The blood of modern-day martyrs
It was the Christian apologist Tertullian in AD 197 who first wrote, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” As he watched Christians killed in the bloody entertainment of colosseums and in summary legal procedures, he saw the church grow. Sixteenth-century Anabaptists echoed that quote as the cost of following Jesus…
Remembering the Reformation
The year 2017 marks the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. According to tradition, Martin Luther posted his 95 theses on Oct. 31, 1517, thereby starting the chain of events that gave birth to the Protestant churches and destroyed the unity of western Christianity. The anniversary, no doubt, will be filled with celebration and mourning.…