripture alone. After the crisis was over (the crisis regarding multiple popes); the pope disbanded the council and once again regained authority. At this same time a Renaissance of ancient art and writing was gaining ground in Italy and spreading throughout Europe…

Last week I completed the first year and first third of the total course work for the Master of Theological Studies at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Of the classes that I am taking in pursuit of this degree, all are online except one (Leadership Practicum). I will be fulfilling this requirement during a unique experience. I just completed History of Christianity I and will be taking History of Christianity II during the second term of the spring semester. History of Christianity I covered the apostolic age through the middle ages up to the reformation. History of Christianity II will cover the reformation to the modern church age. Following that class I have been blessed to go on a trip with the seminaries Historical Theology professors (Dr. Owen Strachan, Dr. Jason G. Duesing and Jared C. Wilson) to fulfill the Leadership Practicum requirement. We will be going on a historical tour of New England; studying the reformation as it occurred in New England, as well as the gospe…

When did the protestant, reformation begin? Many mark October 31, 1517, as being the day that the protestant reformation began. It is, because on this day Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses against the sale of indulgences to the church door in Wittenberg.1 Why is this act by Martin Luther called reformational history, but the acts of Wycliffe and Huss pre-reformational history? As I studied through some writings about Luther, as well as his own writings, I concluded; it was not Luther’s act that set the reformation rolling, many had already done that before him. Martin Luther’s act was significant, because it stood; it was the act of another man that allowed Martin Luther’s writings to stand. 
On May 4, 1521, while on the way home, after having taken his stand at the Imperial Diet at Worms; five soldiers under orders from Elector Prince Fredrick the Wise intercepted Martin Luther’s wagon and kidnapped him to Wartburg Castle. This was part of an elaborate scheme by Elector Fredrick to p…

Among the many ideals that captivated the imagination of western Christendom during the Middle Ages, no other was as dramatic, as overwhelming, or as contradictory, as was the crusading spirit. Tragically romanticized by many, the Crusades have the distinction of being one of the most blatant of the many instances in which Christianity, fueled in part by its own zeal, has contradicted its very essence—on this score, only the Inquisition can be compared with it.1
The Crusades and the Inquisitions both demonstrate the wrong thinking that had overwhelmed the church. The church in the Middle ages and the Renaissance was in desperate need of reformation; both ecclesiastic and theological reformation. This was most diffidently a destructive time in the life of Christ’s church. The Crusades which began towards the end of the 11th century had run their course by the end of the 13th century. One may speak if the crusades as first crusade, second crusade, and so on, but the reality is that they …