History

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee points to a life of service – and to Christ, the Servant king
2022-06-01T14:40:00+01:00By George Pitcher
As we prepare to celebrate 70 years since Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne, Rev George Pitcher points out the parallels between the Defender of the Faith and the King of Kings
Elizabeth Finch: Julian Barnes’ novel fails to grasp the rudiments of Christianity
2022-05-22T10:24:00+01:00By Simon Thomas
The Booker Prize winning author Julian Barnes has supposedly written a “loving tribute to philosophy”. But our reviewer says his latest novel misunderstands what Christianity is all about
Why the image of the crucifixion should still shock Christians
2022-04-14T14:12:00+01:00By Martyn Whittock, Historian
The early Christians found the crucifixion so shocking that they didn’t make an image of it for 200 years. Historian Martyn Whittock charts how the Church has depicted the cross since then
Is St Valentine’s Day a Christian festival?
2022-02-14T09:53:00+00:00By Karen Murdarasi
Karen Murdarasi isn’t sure there’s much historical accuracy in the myths and legends that surround the origins of St Valentine’s Day. But that doesn’t mean Christians shouldn’t take the opportunity it presents to love those around them well.
We should give thanks for the angel armies that helped win the first world war
2022-02-09T10:04:00+00:00By John Scriven, Historian
German prisoners said they saw large forces behind the British lines
Is Christmas a pagan festival?
2021-12-21T09:08:00+00:00By Karen Murdarasi
Is Jesus’ birth really the reason for the season? Or did early Christians simply steal a much older, pagan festival and parachute Christ in? Karen Murdarasi explains
Did God give Britain victory in past wars because we prayed? This book says so, but its sources are flawed
2021-11-26T17:11:00+00:00By Dr Roland Clark
Britain fought amazingly well in the great wars of the twentieth century. In Beyond the Odds, John Scriven provide engaging and detailed accounts of incredible bravery, luck, and courage by British soldiers and generals during the First and Second World Wars and the Falklands War.
The surprise of Christmas
2021-11-26T09:14:00+00:00By RT Kendall
Into the darkness of Galilee a great light came. RT Kendall wonders if we could be on the cusp of our own revival this Christmas
Sojourner Truth: The slave who became a gospel preacher
2021-10-25T11:26:00+01:00By Karen Murdarasi
This inspiring preacher confounded the expectations of her day for both women and black people
Thomas Johnson: How a slave became the first Black student at Spurgeon’s College
2021-10-20T15:04:00+01:00By Rev Prof Philip McCormack, Principal, Spurgeon's College
Thomas Johnson was a slave who became one of the first Black men to study at Spurgeon’s College. This is his amazing story
3 black Christian scientists who changed the world
2021-10-11T14:55:00+01:00By Omololu Fagunwa, Microbiologist
Their Christian faith motivated them to help make the world a better place
Songs of Praise: Celebrating 60 years of God speaking through television
2021-10-05T13:50:00+01:00By Prof Dr Noël Tredinnick, Songs of Praise conductor
Songs of Praise's longest serving living conductor pays tribute to the programme
I’m a Christian and I survived 9/11. Here’s what I want the next generation to know
2021-09-10T09:39:00+01:00By Christina Ray Stanton
NYC tour guide Christina Ray Stanton survived 9/11. Here’s what she wants Christians everywhere to know about evil and suffering
Bullies and Saints - John Dickson
2021-08-24T15:03:00+01:00By Jon Kuhrt
John Dickson begins his book with an account of 15 July 1099, when Christian Crusaders mercilessly slaughtered thousands of Muslims sheltering in a sacred precinct in Jerusalem.
The Christian entrepreneur behind the UK’s favourite jam
2021-08-24T11:49:00+01:00By Peter Lupson
It’s 150 years since William Hartley established a brand of jam that is still the market leader in the UK today
The Christian faith of CS Lewis
2021-06-30T11:35:00+01:00By Alister McGrath, Andreas Idreos professor of science and religion at the University of Oxford
CS Lewis’ books communicate some of the most profound truths of the Christian faith in a way that all can understand, and remain classics to this day, says Alister McGrath
How one million Bibles were smuggled into China in just two hours
2021-06-17T10:55:00+01:00By Ben Cohen
It was the D-Day of Bible smuggling: a million Bibles secretly unloaded onto Chinese shores in one night. Forty years on, some of the key players recount the remarkable and often miraculous operation
5 martyrs every Christian should know
2021-04-16T15:45:00+01:00By Catherine Pepinster
Catherine Pepinster shares the inspirational stories of Christians who were willing to face death because of their faith
John Stott: What every Christian should know about this unlikely radical
2021-02-01T00:00:00+00:00By Paul Woolley
As we approach the centenary of John Stott’s birth, it’s an ideal time to reflect on the global impact of this Anglican priest and theologian
Why it's time to correct our teaching of church history
2020-07-06T00:00:00+01:00
The Black Lives Matter movement is calling on societies to repent of the way black, asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people have been whitewashed out of national histories. But Dr Peter Harris says this challenge also applies to common re-tellings of church history
The Christian faith of Florence Nightingale: The founder of modern nursing
2020-05-12T00:00:00+01:00By Karen Murdarasi
The ‘Lady with the Lamp’ was a reluctant celebrity. On the 200 year anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth, Karen Murdarasi explains how her love for God inspired her world-famous work
China: Inside the biggest revival in history
2019-09-20T00:00:00+01:00
Bestselling author Paul Hattaway gives us a rare glimpse inside China’s underground Church
7 Christian heroes we should celebrate in Black History Month
2017-10-30T00:00:00+00:00
Marcia Dixon profiles some kingdom pioneers during the UK's Black History Month
The Jesus People Revolution: the 60s hippies who changed the world
2017-08-24T00:00:00+01:00
It's 50 years since thousands of hippies found Christ on the beaches of California and made their way to the UK. Andrew Whitman traces their legacy
NT Wright: Why Jesus’ crucifixion is a fact of history
2017-04-13T00:00:00+01:00By NT Wright
Leading New Testament scholar Tom Wright explains why Christians can be confident the gospel accounts are true
Tom Holland: Why atheists can’t deny the moral force of Christian history
2016-09-15T00:00:00+01:00
Award winning historian Tom Holland is one of a growing number of historians who are reminding a secular culture of their Christian heritage
The Ten-Minute Guide To…Julian Of Norwich The Medieval Mystic
2016-06-17T00:00:00+01:00
In Writing Down Her Remarkable Visions Of God, Julian Of Norwich Became The First English Female Writer
Meet The Real Life Witches
2016-03-11T00:00:00+00:00
After spending time with some witches, Rev Peter Laws believes the Church has been guilty of misunderstanding what they believe and practise
The Ten-Minute Guide to… John Calvin
2016-02-11T00:00:00+00:00
John Calvin’s city of Geneva formed the blueprint for many Protestant churches and his theology is still central to reformed Christianity today
The ten-minute guide to… Martin Luther
2015-12-16T00:00:00+00:00
Martin Luther’s understanding of salvation ‘by faith alone’ revolutionised the Church and redirected its future
The ten-minute guide to Athanasius
2015-10-13T00:00:00+01:00
Against the World: When his theological contemporaries attempted to do away with Trinitarianism, Athanasius held firm to the truth he was convinced of
The Ten-Minute Guide to: St Augustine
2015-06-16T00:00:00+01:00
To know where we are going we need to know where we’ve been. In the first of a new series, we find out how history’s best known church leaders still influence our theology today.