This article is an outline for an Anabaptist apologetic. Basically, it’s my method of evaluating the truth-claims of the view of Christianity that’s held by Anabaptists as opposed to the views of other faith traditions. There won’t be much new material in this article. It’s mainly a reference for understanding how each argument on this …
In a previous article, I showed that Scripture and the early church both agreed that all doctrine had been revealed to the apostles. Only Jesus and the apostles are “upstream” from doctrine; in other words, only statements by them can be taken as definitive of Christian doctrine. Everyone else is “downstream” from doctrine; our statements …
Development of Doctrine | Why Catholic & Orthodox Changes Fail Read More »
As Christians, we believe some teachings to be true and others to be false. But how can we tell which is which? Where does true Christian doctrine come from, and can those doctrines change or develop? This article will answer those questions and offer a from-the-ground-up defense for the view that Christian doctrine comes from …
The Eastern Orthodox Church bases much of their theology on the “Fathers.” Typically, this means Christian writers who lived before approximately the 800s. The most influential church fathers for them tend to be those who lived and wrote between 325 and 787, when the first and last of the seven ecumenical councils took place. Some …
Do Post-Nicene Fathers Exemplify Apostolic Christianity? Read More »
In my post on icons, I cited Origen as evidence against the early Christian use of icons. The quote below shows that Origen didn’t believe veneration of images to be a Christian practice: [Christians] abhor altars and images on the ground that they are afraid of degrading the worship of God, and reducing it to …
This article is an argument for Anabaptism for those who are confused by endless doctrinal disputes. You may see good things in different Christian denominations, but you also see the holes in the narratives of different sides. So how are you going to pick which Christian denomination you should be a part of? You just …
The essence of Anabaptism, and our most defining belief, is probably the doctrine of the two kingdoms, or the related doctrine of “separation from the world.” Basically all our distinctive beliefs flow from this doctrine, which was also held by the early church up until Constantine. In this article, I will give a defense for …
Two Kingdoms & Separation From the World—a Defense Read More »
One thing that confuses many Christians is the difference between the Old and New Testaments. Is the Old Testament still in effect? How do the books of the Old Testament apply to Christians? Anabaptists believe that the Old Testament is no longer our rule of life. The New Testament supersedes the Old, and Jesus and …
The one major difference between the Roman Catholic Church and all other Christian groups is the Pope. Roman Catholics believe that the bishop of Rome is in charge of the entire Christian church, and that he can never lead the church into doctrinal error. Because of the special grace given to the Pope, the church …
Scripture & Church Fathers Don’t Support the Papacy Read More »
Roman Catholic apologists teach that their doctrine of the Papacy is an apostolic institution, and that church history demonstrates that. They often point to early Christian writings that they believe support their position, and they argue that these writings show that Peter, and each bishop of Rome after him, had supreme authority over all other …
