Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic
religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. Its adherents,
known as Christians, believe that Jesus is the Christ, whose coming as the
Messiah was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible, called the Old Testament in
Christianity, and chronicled in the New Testament.
Christianity
remains culturally diverse in its Western and Eastern branches,
as well as in its doctrines concerning justification and the nature of
salvation, ecclesiology, ordination, and Christology.
Their creeds generally hold in common Jesus as the Son of God—the logos incarnated—who ministered, suffered,
and died on a cross, but rose from the dead for the salvation of
mankind; as referred to as the gospel, meaning the "good news",
in the Bible. Describing Jesus' life and teachings are the four canonical
gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John with
the Jewish Old Testament as the gospel's respected background.
Christianity
began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the 1st century in
the Roman province of Judea. Jesus' apostles and their
followers spread around the Levant, Europe, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Transcaucasia, Egypt,
and Ethiopia, despite initial persecution. It soon attracted gentile God-fearers,
which led to a departure from Jewish customs, and, after the Fall of
Jerusalem, AD 70 which ended the Temple-based Judaism, Christianity
slowly separated from Judaism. Emperor Constantine the Great decriminalized
Christianity in the Roman Empire by the Edict of Milan (313), later
convening the Council of Nicaea (325) where Early Christianity was
consolidated into what would become the state church of the Roman Empire (380).
The early history of Christianity's united church before major schisms is
sometimes referred to as the "Great Church". The Church of the
East split after the Council of Ephesus (431) and Oriental
Orthodoxy split after the Council of Chalcedon (451) over
differences in Christology, while the Eastern Orthodox Church and
the Catholic Church separated in the East-West Schism (1054),
especially over the authority of the bishop of Rome. Protestantism split
in numerous denominations from the Latin Catholic Church in the Reformation era
(16th century) over theological and ecclesiological disputes,
most predominantly on the issue of justification and papal
primacy. Christianity played a prominent role in the development of Western
civilization, particularly in Europe from late antiquity and
the Middle Ages. Following the Age of Discovery (15th–17th
century), Christianity was spread into the Americas, Oceania, sub-Saharan
Africa, and the rest of the world via missionary work.
The four largest branches of Christianity are the Catholic Church (1.3 billion/50.1%), Protestantism (920 million/36.7%), the Eastern Orthodox Church (230 million) and Oriental Orthodoxy (62 million/Orthodoxy combined at 11.9%), amid various efforts toward unity (ecumenism). Despite a decline in adherence in the West, Christianity remains the dominant religion in the region, with about 70% of the population identifying as Christian. Christianity is growing in Africa and Asia, the world's most populous continents. Christians remain persecuted in some regions of the world, especially in the Middle East, North Africa, East Asia, and South Asia.
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Christianity is the most widely practiced religion in the world, with more than 2 billion followers. The Christian faith centers on beliefs regarding the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. While it started with a small group of adherents, many historians regard the spread and adoption of Christianity throughout the world as one of the most successful spiritual missions in human history.
Etymology
Early Jewish Christians referred to themselves as 'The Way' (της οδου), probably coming
from lashia,"prepare the way of the Lord." According to Acts, the
term "Christian" (Greek: Χριστιανός) was first used in reference to Jesus's disciples in the city of Antioch, meaning "followers of Christ," by the
non-Jewish inhabitants of Antioch. The earliest recorded use of the term
"Christianity" (Greek: Χριστιανισμός) was by Ignatius of Antioch, in around 100 AD.
Beliefs
While Christians worldwide share basic convictions, there are also
differences of interpretations and opinions of the Bible and sacred traditions on which Christianity is based.
Creeds
An Eastern Christian icon depicting Emperor Constantine and the Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea (325) as holding the Niceno–Constantinopolitan Creed of 38
Concise
doctrinal statements or confessions of religious beliefs are known as creeds.
They began as baptismal formulae and were later expanded during the Christological controversies
of the 4th and 5th centuries to become statements of faith.
The Apostles'
Creed is the most widely accepted statement of the articles of Christian
faith. It is used by a number of Christian denominations for
both liturgical and catechetical purposes, most visibly by
liturgical churches of Western Christian tradition, including
the Latin Church of the Catholic Church, Lutheranism, Anglicanism,
and Western Rite Orthodoxy. It is also used by Presbyterians, Methodists,
and Congregationalists. This particular creed was developed between the
2nd and 9th centuries. Its central doctrines are those of the Trinity and God the Creator.
Each of the doctrines found in this creed can be traced to statements current
in the apostolic period. The creed was apparently used as a summary of
Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in the churches of Rome. Its
points include:
·
Belief
in God the Father, Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and the Holy
Spirit
·
The death, descent
into hell, resurrection, and ascension of Christ
·
The holiness of the Church and the communion of saints
·
Christ's second
coming, the Day of Judgement and salvation of the faithful
The
Nicene Creed was formulated, largely in response to Arianism, at the
Councils of Nicaea and Constantinople in 325 and 381 respectively, and
ratified as the universal creed of Christendom by the First
Council of Ephesus in 431.
The Chalcedonian
Definition, or Creed of Chalcedon, developed at the Council of Chalcedon in
451, though rejected by the Oriental Orthodox, taught Christ "to be
acknowledged in two natures, in confusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly,
inseparably": one divine and one human, and that both natures, while
perfect in themselves, are nevertheless also perfectly united into one
person.
The Athanasian
Creed, received in the Western Church as having the same status as the Nicene
and Chalcedonian, says: "We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in
Unity; neither confounding the Persons nor dividing the Substance."
Most
Christians (Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Protestant alike)
accept the use of creeds, and subscribe to at least one of the creeds mentioned
above.
Many Evangelical
Protestants reject creeds as definitive statements of faith, even while
agreeing with some or all of the substance of the creeds. Most Baptists do
not use creeds "in that they have not sought to establish binding
authoritative confessions of faith on one another." Also
rejecting creeds are groups with roots in the Restoration Movement, such
as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the Evangelical
Christian Church in Canada, and the Churches of Christ.
Jesus
Main
articles: Jesus in Christianity and Christ (title)
See
also: Incarnation (Christianity) and Jesus in comparative
mythology
The central tenet of Christianity is the belief in Jesus as
the Son of God and the Messiah (Christ).
Christians believe that Jesus, as the Messiah, was anointed by
God as the savior of humanity and hold that Jesus' coming was the fulfillment
of messianic prophecies of the Old
Testament. The Christian concept of the messiah differs significantly
from the contemporary Jewish concept. The core Christian
belief is that through belief in and acceptance of the death
and resurrection of Jesus, sinful humans can be reconciled to God, and thereby are offered
salvation and the promise of eternal life.
While there have been many theological disputes
over the nature of Jesus over the earliest centuries of
Christian history, generally, Christians believe that Jesus is God
incarnate and "true God and true man"
(or both fully divine and fully human). Jesus, having become fully
human suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, but did
not sin. As fully God, he rose to life again. According to the New
Testament, he rose from the dead, ascended to
heaven is seated at the right hand of the Father, and will ultimately return to
fulfill the rest of the Messianic prophecy, including the resurrection
of the dead, the Last Judgment, and the final establishment
of the Kingdom of God.
According to the canonical gospels of Matthew and Luke,
Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born from the
Virgin Mary. Little of Jesus' childhood is recorded in the canonical
gospels, although infancy gospels were popular in antiquity. In
comparison, his adulthood, especially the week before his death, is well
documented in the gospels contained within the New
Testament, because that part of his life is believed to be most
important. The biblical accounts of Jesus' ministry include his
baptism, miracles, preaching, teaching, and deeds.
Death and
resurrection
Main
articles: Crucifixion of Jesus and Resurrection of Jesus
Christians consider the resurrection of Jesus to be the cornerstone of their faith (see 1 Corinthians 15) and
the most important event in history. Among Christian beliefs, the death and the resurrection of Jesus are two core events on which much of Christian doctrine
and theology is based. According to the New Testament, Jesus was crucified,
died a physical death, was buried within a tomb and rose from the dead three
days later.
The New Testament mentions several post-resurrection
appearances of Jesus on different occasions to his twelve
apostles and disciples, including "more than
five hundred brethren at once", before Jesus' ascension to
heaven. Jesus' death and resurrection are commemorated by Christians in all
worship services, with special emphasis during Holy Week,
which includes Good Friday and Easter
Sunday.
The death and resurrection of Jesus are usually considered the
most important events in Christian theology, partly because they
demonstrate that Jesus has power over life and death and therefore has the
authority and power to give people eternal life.
Christian churches accept and teach the New Testament account of the resurrection of Jesus with very few exceptions. Some modern scholars use the belief of Jesus' followers in the resurrection as a point of departure for establishing the continuity of the historical Jesus and the proclamation of the early church. Some liberal Christians do not accept a literal bodily resurrection, seeing the story as richly symbolic and spiritually nourishing myth. Arguments over death and resurrection claims occur at many religious debates and interfaith dialogues.Paul the Apostle, an early Christian convert and missionary, wrote, "If Christ was not raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your trust in God is useless."
