The Church in History (Jones) - Course Study Guide (Print)

Stuart Jones is well qualified to teach Church History. His education includes: Doctor of Ministry and an M.Sc in Bible and Ministry. He also has an M.Sc in Chemical Engineering. He has served as elder in the Ridgewood Church of Christ in Beaumont, Texas and is now an elder at the Sunset Church of Christ in Lubbock, Texas. His wife, Cecilia, also has an M.Sc in Bible and Ministry and is very capable in the areas of teaching and coordinating of ladies activities. Both have served as vocational missionaries in the state of New York and the nation of South Africa. Stuart has published several religious articles, teaching guides on church history and religion and science, and Frozen in Time, a book on the “generation gap.” Stuart has served as Coordinator of the Sunset International Bible Institute’s “Senior Adventures In Ministry” program since 1994

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• LESSON ONE: INTRODUCTORY MATERIAL.............................. 1
• LESSON TWO: THE RELIGIOUS ENVIRONMENT IN THE FIRST CENTURY. ....... 9
• LESSON THREE: WHY CHRISTIANITY PREVAILED OVER THE ROMAN EMPIRE. ... 18
• LESSON FOUR: THE SACRAL SOCIETY – A CONTROL ISSUE. ................ 25
• LESSON FIVE: OTHER HERESIES IN THE EARLY CHURCH. ................. 34
• LESSON SIX: THE CANON, CONSTANTINE AND MONASTICISM.............. 42
• LESSON SEVEN: ARIANISM AND INFLUENTIAL LEADERS..................... 51
• LESSON EIGHT: TURBULENT TIMES AND CONSTANT CHANGE. ............... 59
• LESSON NINE: THE EVOLUTION IN WORSHIP METHODS (I). ................ 68
• LESSON TEN: THE EVOLUTION IN WORSHIP METHODS (II). ............... 76
• LESSON ELEVEN: THE NEW BARBARIANS AND THE CRUSADES. ............... 84
• LESSON TWELVE: CONTINUAL CHURCH TURMOIL........................... 95
• LESSON THIRTEEN: SCHOLASTICISM, FRAGMENTATION, PAPAL DECLINE. ......... 105
• LESSON FOURTEEN: THE AVIGNON PERIOD, THE GREAT SCHISM AND THE REFORMERS. ........ 111
• LESSON FIFTEEN: THE REFORMATION – ITS CAUSES AND IMPETUS. ............ 121
• LESSON SIXTEEN: WHAT IS MOLDING WESTERN THOUGHT. .................. 129
• TIME LINE: . .................................................. 142

INTRODUCTION:
Shortly after Cecilia and I married in Lubbock, Texas, September 6, 1958, I began teaching adult classes at Procter Street Church of Christ in Port Arthur, Texas. One of the topics that one adult class showed interest in was church history. I developed a short course on that in 1960, thus beginning a multiple decade pursuit of this topic. Over the years I have read many books related to Christian history and have accumulated many pages of notes along with many impressions. Since I was reading for my own interest, I did not keep references and notes at the detailed level that I would have had this been a research paper for academic recognition. Hence, this writeup is not in an academic format,
but is a personal compilation of topics and history flows that seem relevant and pertinent to me.

One purpose is to show how our current western religious environment has its roots in many decisions made in earlier centuries. We are influenced by our personal and cultural history. History is the story of people. Each of us has a history. Our family has a history. Our nation and our culture has a history. Since this is the story of people doing what people tend to do, the results should be enlightening, but not surprising. If we are ignorant of history, then our ignorance will lead to many unfortunate decisions. One writer said that those who are ignorant of history are like the leaf that does not know that it is part of a tree. The period of Christian History that we will examine in this course is focused on the Mediterranean, North Africa, Europe, Scandinavia, the Near East, Russia, and the British Isles.