Crumbs from the Table

596/7 is the date when Gregory the Great, bishop of Rome, sent a mission to evangelise the pagan English (Angle, Saxon and Jute settlers in Britain). However, Christianity had been in Britain since the second century. This blog post is an attempt to present a chronicle of Christianity in Britain.  In 43 AD, under the Emperor Claudius, a large part of what is now England and Wales was annexed by the Roman Empire, and designated the province of Britannia . Roman towns included Londinium (London), Verulamium (St Alban's), Dubris (Dover), Isca Dumononiorum (Exeter), Lindum (Lincoln) and Eboracum (York).  The indigenous population of Roman Britain were Britons, speakers of the Brythonic language (Celtic branch of the Indo-European languages). There is archaeological evidence that Christianity was introduced to Roman Britain by the late 100s (second century). It is suspected that Christianity first arrived as a result of informal trade and other contacts between Gaul and Bri...

Indigenous peoples and languages of the Iberian peninsula pre-dated Greek and Phoenician colonies, and conquests by Carthage and later Rome. For example, the languages spoken in the dark orange areas on the map (right) are classified as "Iberian" (non-Indo-European).  Roman domination replaced Carthaginian during the Second Punic War in 218 BC, although there were wars of resistance to Roman rule into the 100s BC, and the process of Romanisation lasted into the first century BC. The Romans called the peninusula "Hispania". Under the Romans Latin became the dominant language, by the 800s evolving into what is now Spanish (and Portuguese).  Writing the letter to the Romans sometime around 57-59 AD, the Apostle Paul expressed his desire to preach in what is now Spain. Based on references in Clement of Rome and the Muratorian Fragment, Paul may well have fulfilled his ambition, perhaps sometime between AD 63 and AD 67. A far less reliable tradition claims James the Gre...

The coming of Christ changes everything. The Old Testament is not to be discarded; it remains God's word for us. But we read the Old Testament, and obey the Old Testament laws, through the prism of Christ and the New Testament.  As Christians, we are not "under" the law , that is to say we are *not* bound to keep ("do") the Old Testament laws in the Old Testament way (Gal. 5:3). Rather, we "fulfil" the law in a New Testament way (Romans 8:4; 13:8,10; Galatians 5:14; James 2:8). Not only are we "not under law" in respect of the detailed laws (e.g. Exodus 21-23); we are also "not under law" in relation to the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17). The Ten Commandments do not constitute a timeless universal moral code, but rather represent specific commandments given to the people of Israel in the context of the Exodus from Egypt (20:2), and future life in the promised land of Canaan (20:12).   Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 9, "To thos...

Something which comes up again and again in Christian circles is the question of free will and predestination.  In this blog post, I would like to address one dimension of this.  First of all, I should clarify that I am writing from the perspective of the "Five Points of Calvinism". While the theology of John Calvin, and Reformed Christianity as a whole, is far broader than this one issue, a central belief is that God has sovereignly chosen individuals to be saved in Christ, and has appointed the means by which that will be realised. A very common objection raised against "Calvinism" is the false assumption that it must eliminate human free will. The whole situation can be, wrongly, understood in rather mechanical, deterministic terms, whereby God makes all the decisions and then implements them with humans cast in the role of "robots" who are coerced into believing in Christ and loving God.  While, at times, "Calvinism" has been expressed and/or...

When I moved to Greater Manchester in 2021, I was surprised to discover that the major evangelical churches, in particular City Church Manchester and Grace Church Manchester, were only recently planted. I wanted to find out about the historic Manchester evangelical churches.   (1694) Cross Street Chapel (Presbyterian) was founded by Rev. Henry Newcome, who had been ejected from the Church of England in 1662. Like many English Presbyterian churches, it is now a Unitarian church.  (1747) First mention of a Methodist society in Manchester, meeting on Deansgate.  (1751) First Methodist Chapel in Manchester in Birchin Lane off Church Street (1775-1969) Mosley Street Independent Chapel. From 1848 Cavendish Street Congregational Chapel . Closed 1969.   (1781) Oldham Street Chapel (Methodist). Now Methodist Central Chapel. (1791) Gravel Lane, Salford (Methodist) Black Lane Chapel, later known as St George's Street Chapel, and then as Rochdale Road Particular Bapt...

This post was inspired by a talk given by James Mollitt at a recent pastors' fraternal in Bolton. It is also based on the book "Assist me to proclaim" by John Tyson.  Charles Wesley was an Anglican Christian pastor who lived in the 1700s. He is best known as a hymn-writer, and as the brother of John Wesley. Both brothers were leading figures in what is known as the Methodist Revival, a revival of Protestant faith in Britain which began around the time of Charles' and John's conversion in 1738.  Charles was born in 1707, the son of Christian parents, Samuel and Susannah Wesley, who had become High Church Anglicans from a non-Anglican background. Samuel Wesley was the Christian minister of the parish of Epworth. It was a large family and they lived in the rectory (pastor's residence). One day the rectory caught fire and all the children had to be rescued.  Having studied well at school, Charles won a scholarship (paid place) at Oxford University. At university C...

In 311 Emperor Galerius brought an end to a seven-year period of intense persecution of Christians (known as "the Great Tribulation"), issuing his Edict of Toleration . This was followed, in 313, by Emperor Constantine's Edict of Milan, declaring freedom of religion and, among other things, granting the return of church property. Over the next few decades Christianity went from being a minority faith representing maybe 10% of the population, to the religion of 90%. Some speak of the church being changed from "corpus Christi" (the body of Christ) to "corpus Christianorum" (a body of Christians), i.e. from an organic community of believers to a state-sponsored institution. In 380 Emperor Theodosius declared mainstream Christianity the religion of the Empire, banning pagan religions and heretical Christian communities.  The challenge facing the church during the short fourth century (311-381) was to "win the peace". Having withstood the fires of...