Constantine -- good guy or bad guy for Christianity?

[Castor Muscular]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine. 

 

[Smellin Coffee]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

 

[christundivided]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

It was messed up long before Constantine came along.

He did do well when he issued the "Edict of Milan"... but as all things go "politically" he had to embrace other facets of the "kingdom". Its certain that "mixing" has influence Christianity for the worse..... but it was pretty bad before his time.

 

[christundivided]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

LOL...

You'll going to be surprised to find him walking hand in hand with some pretty important people one day...

 

[Castor Muscular]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

I can guess who that was. 

 

[Smellin Coffee]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

I can guess who that was. 

Yeah, he used pagan sources by making them "Christian" and even his salvation experience "pick up line" was previously a quote by a false god.

 

[christundivided]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

I can guess who that was. 

Yeah, he used pagan sources by making them "Christian" and even his salvation experience "pick up line" was previously a quote by a false god.

Yeah....... and he sure did love Jesus enough to devote his life to Him...... without any desire for wealth or fame.

 

[rsc2a]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I would say both but also say that his supposed level of influence is vastly over-rated.

 

[prophet]

He was one of those fruities with an overbearing witch of a mother.  Whoa to the whole Earth, when a mommy-run pansy gets behind the wheel.  The 'holy lands' are ruined to Christian visitors, by all the crap dedicated to Helen in the way.  'Artifacts', 'sites',, blah, blah, blah...

Constantine was one of those men, planted by Satan, like Hitler, and etc., who terrorized the planet. 

Anishinabe

 

[BandGuy]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

I can guess who that was. 

Yeah, he used pagan sources by making them "Christian" and even his salvation experience "pick up line" was previously a quote by a false god.

Okay.  I am lost here and quite curious.  To whom are you referring?

 

[Smellin Coffee]

I would argue bad guy -- that no single person screwed up the Christian faith and tradition more than Constantine.

I believe a certain biblical character did more harm, but that is another argument for another time.  :-*

I can guess who that was. 

Yeah, he used pagan sources by making them "Christian" and even his salvation experience "pick up line" was previously a quote by a false god.

Okay.  I am lost here and quite curious.  To whom are you referring?

Paul of the New Testament.

 

[BandGuy]

What is the quote from the false god?  I had a feeling that was who you might be referring to, so I did a Bing search and all I could find was stuff written by people who questioned his apostleship and basically called him a liar.  I couldn't find anything about quotes from false gods.

 

[Smellin Coffee]

What is the quote from the false god?  I had a feeling that was who you might be referring to, so I did a Bing search and all I could find was stuff written by people who questioned his apostleship and basically called him a liar.  I couldn't find anything about quotes from false gods.

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

Euripedes work Bacchae about the god Dionysus where as being deity in the flesh, he tells his questioner “You are mortal, he is a god. If I were you, I would control my rage and sacrifice to him, rather than kick against the pricks.”

I have a hard time believing God would have to quote a false god to convict Saul's heart. But that is just me.

 

[christundivided]

What is the quote from the false god?  I had a feeling that was who you might be referring to, so I did a Bing search and all I could find was stuff written by people who questioned his apostleship and basically called him a liar.  I couldn't find anything about quotes from false gods.

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

Euripedes work Bacchae about the god Dionysus where as being deity in the flesh, he tells his questioner “You are mortal, he is a god. If I were you, I would control my rage and sacrifice to him, rather than kick against the pricks.”

I have a hard time believing God would have to quote a false god to convict Saul's heart. But that is just me.

It was a common saying. Its no wonder it showed up in more than one place.

God didn't quote a "false God".... no more He quoted a false God when he tells use "he loves us". Are you going to search history and find all the times someone told someone else "I love you"..... until you find some questionable source?

Your bias is blinding you.

 

[Ransom]

I'd say that Constantine was a net good. It was him that made Christianity a legal religion in Rome, which meant that the Church could be the Church without fear of persecution (apart from the occasional relapse, for example under Julian the Apostate). While there's some truth to the adage that the church remained comparatively pure while suffering persecution. and the Apostles told us to expect it, they certainly don't argue that we should desire it as the normal state of affairs. Paul instructed Timothy to pray for kings and others in authority, "that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life" (1 Tim. 2:2). To the extent that Constantine made this possible, he was an answer to prayer.

On the other hand, Constantine exercised too much power within the Church as Emperor. His successor, his son Constantius, had Arian sympathies and actively worked to depose Nicene bishops from the churches.  So even though Constantine was a net good, he had at least one rather serious black mark against him.

 

[BandGuy]

What is the quote from the false god?  I had a feeling that was who you might be referring to, so I did a Bing search and all I could find was stuff written by people who questioned his apostleship and basically called him a liar.  I couldn't find anything about quotes from false gods.

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

Euripedes work Bacchae about the god Dionysus where as being deity in the flesh, he tells his questioner “You are mortal, he is a god. If I were you, I would control my rage and sacrifice to him, rather than kick against the pricks.”

I have a hard time believing God would have to quote a false god to convict Saul's heart. But that is just me.

It was a common saying. Its no wonder it showed up in more than one place.

God didn't quote a "false God".... no more He quoted a false God when he tells use "he loves us". Are you going to search history and find all the times someone told someone else "I love you"..... until you find some questionable source?

Your bias is blinding you.

Yep.  That sounds right to me.  SC, are you part of the Christian Identity Movement?

 

[Mr. Hall]

Was Constantine himself a "Christian?" 

$

 

[Castor Muscular]

Was Constantine himself a "Christian?" 

$

Not likely.  Didn't he have some of his family assassinated?

 

[Tarheel Baptist]

What is the quote from the false god?  I had a feeling that was who you might be referring to, so I did a Bing search and all I could find was stuff written by people who questioned his apostleship and basically called him a liar.  I couldn't find anything about quotes from false gods.

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

Euripedes work Bacchae about the god Dionysus where as being deity in the flesh, he tells his questioner “You are mortal, he is a god. If I were you, I would control my rage and sacrifice to him, rather than kick against the pricks.”

I have a hard time believing God would have to quote a false god to convict Saul's heart. But that is just me.

That's ALL you got?
Using a common Idiom certainly puts him on the suspect list.....he also used sports and agricultural metaphors!
The pagan!  : : : : : : : (7 eyerolls...the number of completion!  )

 

[prophet]

Was Constantine himself a "Christian?" 

$

He saw a sign, so it must be so. 

Anishinabe