TODAY IN THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH July 8 1663 Following restoration of the English monarchy, a new charter was issued to the American colony of Rhode Island. It guaranteed religious freedom regardless of differences in opinion in matters of religion. 1741 Influencing the start of New Englands Great Awakening, colonial American theologian Jonathan Edwards preached his classic sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, at Enfield, CT. 1792 Birth of Lowell Mason, Presbyterian pioneer of congregational singing. He composed over 1,000 hymn tunes, including BETHANY (Nearer, My God, To Thee), DENNIS (Blest Be the Tie That Binds), and HAMBURG (When I Survey the Wondrous Cross). 1948 The Moscow Conference convened to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the independence of the Russian Orthodox Church from control of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople. 1959 Meeting in Oberlin, OH, the Congregational Christian and the Evangelical and Reformed churches adopted a united statement of faith. (The two groups merged to form the United Church of Christ in 1961.)
Posted on: Tue, 08 Jul 2014 21:22:50 +0000