#Jésus : "le consolateur, l'Esprit-Saint, que le Père enverra en mon nom, vous enseignera toutes choses, et vous rappellera tout ce que je vous ai dit"

Faut vraiment avoir un Q.i d'oursin pour ne pas vouloir être enseigné par #Dieu lui-même.

Gloire à Dieu qui donne aux hommes tant de bonnes choses.

#chrétien #christian #god #protestant #trump

> Catholicism has lost people to religious switching in many countries, while Protestantism has gained in some https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/04/23/catholicism-has-lost-people-to-religious-switching-in-many-countries-while-protestantism-has-gained-in-some/

Gee, can't imagine why. Poll data, so caveats may apply. Also does not discuss reasons why it happens.

#Catholic #Protestant #Christian #religion

Die Laudate-Häus: the thread about the German-speaking congregation of Edinburgh

Looking at a property listing, I thought “why settle for a single mansard1 roof when you can have a double mansard split across 3 levels?“

This curious-looking block of flats is Homeroyal House a retirement community built on the site of the Argyle Place Church in Marchmont. This unfortunate building burned down in 1974 during renovations when an open flame lamp set fire to paint. This congregation had been founded in 1877 as a United Presbyterian Church (one of the various Presbyterian churches in Victorian Scotland and the third largest by size after the established Kirk and the Free Kirk) for “the use of those interested in… a Congregation which should use unfermented wine at the Communion“. The building was completed and opened in 1880 to the designs of the architect Alex McTavish. The U.P. Church merged with (most of) the Free Church in 1900 to form the United Free Church of Scotland. In 1929 the U.F. Church in turn re-united with the Church of Scotland from which it had historically dissented and its churches became part of the fold of the Kirk.

In Victorian Edinburgh, the Kirk, the Free Kirk and the U.F. Kirk frequently occupied the same parishes, resulting in a triplication of churches by 1929 when most had merged back into the Church of Scotland. This, combined with a long term decline in Sunday church-going in the second half of the 20th century resulted in the need to consolidate parishes. In Marchmont, Argyle Place congregation merged with nearby St. Catherine’s Church in the Grange (which had started life with the Free Kirk) in 1968 and was all set to relocate to the former buildings after the renovations were complete. The fire put paid to that plan and instead the latter building became the new home of the united St. Catherine’s Argyle congregation. I suppose the 7-storey corner tower on Homeroyal House kind of echoes the former steeple tower and the dropping roofline too is a nod to what was there before. The dormers in the mansard are actually quite a vernacular tenement roof style (balconies and double storey excepted!).

Just over the road from Homeroyal is Edinburgh’s German Speaking Congregation: the Laudate Haus in reference to the Laudate Psalms. It is known as the Evangelische Gemeinde Deutscher Sprache in its own language, note that it does not refer to itself as a Church but rather as a Congregation. It is also referred to as German Speaking in recognition that its members share that language but not necessarily that nationality. I will admit that this is one of my absolute favourite little bits of modernism around town, very understated and plain but beautifully leafy and with a thoroughly impressive stained glass curtain wall.

The abstract stained glass is quite spectacular when seen from the inside and is by Scottish modern artist George Garson who specialised in mosaic, stained glass and concrete relief panels.

And what good bit of mid-century is complete without a cantilever?

The foundation stone was laid on 20th August 1966, with an inscription from Jeremiah 22:29 reading “O Land, Land, Land, Höre Des Herrn Wort” (“Oh Earth, Earth, Earth, hear the Word of the Lord“) and was completed in 1967 by local practice Reiach & Hall to original designs by German architect Alfred Schildt. It had cost £42,000 to build, with £30,000 coming from the Protestant Church of Germany (EKD) and the remainder raised through donations from other German speaking churches and congregations and the members in Edinburgh itself. It was dedicated in a ceremony on October 14th that year. At 3PM an English-speaking service of thanks took place in Argyle Place Church – Dr Alex King of the Kirk’s Overseas Department being a prominent supporter of the scheme – before moving over the road where Schildt handed over the keys to Pastor Wischmann of the German Church Council, who presented them to Pastor Schwesig to open the door. At 4PM a German-language service was held, with the congregation standing for the occasion as there were as yet no chairs in the church!

My thanks to the Rev. Stuart Irvin, previously minister of St. Catherine’s Argyle, for the picture below from the back of the Laudate House. This was taken not long after completion in 1967 and before Argyle Place Church, whose steeple we can see in the background, succumbed to the fire in 1974.

Edinburgh has been home to a German-speaking Protestant congregation since the late 1850s. The Reverend Herr J. Blumenreich secured halls for worship for “The German Evangelical Church of Edinburgh-Leith” in Queen Street in 1862 from the then United Presbyterian Church (who would found Argyle Place Church 15 years later); these halls were part of its college and Blumenreich was their Hebrew Tutor. At this time there were 800 Germans living in Edinburgh and Leith, and his services attracted upwards of 100.

Johann Friedrich Blumenreich was born into a Jewish family from Schwerin in Prussian Poland in 1820 and converted to the Lutheran Church in 1843 during his apprenticeship as a bookbinder. Intending to become a Christian missionary amongst the Jewish diaspora in England he arrived in London in 1844 via Rotterdam on the ship Giraffe and is recorded signing his details as an Alien. Being unable to speak English he did not succeed in his chosen path and instead fell back to bookbinding, during which time he was then able to learn English. He came to Edinburgh as a missionary in the early 1850s and ministered in the Cowgate and the Canongate, where immigrants to the city often found themselves. He is recorded in 1856 taking part in the annual meeting of the Society for the Relief of Destitute Foreigners and is advertised as offering German and Hebrew classes to the general public. In 1858 he was ordained as a minister within the U.P. Church. He was particularly concerned with the religious instruction of foreigners in his adopted city and was supported by the U.P. Church in circulating printed tracts and scriptures in foreign languages and in preaching in German. It is noted in 1861 that many Germans in the city were occupied as “workers in Bohemian glass“.

The German congregation built its own church under Blumenreich’s guidance, completed in 1881 on Rodney Street (now the Bellevue Chapel) to the designs of James B. Wemyss of Leith who described it as “bare and uninteresting“. The German speaking population of Edinburgh was growing at this time, with skilled workers drawn to the city by the construction of the Forth Bridge and also its booming printing and bookbinding industries.

Blumenreich retired as minister in 1885 on account of his failing health and died of apoplexy (a stroke) in 1894 aged 70, his occupation at the time of death being “Clergyman of the German Church” and residence 29 Gayfield Square. His wife Janet Holborn predeceased him, dying in 1886. Of his children, William would become the German pastor in Dundee. In 1907, the Edinburgh & Leith post office directory lists the Pastor in Edinburgh as Friedrich Reimer and the Seemanspastor (sailor’s pastor) as Ulrich Thiesen. The Church officer was Otto Bollenbacher of 32 Hay Terrace (Broughton Road).

The congregation disbanded at the start of the First World War; all German men in the country were interred as aliens and the women and children had to return to Germany. The vacant church was taken over by The Christian Brethren, assisted in this by one of the former congregation, the tragic Adolf Theurer. It did not publicly reconvene until over 30 years later when it began to meet again in 1947 as The German Speaking Congregation in Edinburgh in the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church at Dean Bridge. (This building itself had an interesting subsequent history – in 1957 the insides were taken over by the South of Scotland Electricity Board and filled with high voltage transformer equipment, becoming a very discreet National Grid substation. It was only recently converted back to ecclesiastical use.)

There were around 2,500 Germans in the Edinburgh area at this time; former Prisoners of War, Jews who had escaped Germany before the war, an influx of younger woman who had been brought to the country as domestic helps and women who had married British servicemen and returned home with them. Seeking a permanent home, in 1953 the former Glendinnings Dance School in a converted villa at 1 Chalmers Crescent in Marchmont was bought by the Congregation and overhauled to become its first Laudate Haus.

The villa became the manse for the pastor – Rev. Dietrich Ritschl – and the dance hall was used for services. By the early 1960s it became apparent that the building was suffering extensively from dry rot and that it would not be economical to repair it. The pastor and congregation removed to 92 Morningside Drive while the new church was being built, services being held at the Argyle Place Church in the interim.

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RE: https://mastodon.world/@ginaintheburg/116343768400881074

As a #protestant and proud descendant of huguenots, I feel deeply ashamed.

Pope John Paul II stated in 1983 that, under Catholic doctrine, excommunications lapse automatically upon a person’s death, so Martin Luther’s 1521 ban was no longer in effect and should not hinder ecumenical dialogue.

#theology #Catholic #Protestant

Serpent Seed

Author’s Note: We here at Spirituality & Religious Studies DO NOT in any way, shape, or form agree with ANY of the racist views/opinions of the people who interpret this doctrine in that way. We have zero tolerance. We will delete & ban any users who leave racist or hate speech in the comments. Thank you for your time! Now, on the post.

This is also known as dual–seed or the 2-seedline doctrine.

This is a controversial (& sometimes racist) doctrine in some fringe Christian or other Abrahamic religious movements that have an interesting interpretation of the biblical “Fall of Man“: the Serpent (the Garden of Eden serpent) mated with Eve in the Garden of Eden. The result of their “union” was Cain.

Followers of this doctrine believe this event resulted in the creation of 2 races of people: the “wicked” descendants of the Serpent, who were destined for damnation, & the righteous descendants of Adam, who were destined to have eternal life.

This doctrine frames human history as a conflict between these 2 races in which the descendants of Adam will eventually triumph over the descendants of the Serpent.

Irenaeus (circa 180. Check out the post about Irenaeus.), an early Church Father, condemned the notion of some people being naturally possessed of seeds of divinity in Against Heresies as a “Gnostic” heresy supported by Valentinus (100-160).

Valentinus didn’t propose that there were kids by Eve through the serpent or that there was a seed of the damned in contrast to the spiritual seed of the elect.

*Trigger Warning* This is where the racism is mentioned.

During the 19th century, the full Serpent Seed doctrine was invented by Daniel Parker (1781-1844), who promoted the doctrine among Primitive Baptists & wrote about it in his book Views on the Two Seeds (1826).

This doctrine was embraced by American religious leaders, who wanted to promote racist beliefs. It was brought into the teachings of British Israelism by C. A. L. Totten (1851-1908) & Russel Kelso Carter (1849-1928).

Teachers of the Christian Identity theology, which branched off from British Israelism, preached the doctrine during the 20th century & promoted it within racist groups. Some believers of the doctrine use this to justify antisemitism or racism by claiming that Jews or members of non-white races were the descendants of Cain & the Serpent, who were interpreted to be Satan or an intelligent non-human creature that lived before Adam & Eve.

Around the world, there are millions of followers of the Serpent seed doctrine within Branhamism & the Unification Church. In 2000, there were an estimated 50,000 followers of it within Christian Identity.

The Anti-Defamation League & various Christian apologetics organizations have denounced racist versions of the serpent seed teaching by claiming that they are incompatible with the teachings of traditional Christianity. They’ve accused promoters of exacerbating racial tensions by spreading hate.

In its most prominent modern form, it explains the biblical account of the Fall of Man by stating that the Serpent mated with Eve in the Garden of Eden. The offspring of their spicy time was Cain. It claims that Eve had adult spicy time with Adam a 2nd time. Abel & his younger bro, Seth, were the 2 kids that Adam & Eve had together. So by this theory, Cain was Abel (& Seth)’s half-brother, since they share different dads.

Variations of the doctrine claim that the Serpent‘s descendants have no souls because they’re partially descended from animals & are therefore predestined for damnation. Some groups are markedly militant on the subject because of their millennial teachings. As a result, they believe that at the end of days, a final battle will be fought in which the “pure” race will triumph over the “impure” one.

The identity of the Serpent varies from group to group. Some groups claim that the Serpent is Satan himself. While other groups claim that the Serpent is an animal that is either ape or human-like. Other groups incorporated pre-Adamite ideas that held the Serpent was a non-human creature whose creation predated that of Adam. A test run, if you will.

The doctrine also varies between groups. Some groups claim that the descendants of the Serpent are all people who aren’t of Northern European descent. Other Christian Identity groups claim that the descendants of the Serpent are either Jews or Africans. (We can’t with these people!)

William Branham connected the Serpent’s descendants with Ham (the biblical originator/progenitor of the African peoples), several Jewish figures, the highly educated, & society’s criminals. Arnold Murray connected the descendants of the Serpent with the Kenites, a group of people who he believed had infiltrated some part of Jewish society.

In the Unification Church, the bloodline of all humanity is believed to be contained as a result of Eve’s relations with the Serpent. However, married couples can change their heritages by performing the Holy Marriage Blessing Ceremony. This allows them to become the adopted kids of their new “Adam“: Sun Myung Moon. You may have heard of the Unification Church; they’re also known by another moniker: The Moonies.

Mainstream Christianity rejects the Serpent Seed doctrine. Because the biblical record explicitly names Adam as the biological father of Cain, this teaching is considered incompatible with the Protestant teaching of biblical infallibility. Some critics argue that this doctrine encourages division & fuels racism, which leads to sin.

Other critics point out the theological repercussions of blurring traditional Christianity’s interpretation of the doctrine of original sin. The Serpent Seed doctrine characterizes original sin as a feature of genetic inheritance rather than a spiritual condition.

Mainstream Christianity teaches the belief that all individuals are the spiritual children of Satan because they were born in a state of original sin. Through the act of Christian conversion, individuals can become kids of God through adoption.

This doctrine undermines the basic teaching of Christian conversion by teaching the belief that only individuals who are descended from Adam are the inherent kids of God, a belief which classifies them as the only people who don’t need to convert to Christianity. While the Serpent’s seedling was irredeemable.

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