Discussion Questions

The Donatists began by wanting “the new perks that Constantine was offering” and even asked the emperor to intervene in church disputes; what does their later change of heart suggest about how God can use “losing” or disappointment to expose what the church has become? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The Donatists first wanted Constantine’s benefits and asked him to step into church fights, but later changed their minds. What might that show about how God can use losing or disappointment to reveal what the church has really become?

Donatus asked, “What does the emperor have to do with the church?”—what assumptions about God’s Kingdom and God’s authority are packed into that one question, and where do Christians today still expect the “emperor” to help the church win? JumpstartAnother way to ask: When Donatus asked, “What does the emperor have to do with the church?” what does that say about who should have power in God’s Kingdom? Where do Christians today still look to the “emperor” (government or powerful people) to help the church win?

The chapter says the Catholics tended to be “urban, better educated, and wealthier,” while Donatists and later Kingdom movements were “primarily made up of the poor”; how should this pattern reshape the way we interpret Jesus’ words, “Blessed are the poor,” without romanticizing poverty or demonizing education? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If Catholics were often wealthier and educated while Donatists were mostly poor, how should that shape how we hear Jesus say, “Blessed are the poor”? How can we take that seriously without praising poverty or hating education?

Bercot says many Kingdom Christians remained within the Catholic Church because it still taught “the need to live obediently to Christ,” yet it relegated Jesus’ teachings to “the sphere of perfectionism”; what happens to a church’s picture of God when obedience to Jesus is treated as optional “perfection” rather than normal discipleship? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What happens to how a church sees God when obeying Jesus is treated as optional “extra credit” instead of normal discipleship? How does that change what people expect from Christianity?

The chapter notes that the Catholic Church “encouraged such Christian perfectionism, so long as it remained under the control of the Church”; what does this reveal about how religious systems can domesticate radical obedience, and what modern “controls” function similarly today? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If the church supported “perfectionism” only when it stayed under church control, what does that show about how religious systems can tame radical obedience? What kinds of modern rules or pressures do the same thing today?

Bercot lists Francis of Assisi, Thomas of Kempis, rural peasants, and urban housewives as people who lived Jesus’ teachings “quite literally”; what does that variety imply about God’s intention for where Kingdom life can be lived, and what excuses does it remove for people in our own stage of life? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Francis of Assisi, Thomas of Kempis, peasants, and housewives all tried to live Jesus’ teachings literally. What does that say about where “Kingdom life” can happen, and what excuses does that remove for us in our own stage of life?

The transcript admits that some who looked like Kingdom Christians were trying to “earn their way to heaven,” and that many were “hypocrites and frauds”; how can a group pursue literal obedience to Jesus while guarding against both legalism and spiritual performance? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If some people were trying to earn heaven and others were faking it, how can a group still aim to obey Jesus literally without sliding into legalism or showing off spiritually? What safeguards would help?

Arnold of Brescia called clergy “money-changers and dens of thieves,” urged the church to divest from secular power, and was executed—what does this story suggest about what institutional Christianity is willing to protect, and how should believers weigh reform from within versus separation when the system is “worldly”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Arnold of Brescia attacked church wealth and political power and was killed for it. What does this suggest the church institution may be most willing to protect, and how should believers decide between reforming from within or separating when the system becomes “worldly”?

Pierre de Broyce taught that church buildings were an “extravagant waste,” rejected works “for the benefit of the dead,” opposed the Mass and repetitive prayers, and rejected veneration of the cross/images; which of these critiques feels most threatening to how Christians practice today, and why might simple Gospel reading have been so destabilizing? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Pierre de Broyce criticized fancy church buildings, prayers for the dead, the Mass, repeated prayers, and honoring crosses and images. Which of these challenges feels most upsetting to Christians today, and why would simply reading the Gospels be so disruptive?

Henry of Lausanne told people not to attend Catholic churches, used only the New Testament as authority, and taught mutual confession without priestly absolution; what would it cost—and what might it heal—if a modern congregation treated Jesus’ words as its functional authority and practiced confession “to one another” as a normal Kingdom habit? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Henry of Lausanne told people to skip Catholic churches, used only the New Testament as authority, and practiced confession without priests. What would it cost—and what might it heal—if a church today treated Jesus’ words as its true authority and made confessing to each other a normal habit?