Monday, April 28, 2025

It is the 28th of April 2025. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

A very happy Monday to you. It is the end of April, and with that, the end of season 6 of the Christian History Almanac. This means little to nothing for you, the listener, and we will simply trudge forward—same format—no changes for now.

Got an email that didn’t make it to the mailbag, but I wanted to answer it and then explain a little bit to make a point for all of us. The question comes from Brett in Elk River, Minnesota (all roads lead to Minnesota on this show- I’m a big fan). Elk River, of course, is home to the infamous Box Car Murder, nicknamed the Energy City, I suppose, but called Elk River because it is at the confluence of Elk River and… the Mississippi! Just your periodic reminder that the Mississippi starts in Minnesota.

Brett is luckily not a Twins fan as they are in the process of sweeping my Angels, but Brett says that he is a White Sox fan… listen, I am an expert at giving my life and emotional well-being to lousy sports teams. The White Sox fan has my true respect- up there with the Browns fans. Baseball season is, as I pivot, the Pentecost of the sports season. Oh sure, you have the short and sweet football seasons- and then the basketball and NHL playoffs come and those are fun to dig into- these are like Christmas and Easter… but what’s that season in the church year that lasts from Pentecost to Advent- that’s the long season of Pentecost- like Baseball, it has to be managed properly… not a sprint, just a marathon. And if you are a fan of the White Sox or Angels, it’s like a marathon you’ve got to run with one leg cut off and being weighed down with heavy weights, and someone is trying to set you on fire.

Brett asks, “What is your understanding of historical theology? How does it compare and contrast with regular ol’ 'church history”?

Ok- I’m going to make this applicable to everyone listening because it can get a little “inside baseball”. Historians, but I suppose most academics love to make distinctions and schools of thought, and all of this becomes a kind of “shorthand” for certain things. But these are often made and accepted without a committee deciding “we shall call X…. Whatever”. And so the definitions tend to be fluid and the beginning of a conversation, not the final word.

Historical Theology has been traditionally in what some call “the history of ideas”- what people thought and how those tings changed- or stayed the same over time. So, Historical theology would take something like predestination, or baptism and lay out who thought what and when. This is helpful stuff.

And then there is a side that focuses more on the people these ideas affect (or don’t affect, sometimes). You might hear this called “social” history, and the emphasis is going to be on the widest swath of people available.

Church history, “ecclesiastical” history if you want to impress you friends, can do both. It can emphasize in the history of ideas, or doctrines or it can look at the pastors and leaders and it can look at the people in the pews. It will surprise no one listening to this show that I try to take the most inclusive approach- I’m thinking of the meme with the young girls saying “why not both” when I come to historical methods.

Let me give you an example of this from my own life and when I was in graduate school. I studied Reformation history and did so with a number of people who would tell you that they are not Christian- coming from a Christian school this was foreign to me. Why would people study this stuff if it wasn’t to bolster their faith and denominational ties, I wondered (even if I never expressed it that way).

One of my favorite office mates was a Glaswegian- he was on the school’s fencing team, which is awesome (although I’m sure he got tired of me calling it “sword fighting,” which I would call it if I did it). We were talking about Luther and I said something like “I don’t think Luther thought that” and Graeme said to me “I don’t care what Luther thought” I was stunned- and he finished up with “I care what people thought Luther thought”… that is, the societal effects more than the pure pristine thought of a person. And the CHA response to that- 20 years later… “why not both”?

 

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and Psalm 122:

I rejoiced with those who said to me,
    “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

Our feet are standing

    in your gates, Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is built like a city

    that is closely compacted together.

That is where the tribes go up—

    the tribes of the Lord—


to praise the name of the Lord

    according to the statute given to Israel.

There stand the thrones for judgment,

    the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

    “May those who love you be secure.

May there be peace within your walls

    and security within your citadels.”

For the sake of my family and friends,

    I will say, “Peace be within you.”

For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,

    I will seek your prosperity.

 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 28th of April 2025, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man in Eastern Minnesota (at least on my map) he is Christopher Gillespie.

 The show is written and read by a man whose Clippers will probably find a way to lose to those dumb Nuggets, somehow… Dan van Voorhis. 

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.