Church History – Page 3 – Research History

Church History

  • Church History

    The Man Who Invented Christmas

    Written by Chip Wood Saturday, 24 December 2011 http://www.thenewamerican.com/opinion/chip-wood/10330-the-man-who-invented-christmas During this season of massive over-commercialization, you may find it hard to believe there was a time when Christmas was no big deal. There were no stores full of toys, no songs playing 24 hours a day, and no Christmas trees with so many presents under them that they fill most of the room. In fact, there were no Christmas trees at all. For most of the 2,000 years since the birth of Christ, Christmas was not a special holiday. If it was commemorated at all, it was with a candlelight service at the local church or cathedral and a special…

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  • Church History

    The Bible of King James: National Geographic

    © Jim Richardson/National Geographic But by the mid-1600s the King James had effectively replaced all its predecessors and had come to be the Bible of the English-speaking world. As English traders and colonists spread across the Atlantic and to Africa and the Indian subcontinent, the King James Bible went with them. It became embedded in the substance of empire, used as wrapping paper for cigars, medicine, sweetmeats, and rifle cartridges and eventually marketed as “the book your Emperor reads.” Medicine sent to English children during the Indian Mutiny in 1857 was folded up in paper printed with the words of Isaiah 51 verse 12: “I, even I, am he that…

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  • Church History

    History of the Pilgrims: “Pilgrims and Plymouth Colony: 1620”

    Source url http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mosmd/#part1 Part I. Pilgrim Background THE BIBLE FROM LATIN TO ENGLISH Until the latter part of the sixteenth century, the only Bibles available were printed in Latin. After the Reformation began the Geneva Bible was published in English. For the first time the common men were able to read the Scriptures for themselves. The Geneva Bible is the version that would have been most familiar to the older generation of Pilgrims. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, King James authorized another translation of the Bible into English, which still bears his name [The King James Version]. Until these English versions came into being, the common man was not…

  • Church History,  Friday the 13th

    Friday the 13th Superstitions Rooted in Bible and More

    This year Friday the 13th superstitions get a break—luckily for triskaidekaphobes. Legendary traitor Judas (fourth from left) is said to have been the 13th guest at Jesus’ Last Supper. Painting by Leonardo da Vinci via Getty Images John Roach for National Geographic News Updated May 13, 2011 They date back to at least ancient Roman times, but Friday the 13th superstitions won’t be getting much of a workout this year. Luckily for triskaidekaphobia sufferers, 2011—like 2010 before it—has only one Friday the 13th. By contrast, 2009 boasted three Friday the 13ths—the maximum possible in a year, at least as long as we continue to mark time with the Gregorian calendar, which Pope…

  • Church History

    Crowds of faithful jam Vatican to honor Pope John Paul II

    Vatican City (CNN) — Catholic faithful from around the world poured into Rome on Sunday as the Catholic Church declares Pope John Paul II “blessed,” a step below sainthood. There were cheers as Pope Benedict XVI personally beatified his predecessor, and a huge tapestry protrait of John Paul II was unveiled, showing him as the healthy, vigorous and relatively young man he was early in his papacy. A vial of John Paul II’s blood was placed before the crowds, which were expected to be the largest in the Vatican since the late pope’s funeral in 2005. The blood, which was taken from him by doctors during his final illness for…

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