Articles

Why Do We Mix Wine and Water in Communion?

This article discusses the reasons why most Christian traditions and denominations mix wine and water in the communion cup. Image: AI generated using Google Gemini, April 22, 2025
Read the article Posted April 22, 2025.

How Do We Determine When To Celebrate Easter?

This article discusses how the date of Easter is determined and the histroy behind the formula that is currently used. Image: Part of the tapestry Resurrection of Christ (Raphael c. 1519)
Read the article Posted April 12, 2025.

Ordination of Women

What is the source of the assertion that only men can be ordained? This is a contentious issue in Christendom today. This article explores scriptures for the source of that assertion. Image: Part of a picture of an Icon of St. Phoebe (origin unknown)
Read the article Posted January 29, 2025.

Communion or the Lord's Supper

There are four common interpretations of what happens during the Communion or Lord’s Supper ritual performed in most Christian churches. They are called Transubstantiation, Consubstantiation, “Spiritual Presence” or “Spiritual Union,” and Memorialism. This article describes the origins of Communion and explains the different points of view on what happens during the ritual. Image: Part of The The Last Supper by Juan de Juanes (c. 1562)
Read the article Posted January 4, 2025.

The Names of God

In English translations of the Bible, Christians refer to God as God, Lord, and Father, sometimes with modifiers like Heavenly Father or Almighty God. The Bible was written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. This article explores how God's name was written in those languages in the Bible. Image: Part of The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo (c. 1508) from the ceiling of the Sistine chapel.
Read the article Posted December 4, 2024.

Are Christians Required to Tithe?

A common question among Christians is about giving to the Church. People have heard the term "tithing" and want to know what it means and what Christians are required or expected to give. This article explains what tithing is and what Jesus taught about giving.Image: Christ and the young rich ruler, by Heinrich Hofmann (1889)
Read the article Posted November 19, 2024.

Apostolic Succession, What is it and Who Has It?

The churches representing two-thirds of Christians believe that Apostolic Succession is required for a valid ministery. This article explains Apostolic Succession and discusses which churches claim to have it. Image: St Paul ordains Timothy, by Dom Sankt Rupert und Virgil, Salzburg (1891)
Read the article Posted November 9, 2024.

Is Christianity in Decline? What do the numbers show?

The popular press these days seems to delight in publishing articles asserting that religion, and especially Christianity, is in rapid decline. Let's take a look at the numbers. Image: Christ in Gethsemane, by Heinrich Hofmann(1886)
Read the article Posted November 1, 2024.

The Christian Trinity Explained

The Christian concept of the Trinity is fairly easily explained, but it is not easy to understand fully because God is unique. In this article, I provide a concise explanation, link to traditional explanations, provide some analogies, and discuss the biblical basis for the Trinity. Image: The Trinity, fresco by Luca Rossetti da Orta (1738-9) St. Gaudenzio Church at Ivrea (Torino), Italy.
Read the article Posted October 24, 2024.

The Ten Commandments

Have you ever noticed that Catholics and Protestants use different versions of the Ten Commandments? Why is that and which is correct? Have you ever heard that some of the commandments as listed in popular sources are inaccurate translations? This article explores the commandments as recorded in the Old Testament to addess these questions. Image: Moses Breaking the Tablets of the Law, Rembrandt(1659).
Read the article Posted October 22, 2024.

What was Jesus called in His day?

The name Jesus is the result of transliterating His name from ancient Aramaic or Hebrew to Greek to Latin and then to English. His name was not pronounced how we say the name Jesus in English today. This article discusses how His name was pronounced in His day.
Read the article Posted October 22, 2024.

Predestination

Various passages in the Bible imply that some of us are predestined or elect to go to heaven. What about the rest of us? How do we know if we are elect? Doesn't faith determine our salvation, not predestination? Different Christian denominations teach a varity of ways to understand predestination. This article discusses this concept of Predestination. Image: Part of The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo (c. 1508) from the ceiling of the Sistine chapel.
Read the article Posted October 22, 2024.