16.9.13
Familist - all things were ruled by nature and not directly by God
Familist - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Family of Love or Familists (English term) was a mystic religious sect known as the Familia Caritatis (Hus der Lieften; Huis der Liefde; Haus der Liebe; Family of Love), founded in the sixteenth century by Henry Nicholis, also known as Niclaes.
The outward trappings of Nicholis's system were Anabaptist. His followers were said to assert that all things were ruled by nature and not directly by God, of denying the dogma of the Trinity, and repudiating infant baptism. They held that no man should be put to death for his opinions, and apparently, like the later Quakers, they objected to the carrying of arms and to anything like an oath; and they were quite impartial in their repudiation of all other churches and sects, including Brownists and Barrowists.
Nicholis's message is said to have appealed to the well educated and creative elite, artists, musicians and scholars. They felt no need to spread the message and risk heresy; members were usually a part of an otherwise established church, quietly remaining in the background, confident in their elite status as part of the Godhead. As the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition says:
The society lingered into the early years of the 18th century; the leading idea of its service of love was a reliance on sympathy and tenderness for the moral and spiritual edification of its members. Thus, in an age of strife and polemics, it seemed to afford a refuge for quiet, gentle spirits, and meditative temperaments. The Quakers, Baptists and Unitarians may have derived some of their ideas from the "Family."
The Family of Love or Familists (English term) was a mystic religious sect known as the Familia Caritatis (Hus der Lieften; Huis der Liefde; Haus der Liebe; Family of Love), founded in the sixteenth century by Henry Nicholis, also known as Niclaes.
The outward trappings of Nicholis's system were Anabaptist. His followers were said to assert that all things were ruled by nature and not directly by God, of denying the dogma of the Trinity, and repudiating infant baptism. They held that no man should be put to death for his opinions, and apparently, like the later Quakers, they objected to the carrying of arms and to anything like an oath; and they were quite impartial in their repudiation of all other churches and sects, including Brownists and Barrowists.
Nicholis's message is said to have appealed to the well educated and creative elite, artists, musicians and scholars. They felt no need to spread the message and risk heresy; members were usually a part of an otherwise established church, quietly remaining in the background, confident in their elite status as part of the Godhead. As the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition says:
Members of the Familists included cartographer Abraham Ortel (aka Ortelius) and publisher Christopher Plantin. Plantin worked by day as Philip II of Spain's printer of Catholic documents for the Counter Reformation, and otherwise surreptitiously printed Familist literature. In the 1580s, it was discovered that some of the Yeomen of the Guard for Elizabeth I were Familists; the Queen did nothing about it, which raised questions about her own beliefs. The keeper of the lions in the Tower of London for James I was a Familist. The biggest colony of Familists was in Balsham, Cambridgeshire. Nicholis's chief apostle in England was Christopher Vitell.Nicholis's followers escaped the gallows and the stake, for they combined with some success the wisdom of the serpent and the harmlessness of the dove. They would only discuss their doctrines with sympathizers; they showed every respect for authority, and considered outward conformity a duty. This quietist attitude, while it saved them from molestation, hampered propaganda.
The society lingered into the early years of the 18th century; the leading idea of its service of love was a reliance on sympathy and tenderness for the moral and spiritual edification of its members. Thus, in an age of strife and polemics, it seemed to afford a refuge for quiet, gentle spirits, and meditative temperaments. The Quakers, Baptists and Unitarians may have derived some of their ideas from the "Family."
8.9.13
Philosopher warns - danger through Christianity collapse
Philosopher warns of danger through Christianity collapse
The controversial Vishal Mangalwadi. Photo: Justin McManus
The United States will start the next world war to restructure the global economy and avoid repaying its debts, dragging Australia with it, predicts an Indian futurologist and social reformer.
Vishal Mangalwadi's second scenario is nearly as apocalyptic: social collapse and violence in the streets when Western countries can no longer afford social welfare due to the collapse of tax revenue, with far more suicides and pressure for euthanasia of the elderly.
These frightening futures are likely because ''the West has amputated its soul'', moving away from the biblical values and Christian heritage that built modern society, Dr Mangalwadi told a seminar at the Victorian Parliament on Friday.
But they were not inevitable, he said. The solution was for the churches to move into full-time education, using their facilities as schools and universities, with online professors helped by youth pastors and teachers on site.
Dr Mangalwadi, a Christian philosopher who founded a community to help low-caste rural poor, is on a lecture tour of Australia organised by Family Voice Australia.
He became a controversial figure in the US last year with an essay, Why Christianity Lost America, in which he said evangelical Christians erred by presenting themselves as ''the party of faith'', allowing secularists to claim they were ''the party of truth''.
Dr Mangalwadi declined to offer a timeline, but told Fairfax Media that the next increase in tension would come when the US credit rating was reduced, and the budget went ''haywire''.
''Unfunded liabilities over the next few decades will reach $200 trillion in the US. As the moral basis of society disappears, people will pay fewer taxes, and will have less confidence in politicians to manage their money.''
Western societies had traditionally been more honest about paying taxes because the Bible taught that citizens should pay from conscience. In most of the world, the rich avoided taxes through corruption, he said.
Western capitalism was built on a culture of trust that was badly shaken by the global financial crisis. ''If Washington can't trust Wall Street, New York, why should China or anyone else? But the world doesn't have the capacity to recover its money from the US because it is the only superpower.
The controversial Vishal Mangalwadi. Photo: Justin McManus
The United States will start the next world war to restructure the global economy and avoid repaying its debts, dragging Australia with it, predicts an Indian futurologist and social reformer.
Vishal Mangalwadi's second scenario is nearly as apocalyptic: social collapse and violence in the streets when Western countries can no longer afford social welfare due to the collapse of tax revenue, with far more suicides and pressure for euthanasia of the elderly.
These frightening futures are likely because ''the West has amputated its soul'', moving away from the biblical values and Christian heritage that built modern society, Dr Mangalwadi told a seminar at the Victorian Parliament on Friday.
But they were not inevitable, he said. The solution was for the churches to move into full-time education, using their facilities as schools and universities, with online professors helped by youth pastors and teachers on site.
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This could rebuild a society that valued morality and conscience, while giving more people access to high-quality education far more cheaply than the present university system, he suggested.Dr Mangalwadi, a Christian philosopher who founded a community to help low-caste rural poor, is on a lecture tour of Australia organised by Family Voice Australia.
He became a controversial figure in the US last year with an essay, Why Christianity Lost America, in which he said evangelical Christians erred by presenting themselves as ''the party of faith'', allowing secularists to claim they were ''the party of truth''.
Dr Mangalwadi declined to offer a timeline, but told Fairfax Media that the next increase in tension would come when the US credit rating was reduced, and the budget went ''haywire''.
''Unfunded liabilities over the next few decades will reach $200 trillion in the US. As the moral basis of society disappears, people will pay fewer taxes, and will have less confidence in politicians to manage their money.''
Western societies had traditionally been more honest about paying taxes because the Bible taught that citizens should pay from conscience. In most of the world, the rich avoided taxes through corruption, he said.
Western capitalism was built on a culture of trust that was badly shaken by the global financial crisis. ''If Washington can't trust Wall Street, New York, why should China or anyone else? But the world doesn't have the capacity to recover its money from the US because it is the only superpower.
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