I BELIEVE

What is more central to Christian practice and belief than our creedal phrase for this week, “the forgiveness of sins”?

Do we have too many churches? The debate is on!

We're sticking with "the communion of the saints," to continue understanding what happened to the Church throughout history. This week, we're taking it all the way up to the year 2020!

Should the Protestant Reformation have occurred? That is our question for today! A Protestant theologian and a Catholic theologian try to persuade us of their respective visions.

Our church history bootcamp continues, picking up in the year 1500 with the so-called “Protestant Reformation.” What were they reforming, and what were they protesting? How can the church have unity when it is so divided, and truly become a “communion of saints” together?

We continue with the creedal phrase, “the holy catholic church,” with an incisive whirlwind tour through 1,000 years of church history by friend of the class and GFU alum Fr. Stephen Kenyon, a Catholic priest in a parish near Medford, OR. Listen to learn about how themes of UNITY, EVANGELISM, and MONASTICISM were expressed in the medieval Church.

What is the Church, exactly? Is the Church corrupted by money? Should ministers be paid? Should anyone profit off of working at a Christian institution of any kind? Would Jesus have approved of our churches? What is “low church” and “high church”? Dr. Joseph Clair, our Monday lecturer, along with Pastor Lydia and Dr. Garcia are back as panelists to tackle these questions—and, as always, much more.

Do you believe in the Church? Should we believe in the Church? Dr. Joseph Clair asks us to consider the meaning of “church,” thinking about the metaphors this element of Christian faith requires and what gifts we have received from the “Early Church” (roughly 100-500 AD). This is the first in a four-part series we’re calling our “Church History Bootcamp,” which will narrate what happened after the New Testament and why the Church is what it is today.

How active is the Holy Spirit in our world today? What should Christians expect—in terms of gifts, miracles, and even people being raised from the dead? Our two course directors, Dr. Leah Payne and Dr. Brian Doak, clash on this topic! Moderated by our Monday lecturer Dr. Sarita Edwards.

Finally: the third member of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit! Dr. Sarita Edwards gives us a whirlwind tour of some Holy Spirit basics, teaching us where the Holy Spirit appears in Scripture and how we might think of the work of the Spirit today.