Before Augustine there were internal Christian battles against Heresy, what do you make of this struggle?

Question

The Gnostic heresy, The Arian heresy,the Pelagian Heresy, the Manichean Heresy - all led up to an orthodox approach to Christianity most clearly explianed by St. Athanasius that a Christian must have faith that transcends reason or burn in hell.

Source: A History of Western Philosophy -The Medieval Mind (second edition) by W.T. Jones.

To clarify the question, what prompted Christian leaders to condems will and reason as sinful?

No, this is not a way of trying to prove the Christian religion as bogus. It is a deep and thorough investigation that needs information gathered from numerous sources, Asking Christians at large is one way of getting up-to-date feedback from the source.

Classyjazzer, how much more specific can I be? I identified the time period, named the people/heresies involved and provided the conclusion identifying ther person whose comentary most exemplifies that conclusion.

Orhodox Ted, what are you tlking about???? I was asking about internal division among religious Christians. This has nothing to do with Jews or Muslims.

Answer 1

any organisation, secular or spiritual, will have "teething" problems. The initial christians were finding their feet, trying to organise a religion that thus far had been a cult/sect of Judaism.

It's only natural that they would go through these things.

If you're real question is whether that prooves that Christianisty is bogus...hard one. I'd say no, because the faith is not the same as the religion. You can be a Christian and follow Christian ways without belonging to a church.

I don't, but others do.

ADDITIONAL:
in response to the update. They didn't condemn reason, only that reason must not occlude faith. They realised that if you applied reason to the Christian mythology, it patently doesn't make sense. The reason a lot of aetheists condemn religion. They realised that faith transcended reason, because reason alone could not "proove" the power of God.

Answer 2

Every book will put its own slant on things
(Exception the dictionary :>) )

Athanasius (b. 296), Origen (b. 185), Irenaeus (b. 130)
Church leaders had decided which books were worthy to be called scripture (All books that are now in the New Testament!)

When Jesus told the disciples to baptise in the name of the Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. The Church from that point on defended the faith from outside heresies but defining WHO the Father was, Who The Son was and Who the Holy Spirit was. They had to use reason to determine what was truth and what was false.

Answer 3

Islam could be considered a Heresy, but the church wasn't strong enough to dispel that heresy especially when 100,000 soldiers with swords are parked in front of Constantinople.

However, Christianity took 4 of those 6 Centuries to establish root. Islam took a Century to almost wipe out that root.

Yet, that root exists today except that the old heresies have been resurrected by Zionist Hollywood to chop down the remaining root.

Answer 4

Which Christians are you referring? The Protestants or the Catholics? I am a Christian, but I am not Catholic. I don't hail Mary, because she was no longer a virgin, and before Martin Luther protested the works of the Catholic church, there were the Spanish Inquisitions as well that Protestants didn't believe in. So you really must be more specific.
Protestants mean that we protested the opinions and worldview of the Roman Catholic Church.

Protestants also didn't believe in the Catholic interpretation of whom Jesus was, either. They believe that Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit are 3 distinct persons AND that they are one God.
God in 3 persons, trinity, although trinity isn't in the bible. It was their way of explaining what they didn't understand. This not only caused the confusion in the church and the division, but to confuse matters even more, The Protestants were divided by those that wanted to keep some of the Catholic traditions, and those that wanted to renounce all of them. This is the state of the confusion today.

Answer 5

finally it is the devil who caues this conflict, yet we do have a say in who wins the conflict. As Joyce Meyer and so on have written in books, it is the BATTLEFIED OF THE options. and except we post our will to Gods will on a daily basis and obey God in all issues, the conflict will be lost. WE dont conflict. God does the conflict for us. yet He tells us how through His HOly Spirit, and it isnt His fault if we wont listen. God doesnt make us do something, Nor does the devil. yet each and each area will attempt to tug us their way. one way is existence, GOD< and the different is demise< devil. it truly is our selection who we take heed to and to blame the devil is truly incorrect. God wont listen that execuse or any others. IF we line up our will with Gods will, devil wont succesfully tempt us with something, becasue what's vile to God will be merely as vile to us. The conflict of the flesh might want to be totally submitted to God in acceptable obedience, Jesus grow to be tempted and HE lived without sin. HOW? by technique of acceptable obedience to the daddy. merely as we are commanded to do. With God all issues are a possibility and bring about victory. without God, it is going to all bypass to interrupt. the alternative is ours. can we opt to sin more effective, or please God more effective.?? Thats a good position each and each human beings might want to start up. IF we actually love God < really and are born back, lets have the nature and procedures of JEsus Christ, at the same time with his very awesome personality, and sin will no longer be an difficulty. formerly we die or Jesus comes back to take us abode, we'd want to be like Jesus. and when you consider that he's coming quickly. lets get waiting and stay waiting to fulfill Him even as He comes. Hallelujah. SFCU Spirit filled Christians United definite and Amen. Hallelujah. God bless you. Sister Shirley