The Churches of Christ: A Comparative Essay
Over the past ten years there has been much controversy in the Christian and secular media about the International Churches of Christ (ICC), and the United
(or mainline) Church of Christ (CoC). This controversy has stemmed from the
ICC's misuse of funds, doctrinal problems, member abuse, and mind-control. The differences between the CoC and the ICC are important for Christians know and understand. The CoC began in 1957 when these four groups merged The Congregational Churches,
The Christian Church, The Evangelical Synod of North America, and The Reformed
Church in the United States. These churches had firm Protestant roots in
England, Germany, Sweden, and the United States, totaling over 49 years in their own traditions and fellowship. On June 25, of 1957, the four churches held a synod meeting in Cleveland, Ohio, to commit more fully to unity, liberty, freedom in Christ, and the evangelism of the world. These groups, under the head of the Uniting General Synod, became the United Churches of Christ. Today the CoC has over two thousand registered churches in the world.
By 1979, the roots of the CoC were firmly in place. It was then that Chuck
Lucas, a pastor at the Gainesville Church of Christ (mainline), met a young college student, Kip McKean, and began discipling him. Kip was a bright student and showed great potential for leadership in the church. However, something in the discipling process went wrong. Kip was expelled from the Gainesville church later that year for reasons dealing with departure from the CoC doctrine, manipulative attitude, unclear motivation, and controlling of other's lives.
Kip and his wife Elena moved to Boston and started a small church that grew rapidly from thirty to over three hundred disciples in two months. Kip (who, by this time, proclaimed himself as "God's man for God's mission") then declared in his Evangelism Proclamation speech in 1981 that disciples of his Boston church would be sent out to start sister churches in London, Chicago, New York, Toronto,
Providence, Johannesburg, Paris, Stockholm, Mexico City, Hong Kong, Bombay,
Cairo, and throughout the United States by the year of 1985. His success with this goal led him to present another Evangelism Proclamation in 1990 that said that every city in the world with a population of over 75,000 will have a sister church by the year 2000. Today the ICC is in over seventy two countries, with a recorded attendance (as of January 1997) of 920,000 people. It is important to note that the ICC's current "fall-away (members who leave the church) rate" is
Why is Vatican II so Significant in the Modern Church? INTRODUCTION: VATICAN II Vatican II was the 21st ecumenical council recognized by the Roman Catholic church, which became the symbol of the church's openness to the modern world. The council was announced by Pope John XXIII on January 25, 1959, and held 178 meetings in the autumn of each of four successive years.
Humans are rational beings that use their intellect to try an achieve some sort of sense of the world, in other words truth. Truth is something that can not be denied as false. Since all humans are not part of the same culture, humanity as a whole does not share the exact notion of what is considered to be true. Humanity tries to achieve or know the truth through various outlets or practices. These different belief systems are understood to have been formed from their specific culture. Obviously, humanity has many different cultures and with that comes many different forms of truth seeking. There is one religion that claims to have the fullness of truth. That religion is the faith of Catholicism which means the Universal Church. Through Jesus Christ the founder and messianic figure of Catholicism, his Bride, the Church claims to unite humanity under the fullness of truth through the succession of Peter and tradition.
The notion that workers have an astoundingly beneficial effect on society is undeniable for the reason that a society is built upon the backs of workers. It can even be argued that all work is beneficial no matter if one works as a garbage collector or as a professor because the work that is done ultimately contributes to the turning of the gears of society. Due to the sheer importance of the work that is done towards the goal of maintaining a society, it is imperative to abide by the inherent dignity of workers by recognizing their rights and by providing workers with livable incentives and prosperous conditions to work. The Church has established—what can be considered—an incredibly progressive theology in regards to the dignity and the rights
The world we live in is revolved around the beliefs and religions that individuals practice. Millions of people worship their idea of who God is to them, Christianity and Catholicism are the world’s biggest religions in today’s society with millions of followers who give their life for God. Both Christianity and Catholicism share the same beliefs and traditions, although Catholicism derived from Christianity both religions have their own differences which separates them from being alike.
The magnificent Catholic Church located in Tampa was built during the 1800’s and renovated in 2003 brings a unique piece of history in Hillsborough County regarding the structure and the principal that the building was made with. Sacred Heart Catholic Church’s floor plan can be compared with three different churches: The Basilica Nova (Rome), The Ancient Basilica of Constantine (Rome) and the Hagia Sophia (Instanbul).
According to the writer antagonist is a virulent disease in the church (Hug. 23). A body cannot regard attack on a single part as an inconsequential threat requiring no response by other parts. This case study is conflict over a woman as a pastor or in authority. Congregations face these type of issues, which is belief issues (Everist. 17).
There are many differences and similarities between Anglicanism and Catholicism. Anglicanism was derived from Catholicism and its principle ideas are similar to catholic beliefs. However, some ideas, such as the separation of church and state, differentiates Anglicanism from Catholicism. The fundamental reason for the Anglican split was caused by King Henry VIII in the 16th century; His wish to divorce Catherine of Aragon was denied by the pope and he seized action by establishing the Church of England. Mary of Tudor, however, restored Catholicism in England, and she persecuted Anglicans. In 1558, Elizabeth I reversed Mary’s policies and reestablished the Church of England1. Elizabeth’s Act of supremacy caused turmoil against Catholic Spain in 1585 causing an Anglo-Spanish war2. The split in religion within England led to a shift between the kings court and the parliament, leading to a civil war. When Charles I married a Catholic, Henrietta Maria, he upset the Anglicans in England causing riots and eventually a civil war in 16423. Decades of religious turmoil and wars led to a larger shift between the two religions. The
concept and luckily this prediction was false and it is not a part of present
There are six models that are used by Catholics to describe the Church. Each model is unique with its contribution and complexity. The six models are: institution, community, sacrament, herald, servant and school of discipleship.
The very first thing that stood out to me when I entered the Church was the way it was build. It wasn’t just merely a big hall or building, it looked like a traditional Church, like the famous ones in Europe, but smaller. Nevertheless, I thought it was impressive. It consisted of many arch structures, had a huge alter, a very big cross hanging from the ceiling and many more crosses scattered throughout the Church. The windows weren’t see through but rather were paintings depicting Jesus’s life story and angels. Moreover, there were sculptures all around the church, some large with multiple characters and some smaller ones. Also, instead of chairs in rows, there were long wooden benches, called pews, which had cushions were people could kneeled on during the service. Another big thing I noticed was that there were young children and teenagers (called ministrants) who helped the Pastor do various tasks and rituals throughout the ceremony.
During my time working on this project, I decided to investigate four early Church leaders that I had only a baseline understanding about. All of these leaders fit the definition of apostle well, even though only one of them was an actual apostle. Namely, I studied Veronica, Luke, Andrew, and Stephen. Through this project, I discovered similarities between these figures and myself; each of the four all attained values that I strive for.
The concept of “breaking bread” (Acts 2:42) also carries the idea of having meals together.
“Everywhere you look (everywhere you go), there’s someone who needs you (Full House Theme Song).” These are a few of the lyrics from a hit television show from the 90’s called “Full House.” The storyline for this show is about a community of friends that stick together regardless of what obstacle they might face. Although this television show didn’t have any religious affiliation, the Christian Church shares a similar belief. The Christian bible teaches that two are better than one (Ecclesiastes 4:9, MSG). The church has the same stance when it comes to the community. Think of the church as the uncles (Jesse and Joey) and the church as the daughters (D.J, Stephanie and Michelle). The church serves as a positive resource for the community by introducing them to Jesus, growing in Jesus together, and giving back to those less fortunate.
The best form of description on what the Church today should look like is in the New Testament. The Church is the defender of the truth. Just like the New Testament is warned against false teachings; we are urged to be aware of the lies around us. Believers must both individually and as a unite must seek Christ on any matters involving the truth (Hayes, 3). John told the believers to test the spirits to know how to recognize the Spirit of God. In 1 John 4:2-3 John tells us that “Every spirit recognizes that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God…” With our culture, today and the things that have been going on, it is important for our Church to know the truth of God from the lies of man. The Church oversees handling the Word of God correctly
It may seem a little bit strange, but my favorite place in town in none other than this beautiful Evangelic Church. However, it wasn’t always so.