Roman Catholic Religion

original jesus

Did the Jewish followers of Jesus start the original Christian Church called Orthodox and Catholic Churches?

Hi everyone
I think this is a fascinating question, and I think the answer is no.

If the answer was yes, surely the church would know more about the subsequent lives of the disciples.

And why can anti-Semitism be traced right back to the earliest years of a religion that is supposed to have grown out of a Jewish movement?

I think it's a fascinating question too.

My studies have led me to believe the answer is: Yes, the Jewish followers of Jesus started the original Christian Church called the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.

But while the very first Christians were all Jews, the early church started picking up large numbers of Gentile converts very quickly. You can see this in the Book of Acts. Just about everywhere Paul went you see the same pattern: he preached in a synagogue, a few Jews listened but most were furious, he was thrown out of the synagogue, and ended up converting Gentiles instead. It has been speculated that there were large numbers of "God-fearers" like Cornelius by the first century -- people who had some Jewish beliefs but did not want to take on Jewish customs and get circumcised. They were ripe for Christian conversion.

We actually do know something about the subsequent lives of the disciples. The church fathers preserved the story of Peter's martyrdom in Rome, the tradition that Thomas preached in India, and that Paul preached in Spain before his final imprisonment and martyrdom in Rome, to cite a handful of examples. Given the loss of so many ancient manuscripts after the fall of the Roman Empire before scribes in Charlemagne's court began copying manuscripts en masse I think it's amazing that we have as much information as we do.

If you want to learn more about very early Christian history, you can't do better than the most complete original source -- Eusebius's "Church History," written right after the legalization of Christianity:

http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf201.toc.html

You can see how the original Christian Church became known as Catholic and Orthodox while maintaining its organic link to the earliest apostles -- check out, for instance, Eusebius's meticulous lists of the succession of bishops in each city. And there's lots of wonderful stories about the earliest Christians -- the heroism of the martyrs, and the "rest of the story" for quite a few people we read about in the New Testament.

Happy reading!

jesus of nazereth dvd

jesus shoes

Walk It, and Talk It, when You're Walking Around in Christian Shoes

There's christian jewelry, and Christian books, and Christian accessories. There are even Christian movies! But Christian shoes? Every pair of shoes a Christian walks in is a pair of Christian shoes, because they're carrying inside them a blessing from God. But if you want to carry that blessing outside as well as inside, consider investing in your own pair of Christian sneakers!

What's the difference between Christian shoes and the ones you'd pick up at your local Payless? If you've been inside a shoe store recently you've seen the art that's jazzing up ordinary tennies made by big name designers like Airwalk. "Love, Peace and Understanding" is proudly airbrushed on their latest designs, and they're making a huge splash on the market with fashion conscious individuals who want their feet to make a statement!  I love my "Savior...The Many Names of Jesus...," shoes.

There isn't a one of us who doesn't know the children's Sunday School song "Sermon in Shoes." If it wasn't part of your education, check it out! The resounding theme of the song, "Do you know, oh Christian, you're a sermon in shoes" can sound a little scary until you figure out what they're talking about. When you walk out into the community you're representing not only yourself but Christ and everything he stands for too. Being a Christian means doing a lot more than reading the Bible and praying. It's up to you to go out there and spread the good news!

It's a lot of fun to tell others about everything Christ has done for us, but if you suffer from a case of stage fright that leaves you tongue tied when the time comes to spread the good news (and even if you don't!) you can let your feet do the talking with a pair of genuine, certified Christian shoes. These trendy designs don't just look hip with your favorite jeans and Christian tee-shirts. They're proudly emblazoned with the words of Christ himself, carrying the good news with them every time they hit the streets!

Psalms 23:4: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Philippians 4:13: "I can do everything through him who gives me strength."

This is love, peace and understanding, and a whole lot more! These Christian shoes are carrying a tremendous message with them, a message everyone should have the opportunity to hear.

What are your shoes saying?

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jesus our intercessor charles capps

experiencing christ

The Rapture – The Comfort Of Christ's Coming

The new Christians at Thessalonica along with the Apostle Paul experienced persecution because of their faith in christ. They were wondering why many of their fellow believers had fallen asleep (died) and what would happen to them when Christ returned. Paul wanted them to understand that death is not the end of the story. To give them comfort Paul wrote to them these words, "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethern, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For is we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring us with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." I Thess. 4-13-18.

These words surely must have given the persecuted Christians at Thessalonica great comfort. These words still give Christians great comfort today. Although the main purpose of the Apostle Paul in writing these words were to provide comfort to Christians, this scripture also identifies the Rapture of the Church. The Rapture of the Church will be the most startling event to happen in human history. Paul's words explicitly states that the dead in Christ (the dead believers) will rise first and then the believers that remain will all be caught up together to meet jesus in the air. Millions with disappear suddenly. jesus speaks of this suddenness in Luke 17:34-36, "I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed: the one will be taken and the other will be left. Two women will be grinding together: the one will be taken and the other left. Two men will be in the field: the one will be taken and the other left." Scripture also mentions this event will happen as quickly as the "twinkling of an eye".  Immediately when the believers disappear there will be great confusion for those left. There will also be sudden tragic events occur when Christians are taken away. Automobiles that are being driven by Christians will be left out of control. Airplanes that are being piloted by Christians will be left without a pilot to land them safely. Machines that are being operated by Christians will be left to run unattended. Many other such incidents that we cannot image will all happen at the same instance. For those left behind it will be disastrous, but for the Christian it will be the fulfillment of the hope they have had since believing in Jesus. They will be in the presence of Jesus and will remain in His presence forever.

The text of I Thess 4:13-18 speaks of five events of the Rapture.

1. Christ will return visibly with a loud command.

2. There will be an unmistakable cry from an angel.

3. There will be a trumpet such as has never been heard.

4. Believer's in Christ who are dead will rise from their graves.

5. Believer's in Christ who are alive will be caught up in the clouds to meet Christ.

The Rapture brings an end to the Church age. For Christians that have been taken up to be with Christ it will be a time of judgment. It will not be a judgment of sin because the Christian's sin was washed away by the Blood of Christ at Calvary. It will be a judgment of rewards based upon the believer's works. For many it will be a time of great joy as they hear the words of Jesus say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant".  For others it will be a time of shame and regret, I John 2:28, "And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at his coming."

The Rapture also brings a beginning of an eternal presence with Jesus. Jesus and the Church will be eternally united at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Jesus, the husband, will be united with His bride, the Church. This is the hope of all Christians.

No one knows the time of Christ's return for the Church. We are therefore to live moral and holy lives and be ever watchful for His coming. Believers must not neglect daily responsibilities, but always work and live to please the Lord.

Click on Link Below (Are you ready) or youtube link to see Video!

Are you ready

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmLhyPjHVes

About the Author

Stephen Stillman, owner of www.amazingchristianproducts.com a website that offers great Christian articles and a variety of Christian products.

man jesus loved

if you're a man and love jesus?

does that mean you're gay and that jesus is gay.

or is he Bi, since woman love him and he loves them.

EEEEEwwwwwwwww, I'm gay and I would NEVER come close to that invisibile sky jew! I might get christian cooties!

jesus youth

Youth Ministry Goals

1. Do whatever it takes to get teens to heaven. Paul wrote that he became all things to all people so that some might be saved (II Corinthians 9:19-23). How well does this relate to your ministry? What could you be doing that might reach more teens in your schools and community?

   Ministry has its own set of pressures. We have to worry about what the leaders, parents, and members will think about a program or event. By doing whatever it takes to get teens to heaven, you will endure your share of criticism about your approaches, but keep the goal in focus. Keep everyone involved aware that you are not using a certain technique just to be different, but to bring teens to Jesus.

   2. Help teens develop a personal relationship with God. While second-hand faith is better than no faith, there's no doubt that first-hand faith wins the prize. Help teens develop a faith that says, "I believe in God, not because my parents say so, or because my youth minister or preacher says so, but because I have experienced and know God in my life."

   3. Involve teens in daily Bible study and prayer. Instead of simply asking your group to read the Bible and pray daily, provide the opportunity and tools to make it possible. Develop a daily Bible reading schedule for your teens. Supply information on Bibles designed for youth so they can get a grip on the Word in a way relevant to them.

   Form prayer groups of three that meet at school, or that call each other daily for prayer requests. Challenge your group to pray before getting out of bed and before going to sleep. Have teens set their watch alarms for a certain time each day to signal prayer time. Create as many tools as needed to get them into the Bible and prayer on a daily basis.

   4. Build a Christ-like attitude and spirit into the youth group. "Your attitude should be the same as that of christ jesus," Philippians 2:5. This means more than just asking, "What would Jesus do?" It calls for a clear-cut lifestyle of surrender. What is the attitude of Jesus?

   · Attitude of a Servant (v. 7)

   · Attitude of Humility (v.

   · Attitude of Obedience (v.

   If every teen becomes a servant, how many things will get done? If every teen becomes humble, how much arguing will take place? If every teen becomes obedient to God, how much better could the youth conventions be? Of course, developing a Christ-like attitude in your group begins by displaying a Christ-like attitude in your life.

   5. Develop quality leadership among the group. Jesus called His followers with, "Follow me." By the end of His ministry He had trained them to lead. Paul even said, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ" (I Corinthians 11:1). Give your teens the responsibility and let them lead. Dust them off when they fall down and encourage them to keep going.

   Here are a few ways you can let teens lead: Devotionals, teaching class, heading up a service project, forming prayer groups, etc.

   6. Parental support and participation. Believe it or not, There are some in your congregation who see youth ministry as a divider of parents and their children. Prevent this by creating a high level of parental involvement.

   Have your parents teach for a quarter, host devotionals in their homes, chaperone trips, etc. Check out Group Publishing's 130 Ways to Involve Parents in Your Ministry for more great ideas.

   7. Develop evangelistic teens. Redirect the vision of your group by training them to see each classmate, each neighbor, each family member, each clerk, each waiter, just fill in the blank, each ____________ as an opportunity to share the Lord.

   Jesus left the message in our mouths and lives. Help your group become evangelistic by creating an atmosphere that makes guests want to return. Go out to the school campus and meet kids on their turf. Be available, open and loving.

   8. Establish positive relationships with other youth groups in the area. If we are not careful ministry can become a competition where the leader with the most teens wins. Because of that, we may be afraid to do things with other groups for fear that our teens might spot something "cooler" than what we provide. Don't forget #4 and build a Christ-like attitude by doing things with other groups like retreats or prayer nights. One of the easiest ways to establish positive relationships is by participating together in community events such as the March for Jesus, or collecting food and toys for needy families during the holidays.

   9. Include teens as part of the congregation. Have you ever felt the perception that there is the church, and then there is the youth group? Integrate the group into the congregation by getting the teens involved in praying, scripture reading, or whatever format your church follows. Most churches let teens participate on youth days. But encourage your leadership to include teens on a regular basis, not just special days.

   10. Equip teens to go into all the world and teach the Gospel. While every teen has the responsibility to evangelize around them, a few feel the call to literally go into all the world. Prepare them for that future by encouraging and praying for him or her. Help sponsor teens on a yearly mission trip to gain experience. Provide contacts through special mission organizations to get teens involved. Who knows how many will come to know the Lord as a result of your ministry.

About the Author

Paul Evans is the co-founder of Teen Life Ministries a site dedicated to youth ministry. If you work with youth go to http://www.teenlifeministries.com/thezone.

christ on the altar

A.A.―First Preview of the Real Facts about A.A.'s Origins

A.A.―First Preview of the Real Facts about A.A.'s Origins

 

Dick B.

© 2010 Anonymous. All rights reserved.

 

Bill Wilson's grandfather William C. ("Willie") Wilson cured of alcoholism by conversion:

 

My grandfather Wilson was a very serious case of alcoholism, and it no doubt hastened his death, although some years prior to this he had, to everyone's great surprise, hit the sawdust trail, to speak figuratively, at a revival meeting in the Congregational Church and was never known to drink afterward.

 

Bill's doctor, William D. Silkworth—a devout Christian who believed his patients could be cured of alcoholism by the Great Physician jesus christ—so advised Bill at Towns Hospital:

 

            Bill [Wilson] himself referred to Silkworth as a cofounder of A.A.

 

            When Silkworth was a young boy, his father had impressed upon the requirement of

complete abstinence for success in life. . .  . Young Silkworth was told quite early of the

need for crisis, reform, and conversion when dealing with alcoholism.

 

Silkworth's family remembers him as a deeply spiritual man. . . . A devout Christian . . . For years he attended a church that would also have an impact on the formation of Alcoholics Anonymous, the Calvary Christian (Episcopal) Church.

 

[H]e wrote, all that we may have that is good comes from God.

 

He spoke frequently about the need for a reliance upon God and a firm foundation of spiritual strength in order to handle the obsession to drink.

 

He was a man who believed in a spiritually sound approach to healing.

 

During his third visit to Towns Hospital, Bill had a discussion with Dr. Silkworth on the subject of the "Great Physician." . . . In fact, Bill Wilson himself wrote that he had thought about this discussion before he decided to check himself into Towns for the last time. . . . Alcoholism took longer to kill, but the result was the same. Yes, if there was any Great Physician that could cure the alcohol sickness, I'd better find him now, at once.

 

Silkworth has not been given the appropriate credit for his position on a spiritual conversion, particularly as it may relate to true Christian benefits. Several sources, including Norman Vincent Peale in his book The Positive Power of Jesus Christ, agree that it was Dr. Silkworth who used the term "The Great Physician" to explain the need in recovery for a relationship with Jesus Christ. . . . In the formation of AA, Wilson initially insisted on references to God and Jesus, as well as the Great Physician. . . . Silkworth, a medical doctor, challenged the alcoholic with a spiritual conversion and a relationship with God as part of a program of recovery. His approach with Bill Wilson was no different.

 

Following his third Towns Hospital visit with Dr. Silkworth, Bill Wilson was visited by his old friend Ebby Thacher who had been living at the Calvary Rescue Mission in Manhattan. Ebby told Bill that some Oxford Group friends had told him he needed to call on God to help him with his problem. Ebby had been to the altar at Calvary Mission and had made a decision for christ. Ebby told Bill, "I've got religion." Ebby was sober, and Bill concluded Ebby had been born again. Bill wrote this as to Ebby's visit with him:

 

            Nevertheless here I was sitting opposite a man who talked about a personal God, who

told me how he had found Him, who described to me how I might do the same thing and who convinced me utterly that something had come into his life which had accomplished a miracle. The man was transformed; there was no denying he had been reborn.

 

            Bill actually went to Calvary Church itself just after Ebby's visit. Bill saw Ebby giving testimony in the pulpit. At the Mission, Bill Wilson told Billy Duvall of the church event. And he felt sure he needed help and could get the help that Ebby had received at the Mission. 

After checking Ebby's testimony by visiting Calvary Church and hearing Ebby witness, Bill decided that he could perhaps be helped in the same way at Calvary Mission. Bill wrote:

 

I'd figured it was time I did some investigation on my own hook. Remembering the mission where Ebby stayed, I figured I'd go and see what they do, anyway, down there. I'd find out.

 

Bill went to Calvary Mission, made a decision for Jesus Christ at the altar, wrote that he had "for sure" "been born again." Desperately he decided he should call on the Great Physician, and went to Towns Hospital for his fourth and final visit to receive help.

 

Bill's wife Lois gave a recorded speech in Dallas, Texas, June 29, 1973. Speaking of Bill's trip to the altar, Lois said: "And he went up, and really, in very great sincerity, did hand his life over to Christ.

 

[Bill wrote:] For sure I'd been born again.

 

[Bill wrote:] Yes, if there was any Great Physician that could cure the alcohol sickness, I'd better seek him now, at once. I'd better find what my friend had found.

 

At Town Hospital, Bill decided to call on the Great Physician. Bill cried out to God for help. Immediately his room was filled with a "white light." Bill sensed the presence of "the God of the Scriptures," and never again doubted the existence of God. Bill never drank again. Bill wrote:

 

But what of the Great Physician? For a brief moment, I suppose, the last trace of my obstinacy was crushed out as the abyss yawned. I remember saying to myself, "I'll do anything at all. If there be a Great Physician, I'll call on him.

 

Then, with neither faith nor hope I cried out, "If there be a God, let him show himself." The effect was instant, electric. Suddenly my room blazed with an indescribably white light. . . . Then, seen in the mind's eye, there was a mountain. I stood upon its summit where a great wind blew. A wind, not of air, but of spirit. In great, clean strength, it blew right through me. Then came the blazing thought, "You are a free man." . . . I became

acutely conscious of a presence which seemed like a veritable sea of living spirit.

 

And then the great thought burst upon me: "Bill, you are a free man! This is the God of the Scriptures."

 

Shortly after his "white light" experience, Bill was discharged from Towns Hospital. He feverishly set out with a Bible under his arm, witnessing to drunks wherever he could find them. He told them they must give their lives to God. He participated in the Calvary Episcopal Church witnessing processionals which featured a banner proclaiming "Jesus Christ changes lives." Bill himself witnessed at Madison Square.

 

In Akron, Ohio, Bill specifically stated his belief that the Lord had cured him of alcoholism. His story is contained in Alcoholics Anonymous to this very day. Bill stated:

 

Henrietta [Henrietta Dotson was the wife of A.A. Number Three Bill Dotson], the Lord has been so wonderful to me, curing me of this terrible disease, that I just want to keep talking about it and telling people.

           

            To the listener: There is much much more to this story. Details and specific documentation can be found in The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide, 3rd ed., by Dick B. and Ken B. (2010). And now you can see and hear "the rest of the story" in our just-released 4 DVD Class, Introductory Foundations for Christian Recover by Dick B. and Ken B. (2010).

 

 

About the Author

Dick B. is a writer, historian, retired attorney, Bible student, CDAAC, and an active and recovered member of the A.A. fellowship. He has published 39 titles and more than 300 articles on A.A. history and is a much sought-after speaker on the topic--particularly to Christians in recovery audiences.

jesus decal

Why is Jesus symbolized by a fish?

Why are the car decals and such with Jesus' name fish?
prpsly: no

Pisces was associated with early Christian communities. It was used a symbol to identify who was Christian, because openly proclaiming the faith meant prosecution.

christ jesus

What happens if you do not accept jesus christ as your saviour?

According to Christian beliefs, what happens if you deny Jesus Christ and God and all that?

If that's the case, then God will simply give you what you want -- eternal separation from Him.