unit 2:assignment 3&4

The Synoptic Problem is the question of how the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke are so similiar in their views. Questions arise of whether each gospel was written individually or if they based all their information on eye witness situations. Some believe in the Two-source Hypothesis which states the Matthew and Luke got a lot of their information and ideas from the writtings of Mark and another source called the "Q"source.

The Anglican view on the authority of the Bible is it is the medium through which God by the Spirit communicates his word in the Church and so enables people to respond with understanding and faith.

unit 2: assignment 2

The New Testament was written after 45 AD and before 140 AD. The original copy was written in Greek, the most comman language at the time.

The epistles are the 21 early letters in the third gospel.

Paul was born around year 10 and died around year 65. He didn't know Jesus personally in his life time, but was still able to know him really well. Paul wasn't always a Christian, in fact he used to persecute Christians. Until on the Road to Damascus he had a vision of the ressureted Christ and from then on was a strong believer. The New Testament to attributed mostly to Paul than any other author. He was a very important part our Christian history.

unit 2:assignment 1

Heroes from the Old Testament are:
Noah
Abraham
Joseph
Moses
Samuel
Saul
David
Solomon
Elijah

The ten commandments are:
1) I am the Lord your God, you shall have no other gods before me.
2) You shall not make yourself idols and worship them.
3) You shall not use the Lords name in vain.
4) Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.
5) Honor your father and mother.
6) You shall not commit murder.
7) You shall not commit adultery.
8) You shall not steal.
9) You shall not give false testimony against your neighbour.
10) You shall not covet your neighbour's wife.

assignment 4

Confirmation did not exist before the 4th century because back then, it took atleast three years for a person to be baptized. Most everyone who was baptist was an adult because it was very rare to be born into a family with two Christian parents. The bishop of the town would do his blessings for baptism and there would be no need for confirmation. Then in 313 AD the legalizatoin of Christianity occured and the bishops did not know what to do with the children that were already baptized at birth. They decided to create confirmation for the children who had been raised in a Christian household so they could have the oppertunity to choose to be a Christian by themselves.
In the early church the baptized ones had a preparation time of three years. This tested how badly they wanted to be a Christian. Now a day the preparation time is much shorter.
There are many reasons to become confirmed, but there are four really important ones that everyone experiences. The first being able to have the oppertunity to teach, learn and have self discovery. This is very important to achieve if you want to be a true Christian. The second reason is to confirm the baptismal vows that were made when you were baptized as a child. Confirmation is the true act of stating your faith in God to the congregation. Thirdly it is the rite in which we recieve strength from the Holy Spirit. The moment the bishop blesses us, the Holy Spirit strengthens us. The last reason is that confirmation is a statement that you are not only part of a single church, but that you are a member of a world wide belief.