Author: martinsmanuelbooks

2020, symbol of sharp vision, confronts the American church with a piercing inward look For a while, King David’s life went on as usual, unaffected by his clandestine activity with Bathsheba.  To David, normal was the daily life of Israelite royalty, in public honor, authority, and grandeur.  Eventually he found himself confronted with the disturbing […]

The Apostle John wrote to Christians in his day and afterward: This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live […]

Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd’s neck is a visual metaphor of white American oppression of African Americans. President Donald Trump, standing in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church, holding high a Bible, after forcefully removing peaceful protestors, is a visual metaphor of Christo-Americanism embrace of racism and oppression.

Changing perspective to see the startling message! I have explained in previous Blogs that the Nicene Creed was the fourth-Century Church’s attempt to combat heresy.  But to focus on the negative can cause us to overlook the good.  In this Blog, I will take a stab at mentioning the good message in the Nicene Creed […]

How can Christians and their churches reconcile their beliefs to the truth? The Nicene Creed summarizes Christian essential beliefs.  The Church leaders who collaborated to develop this creed rooted its statements in the Scriptures, mostly the New Testament.  Athanasius, mentioned in the previous Blog as the leader of the cause for orthodoxy – in his […]

What do you believe? Are your beliefs based on truth or error? The Nicene Creed begins each major part with “We believe;” The Apostles Creed similarly says “I believe.”  These statements define the essential beliefs of the Church throughout the world as they were in the fourth Century.  Should not the same to be true […]

Do the Apostles Creed and Nicene Creed agree?  How do they compare with each other?  Why two? Two creeds from the fourth-Century, the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed, state the primary beliefs of Christianity.  Despite the many different Christian sects around the world, these beliefs are held by the vast majority.  A comparison of […]

Is it possible for Christians to believe the same thing?  Should we be content with division? The human race is one.  Whether from Africa, Asia, Europe, or the Middle East there is only one people-type on Earth.  Each and all have faces with similar features and functions.  Each and all have hands and feet.  All […]

What is the relevance of this Blog to the oneness that Jesus prayed for? The reason that I believe that this topic belongs in the Blogs of the Echo of Jesus Prayer website is that the debate about guns in America divides not only the nation, but more crucially, American Christians.  As I have done […]

Fellow Christians: where is our faith? Fellow Christians: where is our faith?  My seminary classmates argued that Christians in America consider the possession of guns reasonable for protection of themselves and their loved ones.  I agree that all humans need to be safe and have the right to defend themselves and their loved ones.  My […]