This month marks the observation ofPentecost, one of the most important feast of the Christian liturgical year. It is our hope here that all of you, regardless of your religious affiliation (if any), find that the holiday, and its accompanying activities, an enjoyable and beneficial experience. We also hope that this "Birthday of the Church" is one which gives you the same joy as the birthday of yourself or your loved ones.

Ichthus is the successor to the long running WikiProject Christianity newsletter, run under the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department. As such, you will continue to see information about our latest featured and good articles, DYKs, as well as new members who have joined our project. You might also see links to Christianity related news from the mainstream media!

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

John Carter, Asst. Editor

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity-related topics Noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

As many of you may know, our unofficial mascot, dear Wikipe-tan, hasn't yet indicated any particular beliefs. However, yes, as we all know, ahem,some people might object to our beloved mascot running around in aFrench maid outfit. People do talk, you know. ;) If anyone might be able to develop an image of the dear lady in a image more, well, "Christian," I would like to see perhaps a vote for next month as to which, if any, image of the dear girl we might make our own unofficial mascot. Please post your imageshere.

ByJohn Carter

ByJohn Carter

Ichthus will spotlight a different subproject or workgroup of WikiProject Christianity. This edition will spotlight on our vitalOutreach department. This comparatively small, but vital, project unit is dedicated to welcoming new editors to Wikipedia and the Christianity related content, and to providing information to the various project members, in forms like this newsletter.

The scope of articles with which this group deals is truly enormous, and, given the wide variety of material with which we deal, we would very much welcome the input of more individuals, particularly individuals who are particularly knowledgeable of the less well-known and less frequently monitored articles related to Christianity.

Speaking personally, I would be very, very gratified if we were to have this become a very, very large and active unit, with members from the broad spectrum of Christian beliefs, practices, and groups. The broader the spectrum and areas of expertise of members we have, the better we will be able to help manage the content. Please consider whether you believe you might be able to contribute in this vital area.

ByJohn Carter

The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 331 active members. We would like to welcomeUser:Sanju87,User:Psalm84,User:Zegron,User:Jargon777,User:Calu2000,User:Gilderien,User:Ronallenus, Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. We have recently added some new sections to the newsletter. Please let us know what you think of the new departments, and if there are any other suggestions for departments you would like to see. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

byBerthold Werner

We had last month asked our members to help "bring into the fold"Wikipe-tan as the project's mascot. Voting will take place this month for which image we should adopt atWikipedia:WikiProject Christianity/Outreach/Wikipe-tan. Please take a moment to review the images and vote for whichever is your favorite, or, if you so prefer, suggest an additional one.

ByJohn Carter

• ...thatAnna of Kashin, a Russian medieval princess, was twice canonized as a holy protectress of women who suffer the loss of relatives?

Thie coming month includes days dedicated to the honor ofBeheading of John the Baptist,Saints Peter and Paul, theNativity of John the Baptist, andSaint Barnabas.

Alec Douglas-Home recently achieved FA status.This picture, in the Church of the Month section, was recently promoted to Featured Picture status. Our thanks and congratulations to all those involved.

Wikisource currently has many old texts available, most of them in the public domain. This is a potentially very valuable source for several things, including for instance links to Biblical verses, because we know that it will, basically, be around as long as we are.

Byuser:John Carterwith inspiration fromHistory2007

This section would include a rather large image of a specific work of art, with a link to the most directly relevant article.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toCollections of the Walters Art Museum.

ByJohnbod

A new WikiProject relating directly to Christian history is being developed atWikipedia:WikiProject Christian history. Also, a group specifically devoted to the Mennonites and other Anabaptists is now up and running atWikipedia:WikiProject Christianity/Anabaptist work group. Anyone interested in assisting with the development of these groups and topics is more than welcome to do so.

ByJohn Carter

... in the statements contained in theNicene Creed. I believe that the Bible is one of the two defining bases for belief. The other is theSacred tradition, which provides us with means of interpreting the Scriptures, as well as some teachings which have been handed on by God outside of the scriptures. I believe that theMagisterium has been empowered to fill this interpretative function. I believe thatclerical celibacy is a rule that should generally be followed. I am a member of theCatholic Church.

ByJohn Carter

Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 336 active members. We would like to welcomeUser:Emilymadcat,User:Toa Nidhiki05,User:DonutGuy, andUser:RCNesland, Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. We have recently added some new sections to the newsletter. Please let us know what you think of the new departments, and if there are any other suggestions for departments you would like to see. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

Church of the month

byUser:JaGa

Vote for the project mascot
We had last month asked our members to help "bring into the fold"Wikipe-tan as the project's mascot. Voting will take place this month for which image we should adopt atWikipedia:WikiProject Christianity/Outreach/Wikipe-tan. Please take a moment to review the images and vote for whichever is your favorite, or, if you so prefer, suggest an additional one.

ByJohn Carter

Calendar
Thie coming month (mid-July through mid-September) includes days dedicated to the honor ofMary Magdalene,James, son of Zebedee,Ignatius Loyola,Saint Dominic,Joseph of Arimathea, and theTransfiguration of Jesus.

Featured content and GA report
Grade I listed churches in Cheshire was recently promoted to Featured List status.This picture was recently promoted to Featured Picture status.Bartolome de las Casas andEdmund the Martyr were promoted to GA level this past month. Our thanks and congratulations to all those involved.

Wikimedia Foundation report

Wikibooks welcomes the development of textbooks of all kinds, children's books, recipes, and other material. It currently has just under 2500 books, including several Wikijunior books for the 12 and under population. There is, at present, not even a book on Christianity. Anyone interested in helping develop such a textbook is more than welcome to do so.

ByJohn Carter

Christian art

The portrait of Sir Thomas More by Hans Holbein the Younger.

ByJohn Carter

Spotlight
A new WikiProject relating directly to Christian history is being developed atWikipedia:WikiProject Christian history. Anyone interested in assisting with the development of these groups and topics is more than welcome to do so.

ByJohn Carter

I believe
... in the tradition ofThomas the Apostle,Mar Addai, andSaint Bartholomew. I believe that Jesus had two essences (or natures), human and divine, unmingled, that are everlastingly united in one personality. I am a member of theAssyrian Church of the East.

ByJohn Carter

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 341 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,User:David_FLXD,User:Alexsbecker,User:Penguin 236,User:Gugi001,User:John D. Rockerduck, andUser:Margaret9mary. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. We have recently added some new sections to the newsletter. Please let us know if there are changes you would like to see in the format, or if there are any particular things you would like to see included. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByJohn Carter

Church of the month

byUser:Diliff

Contest of the month
We currently have a remarkable lack ofWikipedia:Wikipedia-Books. Right now,Category:Wikipedia books on Christianity contains only 12 books. We certainly could have at least one book on each major grouping within Christianity. One of the challenges for this month, then, is working to put together books on relevant topics. For this month, one contest is for editors to assemble the basic Wikipedia books for each of the main topics of the extant related projects. When finished, they should their creation of the books at themain Christianity noticeboard, and at the end of the month the project will award barnstars to those who have made a significant efforts in developing this underdeveloped content.

Also this month, we are going to have have a challenge to create and improve some of our more important missing or low-quality articles. As biographies are often a bit easier, this month we are choosing two biographies:Karl Behm, which has yet to be started, and the currently Stub-class articleNerses IV the Gracious. A barnstar will be awarded to any editor who can get these articles up toDYK quality level and ultimately selected for the DYK section of the main page.

Calendar
Thie coming month (mid-August through mid-September) includes feasts dedicated to the honor ofAssumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary,Bartholomew the Apostle,Nativity of Mary, and theExaltation of the Cross.

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report,William de Chesney (sheriff),Knights of Columbus, andAngelus Silesius were promoted to GA level. Our thanks and congratulations to all those involved.

Wikimedia Foundation report

Wikinews is our sister site for developing news stories. Several events relating to Christianity, like the installation of bishops for instance, do not necessarily merit extensive coverage in wikipedia encyclopedic articles, but can and easily could be covered at greater length in a news article format. Given the number of significant news events that relate to religion, including claims of miracles, assignment of bishops and other religious leaders, church conferences, and other events, this site provides an excellent opportunity to provide in-depth coverage of current events at greater length than wikipedia.

Christian art

Spotlight

One of our newer editors,User:David_FLXD, has recently gone through much of our content related to Methodism and assessed it. We are very grateful for his efforts, and that of all the editors who have had a role in developing that content. We have every reason to believe that this will make it significantly easier for theMethodism work group to create and develop content relevant to Methodism. To help that along, we certainly encourage everyone to do what they can to help David and the other Methodism editors to bring the content relevant to their tradition to the highest possible level of quality.

I believe
... in theHoly Trinity, the sacraments ofBaptism andHoly Communion, theArminian conception offree will through God'sprevenient grace, and the regular renewal of the individual'scovenant with God. I am aMethodist.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 344 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,User:Floating Boat,User:Dewey420, andUser:Jpacobb. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. We have recently added some new sections to the newsletter. Please let us know if there are changes you would like to see in the format, or if there are any particular things you would like to see included. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByJohn Carter

Church of the month

byUser:Diliff

Contest of the month
We currently have a remarkable lack ofWikipedia:Wikipedia-Books. Right now,Category:Wikipedia books on Christianity contains only 12 books. We certainly could have at least one book on each major grouping within Christianity. One of the challenges for this month, then, is working to put together books on relevant topics. For this month, one contest is for editors to assemble the basic Wikipedia books for each of the main topics of the extant related projects. When finished, they should their creation of the books at themain Christianity noticeboard, and at the end of the month the project will award barnstars to those who have made a significant efforts in developing this underdeveloped content.

Also this month, we are going to have have a challenge to create and improve some of our more important missing or low-quality articles. Last month's challenge articles wereKarl Beth andNerses IV the Gracious. Both articles are currently candidates for the DYK section of themain page. This month's challenge articles are the Stub-class articleJames Hastings and the not yet startedRudolf Sohm, A barnstar will be awarded to any editor who can get these articles up toDYK quality level and ultimately selected for the DYK section of the main page.

Calendar
Thie coming month (mid-September through mid-October) includes feasts dedicated to the honor of theMartyrs of Korea,Saint Matthew,Vincent de Paul,Michaelmas,Saint Jerome,Theresa of Lisieux, theFeast of the Guardian Angels,Francis of Assisi,Our Lady of the Rosary, andTeresa of Avila.

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report,Albertus Soegijapranata, andReginald Heber were promoted to FA.Grade I listed churches in Greater Manchester was promoted to Featured List, andJackie Hudson,Joyce Kilmer,Divine command theory,Bosa of York andArgument from morality were promoted to GA level. DYKs featured this past month includeChurch of Saint Benoit, Istanbul,All Saints Church, Hollingbourne,Neustädter Kirche, Hannover,St Mary's Church, Kirkby Lonsdale,Albert Ndongmo,If We Are the Body,List of places of worship in Tonbridge and Malling,Kulubnarti church,All Saints Church, Ulcombe,Val-Saint-Lambert Abbey,Igny Abbey,Church of the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel, Brăila,Places of Worship Registration Act 1855,Collegiate Church of San Gimignano, andSt Matthew's Church, Burnley. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Wikimedia Foundation report

As some of you may have seen, theSimple English Wikipedia has been experiencing some difficulties lately. This particular entity could be of great value to several individuals who are trying to learn English. As some of you who do speak foreign languages know, one of the most easily available, and, in general, useful learning aids for people is a text they know already, which allows them to focus on the specific words of the new language. Various recorded readings and translations of theBible are among the best examples of this. Any efforts to try to enhance this vital means of informing a large segment of our readership is more than welcome. People interested in helping develop it are encouraged to leave a note regarding their specific articles of interest at theChristianity noticeboard. It would be wonderful if we could report some significant contributions to this sister site next month. And, of course, if we do have something to report, those involved would receive our greatest thanks.

Christian art

Spotlight

WikiProject Calvinism is one of our more important subprojects. It is specifically devoted to developing content relating to the Calvinist tradition, and the primary point for development of content relating to thePilgrims,Presbyterians,Reformed churches,Congregational church,Reformed Baptists, andLow church. We definitely encourage everyone to do what they can to help this project develop the content relating to this extremely important Christian tradition.

I believe
... that human nature is insufficient for salvation, and the grace of God is required to do so. I believe that God has preordained who will and will not achieve salvation. I believe that Jesus's atonement was sufficient for the purposes for which it was done. I believe that God's grace is of such power that it can overcome any person's resistance. I believe that those whom God has chosen for salvation will, by the undeniable power of God, persevere in God's grace. I am aCalvinist.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 347 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,User:Dplcrnj,User:Danmuz,User:Zigzig20s, andUser:Jasonasosa. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. This newsletter is one of the ways we do try to help people keep up with the project. We would always welcome any input for things to be included in it or additional editors to keep it going. Please let us know if there are changes you would like to see in the format, or if there are any particular things you would like to see included. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByJohn Carter

Church of the month

byUser:Taxiarchos228, recently promoted to Featured Image

Contest of the month
For the upcoming month, the contest will be to develop content related to theChristmas season, including Advent and other related topics. Please feel free to see and take part in the discussion atWikipedia talk:Christianity noticeboard#Contest of the month - Advent/Christmas content.

One of last month's challenge articles,Rudolf Sohm, has been substantially developed byUser:Jack1956 andUser:StAnselm. Our deepest thanks to both of them!!

Calendar
Thie coming month (mid-October through mid-November) includesAll Saints' Day andAll Souls' Day and major commemorations dedicated to the honor of theIgnatius of Antioch,Luke the Evangelist,Simon the Canaanite,Saint Jude, the dedication of theLateran Basilica, the beginning of theNativity Fast,James of Jerusalem,Reformation Day, and others.

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report,Augustinian theodicy byUser:ItsZippy was promoted to FA.Grade I listed churches in Merseyside byUser:Peter I. Vardy was promoted to Featured List. The images in theChurch of the Month andChristian art sections of this newsletter were promoted to Featured Picture status.John Wheelwright byUser:Sarnold17,Christmas Party (The Office) byUser:Gen. Quon andIf We Are the Body byUser:Toa Nidhiki05, were promoted to GA level. DYKs featured this past month includeCathedral of Saint Demetrius, Craiova, byUser:Biruitorul,Nerses IV the Gracious byUser:John Carter,Church of St Candida and Holy Cross byUser:BarretB,St Laurence's Church, Morland byUser:Peter I. Vardy,St Mary's Church, Longfleet byUser:Bermicourt,Chor von St. Bonifatius byUser:Gerda Arendt,St Andrew's Church, Penrith byUser:Peter I. Vardy,Holy Rosary Cathedral (Vancouver) byUser:Bloom6132,Sacred Heart Cathedral (Kamloops) byUser:Bloom6132,St Columba's Church, Warcop byUser:Peter I. Vardy,St Oswald's Church, Ravenstonedale byUser:Peter I. Vardy, andW. E. Biederwolf byUser:John Foxe. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Christian art

Spotlight

WikiProject Holidays/Christmas task force is the group whose purpose is to help develop the content related to the Christmas season, including Advent, New Year's, and related holidays. As many of us know, in several parts of the world, including the United States, the Christmas season is not only the time of one of the greatest holidays of the Christian liturgical year, but it is also the "make or break" time for many retailers, whose profitability for the year often depends on their success in this time of the giving of sometimes significantly expensive gifts. In other parts of the world, the winter solstice period and sometimes specifically Christmas itself means something that might surprise many Christians, like theChristmas in Japan, where Christmas is one of the times hotels receive the greatest number of, often unmarried, couples staying there for the night. The solstice season is also significant to several other religions. Many of these days are also legal holidays in several places. In Belarus, for instance, both the Western and Eastern Christmas commemorations are legal holidays. We would certainly welcome the members of this project to donate some of their time and talents in the upcoming months to improving this significant content.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 349 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,User:Hayayika andUser:Pikachu Bros.. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. This newsletter is one of the ways we do try to help people keep up with the project. We would always welcome any input for things to be included in it or additional editors to keep it going. Please let us know if there are changes you would like to see in the format, or if there are any particular things you would like to see included. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByJohn Carter

Church of the month

Saint-Augustin, Paris byUser:Saffron Blaze

Recently promoted to Featured Image. Great work!

Contest of the month
For the upcoming month, the contest will continue with theChristmas theme, including Advent and other related topics. Please feel free to see and take part in discussion at theChristianity noticeboard.

Calendar
This coming month (mid-November through mid-December) includes theAdvent season. Other major feasts are those ofMargaret of Scotland,Matthew the Evangelist,Hilda of Whitby,Elizabeth of Hungary,Edmund the Martyr, thePresentation of Mary,Saint Cecilia,Clement of Rome,Catherine of Alexandria,Andrew the Apostle,Francis Xavier,Saint Barbara,John Damascene,Nicholas of Myra,Saint Ambrose of Milan,Feast of the Immaculate Conception,Our Lady of Guadalupe,Lucy of Syracuse, and others.

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report,Crucifixion and Last Judgement diptych by, among others,User:Truthkeeper88,User:Ceoil, andUser:Kafka Liz andMitt Romney byUser:Wasted Time R were promoted to FA.List of 2000s Christian Songs number ones byUser:Toa Nidhiki05 was promoted to Featured List. The two images in theChurch of the Month andChristian art sections of this newsletter were promoted to Featured Picture status, as were these two images of Michelangelo'sPieta and ofGiovanni Bellini'sSaint Francis in the Desert.Derek Webb byUser: Pepsi2786 and others, andScipione Piattoli byUser:Piotrus were promoted to GA level. DYKs featured this past month includeArchdiocese of Râmnic, byUser:Biruitorul,Diocese of Caransebeş byUser:Biruitorul,Wythburn Church byUser:Peter I. Vardy,St. Gumbertus, Ansbach byUser:Gerda Arendt,User:Dr. Blofeld, andUser:Nvvchar collectively,St. Johannis, Ansbach byUser:Gerda Arendt,User:Dr. Blofeld, andUser:Nvvchar collectively,Nikollë Bojaxhiu byUser:ZjarriRrethues,All Saints Church, Lydd byUser:Dr. Blofeld,User:Rosiestep,User:Gilderien, andUser:Ipigott collectively,St Mary's Church, Acton Burnell byUser:Peter I. Vardy,St Eata's Church, Atcham byUser:Peter I. Vardy,Nativity of St. John the Baptist Church, Piatra Neamț byUser:Biruitorul,Anna Schäffer byUser:Shii,List of Archbishops of Vancouver byUser: Bloom6132,James Francis Carney byUser:Bloom6132,St Luke's Church, Chelsea byUser:PKM andUser:Johnbod,Gregory Orologas byUser:Alexikoua,Ambrosios Pleianthidis byUser:Alexikoua, andSt Giles' Church, Barrow, byUser:Peter I. Vardy. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Christian art

Spotlight

The core topics work group is the group whose specific purpose is to help identify and develop those articles which are of greatest importance to an overall understanding of the broad subject of Christianity, based on what is included in thecore topics list. These articles include some of specific churches and individuals, history, philosophical and theological matters, and more. We have had some recent discussion regarding which articles should be included in this list, and it probably makes sense to revisit the selections, and try to figure out how best to work to make them high quality articles. Discussion is beginning atWT:X regarding these matters, and all input is welcome.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 350 active members. We would like to welcome our newest member,User:Harishrawat11. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. We would be able to achieve nothing here without the input of all of you. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. This newsletter is one of the ways we do try to help people keep up with the project. We would always welcome any input for things to be included in it or additional editors to keep it going. Please let us know if there are changes you would like to see in the format, or if there are any particular things you would like to see included. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByJohn Carter

Church of the month

This image ofThe Baptistry of Saint John in Pisa byUser:NotFromUtrecht

was recently promoted to Featured Image. Thank you and congratulations for the great image!

Contest of the month
As I imagine many of our editors will be editing at a greatly reduced level for the next few weeks, what with the Christmas and New Year's holidays coming, there is no specific content-related contest this month. The contest, if anything, is to make the most of the season, in whatever way, if any, you deem appropriate.

Calendar
This coming month (mid-December through mid-January) includes theAdvent season, and one of the two greatest holidays of the Christian year,Christmas. Other major feasts in the next month include those of theFeast of the Epiphany,Baptism of the Lord,Saint Stephen,Thomas the Apostle,Holy Innocents,John the Evangelist,Gregory of Nazianzus,Basil the Great,Saint Genevieve,Elizabeth Ann Seton, andSaint Sava.

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report,Anne Hutchinson nominated byUser:Sarnold17 was promoted to FA.Grade I listed churches in Lancashire byUser:Peter I. Vardy was promoted to Featured List. The image in theChurch of the Month andChristian art sections of this newsletter were promoted to Featured Picture status.Come to the Well byUser:Toa Nidhiki05 and others, andDwight Christmas byUser:Gen. Quon and others were promoted to GA level. DYKs featured this past month includeKing's Chapel, Gibraltar, byUser:Prioryman,Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Albany, New York) byUser:Daniel Case,Tingsted Church byUser:Ipigott andUser:Rosiestep,St. Mary's Church (Albany, New York) byUser:Daniel Case,Stubbekøbing Church byUser:Ipigott andUser:Rosiestep,Notre Dame Cathedral (Phnom Penh) byUser:Bloom6132, andSt. James' Church, Cardington byUser:Peter I. Vardy. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Christian art

Spotlight

In the spirit of Christmas, the spotlight for the coming month might actually best be on those people closest to you. We know that a lot of our editors here are associated in some way or another with schools, and many if not most of them are going on rather extended breaks for the holidays. This can give some of us a chance to meet up with old friends, spend time with our families and those close to us, and, in a sense, "recharge" for the new year. So, for all of you who are in some way part of that group, we wish you the very best of holidays. We hope you all return to editing after the holidays with your spirits lifted and with your energies at peak level. There are some small matters in development here as well, and it is our hope that some of them will be ready come the next newsletter. But, until then, we wish you all the happiest and holiest (if appropriate) holidays.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 354 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,Alliereborn,Iselilja,Peterkp, andSosthenes12. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. We would be able to achieve nothing here without the input of all of you. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor
Ichthus is one of the ways that the WikiProject Christianity’sOutreach department helps update our members. This newsletter is one of the ways we do try to help people keep up with the project. We would always welcome any input for things to be included in it or additional editors to keep it going. Please let us know if there are changes you would like to see in the format, or if there are any particular things you would like to see included. And if you have anything you would personally like to add, by all means let us know. The talk page of the current issue is probably the best place to post such comments.

With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByJohn Carter

Church of the month

This image ofAlexander Nevsky Cathedral in Tallinn, Estonia byUser:Poco a poco

was recently promoted to Featured Image. Thank you and congratulations for the great image!

Contest of the month
No particular contest this month. I am however getting rather close to getting together a more or less complete set of articles relating to different areas of Christianity which can be found in recent reference sources on the broad topic of Christianity, and about various subtopics, which I hope to have finished in the next few weeks. I wonder what the rest of you might think of, maybe, making the contests of future months be basically directed at filling in the gaps of our existing coverage of topics, like those topics given significant coverage in specialized reference works which we don't yet have content on, and giving the thanks, and rewards, whatever they might be, to those who create and develop such content. I am starting a discussion atWikipedia talk:Christianity noticeboard#Future contests, and would very much welcome any input from interested parties in how to set it up, determine winners including how many winners, etc.

ByJohn Carter

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report, the image in the "Church of the Month" section of this newsletter was promoted to Featured Image status.

Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes, BWV 40 byGerda Arendt and others,Teuruarii IV byLemurbaby,KAVEBEAR and others, andPeace on Earth (Casting Crowns album) byToa Nidhiki05 and others, were all promoted to GA status.

Also this past month, the DYKs on the main page includedSt James' Church, Cardington byPeter I. Vardy,Bishop's Palace, Kraków byPoeticbent,Kippinge Church byIpigott andRosiestep,Trinitatis Church, also byIpigott andRosiestep,Steindamm Church byOlessi,St Laurence's Church, Church Stretton byPeter I. Vardy,Monastery of the Holy Trinity, Meteora, byPeter I. Vardy,Sonrise Church, byAboutmovies,St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Albany, New York), byDaniel Case,All Saints Church, Claverley, byPeter I. Vardy, andChurch of the Holy Virgin Mary of Lourdes, byPoeticbent. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Christian art

Spotlight

The Spotlight this month turns to thethe Syriac Christianity work group. The scope of this project includes the various traditions ofSyriac Christianity, including theAssyrian Church of the East,Ancient Church of the East,Church of the East,Syriac Orthodox Church,Chaldean Catholic Church,Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church,Melkite Greek Catholic Church,Syriac Catholic Church,Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, andSaint Thomas Christians. One of these groups, the Assyrian Church of the East, is considered by scholars to have probably been, for several hundred years, the largest Christian grouping in the planet, with its numerous members inCentral Asia andEastern Asia. Numerous texts, traditions, and practices unique to these groups exist, including theJesus Sutras and the belief of the Assyrian Church of the East that the bread they use in the preparation of their Eucharist uses the same basic yeast as that used in the bread of theLast Supper itself. Sadly, given the linguistic barriers to much of the content relative to these groups, and the comparative lack of notoriety they have in the Western world, much of this content does receive less attenion, and thus less development, than much other content. There is a large amount of extremely valuable historical material here still waiting to be adequately developed by editors with an interest in the topic, and I personally very much hope that we can draw more attention to these topics, and the content related to them.

ByJohn Carter

Calendar
This coming month (mid-January through mid-February) includesThe Presentation of Christ in the Temple or Candlemas and theConversion of Paul. Other major feasts in the next month include those ofSaint Agnes,Saint Francis de Sales, SaintsTimothy andTitus,Thomas Aquinas,John Bosco,Saint Agatha,Paul Miki, [{Saint Scholastica]], andSaint Anskar.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 357 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,Thomas Cranmer,Mr.Oglesby, andSneha Priscilla. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. We would be able to achieve nothing here without the input of all of you. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor

We apologise for the hiatus in the publication of this newsletter due to unforseen circumstances leading to the wikibreak ofJohn Carter, and soI have taken over as acting editor, and have taken this opportunity to move the publication date to the start of each month as planned, to better reflect on the previous month and look ahead to the next. This issue covers the period of time from mid-January to the end of March.

Since the last issue we have seen the resignation ofPope Benedict XVI and the election ofPope Francis. This has received much coverage both in the world media and on Wikipedia. While there is still much work to do, several quality articles have been written and the editors involved are thanked for their efforts.

This month we look ahead to Easter and the celebration of God's love for mankind through the crucifixion and resurrection of his Son Jesus Christ. With that, I wish you all happy reading!

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByGilderien

Church of the month

This image of theChurch of Saint Ildefonso, Portugal byPoco a poco was recently promoted to Featured Image. Thank you and congratulations for the great image!

Contest of the month
No particular contest this month. I am however getting rather close to getting together a more or less complete set of articles relating to different areas of Christianity which can be found in recent reference sources on the broad topic of Christianity, and about various subtopics, which I hope to have finished in the next few weeks. I wonder what the rest of you might think of, maybe, making the contests of future months be basically directed at filling in the gaps of our existing coverage of topics, like those topics given significant coverage in specialized reference works which we don't yet have content on, and giving the thanks, and rewards, whatever they might be, to those who create and develop such content. I am starting a discussion atWikipedia talk:Christianity noticeboard#Future contests, and would very much welcome any input from interested parties in how to set it up, determine winners including how many winners, etc.

ByJohn Carter

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report;

Grade I listed churches in Cumbria was promoted to Featured List status, thanks toPeter I. Vardy, and the image above of theChurch of Saint Ildefonso was promoted to featured picture status.

Martin Luther King, Jr., byKhazar2, was promoted to GA status, as wellThird Epistle of John byCerebellum.

Also these past months, the DYKs on the main page includedSt Mary's Church, Cleobury Mortimer byPeter I. Vardy;Marion Irvine byGiants2008;Margaret McKenna byGuerillero;Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity byEpeefleche;St Edith's Church, Eaton-under-Heywood byPeter I. Vardy;Vester Egesborg Church byIpigott,Rosiestep,Nvvchar, andDr. Blofeld;Undløse Church byIpigott,Rosiestep,Nvvchar, andDr. Blofeld;St Martin's Church, Næstved byIpigott,Rosiestep,Nvvchar, andDr. Blofeld;St. Peter, Syburg byGerda Arendt andDr. Blofeld;Østre Porsgrunn Church byStrachkvas;Church of Our Saviour (Mechanicsburg, Ohio) byNyttend;Dami Mission byFreikorp;Mechanicsburg Baptist Church byNyttend;Acheiropoietos Monastery, byProudbolsahye;T. Lawrason Riggs, byGareth E Kegg;McColley's Chapel, byMangoe;Oświęcim Chapel, byBurgererSF;Second Baptist Church (Mechanicsburg, Ohio), byNyttend;Church of the Holy Ghost, Tallinn, byYakikaki;Old Stone Congregational Church, byOrladylHeath Chapel, byPeter I. Vardy;St. Joseph's Church, Beijing, byBloom6132;Church of St Bartholomew, Yeovilton, byRodw; andSt. Michael's Catholic Church (Mechanicsburg, Ohio) also byNyttend. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Christian art

Complete recording

Spotlight

The Spotlight this month turns to thethe Jesus work group. The scope of this project includes the life and teachings of the central figure of Christianity,Jesus Christ and aims to write about them in a non-denominational encylopædic style. Top-priority articles includeJesus,Christ,Resurrection of Jesus, andHoly Grail, whereas High-priority articles includeAramaic Language, a former FA, as well asSermon on the Mount,Lamb of God, andPassion (Christianity). The workgroup has also published two books, coveringChrist's final days and theParables of Jesus. The workgroup has two GAs,Nativity scene, andJesus in Islam, but unfortunately the flagship article,Jesus was delisted in 2009. It is also responsible for threeWP:1.0 articles, and theWikiWork of the project is 4.56, which indicates the "average" article is between Start and C class.

ByGilderien

Calendar
This coming month (end-March through end-April) includesEaster Sunday in Western Christianity and bothLazarus Saturday andPalm Sunday for theEastern Orthodox Church. Other major feasts in the next month include those ofSaint George,Saint Mark the Evangelist,Saint Stanislaus,James, son of Zebedee, andBenedict the Moor.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 363 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,Pleonic,MJWilliams1998,Iloilo Wanderer,Jkadavoor,Sir Ian andMcBenjamin. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. We would be able to achieve nothing here without the input of all of you. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

From the Editor

This month we hear the news that the Bible is to be made into a film after outstanding success of a biblical miniseries on the History Channel, and we have seen the release of Iraqi Pastor Ali Hamzah from his confinement in Iraq.

After last month's spotlight on theJesus work group, the flagship article,Jesus, was nominated for Good Article status after much work fromFutureTrillionaire andHistory2007, and provisionally passed by the reviewer, although they have requested a second opinion. Our many thanks for the hard work that has gone into restoring this article to a quality piece of work.

This month the second largest denomination of Christianity, theEastern Orthodox Church, celebrates Easter and the death and resurrection of the Son of God Jesus Christ.

P.S. Pleaseclick here to add the newChristianity noticeboard to your watchlist to follow the latest discussions relevant to WikiProject Christianity and subprojects.

ByGilderien

Church of the month

Wells Cathedral was this month promoted to GA status. Rodw has appealed for any help project members can give to improve this article for a FA nomination.

Contest of the month
No particular contest this month. I am however getting rather close to getting together a more or less complete set of articles relating to different areas of Christianity which can be found in recent reference sources on the broad topic of Christianity, and about various subtopics, which I hope to have finished in the next few weeks. I wonder what the rest of you might think of, maybe, making the contests of future months be basically directed at filling in the gaps of our existing coverage of topics, like those topics given significant coverage in specialized reference works which we don't yet have content on, and giving the thanks, and rewards, whatever they might be, to those who create and develop such content.ByJohn Carter

Featured content and GA report
Since the last report;

Featured report;Madonna in the Church, byCeoil,Truthkeeper88, andJohnbod was promoted to Featured Article status.Crucifixion and Last Judgement was promoted to featured picture status, after nomination byCrisco 1492.

Wells Cathedral, byRodw,Robert of Ghent, byUser:Ealdgyth,Christianity in Medieval Scotland, bySabrebd, andMatthew, Mark, Luke and John, also bySabrebd were promoted to GA status.

Also these past months, the DYKs on the main page includedLectionary 311, byLeszek Jańczuk;Herr Christ, der einig Gotts Sohn, byGerda Arendt;Whalsay Parish Church, byIpigott,Rosiestep,Nvvchar,Dr. Blofeld;Interpretatio Christiana, byAltenmann;First Congregational Church, Salt Lake City, byOrlady;Church of King Charles the Martyr, Royal Tunbridge Wells, byThe C of E;First Church in Albany (Reformed), byDaniel Case;Pope Anastasius II, byAbstractIllusions;Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Palma, byDr. Blofeld,Ipigott,Rosiestep;Colan Church, byRosiestep,Nvvchar,Ipigott;Notre Dame Cathedral, Papeete,Bloom6132,Church of St. Wenceslaus (New Prague, Minnesota), byElkman;St. Joseph Catholic Church (San Antonio, Texas), byGilliam;Doubting Thomas, byJohnbod;Robert of Ghent, byEaldgyth; andHoly Trinity Church, Holdgate, byPeter I. Vardy. Our profoundest thanks and congratulations to all those involved!

Christian art

Spotlight

SPOTLIGHT

This month, we turn our attention to theEncyclopedic articles sub-group, which aims to provide "a collection point for lists of articles contained in other reference sources relating to Christianity, which could serve as a basis for developing our own content". Created by John Carter, it is primarily a list of links, red or otherwise, for subjects which have an article in the reference works listed therein. This serves as a very useful list if any project members are "stuck for what to do" and there remains lots of potential for articles developed from this list.

ByGilderien

Calendar
This coming month (end-April through end-May) includesEaster Sunday for theEastern Orthodox Church. Other major feasts in the next month include those ofMatthias the Apostle,The Venerable Bede, andEmpress Helena.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

From the Editor

Starting this month we will start a "Focus on" series, where we will try to "bring Jesus back" and focus on him. For five consecutive issues we will focus on one aspect of the study of Jesus. The goal of this series is to inform our members of what the project contains and highlight those articles which have reached quality and stability.

From this month until November we will focus on the historical Jesus, a topic which has been the subject of much discussion on article talk pages, as well as the general media. This is an important topic, and we have a good set of well referenced articles on that now. Then, starting in December we will focus on Christ, and the spiritual and theological elements that the title entails. Following that the review of the life and ministry of Jesus in the New Testament, his miracles, and parables will take place. And each month the "Bookshelf" will mention a book that fits the theme of the month.

We hope you will enjoy this journey as we present a new aspect of Jesus each month. And given that as the number of project pages increases, the ratio of those watching the pages declines, we hope that more of you will watch some of these central pages that help define this project.

Church of the month

The current building ofAll Saints' Church, Winthorpe inNottinghamshire, England which was completed in 1888, is at least the third version of the church, which dates back to at least the early 13th century.

Good articles and DYKs
The articleJesus received thegood article mark last month, as didCleeve Abbey. A number of churches were featured on the main page in theDYK section in May, namelySt. Lamberti, Hildesheim,Karja church,Braaby Church,St Patrick's Liverpool,Vlah Church,Freerslev Church,Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, Mata-Utu,St. Michael's Cathedral (Sitka, Alaska),St. Lamberti, Hildesheim,Karja church,Braaby Church,St. Pierre Cathedral, Saint-Pierre,Mont Saint Michel Abbey,St Patrick's Church, Liverpool,Vlah Church,St Catherine of Siena Church, Cocking,Catedral Nuestra Señora de La Asunción,Roholte Church,Notre Dame Cathedral, Taiohae,Leicester Abbey,Caracas Cathedral,Caldey Abbey,King's Mead Priory,Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Hong Kong) andAll Saints' Church, Winthorpe, as well as the hymnWhat Wondrous Love Is This.

Focus on...

THE
HISTORICALJESUS

Did Jesus exist? Did he walk the streets of Jerusalem? TheHistoricity of Jesus article answers these questions with a firm affirmative. Historicity does not discuss if Jesus walked on water, but if he walked at all. The issue was the subject of scholarly debate before the end of last century, but the academic debate is almost over now. As the article discusses, virtually all academic opposition to the existence of Jesus has evaporated away now and scholars see it as a concluded issue. The discussion is now just among mostly self-published non-academics.

In 2011John Dickson tweeted that if anyone finds a professor of history who denies that Jesus lived,he would eat a page of his Bible (Matthew 1 he said). Dickson's Bible is still safe.

The article discusses the ancient sources that relate to Jesus and how they fit together to establish that he existed. The evidence for Jesus is not just based on the Christian gospels, but by inter-relating them with non-Christian sources, and the fact that they all "fit together". Moreover, the existence of Jesus is not supported just by Christian scholars and in recent years the detailed knowledge of Jewish scholars and their discoveries (e.g.Shlomo Pines' discovery of theSyriac Josephus) has proven highly beneficial. We encourage you to read and follow the article, for the existence of Jesus is central to the existence of Christianity.

From the bookshelf

Just a few years after its publication,Van Voorst's book has become the standard comprehensive text for the discussion of ancient sources that relate to Jesus and his historicity. This detailed yet really readable book has received wide ranging endorsements -Blomberg andHarris separately referring to it as the most comprehensive treatment of the subject.

Did you know...

• ... thatJohann Sebastian Bach wrote the initials "S. D. G.", forSoli Deo Gloria, at the beginning and end of all his church compositions to give God credit for the work, and thatHandel at times did the same?

Calendar
The coming month includes days dedicated to the honor ofBeheading of John the Baptist,Saints Peter and Paul, theNativity of John the Baptist, andSaint Barnabas.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Ichthus is published byWikiProject Christianity.
For submissions contact theNewsroom • To unsubscribe remove yourself from the listhere

EdwardsBot (talk)

From the Editor

WP:X has gained another Featured Article,Gospel of the Ebionites, byIgnocrates. The Gospel of the Ebionites is the name scholars give to an apocryphal gospel that supposedly belonged to a sect known as the Ebionites. It consists of seven short quotations discovered in a heresiology known as the Panarion, written by Epiphanius of Salamis, and its original title remains unknown. The text is a gospel harmony composed in Greek, and is believed to have been written during the middle of the 2nd century.

St Mihangel's Church, Llanfihangel yn Nhowyn was promoted to Good Article status, as was two other welsh churches,St Enghenedl's Church, Llanynghenedl, andSt Peter's Church, Llanbedrgoch.

The main page also featured several DYK hooks for articles in our project, namelyBob Fu,List of places of worship in Tandridge (district),Catholic Press,Garendon Abbey,St. John's Episcopal Church (Jersey City, New Jersey),Pargev Martirosyan,Praskvica Monastery,Heather Preceptory,St. Augustin, Coburg,Longleat Priory,St Mihangel's Church, Llanfihangel yn Nhowyn,St Enghenedl's Church, Llanynghenedl,Christianization of Moravia,Christianization of Bohemia,Repton Abbey,St Peter's Church, Llanbedrgoch,Medingen Abbey,Elmhurst Christian Reformed Church,St. James on-the-Lines, andLeopold Karl von Kollonitsch.

Church of the month

St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery is part ofSaint Sophia's Cathedral, Kiev inUkraine. It is a functioning monastery that dates back to theMiddle Ages.

Membership report
The parent Christianity WikiProject currently has 367 active members. We would like to welcome our newest members,Newchildrenofthealmighty,Evenssteven,Kerna96, andFutureTrillionaire. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

Focus on...

THE
HISTORICALJESUS

When did Jesus live? When did he die? How do we know? We do, in fact, have excellent information about the time intervals for the life and death of Jesus. As in other people who lived and died in the first century, this gives an approximate date range, but still, give or take 3-4 years and we have pretty good estimates confirmed by a number of really diverse sources, ranging from inscriptions inDelphi to Roman and Jewish sources. TheChronology of Jesus article discusses how a wide variety of Christian, Jewish and Roman sources are used to establish the time-frame for the life and death of Jesus.

And all of his data fits together. For instance, the chronology of Paul had been discussed based on theBook of Acts long ago, then theDelphi Inscription is found in the 20th century in theTemple of Apollo. And guess what.. it confirms it and totally dates his trial inCorinth, which helps reaffirm the date of the crucifixion of Jesus. The same date range is independently estimated from the writings ofJosephus on the Baptist's death. And it fitsIsaac Newton's astronomical models for the crucifixion date as well as the independent lunar calculations ofHumphreys. As that article shows, all these dates just fit together.

From the bookshelf

Chronos, kairos, Christos: nativity and chronological studies edited by J. Vardaman, E. M. Yamauchi 1989ISBN 0-931464-50-1

This two volume book (with a very apt title) is gem-filled with scholarly research.Paul Maier's article in the first volume is a classic study on the chronology of Jesus and provides a useful summary of a number of issues.

Did you know...

• ... that the Russian journalistNicolas Notovitch who in 1894 originated the story that there was evidence at theHemis monastery that an adult Jesus hadtraveled to India, later confessed to fabricating his evidence?

Calendar
This month (July) contains the feast days ofMary Magdalene, andJames, son of Zebedee.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from a variety of other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Ichthus is published byWikiProject Christianity.
For submissions contact theNewsroom • To unsubscribe remove yourself from the listhere

EdwardsBot (talk)21:10, 30 June 2013 (UTC)[reply]

From the Editor

Welcome to the August 2013 issue of the WikiProject Christianity newsletter. We focus on the historical Jesus and reflect on the last month.

The project has another featured picture,The ruins of Holyrood Chapel, a digitisation of an oil-on-canvas painting. Our top-importance article,Jesus, has been nominated for Featured Article status, the discussion can be seenhere;Knights of Colombus has also been nominated as a FAC.

Ecgbert (bishop) andChurch architecture in Scotland have both this month achievedGood Article status.

Our project had several of its articles featured in the main page DYK section, includingHinckley Priory,Little Chapel,St Peter's Church, Ropsley,Chip Ingram,St John the Evangelist's Church, Corby Glen,Great George Street Congregational Church,St Mary's Church, Walton-on-the-Hill andBunge church.

Our thanks go to all of those who have worked to achieve these article milestones.

Church of the month

This image, ofMaillezais Cathedral and created bySelbymay was this month promoted to featured picture status.

Membership report
We would like to welcome our newest members,Thechristophermorris,Psmidi andJchthys. Thank you all for your interest in this effort. If any members, new or not, wish any assistance, they should feel free to leave a message at theChristianity noticeboard or with me or other individual editors to request it.

Focus on...

THE
HISTORICALJESUS

What was Jesus like? What did he preach? Did he claim to be the Messiah? Did he predict an apocalypse? What can we know about him outside a religious context? TheHistorical Jesus article discusses what can be known about Jesus with various degrees of probability. While scholars agree on the over all flow and outline of Jesus' life (hisbaptism by John, debated Jewish authorities, healings, andhis crucifixion by Pilate) they have built various and diverging portraits of the rest of his life. These range from minimalist portraits that accept very little of the gospel accounts to maximalists who accept most of the accounts as historical.

The portraits of Jesus have at times been unwitting reflections of the researchers themselves, andCrossan once quipped that some authors "do autobiography and call it biography". However, the study of historical Jesus has made one thing clear: there is so much to learn about Jesus that the more one looks, the more there is to discover.

From the bookshelf

Jesus of Nazareth: An Independent Historian's Account of His Life and Teaching by Maurice Casey 2010ISBN 0-567-64517-7

In this bookMaurice Casey not only draws on his special expertise in theAramaic traditions and theQ source, but provides a comprehensive review of the various approaches to the historical Jesus.

Did you know...

• ... that in 1951 Christianity was the second largest religion in the world with 500 million followers, compared to520 million Buddhists, but by 2013 it had gained the top spot with about2.2 billion Christians?

Calendar
This month we celebrate the feasts ofSt Lawrence,St Bernard, andSt Augustine.

Help requests
Please let us know if there are any particular areas, either individual articles or topics, which you believe would benefit from outside help from other editors. We will try to include such requests in future issues.

Ichthus is published byWikiProject Christianity.
For submissions contact theNewsroom • To unsubscribe remove yourself from the listhere

EdwardsBot (talk)22:37, 31 July 2013 (UTC)[reply]

--GilderienChat|What I've done22:37, 31 July 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Project News
ByLionelt

Belated Happy Easter and Kalo Pascha! We're excited to announce the return of our newsletterIchthus! Getting this issue out wastouch-and-go for a while. Check out what's happening at the Project:

• There was alively discussion about the Easter Did You Know nomination Christ the Lord is Risen Today
• RFC at Knights of Columbus regarding a question about having Prop 8 in the lead
• In anticipation of being nominated for Featured article, Presbyterian Church in the United States of America wasput up for Peer Review byLtwin
• The death of Billy Graham on February 21 was a profound loss for many. For the Wikipedia reaction seethis discussion. Graham received a blurb.
• And... Order of Friars Minor--nominated byChicbyaccident--is stillwaiting for a GA reviewer. Please help out if you can.

Achievements

Hedy Lamarr as Delilah

In March the Project saw four articles promoted to GA-Class. They were the oh-so-irresistibleDelilah (nom.MagicatthemovieS)(pictured),Edict of Torda (nom.Borsoka),David Meade (author) (nom.LovelyGirl7) and last but not leastBlack Christmas (2006 film) (nom.Drown_Soda). Black Christmas? How did that get in there lol? Congratulations to all of the nominators for a job well done!

Did You Know
Nominated byThe C of E

... that some people knowChrist the Lord is risen today fromLlanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch?"

Featured article
Nominated byFutureTrillionaire

Jesus (7–2 BC to 30–33 AD) is the central figure ofChristianity, whom the teachings of most Christian denominations hold to be theSon of God and the awaitedMessiah of theOld Testament. Virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that ahistorical Jesus existed, although there is little agreement on the reliability of thegospel narratives and how closely the biblical Jesus reflects the historical Jesus. Most scholars agree that Jesus was a Jewish preacher from Galilee, was baptized byJohn the Baptist, and was crucified in Jerusalem on the orders of the Roman prefect,Pontius Pilate. Christians generally believe that Jesus was conceived by theHoly Spirit,born of a virgin, performedmiracles, founded the Church,died by crucifixion as a sacrifice to achieveatonement,rose from the dead, andascended into heaven, from whichhe will return. The great majority of Christians worship Jesus as the incarnation of God the Son, the second of three Persons of aDivine Trinity. A few Christian groups reject Trinitarianism, wholly or partly, as non-scriptural.In Islam, Jesus is considered one of God's important prophets and the Messiah.(Full article...)

Help wanted

We're looking for writers to contribute toIchthus. Do you have a project that you'd like to highlight? An issue that you'd like to bring to light? Post your inquiries or submissionhere. And if the publication of this issue is any indication, you're in for the ride of a lifetime!

Project News
ByLionelt

Last month's auspicious relaunch ofour newsletter precipitated something of an uproar in the Wikipedia community. What started as a localized edit war over censorship spilled over onto the Administrator's Noticeboard finally ending up at Wikipedia's supreme judicial body ArbCom.Their ruling resulted in the admonishment of administratorFuture Perfect at Sunrise for his involvement in the dispute. The storywas reported by Wikipedia's venerable flagship newspaperThe Signpost.

The question of whether to delete all portals--including the 27 Christianity-related portals--was put to the Wikipedia community. Approximately 400 editors have participated in theprotracted discussion. Going by !votes, Oppose deletion has a distinct majority. The originalChristianity Portal was created on November 5, 2005 byBrisvegas and the following year he successfully nominated the portal for Featured Portal.The Transhumanist has revivedWikiProject Portals with hopes of revitalizing Wikipedia's system of 1,515 portals.

Stay up-to-date on the latest happenings at the ProjectWatch

Achievements

Four articles in the Project were promoted to GA:Edict of Torda nom. byBorsoka,Jim Bakker nom. byLovelyGirl7,Ralph Abernathy nom. byCoffee andPsalm 84 nom. byGerda_Arendt. The Psalm ends with "O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee." Words to live by. Please support our members and send someWikiLove to the nominators!

Featured article
Nominated bySpangineer

Operation Auca was an attempt by fiveEvangelicalChristianmissionaries from theUnited States to make contact with theHuaorani people of therainforest ofEcuador. The Huaorani, also known as the Aucas, were an isolated tribe known for their violence, both against their own people and outsiders who entered their territory. With the intention of being the firstProtestants to evangelize the Huaorani, the missionaries began making regular flights over Huaorani settlements in September 1955, dropping gifts. After several months of exchanging gifts, onJanuary 2,1956, the missionaries established a camp at "Palm Beach", asandbar along theCuraray River, a few miles from Huaorani settlements. Their efforts culminated onJanuary 8,1956, when all five—Jim Elliot,Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming, andRoger Youderian—were attacked andspeared by a group of Huaorani warriors. The news of their deaths was broadcast around the world, andLife magazine covered the event with a photo essay. The deaths of the men galvanized the missionary effort in the United States, sparking an outpouring of funding for evangelization efforts around the world. Their work is still frequently remembered in evangelical publications, and in 2006, was the subject of the film productionEnd of the Spear. (more...)

Did You Know
Nominated byDahn

"... that, shortly after being sentenced to death for treason,Ioan C. Filitti became manager of theNational Theatre Bucharest?"

Project news
ByLionelt

Here are discussions relevant to the Project:

• Liberty University has an RFC regarding the university's relationship with President Trump; seediscussion
• Is Genesis History? has an RFC regarding acceptability of movie reviews for inclusion; seediscussion
• United States pro-life movement has a requested move to United States anti-abortion movement; seediscussion

The following articles need reviewers for GA-class:Type of Constans nom. byGog the Mild,Tian Feng (magazine) nom. byFinnusertop. Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

Stay up-to-date on the latest happenings at the ProjectWatch

Did You Know
Nominated byGonzonoir

... that in 1636,Phineas Hodson, Chancellor ofYork Minster, lost his 38-year-old wife Jane during the birth of the couple's 24th child?

Featured article
Nominated byCliftonian

The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara

TheMortara case was a controversy precipitated by thePapal States' seizure of Edgardo Mortara, a six-year-old Jewish child, from his family inBologna, Italy, in 1858. The city'sinquisitor, Father Pier Feletti, heard from a servant that she had administeredemergency baptism to the boy when he fell sick as an infant, and the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition held that this made the child irrevocably a Catholic. Because the Papal States had forbidden the raising of Christians by members of other faiths, it was ordered that he be taken from his family and brought up by the Church. After visits from the child's father, international protests mounted, butPope Pius IX would not be moved. The boy grew up as a Catholic with the Pope as a substitute father, trained for the priesthood in Rome until 1870, and wasordained in France three years later. In 1870 theKingdom of Italy captured Rome during theunification of Italy, ending the pontifical state; opposition across Italy, Europe and the United States over Mortara's treatment may have contributed to its downfall.(Full article...)

The Top 7 report
ByLionelt

The big news was the marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The Top 7most popular articles inWikiProject Christianity were:

1. Elizabeth I of England – legendary monarch who ushered in the Elizabethan Era over the dead body of herhalf-sister (#5)
2. Henry VIII of England – on his deathbed the last words of the king who founded the English Reformation were "Monks! Monks! Monks!"
3. Martin Luther King Jr. – can't wait to see thenew US$5 bill featuring the "I Have a Dream" speech
4. Seven deadly sins – surprisingly "original research" is not one of the Seven deadly sins
5. Mary, Queen of Scots – arrested for Reigning While Catholic (RWC)
6. Michael Curry (bishop) – our article says that he upstaged Meghan at her wedding. Did you see her wedding pictures? All I can say is{{dubious}}
7. Robert F. Kennedy – when informed that missiles were being installed in Cuba he famously quipped, "Can they hitOxford, Mississippi?"

Did you know
Nominated byThe C of E

... that the little-known 1758Methodist hymn "Sun of Unclouded Righteousness" asks God to send the doctrine of the "Unitarian fiend ... back to hell", referring to bothIslam andUnitarianism?

Our newest Featured list
Nominated byFreikorp

List of dates predicted for apocalyptic events. Predictions ofapocalyptic events that would result in the extinction of humanity, a collapse of civilization, or the destruction of the planet have been made since at least the beginning of theChristian Era. Most predictions are related toAbrahamic religions, often standing for or similar to theeschatological events described in their scriptures. Christian predictions typically refer to events like theRapture,Great Tribulation,Last Judgment, and theSecond Coming of Christ.

Polls conducted in 2012 across 20 countries found over 14% of people believe the world will end in their lifetime, with percentages raging from 6% of people in France to 22% in the US and Turkey. In the UK in 2015, the general public believed the likeliest cause would benuclear war, while experts thought it would beartificial intelligence. Between one and three percent of people from both countries thought the apocalypse would be caused byzombies oralien invasion. (more...)

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We're looking for writers to contribute toIchthus. Do you have a project that you'd like to highlight? An issue that you'd like to bring to light? Post your inquiries or submissionhere.

The sad news was the2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings. The Top 6most popular articles about People inWikiProject Christianity were:

1. Louis XIV of France – a monarch of the House of Bourbon who reigned as King of France. He did say, "Every time I appoint someone to a vacant position, I make a hundred unhappy and one ungrateful."
2. Mary, Queen of Scots – arrested for Reigning While Catholic (RWC), Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinateElizabeth I of England in 1586, and was beheaded the following year.
3. Elizabeth I of England – The Virgin Queen, Elizabeth was the last of the five monarchs of the House of Tudor who ushered in theElizabethan Era, reversed re-establishment of Roman Catholicism by herhalf-sister.
4. Henry VIII of England –King of England, He was an accomplished musician, author, and poet; his known piece of music is "Pastime with Good Company". He is often reputed to have written "Greensleeves" but probably did not. He hadsix marriages.
5. Martin Luther King Jr. –
   " There are three urgent and indeed great problems that we face not only in the United States of America but all over the world today. That is the problem of racism, the problem of poverty and the problem of war."
6. Billy Ray Cyrus – Having released 12 studio albums and 44 singles since 1992, he is best known for his number one single "Achy Breaky Heart", which became the first single ever to achievetriple Platinum status inAustralia.

... that the first attempt to build theHoly Trinity Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra resulted in the demolition of the nearly completed structure?

Saint Fin Barre's Cathedral, Cork, Ireland

Saint Fin Barre's Cathedral is aGothic Revival three-spire cathedral in the city ofCork,Ireland. It belongs to the Church of Ireland and was completed in 1879. The cathedral is located on the south side of the River Lee, on ground that has been a place of worship since the 7th century, and is dedicated toFinbarr of Cork, patron saint of the city. It was once in the Diocese of Cork; it is now one of the three cathedrals in theChurch of Ireland Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, in the ecclesiastical province ofDublin. Christian use of the site dates back to a 7th-century AD monastery, which according to legend was founded by Finbarr of Cork. The entrances contain the figures of over a dozen biblical figures, capped by a tympanum showing a Resurrection scene. (more...)

A suicide attack onJuly 11th claimed byIslamic State (IS) near a church in theSyrian city ofQamishli shows that Christians remain a major target of the terror group. The Top 6most popular articles about People inWikiProject Christianity were:

1. Henry VIII of England –King of England, He was an accomplished musician, author, and poet; his known piece of music is "Pastime with Good Company". He is often reputed to have written "Greensleeves" but probably did not. He hadsix marriages.
2. Elena Cornaro Piscopia – was aVenetianphilosopher of noble descent who in 1678 becameone of the first women to receive anacademic degree from a university, and the first to receive aDoctor of Philosophy degree. In 1669, she translated theColloquy of Christ byCarthusian monkLanspergius from Spanish into Italian.
3. Mary, Queen of Scots – arrested for Reigning While Catholic (RWC), Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinateElizabeth I of England in 1586, and was beheaded the following year.
4. Bob Dylan – American singer-songwriter, author, and visual artist.
   " Take care of all your memories. For you cannot relive them."
5. Elizabeth I of England – The Virgin Queen, Elizabeth was the last of the five monarchs of the House of Tudor who ushered in theElizabethan Era, reversed re-establishment of Roman Catholicism by herhalf-sister.
6. Billy Ray Cyrus – Having released 12 studio albums and 44 singles since 1992, he is best known for his number one single "Achy Breaky Heart", which became the first single ever to achievetriple Platinum status inAustralia.

Eric andLeslie Ludy were 21 and 16 respectively when they first met, English professors suggest that older singles are unlikely to gather hope from their story.

When God Writes Your Love Story: The Ultimate Approach to Guy/Girl Relationships is a 1999 book byEric andLeslie Ludy, an American married couple. After becoming a bestseller on the Christian book market, the book was republished in 2004 and then revised and expanded in 2009. It tells the story of the authors' first meeting,courtship, and marriage. The authors advisesingle people not to bephysically oremotionally intimate with others, but to wait for the spouse thatGod has planned for them.

The book is divided into five sections and sixteen chapters. Each chapter is written from the perspective of one of the two authors; nine are by Eric, while Leslie wrote seven, as well as the introduction. The Ludys argue that one's love life should be both guided by and subordinate to one'srelationship with God. Leslie writes that God offers new beginnings to formerlyunchaste orsexually abused individuals.(more...)

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