Introduction to Church History
Sample Lesson: Level 3
This sample lesson is from the Level 3 course Introduction to Church History
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Our Open Learning courses are designed to help you learn by means of:
Home Study plus Group Meetings plus Practical Application
Home Study
This course is made up of ten Blocks and each Block has four lessons. If you have about 1 ½ hr to spare (very roughly), you can complete one lesson. These lessons require you to read and interact with the course material as well as with your Bible.
Each lesson is programmed to help you check your progress as you work through. To get the maximum benefit it is important that you use the course in the way it was intended:
1. Read section 1 (often referred to by the technical term ‘frame’ 1).
2. Make the response required, if there is one.
3. Check that your answer corresponds with the feedback given in the ‘feedback’ section at the end. (Wherever feedback is given, it is marked with a raven).
4. Proceed to section 2.
Note that the course is programmed you are not being programmed! The aim of programming is that:
1. you can check frequently that you have understood the material presented;
2. you are stimulated to active and critical thinking;
3. you reinforce what you learn and are better able to remember it.
Sometimes, discussion frames are given. These are clearly indicated by a heading ‘For Discussion’ and box. Here you should answer the question in your own words and come to the group meeting prepared to discuss the question as indicated.
At the end of each lesson, we encourage you to spend some time in reflection on how what you have learnt applies to you in the situation where God has placed you.
Group Meeting
Regular group meetings take place (normally fortnightly) where you will have the opportunity to discuss points of interest that have arisen and think through with others how your learning may be applied. At the end of each block of home study, you will also normally be given a five-minute quiz.
The group meetings give the opportunity for you to clarify ideas and to share your own thoughts and to listen to the ideas of others. The process of learning from the Bible in a group is an essential part of the programme. It is here that you are able to think through areas of application and to pray and support each other in your studies.
Practical Application
Built into our courses are questions that encourage you to apply the message of the Bible to daily life. You are also encouraged to think through how your studies relate to your own discipleship and the mission and ministry of the local church.
The Uses and Abuses of Church History
Preparing for this lesson:
• Take a moment to pray that God will help you as you begin this course on the Church History.
• It will be helpful to keep a notebook handy to note down any questions or issues for discussion.
At the end of this lesson you will be able to:
Objectives
1. list two misunderstandings about history;
2. identify three of the problems involved in the writing of history;
3. identify the legitimate uses of Church History.
a. What is Church History?
1. Welcome to the first lesson of the study of Church History! At the beginning of each lesson, you will notice that we ask you to read a section from the set textbook. Each lesson’s study revolves around the set reading assignment, and it is usually advisable to read the assignments before you start this material. However, in this lesson we are breaking the rule and ask you not to do this - yet! Before you read the assignments, we would like to find out what you already know about history and to provide some background to help you understand the reading assignments. This is why you are being asked to delay doing the reading until later in the lesson.
Suppose before going any further, we were to ask you what you think you are about to study, and why, how would you answer.
2. Let’s probe a bit further, then. Here are two more questions:
a. What is history?
b. Why should I need to know about all these events, facts and figures?
3. The statements 'history teaches' or 'history repeats itself' are examples of how people misunderstand the meaning of the term history and its value. If the term 'history' is used to refer to the actual events of the past, they cannot come to life and 'teach'. Although historians use the events of the past to teach, sometimes they misuse the past and try to teach things that cannot legitimately be learned from studying history. Which of the following in your opinion can be learned from a study of history, if it is understood as the historian's account of the past?
a. everything that happened in the past
b. completely reliable knowledge about the past
c. knowledge about the future
d. all of the above
e. none of the above
4. Historians clearly cannot write about everything that happened in the past, because they must base their account entirely on the records that have survived. Think for a moment of what would survive fifty years after your death if someone wanted to write the story of your life. What materials could a future historian use to reconstruct your life?
5. Are there any important features or events of your life for which there is no written record, even today? How might we acquire some information on these periods?
6. The historian attempting to write the history of a past age is faced with similar problems. Much of what we would like to know was not preserved in a written record. Furthermore, just as records of your past may be thrown away in a spring-cleaning blitz, so over the centuries have important records been destroyed or lost. What particular difficulties do you think a Church Historian might face in writing the history of the 1stcentury Church?
7. Even when records do survive, historians can never be entirely certain of the accuracy of the material from which they are working. Look at the following examples:
a. three witnesses of a road accident give conflicting reports of the colour of the cars involved.
b. the commander of a defeated army names other factors than his own incompetence to explain the defeat.
c. a tabloid newspaper exposes a scandal involving an MP.
What should a historian take into consideration in using this material?
8. Just as a historian has to be aware of possible difficulties when making use of source material, so readers of historical books - you and I - need to be aware of how the historian might have been influenced. He or she is a "second stage writer". What do we need to take into consideration when reading a historian's account of the past ?
9. Historians often ask questions of the past that their society is asking of the present. They also come to their study with preconceived ideas that often reflect the beliefs, values and ways of understanding that are part of their previous experience or their culture.
Can you think of any concrete examples of either of these?
10. How might the latter factor be evident?
11. We can also misrepresent things as much by what we leave out as by what we state. If we tell only half the story or emphasise only one side of an argument we are distorting the past as much as if we were actually presenting false information. Many of you will have read books or seen television programmes which are guilty of telling only one side of the story. Think about this, and, if you can, give an example of this and point out how a one-sided presentation gave a false picture of the past.
12. Now turn to the reading assignment. First read the article by John Briggs entitled 'Weighing up the Evidence' [pp 35-37] in which Briggs refers to other problems the historian faces in evaluating evidence and the caution which must be exercised. List two things the historian must avoid in arriving at conclusions about the past.
13. What does Briggs mean by 'interpreting the facts?
14. Briggs also deals with the problem of the historian's objectivity (as discussed in frames 8-11). In his opinion the historian can never be totally objective because scholars cannot totally escape their own past. Do you agree?
15. By now, it is to be hoped that you have a better idea why a study of history does not aim to tell us everything that happened in the past, nor can it give us completely reliable knowledge about the past (see frame 3). But what about the future? Does history repeat itself? Many would say yes. Sociologists observe that children brought up in violent families are likely to be violent themselves, but are there no exceptions? Can you think of any examples of "poor man makes good", or children who have not followed the pattern of their family?
16. One big factor here must be the great number of variables in human life. What do you think is the most significant?
17. Turn now to the second article by Briggs entitled 'God, Time and History'. This deals with a number of related topics, but overall what do you think Briggs is trying to illustrate?
18. Briggs uses the example of history providing a third dimension which makes it possible to see 'the true thickness of events'. Another way of stating that is to think of history providing perspective. Think of the difference between a 3D picture and a 2D picture. If we simply study the present, and have no idea of the past, it is like viewing a 2D picture whose flatness leaves unclear the relationship between objects in the picture. A correct or incorrect understanding of the past can have a major impact on how we deal with the present. How might the following situations exemplify this?
a. A person’s cynicism about life increases because the world seems to be on a downward spiral.
b. A minister refuses to give up an apparently fruitless parish ministry.
c. A church member stops coming to church because of the corruption he sees within it.
d. A person supports racist organisations because that individual is convinced that purity of race makes a nation great.
b. The Value of Church History
19. In the last part of this lesson we will concentrate specifically on the value the study of Church History has for Christians since many of the people taking this course will be Christians. We will begin again with your present understanding. In what ways do you think Christians can benefit from the study of Church History? One way to approach this question is to ask yourself why you took this course and what you hope to gain from it. Jot down some notes about that now. Are your answers any different now from those in frame 1?!
Introduction to Church History
20. Consider this statement about the value of history for Christians.
The Christian faith centres its message on an historical event, and the history of the Christian Church is the story of how the people who claimed to follow Jesus Christ responded to that event. The doctrines which Christians believe and confess were defined by the Church after the end of the apostolic age and the history of the Church is the story of two thousand years of God dealing with His people.
Too often, however, it is a dismal story of seemingly endless theological controversy over fine points of doctrine as well as cruelty, lovelessness and brutality by those who claimed to be ambassadors for Jesus Christ. This is the history we would like to forget, but it is a vital part of acquiring a realistic understanding of the Church.
Honest historical study will strip away past myths, oblige us to face the facts honestly, and acknowledge failures. In the process we will learn that the history of the Christian Church is essentially a repeat of Israel's story about the failure of human beings and the mercy of God. In that sense it repeats the Gospel message again and again as it tells of human inadequacy and God's mercy. Thus Christians, rather than hiding from the truth about the failure of the Church and its leaders, should of all people be most prepared to face that truth.
Examine the passage carefully, then take two different colour pens and use one to underline all the parts that you think Briggs would agree with. Use the other to underline any sections you think a person who was not a Christian would find unacceptable in the statement.
21. Although the historian cannot make statements about God, Christians operating from the assumptions of the Christian faith can and do refer to divine intervention. However, when they do, they need to recognise that they move beyond any strictly historical discipline. A Christian, operating from the assumptions of the Christian faith, can, after beginning with what can be established historically, use the past in the same way the Jewish people used the Old Testament. Christians believe that God reveals Himself in His dealing with His people in history as He did with Israel. For example, God promises to provide for His people and throughout the history of the Church the Christian can find evidence that this promise was fulfilled. Can you think of any examples?
22. The history of the Christian Church is often a sad story of the failure of inadequate human beings. However, again and again the Church experienced renewal in the worst of all times, and not only survived but thrived. One excellent example of this is the eighteenth-century revival to be studied in week eight. Although as historians we will seek to find natural explanations for the revival, Christians will also explain revival in terms of God's intervention and provision for His Church. Although this is a
legitimate use of Church History for the Christian, we must always be careful about the “abuses” and not allow our religious bias to distort our picture of the past. Which of the following do you feel might be some of the ways in which Christians misuse history?
a. Attempting to trace God's hand in a very specific way in all events.
b. Presuming that because God acted in a certain way before, He will do so again.
c. Using history in an effort to establish that God is on the side of a particular denomination or church body
23. What do you think Briggs means by the statement “Christians both know and yet do not know the meaning of history” (p17)? Do you agree?
24. Briggs ends his article with the statement, 'So the two harvests belong together - the harvest of the wheat is not despite the tares, but because of them.' Make notes below about what you think he means, and use your notes as a basis for the group meeting discussion.
c. Review
25. Before turning to the assignment in the final frame it may be useful to review what you have learned to see if you have achieved the objectives for the lesson. Begin your review by listing two misunderstandings about history. 1. 2.
26. Now list three problems encountered in the writing of history. 1. 2 3.
27. Finally select from the following list the legitimate uses of Church History:
a. providing a special perspective which aids an understanding of the present;
b. providing examples of how God supported a denomination or nation;
c. providing encouragement for Christians;
d. providing information and examples to aid us in making wiser decisions;
e. providing an infallible guide for the future.
28. Now that you have been encouraged by what you have learned, you are ready to apply it. The final assignment in this lesson is to begin writing some Church History. One of the best places to begin is with the history of a local church. This is a major assignment and will not be limited to this lesson. Rather you should continue adding to your history throughout the course. Begin by selecting the church in your area which will provide the best subject for your history. This may be your local parish church or perhaps another church nearby which has a longer history and better records. Before you select the church investigate whether there are sufficient records on which to base your history. Search for written records such as parish registers, church wardens' accounts, PCC minutes, parish magazines, letters, any diaries, journals or autobiographies of previous clergy. Secondary materials such as a parish history may well be available to help you. Consider also what you might learn from church architecture or surviving artefacts. As far as contemporary history is concerned, why not seek to set up interviews with older members of the congregation. These can be extremely valuable as a kind of oral history, and you may care to build up a new archive by taping such conversations.
Secondly, what can be learned from this history in addition to simple factual information? What, in other words, would be legitimate “uses” of the history you are going to write? You might also consider possible “abuses” of that history. As you continue the course, try to apply what you have learned to the history of your parish by asking yourself how the events studied in each period affected your parish church. At the end of the course you should hand in your completed parish history. This is one of your two set assignments as you will see in week 10. As you work through the course continue working on this assignment.
See you next lesson!
Reflecting on this lesson
Note down in your notebook anything from today’s lesson:
• that you want to discuss in your group meeting;
• that is significant for your own personal faith;
• that is significant for explaining the Christian Gospel to others. Spend some time in prayer asking God to help to put into practice what you have learnt.
