Gregory of Nyssa was born in 335 to a devout aristocratic Christian family in Cappadocia, which had suffered persecution for their faith. Gregory's grandfather was martyred, his parents had their...
John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople from 397-407, was one of the early Church's greatest preachers, whose homilies were written down by stenographers and widely circulated. Many hundreds of...
Augustine was born in North Africa to a pagan Roman father and a Christian Berber mother. He spent his youth as a true pagan and in his Confessions, describes his time in a heretical sect in Rome and...
Today is the last Rogation Day and the last day of our Easter devotions. For Thursday is Ascension Day, and in Cranmer’s Book of Common Prayer it marked the beginning of the short season of...
The Tuesday following the Fifth Sunday after Easter was traditionally one of three Rogation Days devoted to repentance from sin, thanksgiving in the light of the goodness of God, and prayer for...
The three days following the Fifth Sunday after Easter are traditionally set aside for petitioning God to prosper the efforts of our hands, especially as it relates to sowing crops in the Spring in...
The traditional Epistle reading appointed for the Fourth Sunday after Easter expresses that special theme so very dear to Cranmer and his fellow Reformers - the intertwining of Scripture, salvation...
True joy - that is the ultimate goal sought in the Collect appointed for the Fourth Sunday after Easter. This traditional prayer defines real joy as the product of longing to do God’s will and...
This week’s collect is a helpful reminder that Cranmer was convinced that daily bible reading was the key to growth in godliness, since the Holy Spirit worked through God’s Word to transform us from...
At the heart of Thomas Cranmer’s theology was his concern for the affections of the heart. He was deeply influenced by Medieval English Spirituality. Richard Rolle (d.
Thomas Cranmer’s translation of the traditional Latin Collect appointed for the Fourth Sunday after Easter addresses one of the major themes of his writings - the transformation of the affections. We...
As highlighted by his reuse of the traditional Collect appointed for the Third Sunday after Easter, Cranmer wanted the English people to become dedicated bible readers. That way, they would...
In the context of the English Reformation, the Collect appointed for the Third Sunday after Easter sought a reformation not only in the hearts of the English people but also in their church’s faith...
Cranmer’s reuse of the traditional collect appointed for the Third Sunday in Easter took on new meaning in the light of the English Reformation. Like the ancient church, the “light of thy truth” was...
Thomas Cranmer was fully aware that the deceitful “devices and desires of our own hearts” would all too often lead us into the error of approval-earning, even though it was a “ready way to...
As we have seen, Cranmer would want Anglicans to concentrate on what God has saved them for. Because only by focusing on the benefits of Christ’s death and resurrection will believers find the proper...
Cranmer’s Collect appointed for the Second Sunday after Easter reminds us that loving gratitude is the key to becoming more like Jesus. To follow in his footsteps, our affections need to change from...
Cranmer’s Collect for the Second Sunday after Easter encourages us to be motivated to follow in Jesus’ footsteps out of grateful love for his unconditional love at work in our lives. Sadly, though,...