CHURCH HISTORY PART 2

1
CHURCH HISTORYPART 2

• The Church During The Dark Ages

2
The Struggle For Power

• The Dark Ages were dominated by the lust of the
  Papacy for control over the Kings of Europe.
• This created a corrupt church which had little
  desire for spirituality.
• Pope John 23rd (955-963 AD) for example was
  described by his contemporaries as a monster of
  iniquity.

3
Hildebrand

• Otherwise known as Gregory 7th he determined to
  make the Papacy dominant.
• He decided that the practice of temporal kings
  appointing Bishops would be stopped once and for
  all.
• He also knew that as half of the wealth of France
  and Germany belonged to the Church his proposal
  would make the Papacy all powerful.

4
The Emperor in the Snow

• Holy Roman Emperor Henry 4th refused the Papal
  decrees.
• He was placed under an interdict.
• His subjects forced him to go to the Pope for
  penance.
• Gregory made him stand outside barefoot in the
  snow before he would accept him.

5
The Murder of Thomas Beckett1150 AD

• Henry 2nd of England was in a conflict with the
  Archbishop of Canterbury.
• 4 Knights out of loyalty to their King murdered
  Thomas in his Cathedral.
• The Pope summoned Henry to do penance and the
  Church was strengthened.

6
The Humiliation of King John

• John attempted to enable the monks of Canterbury
  to elect their own archbishop.
• The Pope placed England under an interdict.
• The Pope gave France the authority to seize
  England.
• John submitted to the Pope on condition that he
  gave England to the Pope who then demanded a rent
  of 1,000 marks per annum.

7
The Crusades

• Between the 11th and 14th Century there were 7
  crusades under the Church to take Jerusalem from
  the Moslems.
• Many thousands died and their efforts failed.
• The most infamous was the childrens crusade
  which involved thousands of children of an
  average age of 12. Those who did not die were
  taken as slaves.

8
Against Such A Depraved Background Could The
Truth Prevail?

• Witnesses For
• Christ in the Dark Ages

9
Bernard of Clairvoux

• He was a misguided individual who led the 2nd
  crusade.
• Nevertheless he is described as a 12th century
  Elijah.
• He refused high honour preferring the hermits
  life.
• He gave the scriptures a prominent place.
• Before he died he said, there are three things
  on which I base my hopes for eternity the love
  of God for his children, the certainty of his
  promises, and the power by which he makes these
  promises come true.
• Luther said of him, I have never heard or read
  his equal.

10
THE DIOCESE OF MILAN

• This diocese which covered part of Northern
  Italy and Southern France was the last to submit
  to the Popes rule.

11
THE BISHOPS OF MILAN

• Archbishop Ambrose who died in 397 AD believed in
  Justification By Faith alone, the authority of
  the Scriptures alone and in their being two
  sacraments.
• Rufinus in the 5th Century wrote a treatise on
  the Creed that could have been Protestant.
• In the 6th Century , Bishop Laurentius, said a
  man could be forgiven without confessing to the
  priest.

12
THE BISHOPS OF MILAN

• In 590 AD nine bishops rejected communion with
  Rome and regarded the Pope as an heretic.
• Bishop Mansuetus believed the whole faith was in
  the Apostles Creed, in the 7th Century.
• In the 8th Century Bishop Paulinus rejected the
  doctrine of the Mass.

13
Claudius, Archbishop of Turin, Light in an Age
of Darkness

• He publicly opposed the writings of Paschasius
  Radbertus who promoted the Mass.
• That Christ alone is the Head of the Church.
• That the Popes are not in Apostolic succession.
• That the relics are of no value and should be
  returned to the grave.
• He condemned the use of images in worship
  breaking the 2nd Commandment.
• He had such authority that only two dared to
  publicly oppose him during his 20 years of
  ministry.

14
Milan Finally Defeated

• This Diocese lost her independence just before
  the arrival of Hildebrand.
• The clergy protested.
• The Papal envoy was threatened with death.
• The bells were rang to show the opposition of the
  people.
• The cry was, the Ambrosian Church was not
  subject to the laws of Rome that it had been
  always free, and could not, with honour,
  surrender its liberties.

15
The Legacy of Milan and Claudius

• The Waldensians.
• A Church sited in 7 beautiful valleys.
• In The Italian Alps.
• Their geography enabled them to be separate.

16
The Waldensian Church

• She protested against the submission of the
  Diocese of Milan to the Bishop of Rome.
• In the central valley they held an annual synod
  of ministers.
• There was a college here from which missionaries
  were sent to the outside world.

17
The Theology of the Waldensians

• The Nobla Leycon is one of their ancient
  statements of faith.
• They believed in the Trinity.
• As a result of mans fall only the grace of God
  can save a soul.
• Professing believers must live holy lives.
• That the body will be resurrected to enjoy
  eternal heaven.
• They rejected the doctrines and claims of the
  Papacy speaking of him as the harlot of the
  Apocalypse.
• Their New Testament was the earliest translation
  from the Greek language.

18
The Legacy of the Paulicans

• Constantine of Armenia receives a Bible and
  leaves the Church forming a movement based upon
  the teachings of Paul.
• After his martyrdom the officer, called Simeon,
  who superintended his execution is converted and
  becomes a new leader, he too is martyred.
• Their greatest leader was Sergius who for 34
  years travelled throughout Asia and Europe
  winning many converts.
• They suffered cruelly but their teachings became
  disseminated throughout Europe thus preserving
  the gospel stream.

19
The Suffering of the Albigenses

• These were a people who lived in Southern France.
• They turned away from the Roman Church through
  the Word of God.
• In the 13th Century tens of thousands were
  butchered as the Papacy brought this territory
  back to the Church.

20
PROTESTANTS BEFORE PROTESTANTISM

• Preparing the Way for the Reformers

21
JOHN WYCLIFFE

• Often called The Morning Star of the
  Reformation.
• The first to translate the Scriptures into
  English.

22
A Scholar With a Heart

• Attended Oxford at 16 years of age.
• The Black Death of 1349 made a profound impact
  upon him when about 1/3 of the population died.
• In 1361 he became a master of Balliol College and
  later became Doctor of Theology.
• He developed great skill as a writer.

23
A True Patriot

• King John refused to pay the money that the Pope
  demanded.
• Wycliffe supported the King in a pamphlet.
• He represented his country at a meeting with
  Papal Officers in 1374.
• The King rewarded him with an Appointment to the
  Crown Living in Lutterworth, Leicestershire.

24
Wycliffe Clashes With The Church

• He denounced the monks for their laziness and
  begging.
• He spoke against the use of images, pilgrimages,
  indulgences and masses for the dead.
• He denounced the Pope as Antichrist.
• In 1377 he was summoned to a Convocation of the
  Church.
• He was protected by John of Gaunt, the Kings
  Son.
• The Pope issued 5 Bulls against him and condemned
  him on 19 charges.

25
The Crisis of 1381

• Wycliffe condemns transubstantiation.
• He loses the support of Oxford and the King and
  has the weight of the Church against him.
• He is blamed for the Peasants Revolt.
• No-one would dare touch him because of his
  popularity among the common people.
• John of Gaunt advises him to abandon his work of
  reform.

26
The Poor Preachers

• From Lutterworth Wycliffe send his preachers
  through England.
• They were nicknamed Lollards or Poor Preachers.
• They were persecuted yet Wycliffe was untouched
  before his death in 1384.

27
Digging For His Bones

• In 1415 the Council of Constance ordered that his
  bones be dug up and refused reburial.
• The Bishop of Lincoln burned his bones in 1428
  and scattered his ashes into the River Swift.
• And though his bones from the grave were torn,
• Long after his life was ended,
• The sound of his words, to times unborn,
• Like trumpet-call descended.

28
John Huss

• Born in Bohemia, 1369.
• At 34 he was appointed rector of Prague
  University.
• He became troubled partly as a result of reading
  Wycliffes writings.
• Huss left his lucrative position to become the
  preacher in a church built for the poor people
  known as Bethlehem Chapel.

29
Bohemia

• In 1382 Anne of Bohemia married Richard 2nd of
  England.
• She had a remarkable love for Gods Word.
• Her influence enabled the writings of Wycliffe to
  become widely available in Bohemia.

30
Excommunication

• He was excommunicated and Prague placed under an
  interdict for his criticisms of the church.
• In 1414 he was summonsed before the Council of
  Constance.
• Despite assurances of safe passage by the Emperor
  he was burned for his alleged heresies.

31
The Aftermath of Huss

• His followers called Hussites fought a 15 year
  war for the independence of Bohemia.
• In Prague 13 members of the council were thrown
  out of the windows for refusing to release
  prisoners whose only crime was their faith.
• The Hussites lost the political struggle but the
  faith of their great leader remained in Bohemia.

32
The Light is About To Shine

• Next week we shall think
• about the Reformation
• which men like Huss and
• Wycliffe longed to see.