Individual Christians

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This article is one in a series on the history of the Church - you are currently on the topic that is in bold:

• Church History
• Early Heretics
• Popes Through History
• Ethiopian Christianity
• Non-Catholic Christians
• Individual Christians
• Persecuting Christians
• The Date of Easter

Paul the Apostle, d. ~67 A.D.

Paul the Apostle was, together with Peter, the most notable of early Christian missionaries. Unlike the other Apostles, Paul did not know Jesus during his ministry. Paul came to believe through a vision of Jesus on the Road to Damascus, while on his way to persecute Christians in that city, and stressed that his apostolic authority was based on this vision. Paul wrote that he was not taught the Gospel by anyone, but received it "by the revelation of Jesus Christ".

Polycarp, d. ~160 A.D.

With Clement of Rome and Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp is regarded as one of three chief Apostolic Fathers. A letter of his to the Philippians has been preserved, and is described by Irenaeus as a "forceful epistle". Polycarp travelled to Rome to correct heresies that had arisen in that church. He died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to touch him.

Irenaeus, d. ~202 A.D.

Irenaeus was bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, which is now Lyon, France. He was a disciple of Polycarp, who was a disciple of John, who was a disciple of Jesus Christ. Irenaeus wrote extensively on the nature and unity of God, fighting bitterly against heresies and the integration of paganism into Christianity. Irenaeus also corrected the church in Rome on occasion, and testified that supernatural signs accompanied his ministry and all the believing church, including the raising of the dead, healing of the sick, prophecies, and visions.

Frumentius the Slave, d. 383 A.D.

Frumentius was born in Tyre, but became a slave in Ethiopia. He returned as a missionary and baptized King Ezana, who declared Ethiopia a Christian nation in 340 A.D. Ethiopian Christianity developed in relative isolation from European Christianity until the 1500's.

Martin of Tours, d. 397 A.D.

Martin was born in Hungary, and became a missionary in Gaul. While little is recorded of his teachings, his piety was not disputed, and supernatural signs and wonders followed his ministry.

Patrick, d. 493 A.D.

Patrick was the nephew of St. Martine, and became a missionary to Ireland.

Columba, d. 597

Columba became a missionary to Scotland, and was known as a prophet for the mighty works that followed his ministry.

Adomnan of Iona, d., 704 A.D.

St. Adomnan was a successor to Columba as the ninth Abbot of Iona. Around 690 he wrote 'Life of Columba', which described in detail the life of his predecessor. He also drew up the 'Law of Innocents' which attempted to protect women, children and those in Holy Orders from war (a new concept at the time). Adomnan managed to get this agreement signed by the Irish Kings as well as those of the Dalriada and Picts. In his time, he was probably as important as Columba, but by so effectively establishing the historical reputation of Columba, his contribution is now somewhat overlooked.

John Wycliffe, d. 1384

John Wycliffe is credited as the first person to give a complete translation of the Bible into English, and was the founder of the Lollard movement. Wycliffe taught justification by faith, the absolute authority of the Bible, and that the papacy was the antichrist.

Jan Huss, d. 1411

Jan Hus was excommunicated in 1411, condemned by the Council of Constance, and burned at the stake. Hus was considered a prophet by his followers, and his last words are allegedly that, "In 100 years, God will raise up a man whose calls for reform cannot be suppressed." Just over one hundred years later, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses of Contention to a church door in Wittenburg. Huss taught that the Church is not that hierarchy which is generally designated as Church; the Church is the entire body of those who from eternity have been predestined for salvation. Christ, not the pope, is its head.

In 1999, Pope John Paul II expressed "deep regret for the cruel death inflicted" and suggested an inquiry as to whether Hus might be cleared of heresy.

William Tyndale, d.1536

Translated the Bible into English, and was burned alive on October 6, 1536. His final words reportedly were, "Oh Lord, open the King of England's eyes". Tyndale is quoted as saying "I defy the Pope, and all his laws; and if God spares my life, I will cause the boy that drives the plow in England to know more of the Scriptures than the Pope himself!"

Tyndale introduced the following phrases into English during his translation: "let there be light", "the powers that be", "my brother's keeper", "the salt of the earth", "a law unto themselves", "filthy lucre", "it came to pass", "gave up the ghost", "Jehovah", "Passover", "atonement", and "scapegoat".

Jacob Hutter, d. 1536

Jacob Hutter was an Anabaptist religious leader who practiced community of goods, nonviolence, and baptism of adult believers. He was tortured and burned alive on February 25, 1536. Those who followed his doctrines became known as Hutterites.

Martin Luther, d. 1546

Martin Luther was a German monk, priest, professor, theologian, and church reformer. His teachings inspired the Protestant Reformation and deeply influenced the doctrine and culture of the Lutherans and Protestants traditions, as well as the course of Western civilization.

Menno Simons, d. 1561

Menno Simons was an Anabaptist religious leader from Friesland. Quoted as saying "Christ is our fortress; patience our weapon of defense; the Word of God our sword. ... Iron and metal spears and swords we leave to those who, alas, regard human blood and swine’s blood of well-nigh equal value." Those who followed his doctrines became known as Mennonites.

John Bunyan, d. 1688

John Bunyan was a Christian writer and preacher. He wrote The Pilgrim's Progress, arguably the most famous published Christian allegory.

George Fox, d. 1691

George Fox was an English Dissenter and a major early figure — usually considered the founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers. Toward the end of his life, he wrote a letter for general circulation pointing out that Abel, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses and David were all keepers of sheep or cattle, and that a learned education should not therefore be seen as a qualification for ministry.

Isaac Watts, d.1748

Isaac Watts is recognised as the "Father of English Hymnody", as he was the first prolific and popular English hymnwriter, credited with some 750 hymns.

George Whitfield, d. 1770

George Whitfield was a minister in the Church of England and one of the leaders of the Methodist movement. He travelled through America, England, Scotland, Ireland, Bermuda, Gibraltar, and The Netherlands. Benjamin Franklin calculated, by pacing the area around George Whitfield where his voice was audible while preaching, that he could indeed speak to tens of thousands of people in a single sermon.

John Wesley, d. 1791

John Wesley was an 18th-century Anglican minister and powerful field-evangelist who was an early leader in the Methodist movement. While never formally separating from the Anglican Church, John Wesley acted on his own even so far as to ordain ministers by the laying on of hands, which he had found to be a Biblical example.

Francis Asbury, d. 1816

Francis Asbury became a local preacher at 18 and was ordained at 22. In 1771 he volunteered to travel to America. When the American War of Independence broke out in 1776 he was the only Methodist minister to remain in America.

William Carey, d. 1834

William Carey was an English Protestant missionary and Baptist minister. Carey was one of the founders of the Baptist Missionary Society. As a missionary in Serampore, India, he translated the Bible into Bengali, Sanskrit, and numerous other languages and dialects.

Adoniram Judson, d. 1850

Adniram Judson was an American Baptist missionary who translated the Bible into the Burmese language, and suffered severe persecution and imprisonment. His work inspired and equipped Ko Tha Byu, a Karen native, to become the first apostle to the Burmese.

George Müller, d. 1898

George Muller was a Christian evangelist and coordinator of orphanages in Bristol, England, cared for a total of over 100,000 orphans in his life. He was well-known for his constant faith in God and for providing an education to the children under his care, to the point where he was accused of raising the poor above their natural station in life. In 1875, at the age of 70, he began a 17 year period of missionary travel. In that time, he preached in the United States, India, Australia, Japan, China, and nearly forty other countries.

Dwight Lyman Moody, d. 1899

Also known as D.L. Moody, was an American evangelist, setting up Sunday Schools, and preaching accross America, and visiting China and England.

James Hudson Taylor, d. 1905

Hudson Taylor was a British Protestant Christian missionary to China, and founder of the China Inland Mission (CIM) (now OMF International).

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