Here is a puzzle to whet your appetite for our upcoming service celebrating the Protestant Reformation. Below is a woodcut illustration from Martin Luther’s book:
Interpretation of the Epistles, circa 1544:
In this illustration, can you pick out Jesus? The disciples? A bishop? The pope? A papal bull?
(For hints, this picture is based on Matthew 7.)
Not very many people could read during this time period, so many of the stories were told in pictures, and they were often not very flattering to the leaders of the church (satirical comic strips). If you want to see if you correctly identified the images in the picture, click the link below to take you to the explantion given by Pitts Theological Library.
http://www.pitts.emory.edu/dia/detail.cfm?ID=18157
On Sunday, Oct. 31, we’ll look at our church “statement of belief,” which has a strong tie to beliefs and writings of the authors of the Reformation. (You can read it by clicking on the link in the upper right corner.) We’ll also look briefly at why our different denominations came into being and what were the deciding factors that caused them to form. And even if you are not a big history fan, you’ll enjoy hearing some great stories about events that laid the foundation for all of protestantism.
(P.S. A papal bull is a formal declaration handed down by the pope. See you October 31, 2010 at 11 am!)