Here are my notes on the early history of the Malankara Church. This is tough because there are often too many stories and not enough sources. I did my best so, like always, please get back to me with your comments
Here are my notes on Protestantism. I try to be as fair as possible, though I put the Orthodox slant on the Five Solas as I understood them. As always I am open to correction
Here are the slides from my recent Bible Study at St. Thomas
IOC Philadelphia. Forgive me if they’re not illustrated. I’m sure I could have found a few clearer quotes from the Fathers on Eucharist so I may revise these if I find the time. Enjoy.
Here are some brief notes on Roman Catholici
sm. As in all things I’ve posted for Sunday School, this was meant for 1 to 2 45-minute class sessions. Naturally, there is no way to go into as much depth as is possible. Forgive me then, if I gloss over something serious.
Here are the notes I worked up on the Eastern (Chalcedonian) Churches. I’ll post some informative links when I find them. My intention after I covered the Councils was to talk about the histories of various Churches and branches of Christianity.
These are my notes on the 3 Ecumenical Councils, and the 4th Council which we do not accept.
The Church of the Great Councils
The Church of the Great Councils Complete
Sources:
By no means is this exhaustive, however I do owe these books mention:
In retrospect, this lecture was very similar to the first Pre-Nicene lesson. However, this is more focused on the actual writings and not on the author’s themselves.
Links to selected Pre-Nicene writings below.
In no sense is this chart exhaustive. It seemed like a good exercise to go over some of this material to know what Orthodoxy isn’t.
Pre-Nicene WS -These are the notes I hand out blank
Ignatius of Antioch
Pre-Nicene Church - This is what it should look like once we’re done
Links to Early Church Writings:
Epistle of St. Clement of Rome to the Corinthians
First Apology of Justin Martyr
Justin Martyr’s Dialogue with Trypho
image from kosovo.net
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”
52 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?”
53 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.
54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.
56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.
57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
58 This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.”
66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
-John 6
For those of us who question whether, at the Last Supper, Jesus meant that the bread and wine were only symbolically or allegorically His Body and Blood, we can see in this passage above the seriousness of Christ’s identification of His Flesh with bread. His emphasis on His Body being food and His Blood being drink is so strong that many of his disciples leave Him. Now the Liturgical form of worship can be elaborated on further later, however, we must reference now how the disciples commemorated the Last Supper, that is celebrated the Eucharist, in their lives after the Ascension of Christ and the subsequent Pentecost.
42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.- Acts 2:42
We know that the original Greek form of “prayers” can be rendered “the prayers” as in the traditional Jewish cycle of daily prayers. However the terminology of “breaking of bread” is still used. Why, if the bread and wine are truly Body and Blood of Christ is the term “bread” still used? Notice how Christ, in the passage from St. John says that He Himself is indeed Bread. We know certainly that, at the last Supper (Luke 22: 14-23), he switches and says that the bread is truly His flesh. The idea is that His flesh may be bread and the bread may be His flesh without ceasing to be either. That is why the New Testament uses the terminology of “breaking of bread.”
Continuing on to St. Pauls First letter to the Corinthians (11)
27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
Notice once again the serious and severity towards the Eucharist. The bread and wine are truly Body and Blood of our Lord; so much so that they may bring condemnation down on those who partake of them unworthily.