Christian Unity (the book) - The Maranatha Community

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CHAPTER 6HOPES FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY IN THE 17 TH CENTURYForemost among those who called for toleration in a war-torn 17 th Century inCentral Europe must be the name of Jan Amos Komensky (Comenius) (1592-1670). He was born in Moravia, part of the Czech Republic, in or near UherskyBrod, where today there is a fine museum of his life and work. His father was aprosperous miller, but by the age of 12 Komensky had lost both of his parents.A sensitive and thoughtful lad, he came to join the Unitas Fratrum (‘Unity ofthe Brethren’), a community of the poor with high ideals of peace, integrity oflife and deep spirituality. Founded in the 15 th Century as spiritual descendantsof John Hus, the Brethren had by Komensy’s day expanded their ranks toinclude the nobility, and were between five and 10% of the population ofBohemia.They were thoroughly orthodox in doctrine, trinitarian and confessing theclassical Creeds, and had been inspired by the orthodox but schismaticWaldensians. In 1575 the Czech Confession had been signed in Prague by theUtraquists, the Lutherans and the Unity. The Confession was Lutheran-basedand it united (outwardly at least) the Protestants of Bohemia.Komensky became a life-long worker for Christian Unity, especially betweenProtestants.The Hapsburg Emperor Maximillian accepted the Confession inthat he did not persecute its adherents, and in 1609 the Bohemian nobilityreceived a charter from the new and decidedly eccentric Rudolf II,guaranteeing them freedom of worship.Anti-Hapsburg agitation had been going on in the Empire since the end of the16 th Century, and in Government reprisals Komensky, then 13 years of age, losthis home in the flames. He moved to live in Přerov to study at the BrethrenSchool there from 1608 to 1611, and then went to Germany, to the NassauAcademy at Herborn, for two years.Here he came under the influence of three teachers in particular. From J HAlsted he learned to relate revelation to science in a synthesis which was beingoverturned by new advanced thinkers of the age. J Fischer-Piscator taught himBible doctrine and inspired him with the teaching of the Parousia (the ‘ComingAgain’) of Christ. From J H Althusius he learned political theory and thePage 91
concept of a contract between a ruler and the leaders of the Estates he ruledover. Komensky met David Pareus (1548-1622) at Heidelberg and came underthe influence of his ecumenical spirit. Pareus hoped the Unity of Protestantscould be brought about by holding a sort of Protestant Council of Trent.In Bohemia things came to a head politically when a crowd of Protestantsstormed the Hradčany Palace in May 1618 and threw two Hapsburg governorsout of a window. The mob was protesting against violations of the RoyalCharter of Toleration of 1609, and that the Hapsburg Ferdinand II, aiming tobecome Emperor, was also assuming the throne of Bohemia.As they threw the governors out of the window (still pointed out to touriststoday) they cried out, ‘Shout to Mary to help you.’ They fell on a dung heapbelow the window and survived.When Ferdinand did become Emperor the next year Bohemian Protestantsdeposed him as their king and put Frederick V of the Palatinate in his place. Helasted only a few months, as the ‘Winter King’, because again warfare followed(1620) and at the Battle of Bila Hora (White Mountain), near Prague, theBohemian rebels were crushed by Imperialist forces. Some rebels wereexecuted in Old Town Square. Their lands were confiscated and Frederick fled,his lands invaded from the Spanish Netherlands.In 1621 Imperial troops sacked Fulnek, where Komensky, now ordained as aminister of the Brethren, was headmaster of their school. His library wasburned by the troops and his books burned publicly in the town square. Withabout a hundred of the Brethren, Komensky had to flee from Moravia. Hiswife and two sons had died in the plague and he was going to be in exile forthe last 50 years of his life. In 1624 he remarried, marrying Marie Dorita, thedaughter of a Unity Bishop, Jan Cyrill, who five years before had hopefullycrowned Frederick V as King of Bohemia.Komensky now travelled widely in Europe trying to raise support for theBrethren. He finally settled in 1628 at Leszno in Poland, where the ruler andlandowner was a member of the Brethren and had made his town a refuge forreligious refugees. Komensky wrote at this time:‘Brutal and bloodstained sword destroys my beloved country – my poorpeople are being oppressed, tortured, murdered and imprisoned. God’sPage 92
Page 11 and 12:
Can Christian Unity be expressed ac
Page 13 and 14:
‘In the Trinity the three are one
Page 15 and 16:
Protestants, equally, have to be ab
Page 17 and 18:
When John Wesley said that Christia
Page 19 and 20:
(Geneva) Agreed Statement was issue
Page 21 and 22:
While organised Christian endeavour
Page 23 and 24:
Christian Unity consist?’ We shal
Page 25 and 26:
CHAPTER 1CHRISTIAN UNITY IN THE EAR
Page 27 and 28:
Almost all the heresies in the Earl
Page 29 and 30:
interpreted as being against the la
Page 31 and 32:
was raised by the Novatian schism.
Page 33 and 34:
ArianismArianism was the most impor
Page 35 and 36:
the Person of Christ. This was the
Page 37 and 38:
Nicaea (325 AD), which asserted, ag
Page 39 and 40:
He wrote:‘The ancient doctrines o
Page 41 and 42:
agreement into the terms and ethics
Page 43 and 44:
authority of the local bishop; Cypr
Page 45 and 46: Protestants. He was born in Tagaste
Page 47 and 48: guide the affairs of men: the Papac
Page 49 and 50: The distinction between laity and c
Page 51 and 52: ule. Christians were allowed to be
Page 53 and 54: fallen corruption and mortality but
Page 55 and 56: During the 1917 Communist Revolutio
Page 57 and 58: his repentance and restoration. The
Page 59 and 60: just before death, they might recei
Page 61 and 62: In both the East and the West heres
Page 63 and 64: The Waldensians were so named after
Page 65 and 66: CHAPTER 4THE SECOND GREAT SPLIT: WE
Page 67 and 68: Far more serious criticisms of the
Page 69 and 70: and the sacraments. He was tried by
Page 71 and 72: and his discovering that the Script
Page 73 and 74: denominational allegiances: confess
Page 75 and 76: aptism and substituting for it bapt
Page 77 and 78: Vincent de Lérins’ threefold bas
Page 79 and 80: Charles de Guise, Cardinal of Lorra
Page 81 and 82: CHAPTER 5QUOTATIONS ON THE THEME OF
Page 83 and 84: Dr Charles Malik - 20 th Century:
Page 85 and 86: Nicholas Zernov - 20 th Century:‘
Page 87 and 88: The restoration of the universal Ch
Page 89 and 90: Timothy Ware - 20 th Century:‘It
Page 91 and 92: Basilea Schlink - 20 th Century:‘
Page 93 and 94: Cardinal Basil Hume - 20 th Century
Page 95: Keith A Fournier - 20 th Century:
Page 99 and 100: harmoniously ordered society of pea
Page 101 and 102: interesting to note that the disput
Page 103 and 104: • In the Eucharist, Komensky main
Page 105 and 106: The Conference opened with much pom
Page 107 and 108: a growing unity among Christians at
Page 109 and 110: We cannot leave the 17 th Century w
Page 111 and 112: CHAPTER 7CHRISTIAN UNITY AND THE EV
Page 113 and 114: In Dr Woodward’s account of the r
Page 115 and 116: for Whitefield’s work in America,
Page 117 and 118: the West, the North and the South.
Page 119 and 120: ‘John Wesley, displeased at not b
Page 121 and 122: formally, though it may have helped
Page 123 and 124: In view of all this, Charles Wesley
Page 125 and 126: Some of the refugees were persuaded
Page 127 and 128: Isaac Watts (1647-1748), the pionee
Page 129 and 130: CHAPTER 8VISIONS OF CHRISTIAN UNITY
Page 131 and 132: hymns and Eastern orthodox spiritua
Page 133 and 134: eplied with a series of Eirenicons
Page 135 and 136: positively wrote on grace and love
Page 137 and 138: hand that pours out sorrow’ and t
Page 139 and 140: He died in England in 1853 an ‘ec
Page 141 and 142: assembly, without much hesitation r
Page 143 and 144: ‘Loving all whom Christ loves bec
Page 145 and 146: says, the Broad Church was ‘a moo
Page 147 and 148:
far greater part for the laity in t
Page 149 and 150:
ehind some of the criticism of the
Page 151 and 152:
came together with the clear purpos
Page 153 and 154:
In subsequent missionary conference
Page 155 and 156:
university formed by a federation o
Page 157 and 158:
credo-baptists to accept the provis
Page 159 and 160:
Horton Davies 137 points out in his
Page 161 and 162:
However, since New Delhi, the WCC s
Page 163 and 164:
(b) The Church of Christ in China (
Page 165 and 166:
the Scriptures as the supreme autho
Page 167 and 168:
In 1970 a similar scheme to that of
Page 169 and 170:
indulgences, were all confirmed str
Page 171 and 172:
however, at a lower level, manifest
Page 173 and 174:
In her study of the Evolution of th
Page 175 and 176:
Even within the Reformed Protestant
Page 177 and 178:
the publisher’s foreword to Gee
Page 179 and 180:
and so I have some golden opportuni
Page 181 and 182:
CHAPTER 10 THESE BRIDGES CAN’T BE
Page 183 and 184:
‘Only he - only Christ - was able
Page 185 and 186:
c) Justification by Faith and Works
Page 187 and 188:
However, in the Credo of the People
Page 189 and 190:
f) Purgatory‘Purgatory’ is a na
Page 191 and 192:
The Catechism of the Catholic Churc
Page 193 and 194:
who love and trust the Lord Jesus C
Page 195 and 196:
However, there is a growing awarene
Page 197 and 198:
encouraged to receive a blessing al
Page 199 and 200:
c) Traduction Œcumenique de la Bib
Page 201 and 202:
witness. There is one such Sisterho
Page 203 and 204:
Practically all para-church groups
Page 205 and 206:
s) Missions and CampaignsMissions a
Page 207 and 208:
My Protestant friends say to me tha
Page 209 and 210:
Most Christians, in all three tradi
Page 211 and 212:
of God may be complete, equipped fo
Page 213 and 214:
CHAPTER 12NOW WHAT?This book began
Page 215 and 216:
c) For some Protestants ecumenism m
Page 217 and 218:
The church at Corinth was full of C
Page 219 and 220:
) It has become clear that, realist
Page 221 and 222:
Christians who believe a Catholic d
Page 223 and 224:
There are three confessions that ha
Page 225 and 226:
‘The solution to the ecumenical i
Page 227 and 228:
k) Christ has left us an example -
Page 229 and 230:
day’, the Niceno-Constantinopolit
Page 231 and 232:
APPENDIX 2FOUR BIBLICAL TEXTS ON TH
Page 233 and 234:
of the common good, and when one’
Page 235 and 236:
eaten, as idols did not exist anywa
Page 237 and 238:
14. That to continue in any known s
Page 239 and 240:
What all three traditions have in c
Page 241 and 242:
Calvin held that the Gospel of Jesu
Page 243 and 244:
Relations between Protestantism, Ca
Page 245 and 246:
Brandreth, Henry, R T, The Oecumeni
Page 247 and 248:
Hopko, Thomas, All the Fullness of
Page 249 and 250:
Rupp, E G and Drewery, Benjamin, Ma
Page 251 and 252:
INDEXAAct of Uniformity, 114aggiorn
Page 253 and 254:
Frame, John M, 91, 187Francis of As
Page 255 and 256:
Richardson, Paul, 239Roman Catholic
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