Church Matters: Retrieving the Great Tradition

Append i x

281

Appendix 61 What You Should Know about Christian History AD 1780-1914 From Timothy Paul Jones, Christian History Made Easy , Torrance: Rose Publishing, 2005. p. 114. Four Events You Should Know 1. Publication of Critique of Pure Reason (1781): According to Immanuel Kant’s Critique, human reason can neither prove nor deny any spiritual reality, including the being of God. 2. Formation of African Methodist Episcopal Church (1816). Richard Allen, a free Black, formed the AME because some American Methodists refused to ordain African-American bishops. 3. Five Fundamentals Declared (1895): At a conference in Niagara the Evangelical Alliance, an association of conservative Christians, set forth five beliefs that they viewed as fundamental to their faith – the inerrancy of Scripture, and Jesus Christ’s unique deity, virgin birth, substitutionary atonement, and future return. 4. Boxer Rebellion (1901): A Chinese political party reacted violently against foreign interference in China’s national and cultural affairs. Many missionaries were murdered. Seven Names You Should Know 1. G.W.F. Hegel (1770-1831): German thinker. Taught that all ideas (theses), opposing opinions (antitheses), and debates (dialectics) are part of an upward process of intellectual evolution. 2. Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855): Danish thinker. Emphasized subjectively experiencing God’s revelation. Criticized coupling Christianity with any nation or culture. 3. J. Nelson Darby (1800-1882): Leader of the Plymouth Brethren, a Christian sect that stressed piety and simplicity. Taught a dispensational view of Scripture. 4. Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882): Liberal philosopher and poet. Taught that “the highest revelation is that God is in every man.” 5. George Mueller (1805-1898): Plymouth Brethren pastor and English social reformer. Founded orphanages that relied on Christians’ gifts for support. 6. Walter Rauschenbusch (1861-1918): As a Baptist pastor in a New York slum, Rauschenbusch struggled to deal with social evils. He became the foremost proponent of the Social Gospel.