1516 HT: Dan Graves Erasmus never joined the Protestant movement, but many scholars would argue he set the stage for the Reformers. Erasmus loaded the cannon that Luther fired. The greatest scholar of his day, Erasmus rammed two shots into the barrel of the Reformation. The first shot was a satire titled, The Praise of Folly, which…
This is the second in my new series on issues related to pastoral theology which I introduced last week. There has been, in my experience, an unfortunate and undesirable shift in much of the Western church in my lifetime; a shift from emphasising character to focussing on competency. I think of the leadership group in…
Paul James-Griffiths of Christian Heritage Edinburgh writes, “This week’s article is about Dr David Livingstone, the famous Scottish missionary. Although very few Africans were converted to Christ through him, his success lay in preparing the way for others to come and plant churches. Even until today he is spoken of with great affection by many Africans.” David…
1955 HT: Dan Graves In his last public appearance, Methodist layman John Mott said, “While life lasts, I am an evangelist.” The man who did as much as anyone to evangelize the world and unite divided denominations, died on this day, January 31, 1955 in Orlando, Florida. He was eighty-nine years old. Death was a place…
1499 HT: Dan Graves Katherine von Bora viewed herself as a prisoner in the cloister of Marienthron. Luther’s Reformation preaching had found its way behind the convent walls and she wanted out. It wasn’t as if she had chosen this secluded life for herself. Far from it. Her dad had brought her here when she…
