Historical Writings

Today in Christian History

Wednesday, November 10

461
Death of Pope Leo I, who negotiated peace with invaders of Italy and rebuilt Rome after it was laid in ruins by Vandals. Future generations will consider him the founder of the medieval papacy. Authority for the date: Frend, W. H. C. The Early Church. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1965.
852
Caliph Ja'far al Mutawakkil executes Constantine, King of Georgia, because he refuses to embrace Islam. The Turks hang his body from a high pillar to intimidate other Christian believers. Authority for the date: http://oca.org.
1766
In New Brunswick, New Jersey, Queen's College was chartered under the Dutch Reformed Church, to provide education "...especially in divinity, preparing [youth] for the ministry and other good offices." The present name of the school, Rutgers University, was adopted in 1924.
1770
French philosopher Fran-'--ois Voltaire, 75, uttered his famous remark: 'If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.'
1871
Following seven months of searching, foreign correspondent to the "New York Herald" Henry M. Stanley succeeded at last in locating Scottish missionary David Livingstone in Ujiji, Central Africa. Stanley prefaced his encounter with these words: 'Dr. Livingstone, I presume.'
1907
Mok Lai Chi, interpreter to a Pentecostal missionary, is baptized in the Holy Spirit. He will be a founder of China’s first independent Pentecostal church and of its first Pentecostal newspaper, Pentecostal Truths, as well as an active leader in work to ameliorate the condition of the poor and needy. Authority for the date: Fenggang, Global Pentecostal and Charismatic Chri
1910
The Gideons place their first Bible ten years after Samuel Hill and John Nicholson began the organization. Authority for the date: Gideons, the. Twenty-two Years' History of the Gideons; the Christian Commercial Travelers' Association of America. Ch
1933
Death of hymnwriter James Rowe, whose songs include "I Would Be Like Jesus" and "I Was Sinking Deep in Sin." Authority for the date: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/bio/r/o/w/rowe_j.htm
1952
English apologist C.S. Lewis wrote in a letter: 'I believe that, in the present divided state of Christendom, those who are at the heart of each division are all closer to one another than those who are at the fringes.'
1977
It was announced that Pope Paul VI had ended the automatic excommunication imposed on divorced American Catholics who remarried. (The excommunication was first imposed by the Plenary Council of American Bishops in 1884.)
Subscribe …
Receive the newest devotional each week in your inbox by joining the "Today in Christian History" subscription list. Enter your email address below, click "Subscribe!" and we will send you a confirmation email. Follow the instructions in the email to confirm your addition to this list.