The United States may not have been a Christian republic at its start, but it soon became one. Instead of republicanism absorbing religion, religion co-opted and absorbed the energies of republicanism between 1780 and 1860. […]
The American Revolution gave people like Jefferson and Madison an opportunity to disrupt the spread of traditional Christianity in America. Later, Thomas Paine’s Deism arose as a sensational alternative to traditional Christianity. […]
Although the British North Americans colonies were settled by religious communities, Christianity did not have a stronghold in early America. The influence of Republicanism and Enlightenment also left little room for Christianity in the lives of the people of America. […]
Many of the apocryphal gospels were essentially novels written during the early Christian era, and they were filled with adventurous tales of shipwrecks, necrophilia, self-mutilation, and other wild stories. […]
With TV shows, hit Broadway plays, and Presidential candidates, Mormons have recently and suddenly returned to the national spotlight. How did Mormonism begin and what makes it so influential to pop culture today? […]
In October of 1097, after a horrendous four-month march across Asia Minor, which only half of the original army survived, the main force of Crusaders converged on Antioch. Laying the ground work to eventually take Jerusalem. […]
Martin Luther debated many foes in his lifetime, but none troubled him as much as his nightly debates with Satan himself. […]
In this episode of The Torch, we gain insight into early Christianity, Jesus, and his apostles by examining the fascinating texts known as the Christian Apocrypha. […]
The New Testament gives us 27 canonical texts—gospels, letters, and more—but these works are only a tiny fraction of the many volumes written about the life of Jesus, his family, and the apostles. This alternative body of literature falls under the category of “apocrypha,” which means “hidden” or “secret,” and it offers fascinating insights into the early Christian world and how different groups understood the teachings of Jesus and the first apostles. […]
The story of Jesus’ life can be found similarly told in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In fact, they are so similar in parts, that many scholars believe that one of these Gospels was used as a source for the other two. […]
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