Mark Galli - 131 Christians Everyone Should Know

When Henry Ford declared that history is bunk, he no doubt thought he was uttering wisdom. But his dictum is a classic instance of well, bunk, and bunk in its purest form. Both the processes and the characters of history have a vast amount to teach us; studying them matures our judgment and frees us from blind submission to present-day prejudices. It has often been said, if we will not learn from history, we sentence ourselves to repeat its mistakes. This is supremely true of Christian history, which shows us the conflict of God's Word with the world, in and through the lives of his servants, and sets before us the possibilities of living for God that had never before entered our minds.

Readers of the excellent journal, Christian History, of which Mark Galli and Ted Olsen have been editors, will know exactly what I mean when I say that, and non-readers of the journal who read the present volume will soon find out. There is not a dull line in this book; its well-chosen 131 characters come vividly to life, as our brothers and sisters in Christ; and learning the lesson of their careers is as pleasant a task as chewing candy. If you like the thought of history with edification, and without tears, this is certainly a book for you. Its authors have served you well.

J.I. Packer
Regent College
Vancouver

Some profiles were adapted from articles written in Christian History over the years; and first drafts of others were contributed by Kelvin Crow, Kathy Mulhern, William Martin, and Mary Ann Jeffreys. Most, however, were written by the authors, and whether as editors or authors, they take responsibility for any errors that remain therein.

It has been said that history is biography, although you wouldn't know it by reading many history books. Too often stories, quotes, and anecdotes are replaced with analysis, statistics, grand social movements, and dates piled upon one another. No wonder people find history boring.

We don't, and that's because the nature of our workpublishing a history magazine for a general audiencecontinually forces us to ask a simple question: What's really interesting about this? Most of the time, the answer lies in the people who have made history happen, without whom important dates would be just numbers. Here we present 131 of those interesting, and important, people.

Why 131 exactly? We determined first some of the callings Christians have practiced through the ages, then chose the ten (or, in one case, eleven) most important and interesting for each calling. Most of our choices can be easily defended, but we admit some are arbitrary. Space constraints have forced us to leave out some key figures (like poet W. H. Auden, Pentecostal preacher William Seymour, and theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, for instance), and personal passions have dictated we include others less well-known (like theologian John of Damascus and adventist William Miller).

As for the adjective Christian: some of the individuals profiled here had, because of their times and circumstances, a limited understanding of the full-orbed faith. But since we see the same limitations in ourselves, it seemed only right that we err on the side of charity in determining who was Christian.

This doesn't mean we've chosen the 131 Christians we most admire or with whom we agree. This is a book about 131 Christians everyone should know because of what they've contributed to history and because of their intrinsic interestnot 131 Christians we should all emulate. Though certainly all have something to teach us.

As such, this is not a bad place to begin research, since we've striven to remain accurate throughout, separating myth from history where necessary, and including key dates and quotes. But the book is primarily designed for those who want to have a deeper appreciation of their Christian heritageand enjoy it.

Mark Galli
Ted Olsen
Christian History

THE AGE OF JESUS AND THE APOSTLES

Crucifixion of Jesus; Pentecost

Stephen martyred; Paul converted

Paul begins missionary journeys

Council of Jerusalem

Paul's Letter to the Romans

Fire of Rome; Nero launches persecutions

Peter and Paul executed

THE AGE OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY

Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus

Ignatius of Antioch martyred

Justin Martyr dedicates his First Apology

Polycarp martyred

Montanist movement begins

Irenaeus writes Against Heresies

Tertullian begins writing

Origen begins writing

Earliest known public churches built

Cyprian elected bishop of Carthage

Decius orders empire-wide persecution

Antony takes up life of solitude

Great Persecution begins under Diocletian

THE AGE OF THE CHRISTIAN EMPIRE

Conversion of Constantine

Donatist Schism begins

Edict of Milan

Eusebius completes Ecclesiastical History

First Council of Nicea

Ulphilas, translator of Gothic Bible, becomes bishop

Basil the Great founds monastic community

Athanasius's letter defines New Testament canon

Christianity made state religion of Roman Empire

First Council of Constantinople

Augustine converts to Christianity

Ambrose defies emperor

Chrysostom consecrated bishop of Constantinople

Jerome completes the Vulgate

Rome sacked by Visigoths

Council of Ephesus

Patrick begins mission to Ireland

Leo the Great consecrated bishop of Rome

Valentinian's Edict strengthens primacy of Rome

Council of Chalcedon

Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite writes

Boethius completes Consolation of Philosophy

Justinian publishes his legal Code

Benedict writes his monastic Rule

Columba establishes mission community on lona

THE CHRISTIAN MIDDLE AGES

Gregory the Great elected Pope

Ethelbert of Kent converted

Muhammad's hegira: birth of Islam

Synod of Whitby

Boniface begins mission to the Germans

Controversy over icons begins in Eastern church

Bede's Ecclesiastical History published

Battle of Tours

Donation of Constantine written about this time

Pepin III's donation helps found papal states

Alcuin becomes royal adviser to Charles

Second Council of Nicea settles icon controversy

Charlemagne crowned Holy Roman Emperor

Treaty of Verdun divides Carolingian Empire

East-West conflict over Photius begins

Cyril and Methodius begin mission to Slavs

Monastery at Cluny founded

Christianization of Russia

1054 East-West Split

1077 Emperor submits to pope over investiture

1093 Anselm becomes archbishop of Canterbury

1095 First Crusade launched by Council of Clermont

1115 Bernard founds monastery at Clairvaux

1122 Concordat of Worms ends investiture controversy

1141 Hildegard of Bingen begins writing

1150 Universities of Paris and Oxford founded

1173 Waldensian movement begins

1208 Francis of Assisi renounces wealth