Faith Through the Ages - Today in Religious History
The pioneering Jesuit missionary, co-founder of the Society of Jesus, died while attempting to enter China. His missionary work in Asia, especially in India and Japan, had a lasting impact on the spread of Christianity in the region.
The Council of Trent, which had been meeting intermittently since 1545, concluded its 25th and final session. It issued decrees on purgatory, indulgences, and the veneration of saints, solidifying Catholic doctrine in response to the Protestant Reformation.
Pope Gregory XIII canonized Francis Xavier, along with Ignatius of Loyola, in a ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica. Xavier was recognized for his extraordinary missionary zeal and the many reported miracles attributed to him.
Pope Innocent XI beatified Thomas More, the English statesman and humanist who was executed in 1535 for refusing to accept King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England. More was later canonized in 1935.
William Carey, though a Baptist, is often cited, but on this date the first Methodist missionaries, including Hiram Bingham, arrived in Hawaii. They began a mission that would profoundly shape Hawaiian religious life.
Oberlin College was founded in Ohio by Presbyterian and Congregationalist reformers. It became a center for Christian abolitionism and later for missionary training, sending many graduates to serve overseas.
Pope Pius IX, in the apostolic constitution Ineffabilis Deus, defined the dogma that the Virgin Mary was conceived without original sin. This was a significant development in Catholic Marian theology.
The first issue of the Apostolic Faith, the newspaper of the Azusa Street Revival, was published in Los Angeles. This marked a key moment in the spread of Pentecostalism, a major new Christian movement.
Pope John XXIII was presented with a copy of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, a Protestant translation. This gesture was seen as a positive step in ecumenical relations between Catholics and Protestants.
The Second Vatican Council, convened by Pope John XXIII in 1962, concluded its final session under Pope Paul VI. It issued decrees on religious freedom, the church in the modern world, and interreligious dialogue, transforming Catholic practice.