This Day in Christian History: July 18 July 18, 1504: Birth of Heinrich Bullinger Heinrich Bullinger was born to Heinrich Bullinger senior, a Dean of the capitular church, in Switzerland. At that time, clerical concubinage had been sanctioned by the Bishop of Constance, and Heinrich was the fifth born son from Heinrich senior and his concubine, Anna Wiederkehr. Heinrich intended to follow his father into the clergy, but it was during his college years that he came in contact with Luther's teaching. Heinrich came to the conclusion that Luther's teaching was faithful to the Bible, whereas the Catholic church order. He ceased receiving the Eucharist, which banned him from clerical posts. Bullinger began aiding later succeeding Zwingli, carrying on his work until he died in 1575.

Should independence day be today, or the 4th? Today I'm blogging over at Heroes, Heriones and History. Find out why John Adams thought it should be today. Happy Independence Day! Most of you are probably thinking, "Hey, wait a minute, Independence Day is still two days away." Ah, but the answer isn't that simple. Did you know there are folks who believe Independence Day should be celebrated today--on July 2nd--rather than on July 4th? To understand this, we need to take a closer look at the timeline of the Declaration of Independence.   Click Here to read the rest of the article.

Today I'm blogging over at Stitches Thru Time about Independence Hall, the place where liberty for the United States of America was born. I'm also offering a giveaway on the blog this week for an autographed paperback of the Complete Declaration of Independence Anthology!  With Independence Day coming up this weekend, I thought I would share a few interesting tidbits about the place where it all began. The Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall is where America's freedom was born. The vital debates, the drafting of the documents, and ultimately the vote of in favor of independence took place in this historic building. Independence Hall is now listed a World Heritage site. Click Here to read the rest and enter the giveaway!

This Day in Christian History: June 13 June 13, 1525: Martin Luther marries Katharina von Bora Wedding of Martin Luther and Katharina von Bora Sometime around 1523, Martin Luther helped to rescue a group of nuns from a monastery. He endeavored to free the nuns from the Catholic order and find suitable homes for each. Among this group of nuns was Katharina von Bora. Though she had many suitors, none were to her liking, and Martin had a difficult time finding suitable arrangements for her. But in 1525, he finally found a home for her. His own. Thus on June 13, 1525, an ex-monk married an ex-nun. Martin was 42, and Katharina was 26. Their happy marriage of 21 years brought them six children. Katharina stood by Martin's side through many difficult times. Despite her being much younger than he, she died only six years after him. Here's another great post on the marriage of Martin Luther.

This Day in Christian History June 10 June 10, 1692: Hanging of Bridgett Bishop Bridgett Bishop The summer of 1692 was a dark one in the province of Massachusetts. Started by the gossip and allegations of a few young girls, the Salem Witch Trials has gone down in history as an example of perverted justice. When Bridgett Bishop was accused of witchcraft in April of 1692, it was not the first time such an accusation had been made. After being widowed once, Bridgett  married Thomas Oliver, and it was no secret that their marriage was less than happy. They'd been publicly shamed for fighting more than once. She was accused of witchcraft in 1680, but she posted bond and nothing more came of it. Five girls accused Bridgett of witchcraft again in 1692. They claimed that she had cast spells upon them and tormented them. A trial was held, and she was sentenced to death. Bridgett became the first to be hanged for witchcraft during what has come to be known as the Salem Witch Tr

This Day in Christian History: June 9 June 9, 597: Death of St. Columba Saint Columba was born in Ireland in 521. On his father's side, he was the descendant of a High Irish King. His mother was the sister of Saint Martin. He is best known for his missionary work in Scotland. After studying under many well-known church leaders, Columba crossed over to Scotland with 12 of his followers and founded a church in Iona. He is credited with being the leading figure to introduce and spread the Christian faith in Scotland. Columba had many miracles occur during his ministry. Once, he was attempting to evangelize one of the Scottish towns when they threw him out of the city, closed the gates, and tried to drown out his preaching with music. His voice miraculously raised above the instruments and was heard to the entire crowd. Then the gates came open, so he walked in and won many converts to Christ. He died in Iona at the age of 77 on June 9, 597. According to the Catholic encycl

This Day in Christian History: June 1 June 1, 597: Saxon King Ethelbert is baptized Sculpture of Ethelbert of Kent Ethelbert of Kent was the third king to hold rule over the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. He had married Bertha, the Christian daughter of the king of the Franks to build an alliance, but that may have had an influence in him becoming the first English king to convert to Christianity. The Pope sent Augustine as a missionary to Kent in 597. Shortly following his arrival, Ethelbert converted to Christianity and was baptized. The exact date of Ethelbert's conversion in unknown, but tradition holds it to be around the first of June, the summer after Augustine arrived in Kent. Ethelbert's conversion was what opened the door for the rapid spread of Christianity among the Angles and Saxons.

This Day in Christian History: May 30 May 30, 1431: Joan of Arc Burned at the Stake Born into a peasant family in north-east France, Joan was spiritual from a very young age. Joan testified that she saw her first vision at about age 13. She said she saw the Archangel Michael, who told her to drive out the English and aid Charles VII. She began to fulfill this commision around age 16. Being so young, it took some time to get the officials to take her seriously, but she succeeded and ended up joining the army on the battlefront. The extent of her involvement is debated, but the commanders believed that her advice was divinely inspired, and therefore would listen to her. Historians have to agree that the army experienced remarkable success during the brief time she accompanied it. Joan was captured and put on trial by the Catholic church as a heretic. One of the many charges brought against her was that of 'cross dressing' because she had disguised herself as a male s

This Day in Christian History: May 26 May 26, 1811: Birth of William Hunter William Hunter was born in Ireland on May 26th, 1811. His family moved to America when he was six years old. He went on to become a Bible scholar, professor, newspaper editor and hymn writer. He composed over 125 hymns, including The Great Physician Now is Near and I Feel Like Traveling On. On a side note, my publisher is having a big sale! You can now get all my books and audiobooks for 25% off! Details below. SPRING SUPER SALE!!! RIGHT now until June 18th everything in the Helping Hands Press Store is 25% OFF!!!!!! When you checkout, please put the code word SpringSuperSale into the coupon area to receive the discount. Everything is on sale in the HHP Store- ALL audiobooks, ebooks, paperbacks and all pre-sale titles . We will be adding in as many of our ebooks on a daily basis as we can, so please check back often. Here is the direct link to the Helping Hands Press Store: http://shop. myh

This Day in Christian History May 25, 1521: Martin Luther Proclaimed a Heretic Luther's Room at Wartburg Castle After Martin Luther's bold stand at the Diet of Worms in the previous month, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V pronounced Martin Luther an outlaw and heretic for refusing to recant his teachings and his rebellion against the Catholic church. The emperor decreed, "We want him to be apprehended and punished as a notorious heretic." This decree made it legal for anyone to kill Luther without consequence, and also made it dangerous for anyone to give him food or shelter. It was after this decree that Luther went into hiding at Wartburg Castle.

This Day in History: May 6 May 6, 1527: The Sack of Rome Forty thousand mercenaries, hired by Cardinal Pompeo Colonna, sacked the city of Rome. They destroyed two-thirds of the houses, killing, wounding and exiling 45,000 people. They butchered clergy and laity alike, and forced Clement VII, disguised as a gardener, to flee for his life.  Read more about the Sack of Rome

This Day in Christian History: May 5 May 5,1925: Scopes is Arrested for Teaching Evolution Scopes in 1925 24 year old High school biology teacher John T. Scopes, was arrested on May 5, 1925 for teaching the theory of evolution in his Dayton, Tennessee classroom. His arrest is what would lead to the infamous Scopes Monkey Trial. According to Tennessee's Butler Act, it was against the law to teach human evolution in public schools. Whether or not Scopes had actually taught evolution in his classroom is debated, but he agreed to stand as a defendant to bring publicity to the town of Dayton, TN. More about the Scopes Trial

This Day in Christian History: April 29, Dachau Liberated April 29, 1945: Dachau Liberated by US Troops American troops guarding the main entrance to Dachau just after liberation, 1945 Dachau is the oldest of the Nazi concentration camps. It was the first, opened in 1933. The Dachau system grew to include over 100 sub camps located throughout southern Germany and Austria. The prisoners lived in constant fear. Their treatment was brutal, including floggings, confinement in standing cells, tree or pole hangings, and other atrocities. Dachau was liberated by American troops on this day in 1945, freeing  more than 30,000 people. Most were terribly sick. Women of the Dachau camp wave to their liberators There were 32,000 documented deaths, mostly Jews, during the camp's 12 year existence. Thousands more went undocumented.

This Day in Christian History: April 28 April 28, 1950: Israel Recognized by the UK Almost two years after Israel's declaration, the government of Britain finally recognized Israel as a state. They were the last power in the world to do so. They also recognized the annexation by Transjordan of the Arab part of Palestine at the same time. Britain’s decisions were communicated today to Israel and Transjordan by her diplomatic representatives in Tel Aviv and Amman. According to the Global Jewish News reported on April 28, 1950: Winston Churchill, welcoming the announcement by the British Minister, told the members of Commos that President Chaim Weizmann of Israel and King Abdullah of Transjordan have always been staunch friends of Great Britain. He urged the British Government to bring these two “eminent men” into closer harmonious contact. He asked whether the British Government is embarking on such a course.

Saturday Morning Gazette: April 25 Edition HIStory tidbits, links, and fun stuff for your weekend. Verse of the Week: Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. ~II Peter 3:13 This Day in Christian History: April 25, 1530: The Augsburg Confession, the first summary of the Lutheran faith, was read publicly at the Diet of Worms. April 25, 1792: Happy Birthday John Keble! John was an English clergyman and poet. He is best known for the composition of the hymn, Sun of my Soul, Thou Savior Dear which he wrote in 1820. April 25, 1800: Death of William Cowper, a great hymnist of his day. Despite a life of hardship and depression, he wrote inspiring hymns of faith such as There is a Fountain, God Moves in Mysterious Ways, and Oh, For a Closer Walk with God. April 25, 1982: Israel surrenders the Sinai peninsula to Egypt as part of the Camp David act of 1979. Chuckle of the Week:  This is what you call braggi

This Day in Christian History: April 24  April 24, 387: Augustine of Hippo is Baptized Augustine of Hippo On Easter eve, 387, Saint Augustine of  Hippo was baptized at the age of 32. As Augustine tells it, he heard a childlike voice tell him to "pick up and read." So he picked up the Bible and began to read from the first place he saw. The verses his eyes fell upon were Romans 13:13-14. Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof. This was the beginning of his transformation. He wrote about his conversion in Confessions, which has become a classic of Christian theology.  Augustine went on to become the Biship of Hippo, and influenced much of Western Christianity. 

This Day in Christian History: April 22  April 22, 1864: In God We Trust is engraved on US coins for the first time 1864 Two Cent Coin with the new Motto: In God We Trust A little known fact about the Civil War is the revival that swept the nation during that time. In fact, what is now commonly known as the Bible Belt originated during this period. According to the US Treasury Website, "The motto IN GOD WE TRUST was placed on United States coins largely because of the increased religious sentiment existing during the Civil War." The Treasurer received letters from Christians requesting that God be acknowledged on our coins. One such letter states: You are probably a Christian. What if our Republic were not shattered beyond reconstruction? Would not the antiquaries of succeeding centuries rightly reason from our past that we were a heathen nation? What I propose is that instead of the goddess of liberty we shall have next inside the 13 stars a ring inscribed w

This Day in Christian History: April 21 April 21, 1783: Happy Birthday Reginald Heber! Reginald Heber - Bishop of Calcutta 1823 Reginald Heber was born at Malpas England and was named after his father. Even from an early age, Reginald showed an interest in church history and beliefs. He attended Oxford College where he gained a reputation as a poet. With a heart for ministry, Reginald became a deacon, then a bishop at Oxford, and later took over his father's parish in Hodnet. Reginald married Amelia Shipley in April of 1809, and they had two children. In 1823, Reginald was ordained as the Biship of Calcutta, and he served his people faithfully until his sudden death three years later at the age of 42. Monuments were erected in his memory in India for the work that he had done there. Heber Memorial in Madras Reginald is best remembered in America for the hymns that he wrote, mainly during the years of 1811-1821. He admire the hymns of John Newton and William Cowp

This Day in Christian History: April 19-20 April 19-20, 1943: The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Begins SS Agents burn houses Warsaw is the capitol city of Poland. A city of over 1.3 million residents in 1919 when Poland resurrected as a state. Pre-WWII, Warsaw was home to over 350,000 Jews, about 30% of their population. On September 29, 1939, Nazi troops entered the city. By October 12, 1940, a ghetto had been established and a decree made that all Jews were to move to the designated area, which was then sealed off from the rest of the city with a 10ft. high wall. It is estimated that over 400,000 Jews were contained in this ghetto from Warsaw and the surrounding area. Needless to say, the conditions were crowded, and poor. April 19th, 1943, the Eve of Passover, Nazi SS agents entered the ghetto. Knowing what this meant, the Jews made the decision to fight back.The Jewish insurgents ambushed the Nazis. The fighting lasted for several days. The Germans began burning down house

Saturday Morning Gazette: April 18 Edition HIStory tidbits, links, and fun stuff for your weekend. Verse of the Week: Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. ~Romans 13:8 This Day in Christian History: Luther at Worms April 18, 1521: Martin Luther Concludes His Defense at the Diet of Worms The Imperial of Worms was Martin Luther's presentation to the Catholic church in defense of his heresy charges. He arrived in Worms on April 16th, and was cheered by the people. Over the next two days, he gave a clever and thought out defense. He concluded his oration on April 18th with these words: "Unless I am convinced by Scripture and plain reason - I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other - my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. God

Deanna enjoying books with a young class. Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to Deanna Klingel. Deanna is at home in the mountains of North Carolina. She and her husband lived many places during his IBM career while they raised their seven children. The children are grown and married now and Deanna and Dave fill their empty nest with golden retrievers and books. Deanna has published eight books,several short stories, and has other books under contract.  Welcome Deanna! Tell us a little bit about yourself.  I live in the mountains of western North Carolina. It's our retirement home. I'm married to my high school sweetheart. Our seven kids are grown now and off with families of their own How did you discover your calling to be a writer? I've been a writer I'd say for all my life, since I first held a crayon. But for publication, only after the children were grown and gone. What books have influenced your life most? Oh boy, there are so m

Join me over at Heroes, Heroines and History to learn about Leprosy in Bible days! Here's a preview: Incurable disease. Those two words have terrified people for thousands of years. The recent Ebola epidemic caused panic across the globe. In Bible times, leprosy was the disease that was perhaps the most feared of them all, because like Ebola, it was contagious, miserable, with no known cure.  What is leprosy? Leprosy is mentioned 68 times in the Bible, however the modern definition of leprosy, and what was considered leprosy during Bible days differs.  Read the full post on HHHistory.com!

This Day in Christian History: April 3 April 3, 1528: German reformer Adolf Clarenbach arrested Statue of Adolf Clarenbach (right) Adolf Clarenbach was born around 1497 on a farm in Germany. Adolf became a teacher, and sought to spread the principles of the Reformation, which he strongly believed. Because of his open acceptance and teachings of Martin Luther's ideas, Adolf was arrested and imprisoned on April 3, 1528. He was confined for eighteen months. At the age of 28, Adolf became one of the first Protestant martyrs of the reformation. He was burned at the stake with another follower of Luther on September 28, 1529.

This Day in Christian History: April 2 April 2, 1524: Zwingli Marries Anna Meyer Zwingli Reads the Translated Bible to Anna Huldrych Zwingli was a leader of the reformation in Switzerland. Like Martin Luther, he saw many corruptions in the Catholic church, and pushed for reform. Eventually, Zwingli broke away from the Catholic church and joined Luther's reformation. He and Luther met in person once, but they disagreed of the Holy Eucharist. At age 40, Zwingli married Anna Meyer, a widow who lived near his home. Their marriage was short lived, however. Seven years later, Anna became a widowed for the second time when Zwingli was killed in battle while defending Zurich.

This Day in Christian History: March 30 March 30, 1492: Jews Expelled from Spain During the Spanish Inquisition In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue...and 200,000 Jews were expelled from Spain. Columbus wrote in his diary: "In the same month in which their Majesties [Ferdinand and Isabella] issued the edict that all Jews should be driven out of the kingdom and its territories, in the same month they gave me the order to undertake with sufficient men my expedition of discovery to the Indies."  This date became as important to Jewish History as it was to American history. The Spanish inquisition began in 1478 when the Spanish monarchs decided that Catholicism should be the faith of the nation, and began to regulate religion. Everyone must convert to Catholicism, or leave Spain. Ferdinand and Isabella, Monarchs of Spain At the time of the 1492 edict, there were around 200,000 Jews living in Spain, and all these people now someho

Saturday Morning Gazette: March 28 Edition HIStory tidbits, links, and fun stuff for your weekend. Verse of the Week: How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.   O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart. ~Ps. 36:7-10 This Day in Christian History: 1661: Scottish Parliament passed the Rescissory Act 1915: Birth of Kurt Aland, New Testament textual scholar. 1936: Happy Birthday to Bill Gaither! Chuckle of the Week: Interesting Links: Sony to Create a New Film Adaption of Little Women http://www.adweek.com/galleycat/sony-to-create-a-new-little-women-film-adaptation/ Four Reasons Why Reading Historical