4/26/11

In class, we reviewed the history of the Christian churches. The East-West schism occurred around 1054 and some of the differences that exist between the East and the Roman Catholic beliefs include the emphasis on orthodoxy, the geography, the filioque (or Creed), whether or not clergy can be married, theotokos (how important Mary is), the use of icons, and the language in which the Mass was said. Then, the Roman Catholic Church again split. On Oct. 31, 1517 Martin Luther posted his 99 Theses. The issues addressed in his theses were later resolved, and the split with the Catholic Church occurred because of other matters. Protestants believe in consubstntiation, which means that they believe that either the bread and wine is simply a symbol of Jesus' body and blood, or that they are both bread and wine AND Jesus' body and blood. Catholics, on the other hand, believe in transubstntiation, which means that the bread and wine are actually Jesus's body and blood, although they appear to be bread and wine.
After this, we watched Randy Pausch's "Last Lecture" on Oprah, in which he discussed how he has come to terms with his impending death. We then read a reading on eschatology, which is the area of theology about the "last things," or what Christians believe will happen to us when we die.