Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. It is the world's largest religion, with an estimated 2.1 billion adherents, or about one-third of the total world population. It shares with Judaism the Hebrew Scriptures (called the Old Testament by Christians), and is sometimes called an Abrahamic religion, along with Judaism and Islam.

The names "Christian" and hence "Christianity" are first attested in Acts 11:26, "For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians (Gr. χριστιανους)".

Christianity encompasses numerous religious traditions that widely vary by culture and place, as well as many diverse beliefs and sects. Since the Reformation, Christianity is usually represented as being divided into three main branches:

1. Catholicism, or the Roman Catholic Church (including Eastern Catholics)--the largest coherent group, with over one billion baptized members;
2. Eastern Christianity (includes the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Assyrian Church of the East) -- networks of bishops and patriarchs in communion with one another, with over two hundred million baptized members;
3. Protestantism (including Anglicanism, Reformed, Lutheran, Methodist, Anabaptist, Evangelicalism, Charismatics and Pentecostalism)--numerous denominations and schools of thought, with just over five hundred million members altogether.

This leaves 158 million Independents (unaffiliated with the major streams of Christianity), as well as 31.7 million belonging to other groups with less clear status (including Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons). (Source: Adherents.com [1])

These broad divisions are not equally uniform. On the contrary, some branches encompass vast disagreements, and in other cases the division overlooks existing sympathies. But this is the convenient standard overview of distinctions, especially as Christianity has been viewed in the Western world.

A more comprehensive overview would show more complicated relationships among denominations and traditions. Among various disparate groups, this would include categorizing the Miaphysite Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Assyrian Church of the East (the so-called Nestorian Church) as branches distinct from "Chalcedonian Christianity" (including Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and most forms of Protestantism). On the other hand, grouped according to cultural similarities rather than concilar positions, the Eastern Catholic or "Unitate" churches surely belong together with all the Orthodox churches.

Groups with restorationist beliefs – including the Churches of Christ, some Anabaptists, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and others – sometimes regard themselves as entirely separate from Protestantism, with which they have often been included.

The Churches of the Anglican Communion speak of themselves as following a "via media," a "middle way," between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism and therefore are also often listed separately. One sometimes reads of a "liturgical family" including Anglicanism, Catholicism, and Orthodoxy. At the same time, Anglicanism encompasses "Anglo-Catholic" and "Evangelical" wings as well as what we might call "culturally Christian" members, and thus finds itself pulled in several directions simultaneously.

A number of groups hold that the branches of Christianity presented above devolved from the original church instituted and founded by Christ as a result of a Great Apostasy. These groups, although historically founded many centuries after the death of Jesus, claim direct theological descent from the original Church portrayed in the New Testament or claim a complete restoration directly from Christ of the origninal Church. Examples would include the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (also called Mormons), the Church of the New Jerusalem (Swedenborgians), Jehovah's Witnesses, the 7th day Church of God groups, the Christadelphians, and the "Jesus only" or "oneness" Pentecostals.

These groups are considered heretical or even "non-Christian" by many of the mainstream Christian groups, on account of their deviation from tenets considered basic by mainstream Christianity, such as the doctrine of the Trinity. While denying the authority of the historical Churches, virtually all of these groups accept the canon of the New Testament as defined by the pre-Reformation Churches and accepted throughout mainstream Protestantism as well as the Protestant/Jewish canon of the Old Testament. On the other hand, some of these groups have also elevated additional writings to the status of inspired Scripture, such as the Book of Mormon, considered to be "another Testament of Jesus Christ" by the Mormons. Others, such as the Jehovah's Witnesses, have produced translations of the Bible which they hold to be alone wholly reliable.

A chart showing the development of various churches from their roots in early Christianity.

Christian Beliefs

Enormous diversity obviously exists in the beliefs of those who call themselves Christians. Some churches (notably the Unitarians) reject the Trinity, which most others recognize as an absolutely essential article of faith. The Mormons even deny monotheism (and cite biblical scriptures in their defense), saying that through their temple ordinances, any Mormon man can become the god of his own world (a teaching utterly alien to practically all other forms of Christianity). Not infrequently, a spokesman for some mainstream congregation will raise eyebrows by denying such things as the Resurrection, the Virgin Birth, the efficacy of prayer, or some other doctrine (or by affirming another belief seen as non-Christian). An example would be retired Episcopal bishop John Spong.

And yet, it is possible to venture general statements which would apply to upwards of 95 % of Christian believers. One such statement is the Nicene Creed (or technically, the Niceno-Constantinopolital Creed), of which the following represents an adaptation:

I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty

Creator of heaven and earth

And of all things visible and invisible.

And in his only Son Jesus Christ, our Lord

Eternally begotten of the Father

God from God, light from light, true God from true God

Begotten, not created

Of one essence with the Father.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven

And was conceived by the Holy Spirit

And the Virgin Mary and became man.

He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate

He suffered, died and was buried.

On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures

He ascended into heaven

And is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.

His kingdom will have no end.

And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life

Who proceeds from the Father [Western churches add, ..."and the Son"--see filioque]

Who together with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified

Who spoke through the prophets

And in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins.

I expect the resurrection of the dead,

And the life of the age to come. Amen.

Central Christian beliefs which are affirmed in the Nicene Creed include:

• The Trinity, God as a single eternal being who exists as three persons: Father, Son (Divine Logos, incarnated as Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost).
• Jesus Christ as both fully God (divine) and fully human: two natures in one person. He is without sin.
• That Salvation from "sin and death" is available through the person and work of Jesus Christ. Both Protestants and Catholics have arrived at several explanations as to exactly how this occurs. (See soteriology.)
• Jesus's virgin birth, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, and Second Coming.

The Nicene Creed does not mention the status of the Bible as an authoritative text, but this would surely qualify as an equally widespread and basic Christian belief, notwithstanding slight differences in canon (e.g., the Deuterocanonical books used by Catholic and Orthodox Churches, but rejected by Protestants as Apocrypha.) and major differences of interpretation. That is, Christians disagree in various ways about the authority of the Bible, and its relationship to the authority of church tradition.

Obviously, not all Christians have accepted all of these articles of faith, or else such a creed would never have been written. In fact its lines frequently target certain opposing beliefs of other early Christians, which the creed regards as heretical. Examples would include Ebionite groups which denied Jesus's divinity, a well as Docetist groups which denied that Christ was a human being.

Again, while some churches take exception to some of these creedal articles, to the extent that they do so, this usually represents a conscious departure from the Christian mainstream. Note that many churches (such as the Baptists) would accept these beliefs, but not the creed itself, since they regard all creeds as necessarily unscriptural.

Christian Practices

Baptism

Baptism is the usual ritual whereby one is welcomed into Christianity. It involves either sprinkling water upon the forehead, or immersion in water. It may be applied either to infants or to "adult believers" (which might include young teenagers). Some denominations, such as the Baptists, insist that baptism by immersion of adult believers is the only valid method. Others, such as the Catholics and Orthodox, recognize both methods and all ages, but place restrictions on who may validly perform the ritual for others.

Baptism is derived from the Jewish practice of immersion (mikveh) for purposes of ritual purity. The Christian practice is derived from John the Baptist's call to repentance and conversion (metanoia), and is said to mark a new, spiritual birth. Unlike Jewish ritual immersion, a Christian may only be (validly) baptized once.

In ancient Christianity, baptism was regarded as a kind of initiation ceremony. Those who were not yet baptised were not allowed to enter the church proper, but had to stand before the entrance.

Weekly Worship

Justin Martyr (First Apology, chapter LXVII) describes a second-century church service thus:

And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons. And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need.

Justin's description, which would apply equally well to most church services today, alludes to the following components:

• Scripture readings drawn from the Old Testament, one of the Gospels, or an Epistle.

• A sermon. In ancient times this followed the scripture readings; today this more often occurs later in the service.

• Congregational prayer and thanksgiving. These will probably occur regularly throughout the service. Justin does not mention this, but some of these are likely to be sung in the form of hymns. The Lord's Prayer is especially likely to be recited.

• The Eucharist (also called Holy Communion, or the Lord's Supper) -- a ritual in which small amounts of bread and wine are eaten and drunk. Protestants say these represent the body and blood of Christ; Orthodox and Catholics say that they become the body and blood of Christ (the doctrine of the Real Presence). Churches in the "liturgical" family (Orthodox, Catholic, and some Anglican) see this as the main part of the service, while Protestants may celebrate it less frequently. In many cases there are restriction on who may partake, which visitors should apprise themselves of. For example, only Catholics may take communion at a Catholic church (and not even all of them would be permitted).

• A "collect," in which the people are asked to contribute money. One common method is to pass around a collection plate. Christians traditionally use these monies not only for upkeep for the church, but also for charity of various types.

A number of variations or exceptions exist. Sometimes these are due to special events, such as baptisms or weddings which are incorporated into the service. More crucially, many denominations depart from this general pattern in a more fundamental way. For example, the Seventh-Day Adventists and Jehovah's Witnesses meet on Saturday (the biblical Sabbath), not Sunday. Charismatic or Pentecostal congregations may "speak in tongues", perform spiritual healings, or prophesy. At a Quaker meeting, participants sit quietly until moved by the Holy Spirit to speak. In many churches today, children and youth will be excused from the main service in order to attend Sunday school.

In some denominations (mainly liturgical ones), the service is led by a priest. In others (mainly among Protestants), there is a minister, preacher, or pastor. Still others may lack formal leaders, either in principle or by local necessity. In addition we may distinguish between "high" church services, in which the people dress up (i.e. wear semiformal clothing) and the priest wears vestments; and "low" services at which a more casual atmosphere prevails.

In Orthodox churches, the congregation traditionally stands throughout the liturgy (though allowances are made for human weakness). Roman Catholics and many Protestant churches follow a custom in which participants stand to sing, kneel to pray, and sit to listen (e.g., to the sermon). Others are less programmed, and may be quite lively and spontaneous. Music is usually incorporated, and often involves a choir and/or organ. Some churches use only a capella music, either on principle (many Churches of Christ object to the use of musical instruments in worship) or by tradition (as in Orthodoxy).

Moral Lifestyle

Unlike some other religions, Christianity has not developed a code of religious law--perhaps because the Roman Empire already had a functioning criminal code, making it unnecessary for Christian authorities to duplicate its various prohibitions.

On one hand, there exists a long tradition within Christianity of saying that Christ supersedes the laws of Judaism; that to "love one's neighbor" is the "Greatest Commandment," from which all other moral rules spring; that no human being can hope to avoid sin completely; and so on. On the other hand, Christians have long emphasized the practice of morality. Consider the following observation from (non-Christian) Pliny the Younger, from around the year 100:

...on a fixed day they [the Christians] used to meet before dawn and recite a hymn among themselves to Christ, as though he were a god. So far from binding themselves by oath to commit any crime, they swore to keep from theft, robbery, adultery, breach of faith, and not to deny any trust money deposited with them when called upon to deliver it. This ceremony over, they used to depart and meet again to take food — but it was of no special character, and entirely harmless.

Pliny's informants were probably alluding to the Ten Commandments, which most Christians consider to represent a basic foundation for morality.

History of Christianity

Main article: History of Christianity

Ancient Jewish Christianity

Christians have always viewed Christianity as the fulfillment and successor of Judaism, and Christianity carried forward much of the doctrine and many of the practices from the Hebrew faith, including a form of monotheism, the belief in a Messiah or "anointed one"—Christ from the Greek Christós (Χριστος)—spoken of in prophecies, many moral precepts, certain forms of worship (such as prayer, and reading from sacred texts), a priesthood (although most Protestants assert the "priesthood of all believers" is the only valid priesthood today), and the idea that worship on Earth is modeled on worship in Heaven.

Post-Enlightenment

Not all people identified or self-identified as Christians accept all, or even most, of the theological positions held by their particular churches. Like the Jews, Christians in the West were greatly affected by The Age of Enlightenment in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Perhaps the most significant change for them was total or effective separation of church and state, thus ending the state-sponsored Christianity that had existed in European countries. No one could be a free member of society and disagree with one's church on various issues, including the right to freely to leave one's church altogether. (Nonetheless, even in the 21st century, despite many global changes, state-sponsored or established Christian churches do exist in a number of world regions, especially Europe and parts of Latin America.)

Many did resist or abandon mainstream Christianity, accepting belief systems such as Deism, Unitarianism, Binitarianism, and Universalism, or becoming atheists, agnostics, or humanists. Others, instead, created the liberal wings of the Protestant Christian tradition. Modernist Christianity in the late 19th century encouraged new forms of thought and expression that did not follow traditional lines.

Reaction to the Enlightenment and Modernism triggered the development of literally thousands of Christian Protestant denominations, Roman traditionalist splinter groups of the Roman Catholic Church that do not recognize the legitimacy of many reforms the Roman Catholic Church has undertaken, and the growth of hundreds of fundamentalist groups that interpret the entire Bible in a more literal fashion, exclusive text-centered fashion.

19th Century Liberalism

In Europe, and to a lesser extent the United States, the growth of philosophical and ideological liberalism since the 19th century has also led to increased secularism. Some Christians have long since stopped participating in traditional religious duties, attending churches only on a few particular holy days per year or not at all. Many of them recall having highly religious grandparents, but grew up in homes where the practice of Christianity as such was no longer a priority. They have developed ambivalent feelings towards their religious background. On the one hand they cling to their traditions for identity reasons; on the other hand, the influence of the secular Western mentality, the demands of daily life, and peer pressure tear them away from traditional Christianity. Marriage between Christians of different denominations, or between Christians and non-Christians, while once taboo, has become commonplace; some correlate such trends with decline in religious identity among many societies and social segments. The populations of many countries and regions traditionally strong in a particular tradition, such as Roman Catholicism (e.g. Latin America, France, Italy) or Lutheranism (e.g. Scandinavia) have largely become agnostic or secular.

Liberal Christianity grew rapidly during the early 20th century in Europe and North America, by the 1960s gaining the leadership of many of the larger U.S. and Canadian mainline denominations. However, this trend has reversed. At the turn of the 21st century, though secular society tends to consider the more accommodating liberals as the representatives and spokesmen of Christianity, the mainline churches are shrinking. [2] This is partly due to a loss of evangelistic zeal, partly due to drift of their membership to Christian churches which are associated with a more conservative Christianity, and partly due to the failure of one generation to pass on Christianity to the next. Among the larger Protestant denominations in the United States, only the conservative Southern Baptist is growing. In addition, many other conservative denominational churches are growing along with many conservative non-denominational churches.

Evangelical parachurch organizations have grown rapidly in the last half of the 20th century. The liberal Christian Century magazine has shrunk, while being replaced by its challenger, the rapidly growing evangelical Christianity Today.

The Enlightenment had much less impact on the Eastern Churches. Having to face a much more hostile secular society, especially during the rise of Communism, the church clung to ancient beliefs, even as its membership eroded or, in many cases, went underground, at least to public acknowledgement of one's faith.

Secularism

According to Weber's thesis, in the 19th and 20th centuries many historically Christian countries, including many legally-designated Christian states, especially in Western Europe, saw increasing social trends of secularization, especially in the Communist states of the mid- to late-20th century, which were governed by avowed atheists. Coinciding with the scientific discrediting of a literal interpretation of the Bible's account of the earth's origin, there has been a shift of social and scientific ethics, from a Christian to a secular reference. At the same time, there has been growing resistance to secularism and certain developments of the 19th and 20th century, including materialism. These opposing trends clash on many fronts, including the public debate of Abortion, Euthanasia, Suicide, and laws governing marriage and divorce, parental rights, the legal status of community standards, and a broad spectrum of other matters in addition to the public controversies primarily associated with Fundamentalist Christianity concerning, for example, the appropriateness of religious instruction alongside secular views in public school classrooms (as in the creationism controversy).

At least in North America and Great Britain, however, religion was never really actually in decline. Numbers of church-goers have remained fairly consistent since the seventeenth century, although numbers for particular churches have risen and fallen as various forms of, belief, preaching and worship waxed and waned. Many of religion's twentieth-century forms, such as spiritualism, pluralism, and liberal Christianity provoked evangelical Christians, who often refused to recognize them as forms of Christianity at all. Yet the civic philosophy of pluralism was held up by other Christians as way of allowing for a public sphere where tolerance and mutual responsibility would fulfill the Christian imperative of service to one's fellow-humans, creating a world where no individual would be denied the basic rights of education, employment, or political representation, based merely on religious identity.

Christian principles based on compassion and social justice have always formed a major tradition carrying through the early church, the monastic movement, the ministry of healing, the Catholic and Protestant churches. In the nineteenth century, Christianity lent moral force to the Progressive Movement in the 19th-century United States and the Social Gospel -- one of the bases for FDR's New Deal; the Civil Rights Movement for racial justice in the Unted States, and Liberation Theology, advocating justice for the poor in South America and other areas of the so-called Third World. Progressive Christians have continued to be active in the peace movement, anti-racism, soup-kitchen activism, homeless shelters, various denominational committees on relief, Habitat for Humanity, and a wide variety of other outreach programs.

Contemporary Renewal

Today in Eastern Europe and Russia, a renewing trend is taking place. After decades of communist-instated atheism, there is widespread interest in Christianity, as well as religion in general. Many Orthodox churches and monasteries are being rebuilt and restored; Protestants of many denominations are pouring in to evangelize and build churches; and the Roman Catholic Church is revealing once secret dioceses and undertaking other steps to support Roman Catholic churches more openly.

In South America and Africa, Evangelical and Pentecostal Christianity form rapidly growing movements that are increasingly sending missionaries to Europe and North America. [3] This is also true of Asia where many of the underground "house churches" intend to send hundreds of thousands of missionaries out over the next decade. This is especially true of China. [4]

During the second half of the 20th century the Megachurch became a significant phenomenon. These churches are generally characterised by service forms designed to appeal to the non-Christian, using contemporary music and multi-media presentation styles and often a focus on practical helps for living. They are most common in the United States, and frequently target specific demographics. Criticised by more traditional churches as 'watering down' the Christian message and for their use of techniques akin to advertising, they are typically not affiliated with a particular denomination.

Since the development of Postmodernism with its rejection of universally accepted belief structures in favour of more personalized and experiential truth, organized Christianity has increasingly found itself at odds with the desire many people have to express faith and spirituality in a way that is authentic to them. What has thus far been known as the Emerging Church is a by-product of this trend, as many people who broadly accept Christianity seek to practice that faith while avoiding established Church institutions. Another reaction of some Christians to Postmodernism is the advent of what might be called Postmodern Christianity.

A large and growing movement within Christian populations, especially in the West and most visible in the United States, is the Evangelical movement. Most mainstream Protestant denominations have a significantly active Evangelical minority and, in some cases, a dominant majority (see Confessing Movement). Evangelicals are both ontologically and methodologically "trans-denominational" and therefore are generally more willing to have formal and informal relationships with Evangelicals from outside their denomination than to have the same sort of relationship with non-Evangelicals within their denomination. Other movements within Christianity which fall to a greater or lesser extent within the broad category 'Evangelical' include Dispensationists, Pentecostals, Charismatics and Fundamentalists.

Some Evangelicals have been schismatic within various church organisations, leaving to form their own denominations. More often they are forced out. It was only by dint of sheer determination that John Wesley, founder of Methodism, was able to remain an Anglican priest against intense opposition. His followers separated in America and in England after his death. Some Evangelicals claim that their beliefs are no less than true Christianity itself and that those within the church who differ from them may not be true believers. This attitude has led to much disunity amongst churches, especially those with a large modernist (and hence 'Liberal') influence.

Christianity's relationship with other faiths

Further information: Christianity and world religions

Christianity's relationship with other faiths is at times rather complicated. Historically Christianity was often used to subjugate and oppress members of other faiths, particularly faiths considered "pagan" in nature. At the same time, early Christians did great deal of almsgiving to the poor not only to fellow believers but to pagans as well. The anti-Christian pagan emperor Julian the Apostate (361-363), stated "These godless Galileans (i.e. Christians) feed not only their own poor but ours: our poor lack our care".

[5] Also, it is argued that Christianity had a role in the growth of tolerance in the West. [6] In addition, in modern times, prosecutions for blasphemy have been rare in nations such as the United States which is a fairly religious country with many Christians.[7] However, due to its diverse history and its numerous denominations and branches it is difficult to give an accurate account of Christianity's current relationship with the many non-Abrahamic faiths. The relationship of Christianity with faiths such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and the many so called "pagan" faiths of the world can vary from region to region and denomination to denomination. As such this segment will focus on Christianity's relationship with Abrahamic faiths.

Comparative religion scholars attempt to find commonality between religions; and, the description of Christianity as an Abrahamic religion arises from this effort, using the term to point out supposed commonalities especially in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which each refer to Abraham as important to their faith. The Jews see Abraham as the progenitor of the people of Israel, through his descendants Isaac and Jacob, and Muslims admire Abraham (whom they call Ibrahim) as a great prophet and as the father of Ishmael, whom they believe to be the progenitor of Muhammad and whom they believe Abraham was to sacrifice rather than Isaac.

For their part, Christians point to Abraham as a spiritual ancestor and an exemplar of justifying faith. (This relationship is not to be confused with Abraham's role as a blood ancestor of Jesus, as described in the genealogies of Matthew chapter 1 and Luke chapter 3.) They see Jesus as Abraham's spiritual descendant, in whom God promised that all the families of the earth would be blessed (Gen. 12:3; 22:18), and thus they consider themselves heirs of that promise (Gal. 3, especially verses 7,14, and 29; Rom. 9:6–8). Unlike Judaism and Islam, Christians see Abraham's willingness to offer his son, Isaac, to God, as foreshadowing God's giving of his son, Jesus, for the salvation of men (Gen. 22:1–14; Heb. 11:17–19).

Thus, some members of each faith see Abraham as a basis for understanding between Christians, Jews, and Muslims, but when Christians use the "Abrahamic roots" language, they do not mean that true Christianity is found in some kind of average of religions with overlapping traditions, but merely that, the Christian faith has elements in common, which may provide a helpful basis for constructive relationships between peoples of the divergent traditions. Two representatives of the Roman Catholic Church, for instance, have recently referenced the Abrahamic roots of the Christian faith publicly: In a statement to the United Nations in 2001, Apostolic Nuncio Renato Cardinal Martino, spoke of "the peoples of the Holy Land" as "cousins in the Abrahamic faith." Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) struck the same theme in his statement in 2000 in an effort to repair damaged Jewish-Roman Catholic relations: "Even if the most recent, loathsome experience of the Shoah [the Holocaust] was perpetrated in the name of an anti-Christian ideology, which tried to strike the Christian faith at its Abrahamic roots in the people of Israel.

Christianity and Judaism

There have long been some sentiments of anti-Semitism in Christianity (see Christianity and anti-Semitism), but especially since the Holocaust, there has been much dialogue between Christians groups and Jews aimed at Christian-Jewish reconciliation and Christian attitudes toward Jews have greatly improved. Many conservative evangelicals support Christian Zionism, which is tied to the common belief that the Jewish people are "the apple of God's eye". Many are dispensationalists, who believe that the ingathering of Jews to the modern state of Israel is a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. They await the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem, which they believe to be one of the final signs that signals the second coming of Jesus to rescue the Church from the Great Tribulation, and to save the Jews from the Antichrist, after which Jesus is expected to reign over the earth from Jerusalem, during the Millennium.

A common Jewish criticism of Christianity is that Jesus did not fulfill prophecy. Christians by and large believe that Jesus did fulfill prophecy, but Jewish scholars and religious leaders often argue that many of the prophecies remain unfulfilled. Some such prophecies include the following: The Hebrew people were expecting a descendant of King David, anointed by God, who would restore the Nation of Israel and the Davidic Kingdom, ushering in an everlasting age of peace on earth. The Messiah was also to end all earthly bondage and servitude (Particularly to the Romans). Many Jews today believe that were Jesus the true Messiah it would be in the power of none to deny him. Christians, by and large, believe in an eventual Second Coming in which Jesus will fulfill all prophecy and where every knee shall bow and all will acknowledge that Jesus is the Christ.

Messianic Judaism

Messianic Judaism refers to a loose religious movement, self-identified as Jewish, holding that Jesus is or was the Messiah. Messianic Jews may hold a wide range of religious beliefs and practices, ranging from Evangelical Christian Judaism to Christian Orthodox Judaism. Messianic Jews vary in their adherence to Jewish religious law and worship practices, such as keeping of Kosher and observing the Sabbath. Even though Messianic Jews are typically of a Jewish ethnicity, some Messianic temples may be composed entirely of gentiles. There are also Jewish members of Christian churches that are not affiliated with Messianic Judaism.

Messianic Jews are not considered part of the Jewish religion by mainstream Jewish groups, who dismiss Messianic Judaism as little more than Christianity with Jewish undertones.

Many Jews argue that Jesus failed to fulfill numerous prophecies from the Jewish scriptures, and that therefore he could not have been the true Messiah. However Messianic Jews believe in the Second Coming of Jesus and that those prophecies which Jesus did not fulfill will be fulfilled upon his eventual return. From the Christian view the rejection and execution of the Messiah fulfills numerous prophecies from the Old Testament.

See also * Comparing and contrasting Judaism and Christianity and Judeo-Christian

Christianity and Islam

Adherents of Islam have historically referred to themselves, Jews, and Christians (among other religious adherents) as People of the Book since they all base their religion on books that are considered to have a divine origin. Christians accept the Old Testament as part of their Biblical canon, but they neither consider the Qur'an to be a book of divine revelation or a part of their faith nor agree with Islam's view that Jesus was a prophet, on par with Muhammad. Also most Christians believe that they were forewarned expressly by Jesus to be aware of false prophets, a category often applied to Muhammad by Christians.

Muslims, for their part, believe that parts of the Gospels, Torah and Jewish prophetic books have been forgotten, misinterpreted, or distorted by their followers. With that perspective, Muslims view the Qur'an as corrective of Jewish and Christian scriptures. Muslims, believe that God (or, in Arabic, Allāh) revealed his direct words for mankind to prophets, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and eventually Muhammad (c. 570–632). Muslims believe that the messages of all of the prophets were similar. Therefore, Muslims respect Jesus as they do Muhammad, but they don't share with Christians the Trinity beliefs nor view Jesus as God.

Not surprisingly, the relationship between the two faiths has had its share of controversy and conflict (an example being the Crusades). Indeed, many Christians forcefully reject the entirety of the Muslim faith system, citing Jesus' statement that anybody who is not with him is against him. Today, it is common to hear Christians emphasize the view that Islam contradicts the teachings of the Messiah, or that Muhammad was a false prophet. Some Christians, though in the minority, see important common ground shared by the two faiths: see Christo-Islamic. On May 6, 2001, Pope John Paul II, the first Pope to pray in a mosque, delivered an address at Omayyad Mosque in Damascus that seemed to strike a balance between these two approaches. The Pope said: "It is important that Muslims and Christians continue to explore philosophical and theological questions together, in order to come to a more objective and comprehensive knowledge of each others’ religious beliefs. Better mutual understanding will surely lead, at the practical level, to a new way of presenting our two religions not in opposition, as has happened too often in the past, but in partnership for the good of the human family."

Christianity and persecution

Historically Christians, both as groups and individuals, have like many other religious traditions, been both the victims and perpetrators of persecution. Some forms of persecution of Christians and on the part of Christians continue to the present day.

Persecution of Christians

(For full article, see Persecution of Christians)

Christian martyrs in the first three centuries were crucified, torn apart by chariots, cut down, or impaled on pikes in much the same manner as other Roman political prisoners and rebels. Many were forced to fight in Roman coliseums as fodder for famous gladiators, or forced to fight each other for entertainment and as punishment. When early Christians refused to fight each other, wild beasts or gladiators would often be set loose to slaughter them, providing sinister entertainment for betting Roman citizens. Bets were often cast on which Christian would die first, whether or not one would raise arms against another, and how long one would last before having his or her torso ripped apart. They are recognized as martyrs because they chose to die rather than renounce their Christian faith.

In the modern Middle East and Africa, Christians face a great deal of persecution, including arrests for "blasphemy" in the Middle East and even being targeted for assassination and acts of terrorism. In China there are also laws against proselytizing, so while it's not illegal to convert to Christianity, one can be fined or imprisoned for attempting to convert others, especially publicly. Predominantly Christian regions (such as East Timor) have chosen independence partly for this reason. Because of this, many Christian converts from these parts of the world have left for Europe, the United States, Canada and Australia.

Some Christians see restrictions placed on some forms of religious activity, whether of Christianity or other religions, in the public sphere as a form of discrimination against religious people in general.

Persecution by Christians

(For full article, see Historical persecution by Christians.)

Christians have not only been the victims of persecution. After the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity, Christian mobs frequently molested pagans and destroyed their temples, sometimes with government support. The philosopher Hypatia of Alexandria was murdered by such a mob in 415. Many of the Christians who did not accept the Council of Nicea, or other pronouncements, were considered heretical and often had to flee persectution once Christianity was accepted by Constantine and his successors.

In 380, Roman emperor Theodosius I made Christianity the official religion of the Empire and outlawed the practising of paganism and Manichaeism. Judaism remained legal, but Jewish communities suffered from recurrent violent attacks and expulsions, especially in the latter half of the Middle Ages.

During the Crusades, Christian Crusaders committed atrocities against Jews across Europe and massacred non-combatants in Palestine and Syria. Crusaders also sacked and plundered the city of Constantinople and persecuted many Pagans, Muslims, and Jews.

Christians have at times persecuted other Christians over doctrinal and ethnic differences. During the Arian disputes in the 4th century, Arians harassed their orthodox brethren, and were supported in this by various emperors. When Priscillian was executed by the state in 385, this was widely denounced by leading Church figures of the time. By the Middle Ages, however, the Church was the executor of persecution, setting up the Inquisition to fight heresy by judicial means including torture. The Crusades, while primarily aimed at non-Christians, also included incidents such as the sack and plunder of Constantinople. The Early Modern period saw the phenomenon of Witch hunts, which were frequent in Western Europe, especially Germany, and later also in New England. This period was also typified by violence between Catholics and the emerging Protestant movement.

Allegations of Christian persecution of others continue to the present day. Christians in the Western world are often accused of engaging in discrimination against other religions, denominations, and minorities. For example, some claim persecution in the opposition of some Christians to giving equal status to homosexual activities; rare individual instances of religiously motivated violence and vandalism also occur. Such offenses, however, are usually on a smaller scale than the persecution seen in the rest of the world.

In the second half of the 20th century, ethnic or social conflicts are sometimes reinforced by religious antagonism. In Northern Ireland, the struggle for independence is exacerbated by denominational differences; in general terms, Catholics support independence, while Protestants desire to remain part of the United Kingdom. The region of former Yugoslavia contains many groups fighting for control, most of which are typified by strong cultural and religious solidarity.

Migration of Christians

Main article: Christian emigration

Due to the continuing persecution of Christians in places like the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, and the Indian Sub-Continent, many Christians have migrated to foreign lands. Christians that have been migrating from their native lands range from Middle Eastern Christians leaving the Middle East due to persecution from the Muslim majority, to Chinese Christians leaving China because of Communist China's stance on Christianity.

See also

• Jesus
• Bible
• Jesus in the Christian Bible
• Christian
• Christian apologetics (field of study concerned with the defense of Christianity, often intellectual)
• Christian art
• Christian calendar
• Christian eschatology
• Christian music
• Progressive Christianity
• Christian mythology
• Christian Meditation
• Christian Anarchism
• Christianity and anti-Semitism
• Christian stories
• Christian views of women
• Christian Symbolism
• Churchianity
• Homosexuality and Christianity
• John 3:16
• List of Christians
• Criticisms of Christianity
• Christian wikis

History and denominations

• Christian history
• Christian theological controversy
• Eastern Christianity portal
• Great Schism
• List of Christian denominations

References and Select Bibliography

• The Bible
• Archibald Robertson, The Origins of Christianity (1954, rev. ed. 1962).

• The Story of Christianity by Justo L. Gonzalez (1984, 1985, 1999, ISBN 1565635221)
• Christian Theology: An Introduction by Alister McGrath (ISBN 0631225285)
• Christian Theology Reader by Alister McGrath (ISBN 063120637X)
• Mere Christianity. C.S. Lewis
• Systematic Theology, an ecumenical trilogy by Thomas Oden
  • Volume 1: The Living God (1992, ISBN 0060663634)
  • Volume 2: The Word of Life (1992, ISBN 0060663642)
  • Volume 3: Life in the Spirit (1994, ISBN 0060663626)
• The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine. Jaroslav Pelikan. 5 Volumes, published between 1971-1989.
• The Kingdom of God is Within You [8] by Leo Tolstoy (1894, ISBN 0803294042)
• Tomkins, Stephen. A Short History of Christianity (Lion, 2005)
• Heindel, Max, The Rosicrucian Christianity Lectures, November 1908 (twenty lectures delivered in Columbus, Ohio), ISBN 0-911274-84-7 www

External links

General on-line sources

• ReligionFacts.com: Christianity Fast facts, glossary, timeline, history, beliefs, texts, holidays, symbols, people, etc.
• The Christian Classics Ethereal Library, containing the works of a wide spectrum of authors in doctrine, history, devotion, and Bible commentary
• WikiChristian, a wiki book on Christianity, church history and doctrine, and Christian art and music
• The Catholic Encyclopedia, containing detailed information on Catholic beliefs and history and the Catholic view of other churches and beliefs
• The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge from a Protestant perspective
• The Vatican contains much official information related to the Roman Catholic Church in many languages
• Syriac Orthodox Resources Large compendium of information and links relating to Oriental Orthodoxy.
• Rosicrucian Interpretation of Christianity, an esoteric view of Christian teachings.
• Bible Gateway The Bible online

Criticisms

• Why I am not a Christian by Nobel Prize laureate Bertrand Russell.
• Who is a Christian? by Tamas B..

Criticisms, responses to

• Why Russell Said He Could Not Be a Christian -- Dr. Greg Bahnsen on Bertrand Russell

Directories

• Dmoz.org Open Directory Project: Christianity (a list of links with information about Christianity)
• Dmoz.org Open Directory Project: Contra Christianity (a list of links of opposing views on Christianity)