October 25: Today in Christian History

October 25, 431

The Council of Ephesus replaces Nestorius with a new patriarch of Constantinople. Nestorius was anathematized for supposedly holding the belief that two separate persons indwelled the incarnate Christ. Historians question whether he actually believed this, but he was nevertheless deposed. 

October 25, 1147

Because of bickering and ineffective leadership, the German armies of the Second Crusade (1147-49) are destroyed by the Saracens at Dorylaeum in modern Turkey 

October 25, 1180

Death of John of Salisbury, who censured scholasticism.

October 25, 1400

English poet Geoffrey Chaucer dies in London, having abruptly stopped writing his famous Canterbury Tales some time before. Though not a religious writer, his characters aptly illustrate the best and worst of the church in his day. Chaucer was buried in Westminster Abbey, a high honor for a commoner, and became the first of those entombed in what is now called Poets' Corner 

October 25, 1826

Death of Phillippe Pinel, a Christian doctor who advocated humane treatment for the insane.

October 25, 1867

Death of Salama, Abuna (head) of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, in prison at the mountain stronghold of Maqdala. A tactless man during a time of conflict, he had aggravated and excommunicated many opponents.

Read: 5 Lessons from the Life of Delilah

October 25, 1885

Horace Newton Allen, first resident Protestant missionary to Korea, accepts the rank of Chamoan (Mandarin) because only men of that rank can be presented to a king, and he wants to win favor for the church with the king..

October 25, 1890

Emma Whittemore Founded "Door of Hope" for Hurt Women

October 25, 1933

John and Elisabeth Stam were married in Jinan, China. A year later they would be taken hostage by communist forces. The Red Army took the Stams and many Chinese captives to nearby Miaosha. John wrote a letter to the China Inland Mission (CIM) headquarters, saying they would be released in exchange for $20,000. He closed the letter, "God give you wisdom in what you do and give us grace and fortitude. He is able." The next day, John and Elisabeth were executed by decapitation. The Stams' death was later cited by many Americans as an event that caused them to become missionaries.

October 25, 1955

Death of Nicholas (Mogilevsky) as the bells of St. Nicholas cathedral are ringing for evening service on the feast of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. The first metropolitan of Alma-Ata and Kazhakhstan, he had suffered harrassment and imprisonment at the hand of the Soviets most of his life.