bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
B
ar
S
alibi,
D
ionysius (
d
. 1171)
Authors: Amar Joseph P. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Dionysius Bar Salibi is one of three towering literary figures in West Syriac tradition responsible for what some scholars refer to as the Revival of Syriac Letters in the late 12th and early 13th centuries; with Michael the Syrian (d. 1199) and Gregory Bar Hebraeus (d. 1286), Bar Salibi composed works of such quantity and erudition that both his younger contemporaries called him “the star of his age.” Baptized Jacob, he took the name Dionysius when he was consecrated bishop of Marash in 1154. As other ecclesiastical scholars of the age, he set about collecting and writing commentaries on the works of earlier Syriac writers which were threatened with extinction due to the increased dominance of Arabic. In addition to major commentaries on the Old and New Testaments and theological works on the Trinity, incarnation, and the sacraments, he wrote a monumental commentary on the
Kephalia gnostica
which is still extant. Ever the controversialist, Jacob wrote polemical treatises against not only the perennial theological enemies of the Syriac Orthodox Church, the Nestorians and Chalcedonians, but also against Jews and Muslims; he even wrote against his miaphysite coreligionists, the Armenians.
B
arnhouse,
D
onald
G
rey (1895–1960)
Authors: Bigalke Ron J. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Donald Grey Barnhouse was born into a devout Methodist family in Watsonville, California. His father, Theodore Barnhouse, was married to Jennie Carmichael, and worked as a carpenter and contractor. Donald was the youngest of five children, and the only boy born to Theodore and Jennie.
Basil the Great (330–379)
Authors: Dawson Connie J. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Basil the Great, Bishop of Cappadocia Caesarea, was one of the three Cappadocian Fathers and ranks among the greatest figures in church history. The other two Cappadocian Fathers of the East were his younger brother, Gregory Nyssa, and his close friend, Gregory Nazianzus. Basil was born in Caesarea, Cappadocia (now Asia Minor), in central Turkey. He was the third of ten children, born into a wealthy and prestigious family with a strong Christian heritage. His father's family suffered persecution under Maximinus, and his mother was the daughter of a martyr. Basil's childhood was greatly affected by his grandmother Macrina the elder, and his early education was under the tutelage of his father who was a lawyer and teacher of rhetoric. The brilliant young scholar's academic career led him to Athens in 351 where he developed a lifelong friendship with Gregory Nazianzus and also became friends with the future emperor, Julian, known in Christian tradition as “the Apostate.”
Beauty
Authors: Garrett Stephen M. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractContemporary philosophical aesthetics and theology alike all but dismiss the motif of beauty as an essentialist notion with minimal explanatory power. This dismissal appears to be in part because of the relegation of beauty to the ornamental and innocuous pleasant, signifying the beautiful as an escape from the pain of reality. On a popular level, beauty has lost its force in the marketplace of ideas since it has come to mean whatever the “beholder” wants the term to mean and has little ability to convey meaning beyond the realm of personal taste. Beauty, though, has not always been relegated to the margins and is being reasserted today in Christian theology through the revival of theological aesthetics.
B
eguines
Authors: Huey Whitney 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

The Beguines were a movement that was begun by religious laywomen in the 13th century and which flourished in the Low Countries. The derivation of the word “beguine” is debated. Men who lived a similar life were known as “beghards.” Beguines were often suspected of heresy because of their attempt to live lives of absolute apostolic poverty outside of the traditional orders of the church, belonging to no particular order and following no particular rule. They often lived together in “beguinages,” or communities of Beguines, in which they developed their own rules. The role of the Beguine was to serve the community in humility just as Christ did while he was on earth. Beguines often came from wealthy backgrounds, and they left vernacular writings that have significantly contributed to the understanding of laywomen's mysticism. The decline of the Beguines is due in great part to the condemnation of the Spiritual Franciscans' position on apostolic poverty by John XXII which came after the Council of Vienne in 1311, under Pope Clement V; the council issued a bull stating that the Beguines were not nuns, were not an approved order, and therefore were heretical. All beguinages were ordered to be dissolved. Beguines were never completely eradicated and continue, albeit in very small numbers, today. Among the most notable medieval Beguines are the mystics Marguerite Porete, Hadewijch of Antwerp, and Mechthild of Magdeburg. Marguerite Porete wrote
The Mirror of Simple Souls
, and was condemned for the Free Spirit heresy. Her writings are known to have influenced Meister Eckhart and he in turn influenced the writings of other Beguines, thus the two began a theological conversation. Mechthild of Magdeburg wrote
The Flowing Light of the Godhead
, a book detailing her seven visions of God. Hadewijch of Antwerp produced a large body of work including letters, poetry, and visions.
B
ellarmine,
R
obert (1542–1621)
Authors: Bigalke Ron J. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Robert Bellarmine, a distinguished Italian Jesuit, was born the son of a noble family in Monte‐pulciano in southeast Tuscany on October 4, 1542, and died of failing health on September 17, 1621. In 1560, he began his studies at the Collegio Romano. He then studied Thomistic theology at the University of Padua. In 1569, Bellarmine taught divinity at the University of Louvain and was ordained priest the following year. In 1576, he was recalled to Italy and assigned the chair of Controversies recently founded at the Collegio Romano (where he originally studied theology). Bellarmine established Thomistic theology as foundational for the Jesuit order and eventually for all theological education of Roman Catholicism (although his doctrine of free will is closer to Molina). The series of lectures delivered at the Collegio Romano became Bellarmine's most influential writings under the title
Disputationes de Controversiis Christianae Fidei Adversus Huius Temporis Haereticos
(1586–1593; “Disputations Concerning the Controversies of the Christian Faith against the Heretics of this Time”).
De Controversiis
was an articulate and uncompromising systematization of Roman Catholic doctrine. His work could rightly be considered the most detailed defense of Romanist teaching; it was influential in Europe, and was a serious challenge to Protestantism especially in Germany and England. Bellarmine was a resolute opponent toward Protestantism and quickly became the leading apologist of the Catholic Church during the Counter‐Reformation. As a shrewd controversialist on the side of Rome, he refined the futurist interpretation of Jesuit Francisco Ribera of Salamanca, Spain against the dominant historical interpretation of the Protestant Reformers.
B
ellini,
G
iovanni (1430–1516)
Authors: Kurian George Thomas 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Venetian painter, considered the greatest of the group known as
Madonnieri
(Madonna Painters) who specialized in painting the Madonna in a variety of settings that includes trees and landscapes, as in
Madonna of the Meadow
(1505), but always holding the Holy Child upright. The Madonna always appears grave and pensive, usually with a white coif covering her hair beneath a blue hooded mantle. She holds the robust infant in her arms or on her knees. Mary adopts the classic devotional pose as she gazes on the Word made Flesh and meditates on the mystery enshrined in the vision before her. She is the corporeal ciborium, the earthly bearer of the Godhead. Occasionally there are other figures kneeling accompanied by their saintly patrons, but the Virgin remains impassive and unheeding. Bellini excelled in creating the mood in the painting and he was more interested in the atmosphere rather than the action.
Benedictines
Authors: Peters Greg 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Details of Benedict's life come primarily from the second book of the
Dialogues
of Gregory the Great and from Benedict's own
Rule for Monks
. Born in c.480 in Nursia, just outside Rome, Benedict was educated in Rome before adopting a life of asceticism. He spent three years living as a hermit at Subiaco before becoming abbot of a nearby monastery. In time Benedict learned that these monks were, in Gregory's words, “mad with anger” at Benedict for his insistence on living a well‐disciplined monastic life. After an attempt on his life, Benedict returned to his hermitage at Subiaco where he was soon joined by numerous disciples, purportedly organizing them into 12 monasteries. Benedict subsequently retired to Monte Cassino with a number of followers, founding there a true cenobitic monastery following his own monastic rule.
B
ennett,
D
ennis (1917–1991)
Authors: Streett R. Alan 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Dennis Bennett was an Episcopal priest dubbed by
Time
magazine “the Father of the Modern Charismatic Movement.” On April 3, 1960, Father Bennett announced to the congregation of St. Mark's Church, a thriving church in Van Nuys, California, that he recently had been baptized in the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues. Controversy soon resulted and rather than divide the church Bennett resigned as rector of St. Mark's and was immediately appointed to a small church in the Pacific Northwest, St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Seattle, Washington. The assignment was considered a demotion and punishment for rocking the denominational boat.
Berkeley,George (1685–1753)
Authors: Spiegel James S. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractGeorge Berkeley was an early modern Irish philosopher and Anglican bishop. He made contributions to diverse fields, including political philosophy (Passive Obedience, 1712), physics (De motu, 1721), mathematics (The Analyst, 1734), and economics (Querist, 1735–1737). But he is most famous for his philosophical work, in particular his doctrine of “immaterialism,” a brand of metaphysical idealism which asserts that “to be is to be perceived.”
B
ernard of
C
lairvaux (1090/1091–1153)
Authors: Posset Franz 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
A French saint, Bernard of Clairvaux was born in Fontaines, near Dijon, to a noble family. He was schooled at Châtillon. In 1113 he entered the monastery at Cîteaux with 30 of his relatives and friends. Soon he became the founding abbot of Clairvaux. During his lifetime about 700 monks lived at Clairvaux. He rejected five offers of bishoprics. He described himself as the “chimera of his century.” As a monastic theologian he understood the Bible as the “Word of salvation” and Christ as the center of his spirituality: to know nothing but Jesus the crucified Christ (1 Cor. 2:2). This motif was made visible in the later iconography, showing Bernard being embraced by the crucified Christ. He acquired a profound knowledge of the Bible and the church fathers. His spirituality contributed to the transition from the Romanesque image of Christ the King to the Gothic image of the suffering Christ. He adhered to the principles of “grace alone” and “faith alone” for salvation. Inspired by the ancient Greek maxim “know yourself” he pursued the knowledge of self as a sinner and the knowledge of God as the sinner's savior. His devotion to the Virgin Mary found expression in the later iconography of Bernard receiving mystical mother's milk onto his lips.
B
ernini,
G
ianlorenzo (1598–1680)
Authors: Kurian George Thomas 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Italian architect, sculptor, and painter, the leading figure in the Italian Baroque period. His major religious work was the triumphal gilt bronze baldacchino over the high altar of St. Peter's (1642–1643) which was inspired by the twisted marble columns of the Old St. Peter's which themselves harked back to the columns of the Beautiful Gate in Jerusalem. The whole structure is over 100 feet high and is surmounted by a wind‐blown canopy. His much later
Cathedra Petri
(1657–1666) shows the four fathers of the church, two Latin, Saints Ambrose and Augustine, and two Greek, Athanasius and Chrysostom, upholding the throne of St. Peter which is illuminated by a brilliant gold stained glass with the image of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove.
Bible Translations
Authors: Köstenberger Andreas J. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
The original writings making up the canon of sacred Christian Scripture were written in Hebrew and Aramaic (the Old Testament) and Greek (the New Testament). The four pillars that support trust in the faithful preservation of the Scriptures are: 1) the inspiration; 2) the canon; 3) the transmission; and 4) the translation of the Bible. Christians believe that the writings included in the canon, and only these, bear the mark of divine inspiration (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21). Over a process of several hundred years the church recognized these inspired writings and collected them into a canon containing 66 books, 39 in the Old Testment and 27 in the New Testament.
A
frican
A
merican Theology
Authors: Buchanan Deborah J. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Long before the first books on black theology were written, enslaved Africans in America and their descendants sought to articulate their beliefs and understanding of God, and their experience of God in the midst of suffering. Utilizing songs, stories, and other creative means, enslaved Africans delved into theodicy, anthropology, Christology, and other theological themes. The sections below will chronicle the development of black theology in the church, community, and academy; it will also examine the methods, sources and contributions of black theology to Christianity and the field of theology.
B
loesch,
D
onald
G
. (b. 1928)
Authors: Emerick Christopher C. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Donald Bloesch was born on May 3, 1928 in Bremen, Indiana, USA. His father ministered in a local German evangelical church affiliated with the Evangelical Synod of North America. Bloesch's grandfathers also ministered in this Synod, as did Reinhold Niebuhr, a close friend of Bloesch's father. After a series of mergers, the Evangelical Synod eventually incorporated with the United Churches of Christ (UCC). Bloesch remains an ordained (since 1953) and occasionally dissatisfied member of the UCC. Upon graduating high school, Bloesch entered Elmhurst College and then continued his studies at Chicago Theological Seminary. After completing the Bachelor of Divinity degree, he pursued doctoral studies at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where he studied under Charles Hartshorne and Wilhelm Pauck, among others, successfully defending his dissertation, “Reinhold Niebuhr's reevaluation of the apologetic task,” in 1956. The following year he began teaching at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary, where he remains on the faculty as professor of theology emeritus.
B
öhme,
J
akob (1575–1624)
Authors: Johnson Wendell 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
A German Lutheran mystic and pantheist, Jakob Böhme was born in Alt‐Seidelberg (near Görlitz in Silesia) in 1575. Böhme's parents (Jakob and Ursula) apprenticed him to a shoemaker in Görlitz, where he became a master cobbler in 1599. He prospered in his trade and married Katharina Kuntzschmann, the daughter of a master butcher. The union produced four sons and two daughters.
B
oethius (c.480–524/526)
Authors: Jordan Jessy 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

According to tradition, Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius (born c.480 in Rome) died as a Christian martyr in Pavia between 524 and 526. He was a philosopher, theologian, and statesman; as a translator and commentator he is often considered the most important intermediary between the ancient Greek intellectual tradition and the Latin Middle Ages. As the “last Roman” and the “first of the Scholastics,” he is best known for the
Consolation of Philosophy
, a prison text treating the transitory nature of this world and the soul's ascent toward rest in an eternal God.
B
off,
L
eonardo (
b
. 1938)
Authors: García Alberto L. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Genezio Darci Boff was born in Concórdia in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina to immigrant Italian parents. One of the most influential and controversial liberation theologians, Boff is especially known for his active work of solidarity with the poor. He was present at the first reflections of the development of liberation theology and “shares his life and dreams” with Maria Monteiro de Miranda, a defender and educator of human rights. He is the author of over 60 books, many of which have been translated into several languages.
Bolivian Christianity
Authors: Bigalke Ron J. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractBolivia, named after independence fighter Simón Bolívar, is a landlocked country of central South America, situated in the widest expanse of the Andean mountains. The hills and valleys of Bolivia are located in the Amazon and Parana basins. Of all South American countries, it is the highest and most isolated. The western Altiplano highlands and humid eastern lowlands are home to one of the continent's most indigenous cultures. The majority of the population practices an amalgamation of traditional Aymara and Inca religion with Roman Catholicism (the Jesuits were expelled in 1667). Of the South American countries, Bolivia is one of the least influenced by Protestantism.
B
raaten,
C
arl
E
. (b. 1929)
Authors: García Alberto L. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Carl E. Braaten was born on January 3, 1929, in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is a world‐renowned systematic theologian and prolific author, who has distinguished himself as a theologian of hope in the areas of Christology, Catholic Evangelical ecumenism, and mission theology.
B
ramante,
D
onato (1444–1514)
Authors: Kurian George Thomas 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Also known as Donato di Angelo. Italian architect and painter. His approach to architecture was strongly influenced by painters, such as Mantegna. His first church was Sta Maria presso S. Satiro in Milan in the late 1470s. Here he makes brilliant use of perspective to create the illusion of a three‐bay choir on a flat wall. In the 1470s he added a tribune to Sta Maria delle Grazie. Later he went to Rome where he worked on the cloister of Sta Maria della Pace between 1500 and 1504. His next work was the Tempietto in the courtyard of San Pietro in Montorio where he designed a centrally planned martyrium using the Doric order and carving the instruments of the Mass on the colonnade surrounding the cella of the chapel. This led to his appointment as architect of the rebuilding of the Old St. Peter's. Bramante's original design was for a centrally planned church with identical arms. The foundation stone was laid by Pope Julius II. Bramante's plan was abandoned as other architects took over the project, but it inspired Michelangelo, whose grander vision ultimately prevailed. Bramante was also a painter whose somber and poignant
Christ at the Column
shows the influence of Leonardo.
Brethren
Authors: Baker Dwight P. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractThe Brethren Church presents a particularly well‐documented case for study both of the maintenance of religious and cultural identity across three centuries and 15 or more generations and of differential acculturation to wider religious and societal mores. The origin of the Brethren Church can be dated to 1708, when eight believers gathered on the banks of the Eder River at Schwarzenau, Germany, for a baptismal service. One person, chosen by lot, baptized the leader, Alexander Mack. Then Mack baptized the members of the group. In doing so they broke with the state church, which held a monopoly, backed by official sanctions, on religious instruction and the performance of religious rites.
B
roadus,
J
ohn
A
lbert (1827–1895)
Authors: Dockery David S. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

John A. Broadus was born on January 24, 1827 in Culpepper County, Virginia. When he died on March 16, 1895, he was regarded as one of North America's most capable Christian scholars of the 19th century and certainly one of the world's greatest preachers. Following his graduation from the University of Virginia he accepted a pastorate in Charlottesville, Virginia as well as an appointment to serve at his
alma mater
as assistant professor of Latin and Greek. He was then able to continue his dual loves of teaching and preaching. Eight years later in 1859 he responded to an invitation to serve as a member of the founding faculty at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Broadus served as professor of New Testament and preaching until 1889 when he was elected as the second president of the seminary.
Church Communities International/Bruderhof
Authors: Essick John Inscore 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Church Communities International (CCI), commonly known as the Bruderhof (place of brothers), is a group of religious communities founded by Eberhard Arnold (1883–1935) in Sannerz, Germany, in 1920. Arnold's approach to communal religious life was influenced by the Hutterites, who were living in America, and upon visiting them in 1930 he was ordained as a Hutterite minister. The Sannerz community encountered severe persecution under the Nazi regime and was forced to relocate several times, finally settling in Paraguay in 1941. In time many Americans expressed interest in joining the community and traveled to Paraguay, prompting the group members to relocate to America in 1954, where they purchased the Woodcrest estate in New York. Additional communities appeared in Pennsylvania and Connecticut during the 1950s. There have been several attempts at a union with the Hutterites, but to date all have been unsuccessful. Presently, CCI has communities in the United States, England, Germany, and Australia, with a population totaling more than 2,500.
B
runelleschi,
F
ilippo (1377–1446)
Authors: Kurian George Thomas 
Published: January 2012

Abstract

Florentine architect and sculptor, founding father of Renaissance architecture. His first known work was the relief of the
Sacrifice of Abraham
that he entered for the Baptistery doors in Florence but which failed to win acceptance. Later he was given the commission to design the dome of the Florence cathedral. He was also involved in the construction of the two basilicas of San Lorenzo. He pioneered the concept of the centrally planned chapel in which the external and internal parts are all mathematically in harmony. The same adherence to mathematical proportions is to be found in the loggia of the Innocenti (the Foundling Hospital, 1419–1424) and in his unfinished Sta Maria Degli Angeli (1434–1437). Vasari in his
Lives of the Painters
credits Brunelleschi with the central vanishing point perspective. His interests in mathematics and geometry led Brunelleschi to design churches based on the circle, which is the perfect geometrical form.
B
ucer,
M
artin (1491–1551)
Authors: Schirrmacher Thomas 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
Martin Bucer (German, Butzer; Latin, Martinus Bucerus), German Protestant Reformer of Strasbourg, was the most important German‐speaking Reformer of the first generation after Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon. Well known for trying to reunite a Christianity that was breaking apart, he was also the author of many books on dogmatics, ethics, counseling, and church organization, and of bible commentaries. Originally a Dominican, Bucer was won for the Reformation when as a student he heard Luther speak at the Heidelberg Disputation in 1518. For decades he was the leader of the Reformation in Strasbourg at the French border and the spokesman for the Reformation in the whole of southern Germany.