As my personal evolution of faith continues, I am finding myself yearning for deeper roots. I have an increasing hunger for the stories of the people who paved the way for me to know God.
I was brought to faith in a community who has a deep respect for the scripture. I treasure that.
What I haven’t been fed are the stories of our people throughout history outside of the New Testament.
- What happened to Christianity after its inception?
- Did it die out?
- Did it quickly fall into apostasy?
- What happened to the church?
- How did we end up with the Bible as we have it?
- How was doctrine formed?
I have so many questions with insufficient answers. This year is my year to get those answers, to grow roots and pass on the faith to my children.
Subsequently, I was wrestling to come up with a word for the year to encapsulate my spiritual goals. My husband suggested “origins.”
So here it is, my blog journey into the origins of Christianity, the origins of my people, my spiritual ancestors.
If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:29
First stop, debunking false preconceptions.
The Old Testament doesn’t matter.
I remember my good-willed grandpa telling me that the only thing we need the Old Testament for is learning obedience. I know he meant well, and was pointing me to Jesus, but that idea is misguided.
The New Testament tells us Jesus was the plan before creation ever started. “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes” (Eph. 1:4).
Jesus knew his place. He was the culmination of 4,000 years of history, prophesy and divine strategy to restore humanity into relationship with their Creator. That story makes who he is.
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Matthew 5:17
The written scripture is the only authority.
The Bible is an awesome accomplishment. It is sacred. It is divine, God-breathed, and totally a gift.
However, the Bible hasn’t always been a thing. The written words have only been accessible on a wide scale for around 500 years. Check out this brief history of the bible.
What does that mean? It means oral history, art and songs preserved and passed on the history to us.
Church history isn’t necessary to know.
When my grandmother died I learned a story about her mother that I had never heard before. My great-grandmother, a German immigrant, lived in Pittsburgh, Pa during the turn of the century. Escaping the unrest that led to WW1, she and other immigrants were alone in a new country rebuilding a new life.
That was the backdrop to the rest of the story. She faithfully attended services on Sunday at the local Lutheran Church. She attended the earliest service so she could spend the rest of the day cooking, once for her children and again for other newcomers who had no family in the States.
I felt like I finally made sense. I had and still have a natural propensity towards hospitality. I never knew where that came from. It came from my great-grandmother. I felt instantly connected to a woman I never met face to face. Knowing that I am her blood and I am carrying on her legacy strengthens my purpose.
Knowing who we are makes a difference in who we are.
If it works that way for our physical families, how much more will the connection to our spiritual ancestors foster a more meaningful connection to our place in God’s scheme of redeeming humanity.
The stories of our people matter. Our traditions matter.
“I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you” (1 Cor. 11.2).
When we study Church history, we get perspective on where we are now and how we serve as a link to the future. It grounds our identity and purpose within this larger story, giving us a firm anchor in God’s plan of salvation.
Welcome to the Lay Division
of St. John Vianney Seminary
I’m not anticipating this being a wildly popular topic, but in the spirit of transparency, I believe that my journey and discoveries can encourage someone else to dig a little deeper, read a little more and grow closer to the God who loves them.
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