Stoicism was a prominent philosophy in ancient Greece. In fact, Paul addressed Stoic thought in his speech on Mars Hill. Read more about this philosophical line of thought here. The great thinker and teacher named Zeno of Citium lived from 332 to 262 B.C. Most teachers of his day… Read More

Christians remember Pentecost as the day the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples. But Pentecost is also a Jewish holiday. Read more about the significance of Pentecost. The Birthday of the Church On the day of Pentecost all the Lord’s followers were together in one place. Suddenly… Read More

After the Babylonians destroyed the temple and carried the people of Judah into exile, synagogues emerged as the new centers of worship. Synagogue comes directly from a Greek word that means “gathering.” In the Bible, a synagogue is any group of people who meet together for worship. Just when… Read More

The temple was the center of Jewish worship. One of the most important forms of worship for the Jews was sacrifice. Read more here. In Jesus’ day Jewish people went to worship and to make sacrifices to God at the temple in Jerusalem. Sacrifices required by the Law of… Read More

Baptism plays an important role in the church today. Find out the history of baptism and see what the Bible has to say on this issue. The English word “baptism” comes from the Greek verb that means “to dip in water.” In the Jewish Scriptures (Old Testament) there were laws… Read More

What does the church look like? Theologians have been asking that question for thousands of years. Check out what the New Testament has to say about the church. In the Bible, the Greek word translated as “church” means an assembly or gathering of people who believe in the good… Read More

The covenant defined God’s relationship with his people, and Shavuot celebrates this covenant relationship that appears in Exodus 24. Shavuot (the plural version of the Hebrew word shavuah, or “week”) is the third and last of the annual, weeklong biblical pilgrimage festivals to the holy Temple in Jerusalem, the… Read More

Jews have celebrated this festival for thousands of years. Find out the significance of this celebration and why it has endured. In ancient rabbinic tradition, Sukkot, sometimes called the “Feast of Booths,” is referred to as he-chag, or The Holiday. Today, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are viewed by the… Read More

Gnosticism, a line of thought referenced extensively in The Da Vinci Code, emphasizes the importance of a special knowledge for faith. Read more about the origins and influence of Gnostic thought. The Origins of Gnosticism The term, gnosticism, comes from the Greek word, gn´sis, which means a knowing or… Read More

The Gnostic ideas in The Da Vinci Code are not new. In fact, Irenaeus addressed these ideas thousands of years ago in his work Against Heresies. The Bible did not arrive by fax from heaven. … The Bible is a product of man, my dear. Not of… Read More