1. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity
Paul as the first Reformer – Judaizers (Galatians/Peter)
After 70 AD Church disbursed – Alexandria, Rome, Gaul Istanbul (Constantinople)
House Churches – Basic Liturgy, Baptisms, Eucharist
Psalms, OT Readings (Oral tradition)Homily or Letter
Persecutions and Martyrs
Emperor Diocletian – AD
Eusebius – History of the Church

2. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity
Constantine and His Impact – The Heretics
Marcionism AD – First New Testament
Dual nature of Christ – God and Man
Jesus to be the son of the Heavenly Father but understood the incarnation in that Jesus' body was only an imitation of a material body, and consequently denied Jesus' physical and bodily birth, death, and resurrection.

3. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity
Constantine and His Impact – The Heretics
Arianism – Became dominant theology for brief period in 4th Century
Believed that Jesus did not always exist but was begotten by God the Father and is not equal to God – nor believed that the Holy Spirit is part of God Head (Trinity)

4. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity
Constantine and His Impact
Formation of the Nicene Creed
Council of Nicea – 325 AD
Final revision in 381 AD
Established Trinitarian Belief
Did not establish New Testament
Athanaiasn Creed – Sunday after Pentecost
Stronger statement of Trinity

5. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity The Creeds
Apostles Creed
Legend is that the 12 Apostles wrote this after Pentecost before they disbursed
Probably used as a pronouncement of faith before a baptism
Versions known to exist from early 2nd Century
Revised in Gaul and Rome
Rejected by Eastern Churches
Not strong on identity of Trinity

6. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity The Creeds
Apostles Creed
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary,
Nicene Creed
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only‐begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man;

7. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity The Creeds
Apostles Creed
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell.
The third day He rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead
Nicene Creed
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried.
And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures
and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.

8. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity The Creeds
Apostles Creed
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen
Nicene Creed
And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets. And I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen

9. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity Luther and the Creeds
Apostle’s Creed
Creation:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
Apostle’s Creed
Redemption:
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell.
The third day He rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead

10. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginnings of Christianity Luther and the Creeds
Apostle’s Creed
Sanctification:
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen

11. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginning of Christianity
The Gathering of the New Testament Canon
The Rationale (Directed by God’s Hand)
Followed Teachings of Jesus
Wide-spread use and acceptance
Used in first Century

12. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginning of Christianity
The Gathering of the New Testament Canon
What’s In:
Initially
All four Gospels and Book of Acts
Paul’s letters
James, 1 & 2 Peter, 1,2 &3 John
Later
Hebrews, Jude and Revelation

13. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginning of Christianity
The Gathering of the New Testament Canon
What’s not Included:
The Gnostic Writings – all after 1st Century
Gospel of Peter, Apocalypse of Peter, Barnabas and many more usually written under an Apostle’s name
Shepard of Hermes – 5 visions of a slave but similarity to heretic Montanus
Supported by Irenaeus
Written late 1st or early 2nd Century

14. The Gospel of Thomas – same date
What’s Not
The Gospel of Thomas – same date
These are the hidden words that the living Jesus spoke, and that Didymos Judas Thomas wrote down. And He said:  "Whoever finds the meaning of these words will not taste death.”
(7) Jesus said, "Blessed is the lion which becomes man when consumed by man; and cursed is the man whom the lion consumes, and the lion becomes man."
(9) Jesus said, "Now the sower went out, took a handful (of seeds), and scattered them. Some fell on the road; the birds came and gathered them up. Others fell on the rock, did not take root in the soil, and did not produce ears. And others fell on thorns; they choked the seed(s) and worms ate them. And others fell on the good soil and it produced good fruit: it bore sixty per measure and a hundred and twenty per measure."

15. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY The Beginning of Christianity
The Gathering of the New Testament Canon
The question of what was in the complete Canon continued until 367 AD
In 367 AD Athanasius writes an Easter Letter and names all 27 Books of the New Testament as the proper Canon.
This is accepted at several Councils over next 50 years
Luther places James, Jude, Hebrews and Revelation at end of German Bible. (Still that way today)

16. THE REFORMATION: 500 YEAR ANNIVERSARY Christianity Grows
Next session:
St. Augustine of Hippo
Jerome and the Vulgate – the Catholic Bible
Eastern vs Western church
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Catholic Church in chaos
The Reformation beginnings