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Augustinian–Calvinism
Augustine's Influence on John Calvin describes how Augustinianism shaped Calvinism, particularly in its soteriological aspects and understanding of divine providence. Both Reformed theologians and John Calvin himself acknowledged the profound impact of Augustine of Hippo, the fourth-century church father, on Calvin's theology. Augustine's debates with the Pelagians provided the occasion for him to develop his own soteriology, which was notably influenced by his pre-conversion adherence to Stoic and Manichean teachings. Developments of Calvinist soteriology Acknowledgement of Augustine influence on Calvin John Calvin wrote, "Augustine is so much at one with me that, if I wished to write a confession of my faith, it would abundantly satisfy me to quote wholesale from his writings." "This is why one finds that every four pages written in the ''Institutes of the Christian Religion'' John Calvin quoted Augustine. Calvin, for this reason, would deem himself not a Calvinist, but an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Augustinianism
Augustinianism is the philosophical and theological system of Augustine of Hippo and its subsequent development by other thinkers, notably Boethius, Anselm of Canterbury and Bonaventure. Among Augustine's most important works are ''The City of God'', '' De doctrina Christiana'', and '' Confessions''. Originally, Augustinianism developed in opposition to Pelagianism; it was widespread in medieval western philosophy until the arrival of Thomism and Aristotelianism. Plato and Plotinus influenced Augustine in many ways, and he is considered a Neoplatonic philosopher. The Augustinian theodicy and other Augustinian doctrines such as the divine illumination and the invisible church show a strong Platonic influence. Pope Benedict XVI cautioned that all of the Western Church teaching leads to him: View of humanity "Augustine considered the human race as a compact mass, a collective body, responsible in its unity and solidarity. Carrying out his system in all its logical consequences ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soteriology
Soteriology (; el, σωτηρία ' "salvation" from σωτήρ ' "savior, preserver" and λόγος ' "study" or "word") is the study of religious doctrines of salvation. Salvation theory occupies a place of special significance in many religions. In the academic field of religious studies, soteriology is understood by scholars as representing a key theme in a number of different religions and is often studied in a comparative context; that is, comparing various ideas about what salvation is and how it is obtained. Buddhism Buddhism is devoted primarily to liberation from ''Duḥkha'' or suffering by breaking free of '' samsara'', the cycle of compulsory rebirth, by attaining nirvana. Many types of Buddhism, Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana (or Tantric), emphasize an individual's meditation and subsequent liberation from ''samsara'', which is to become enlightened. However, the Pure Land traditions of Mahayana Buddhism generally focus on the saving nature of the Celestial ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sacerdotalism
Sacerdotalism (from Latin ''sacerdos'', priest, literally one who presents sacred offerings, ''sacer'', sacred, and ''dare'', to give) is the belief in some Christian churches that priests are meant to be mediators between God and humankind. The understanding of this mediation has undergone development over time and especially with the advent of modern historical and biblical studies. Christian theology of Sacerdotalism Sacerdotalism is found in Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and some forms of Anglo-Catholic theology. The current understanding of the role of the priest in the Roman Catholic Church depends vitally on the understanding of the sacrifice of Christ which is remembered in the Catholic Mass. A current explanation of Christ's sacrifice by Edward J. Kilmartin, S.J., a theologian at the Pontifical Gregorian University, is as follows: Disagreement with Sacerdotalism Unlike the above Christian theologies, the Protestant tradition generally rejects ''sacerdotalism'' ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asceticism
Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their practices or continue to be part of their society, but typically adopt a frugal lifestyle, characterised by the renunciation of material possessions and physical pleasures, and also spend time fasting while concentrating on the practice of religion or reflection upon spiritual matters. Various individuals have also attempted an ascetic lifestyle to free themselves from addictions, some of them particular to modern life, such as money, alcohol, tobacco, drugs, entertainment, sex, food, etc. Asceticism has been historically observed in many religious traditions, including Buddhism, Jainism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Stoicism and Pythagoreanism and contemporary practices continue amongst some religious followers. The practiti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Early Christian Churches
Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewish diaspora. The first followers of Christianity were Jews or proselytes, commonly referred to as Jewish Christians and God-fearers. The Apostolic sees claim to have been founded by one or more of the apostles of Jesus, who are said to have dispersed from Jerusalem sometime after the crucifixion of Jesus, c. 26–36, perhaps following the Great Commission. Early Christians gathered in small private homes, known as house churches, but a city's whole Christian community would also be called a church – the Greek noun ἐκκλησία (''ekklesia'') literally means assembly, gathering, or congregation but is translated as church in most English translations of the New Testament. Many early Christians were merchants and others who had pract ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gnosticism
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ... and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized personal spiritual knowledge (''gnosis'') above the orthodox teachings, traditions, and authority of religious institutions. Gnostic cosmogony generally presents a distinction between a supreme, hidden God and a malevolent demiurge, lesser divinity (sometimes associated with the Yahweh of the Old Testament) who is responsible for creating the nature, material universe. Consequently, Gnostics considered material existence flawed or evil, and held the principal element of salvation to be direct ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Perseverance Of The Saints
Perseverance of the saints (also called preservation of the saints) is a Christian teaching that asserts that once a person is truly "born of God" or "regenerated" by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, they will continue doing good works and believing in God until the end of their life. Sometimes this position is held in conjunction with Reformed Christian confessions of faith in traditional Calvinist doctrine, which argues that all men are "dead in trespasses and sins", and so apart from being resurrected from spiritual death to spiritual life, no-one chooses salvation alone. However, it must be distinguished from Arminianism, which also teaches that all men are "dead in trespasses and sins", and could not respond to the gospel if God did not enable individuals to do so by His prevenient grace. Calvinists maintain that God selected certain individuals for salvation, before the world began, and that he subsequently irresistably draws only these selected individuals to faith in hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irresistible Grace
Irresistible grace (also called effectual grace, effectual calling, or efficacious grace) is a doctrine in Christian theology particularly associated with Calvinism, which teaches that the saving grace of God is effectually applied to those whom he has determined to save (the elect) and, in God's timing, overcomes their resistance to obeying the call of the gospel, bringing them to faith in Christ. It is to be distinguished from prevenient grace, particularly associated with Arminianism, which teaches that the offer of salvation through grace does not act irresistibly in a purely cause-effect, deterministic method, but rather in an influence-and-response fashion that can be both freely accepted and freely denied. The doctrine Some claim that fourth-century Church Father Augustine of Hippo taught that God grants those whom he chooses for salvation the gift of persevering grace, and that they could not conceivably fall away. This doctrine gave rise to the doctrine of irresisti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unconditional Election
Unconditional election (also called sovereign election or unconditional grace) is a Calvinist doctrine relating to predestination that describes the actions and motives of God prior to his creation of the world, when he predestined some people to receive salvation, the elect, and the rest he left to continue in their sins and receive the just punishment, eternal damnation, for their transgressions of God's law as outlined in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. God made these choices according to his own purposes apart from any conditions or qualities related to those persons. The counter-view to unconditional election is the Arminian view of conditional election, the belief that God chooses for eternal salvation those who he foreknows will exercise their free will to respond to God's prevenient grace with faith in Christ. God's election was for a clear unalterable purpose, to elect those who will believe. Summary In Calvinist theology, unconditional election is considered ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Total Depravity
Total depravity (also called radical corruption or pervasive depravity) is a Protestant theological doctrine derived from the concept of original sin. It teaches that, as a consequence of man's fall, every person born into the world is enslaved to the service of sin as a result of their fallen nature and, apart from the efficacious (irresistible) or prevenient (enabling) grace of God, is completely unable to choose by themselves to follow God, refrain from evil, or accept the gift of salvation as it is offered. The doctrine is advocated to various degrees by many Protestant denominations, including some Lutheran synods, and all Calvinist churches. Arminian denominations, such as Methodists, believe and teach total depravity, but with distinct differences, the most important of which is the distinction between irresistible grace and prevenient grace. History In opposition to Pelagius, who believed that after The Fall people are able to choose not to sin, and contrary ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Canons Of Dort
The Canons of Dort, or Canons of Dordrecht, formally titled The Decision of the Synod of Dort on the Five Main Points of Christian doctrine, Doctrine in Dispute in the Netherlands, is the judgment of the National Synod held in the Netherlands, Dutch city of Dordrecht in 1618–19. At the time, Dordrecht was often referred to in English as ''Dort'' or Dordt. Today the Canons of Dort form part of the Three Forms of Unity, one of the Reformed Christian confessions of faith, confessional standards of many of the Reformed churches around the world, including the Protestantism in the Netherlands, Netherlands, Protestantism in South Africa, South Africa, Christianity in Australia, Australia, and Christianity in North America, North America. Their continued use as a standard sets apart the Reformed Churches from those adhering to the doctrines of Jacob Arminius, the Remonstrants. These canons are a judicial decision on the doctrinal points in dispute from the Arminianism, Arminian controv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
