Bridge of Reason

  The Council of Trent was the 19th ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. It met from 1545 to 1563 in Trento, Italy in response to the ever-growing influence of the Protestant Reformation. The Council was particularly concerned about a former German monk named Martin Luther. He was teaching that a person could be saved by faith alone, in Christ alone, without the need for the sacraments and ceremonies offered by the Roman Catholic Church. It was his doctrine of ‘sola fide’ (Latin for ‘by faith alone’), amongst other things he taught, that angered the Council, causing them to gather and respond forcibly. They were furious that Luther was preaching and teaching that salvation could be obtained outside the visible Church. Extra ecclesiam nulla salus The Roman Catholic Church taught, and continues to teach (though they seek to make it a little more palatable these days) extra ecclesiam nulla salus, which means that ‘outside the Church there is no salvation’. It teaches that ...

As we mark the 500th anniversary of the Reformation people are queuing up to offer their ‘95 Theses for the Twenty First Century.’ Not least among this number is Steve Chalke. 'In the early years of the 16th century, German priest and scholar Martin Luther came to believe that the shape of the established Church and its relationship to the State did not fit the needs of the world in which he was called to live and serve,' Chalke said. 'In the early years of the 21st century it is clear, once more, that the shape of the established Church and its relationship to the State no longer fits the needs of the world in which we are called to live and serve. It is time, once again, to reimagine the role of faith, Church and its place in the public square.' Read further here. Chalke, who has a reputation for twisting Scripture, wrenching it from its original meaning and purpose, seems just as capable of twisting history. I imagine Luther turning in his grave at being caricature...