Studying Christian Church History

At religious high schools and colleges many students study Church history, involving their specific denominations as well as the history of the universal catholic church. Many faithful people also seek to learn the history of their particular faith system. Here are a few reasons students and curious individuals should study Christian church history and a few tips to aid study of church history.

Reason to study church history # 1: The Bible is concerned with history. Not only does the Bible serve as a book of faith, but it is also a historical document.

Reason to study church history # 2: Christianity is rooted in history. The events that serve as the base for the Christian faith occurred thousands of years ago.

Reason to study church history # 3: Ignorance of church history creates identity crises for individuals, churches, and denominations.

In Theology Today in 1981 James McCord said, "Religious communities today are marked by a certain collective amnesia, itself fostered by preoccupation with the uniqueness of the problems of the present. But we are not the only generation that God has addressed, an our ears are not more sharply attuned than those of our forebears."

Reason to study church history # 4: Knowledge of church history provides resources for dealing with culture and tradition. Understanding the past helps people to sort out what is biblical from what is a cultural influence, habit, or tradition.

Reason to study church history # 5: Church history provides warnings from the mistakes of the past. It also provides positive examples from achievements of the past.

Reason to study church history # 6: Church history has practical relevance for Christian ministry. It helps nurture depth and perspective for discerning the times and it can also be used as a source for sermon illustrations.

Now that you know the many reasons to study church history, here are tips to help you.

Tip for studying church history # 1: Read actively, don't just skim passively and expect the subject to become interesting and useful.

Tip for studying church history # 2: Know the difference between primary and secondary sources. This is helpful when studying any type of history and is particularly important when studying Christian church history.

Tip for studying church history # 3: Know the difference between fact (widely accepted by historians and can be verified by sources), inference (conclusion or judgement made by historian based on facts), and opinion (often involves a moral, personal, or psychological evaluation and is less reliable than a reasonable reference).

Tip for studying church history # 4: Learn to think historically. This means being sensitive to context and alert to significance. It is important to look for historical connections that help tie history together over long stretches of time.

Tip for studying church history # 5: Remember to ask questions like what happened?, how did it happen?, why did it happen?, and why is it important?