Christianity is a world monotheistic Abrahamic religion. It arose in the first century AD in Palestine among the Jews. The name "Christianity" comes from the Greek word "christos", which means "anointed one". Christ is the name given to Jesus, who lived in the first century AD. The followers of His teachings are called Christians. Christianity influenced world history so much that a new world era began to be counted from the birth of its Founder. Christianity is currently the largest religion in the world, with approximately 2.1 billion followers.
Christianity – Religion of Revelation
Christianity is a religion of Revelation, that is, it is based on the manifestation of God to man. This Epiphany occurred in the incarnation of God in the form of man. God became the man Jesus Christ.
The Word of God was eventually partially recorded in the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament.
Christianity does not reject the Old Testament Revelation, but considers it to be one with the New Testament.
The emergence of Christianity
Christianity arose in Palestine, which was then part of the Roman Empire, in the first century AD among the Jews.
In the Mediterranean, the Jews were the only monotheistic religion. By the time Christianity arose, many non-Jews converted to Judaism; they were called proselytes. In the Roman Empire, Jews were allowed to practice their national religion, and Judaism had a special status. The rest of the people professed the state religion - paganism, which was syncretic in nature. Each region had its own characteristics. For example, in Ephesus the goddess Artemis was especially revered.
The paganism of the Roman Empire was united by the fact that it was necessary to honor the king as a god, only an exception was made for the Jews. At the time of the birth of Jesus, the Jews were desperately waiting for the Messiah (Christ), hoping that he would free the Jewish people from the rule of the Roman Empire. It was in such an environment that the founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ, was born.
Orthodoxy
The Orthodox Church is closest to the traditions of early Christianity. A distinctive feature of Orthodoxy is the preservation of the first seven Ecumenical Councils, without adding a single new dogma to them and not excluding any of them. Orthodox conciliarity presupposes the unity of the laity with the clergy, adherence to traditions and a collective principle.
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The Orthodox Church maintains that Christianity, unlike other religions, is a divine revelation that forms the basis of the Orthodox faith. It is based on a set of dogmas - immutable truths, which also act as the result of divine revelation.
One of the basic laws of Orthodoxy is reception, that is, the acceptance by the entire church of any norms. No Church body or person can be infallible. In Orthodoxy, the traditions of the seven sacraments are very strictly observed:
- baptism
- participle
- repentance
- anointing
- marriage
- consecration of oil
- priesthood.
In addition to performing the sacraments, Orthodoxy obliges to read prayers, venerate the cross, icons, relics, relics and saints. An important place in Orthodoxy is given to fasting and holidays, the main of which is Easter, established in honor of the resurrection of Jesus crucified on the cross.
Jesus Christ as the founder of Christianity
In modern science there are already enough reasons to consider Jesus Christ a historical figure. There is a lot of written evidence left about Jesus, more than, for example, about Socrates. We learn basic information about the life of Jesus Christ from the New Testament. According to the Gospel, He was born supernaturally from the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem.
In Nazareth, the Virgin Mary was inseminated by the Holy Spirit and she conceived.
When the time came for her to give birth, she was in Bethlehem, where she had come for the census that was taking place at that time. Thanks to these details, scientists can more or less accurately establish the exact date of Jesus' birth, putting it around the fifth year BC. Jesus was born in a stable, because Mary and her betrothed Joseph had no other place to stay for the night.
After the birth of the Baby, the family fled to Egypt and lived there until Herod died, who wanted to kill the Baby. Why did King Herod want to kill him? The fact is that by the time of the birth of Jesus Christ, a bright star appeared in the sky, known as the “Star of Bethlehem”. Seeing this star, the Egyptian sages followed it, suggesting the birth of a great man, a king.
So, following the star, they came to Herod, telling about the birth of a new king. This was the impetus for the killing of all infants under two years of age in Bethlehem and its environs.
But by this time, according to a Revelation from God, the Holy Family fled to Egypt.
Very little is known about the early years of Jesus’ life: only that at the age of 12 He taught the wise men in the Jerusalem Temple, and they were amazed at His words. He was a carpenter and was obedient to his parents.
Jesus Christ came out to preach at the age of 30. The Jews could only begin to teach at the age of 30. Jesus' public ministry lasted 3 years, during which He preached the will of God, testified about God, healed, raised the dead, explained the Old Testament Scripture, and prophesied.
He chose 12 disciples for Himself - apostles, who were always with Him on the journey.
Only a few of His disciples witnessed His Transfiguration.
Many people followed Jesus, but not all accepted Him. So only a few people from the leaders of the Jews believed Jesus Christ, believed that He was the Messiah for whom they were waiting.
However, the Jewish leaders achieved the crucifixion of Jesus.
On the third day after the crucifixion, Jesus Christ was resurrected in a renewed body. For 40 days He appeared to His disciples and instructed them in the correct understanding of Scripture. And on the 40th day he ascended, promising that he would return at the end of time.
After the event of the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, which occurred on the 50th day after the resurrection of Christ, the apostles began to preach Christ, His resurrection and everything that He taught them.
Persecution of Christians
The preaching of the Apostles was very successful, but Christians began to be persecuted. And the first three centuries of the spread of Christianity were a time of persecution and martyrdom for Christ. While Jews were allowed to practice their religion, Christians were prohibited from doing so. When the apostles came to a city, they first went to the local synagogue to preach. Christians were considered a Jewish sect and were driven out of synagogues.
Historians have identified at least four reasons for the persecution of Christians:
1. Christians did not respect the king as a god, did not take part in the royal cults, which put them in opposition to the existing government. Refusal to make sacrifices to the king was considered a violation of the laws of the Roman Empire. The Jews were allowed not to participate in these cults, since their religion was ancient and was practiced by an entire people. Christians did not have this.
2. Christians were accused of crimes: debauchery, misanthropy, Oedipal confusion, the slaughter of infants, etc.
3. From the point of view of the state, Christianity was considered an illegal religion.
4. Christians were accused of godlessness because they did not take part in generally accepted pagan cults.
Types of Christianity and their brief description
Let's look at the types of Christianity and give them a brief description. Despite the differences in these areas, they are by no means at odds.
Orthodoxy
Orthodoxy is one of the world's leading denominations of Christianity. For Orthodox Christians, the Lord is the bearer of universal wisdom, the supreme mind.
To earn an eternal place in heaven after death, to join God through grace - these are the main goals of every Orthodox person. To achieve this, they need to keep the Lord’s commandments throughout their lives and confess His teaching.
Orthodoxy is based on the Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition. In addition, the 10 commandments, which form the basis of all Christianity, have a special influence on believers. They do not differ on its different branches.
The main means of turning to God is prayer. You can pray both at home and in temples and churches. Before prayer, you should cross yourself three times, saying the Our Father. It would be more correct to pray in front of the faces of the saints so that prayers are heard.
Orthodox Christians also believe in the church. And it's not always about the building. This refers to getting closer to other people. The fact that people come together during prayer unites and unites them. You cannot get closer to God while moving away from people at this time.
Catholicism
Catholicism is most widespread in European countries. For Catholic Christians, the Holy Spirit comes from both the Father God and the Son of God, unlike Orthodox Christians, for whom the Holy Spirit comes only from the Father.
The main goal of a Catholic is to obtain a place in the Kingdom of God, as a reward for good deeds pleasing to God. To do this, they need not to have serious sin in their souls. To have it means to be doomed to eternal torment. However, minor sins are allowed, a person is cleansed from them in Purgatory, after which he enters the Kingdom of God.
The Catholic Church does not allow divorce; marriage is concluded once and for the rest of your life. Priests categorically cannot marry; they must choose for themselves only one of the sacraments: the sacrament of marriage or the sacrament of priesthood.
For Catholics, the Pope is the head of the church, but he is not considered a saint. Only his words and actions concerning the church are considered sinless.
Protestantism
In short, Protestantism is one of the three directions of Christianity, along with Orthodoxy and Catholicism. It is a collection of many independent churches, which are characterized by a variety of practices and external forms.
Protestants do not encourage celibacy and monasteries. Unlike Orthodox Christians and Catholics, they do not consider the afterlife wonderful and beautiful, and do not strive to get there.
Protestants also deny the cult of the Mother of God and the veneration of icons, which largely distinguishes them from the Orthodox and Catholics.
Protestants do not have any church hierarchy; everyone in the church is equal before God. The main authority for them is the Bible (Holy Scripture). Her authority is unshakable. But unlike the Orthodox Bible, the text of the Protestant one is slightly changed. It excludes eleven Old Testament books that are not part of the Jewish canon. The remaining texts, from the point of view of Protestantism, are not true, including the Holy Tradition.
In addition, Protestants await the return of Christ in the flesh in the future.
Conclusion
Thus, Christianity is an effective system of spiritual knowledge that changed the ancient world. This religion is the basis of modern European civilization. This greatest teaching was founded by Jesus Christ. It was he who did more for all people than anyone else.
Division of Churches
Towards the end of the first millennium, confrontations occurred between the Eastern and Western Churches, and in 1054 the Church was divided into Eastern and Western.
The name “Greek”, “Orthodox” was assigned to the Eastern Church, and “Latin”, “Catholic” to the Western Church. More than once after the division of the Churches there were attempts to conclude a union, subordinating the Eastern Church to the Pope. For example, the Union of Lyon, the Union of Brest, etc.
Since the division, the differences between the Churches have deepened. New dogmas were introduced in the Western Church. During the active preaching of indulgences in the Western Church, a schism begins. In the 16th century, Protestantism arose, which opposed itself to Catholicism. Many movements were formed within Protestantism itself. The most common are Lutherans, Calvinists, Anglicans, Baptists, Pentecostals.
Thus, the most common denominations in Christianity now are: Catholicism, Protestantism, Orthodoxy, Pre-Chalcedonites.
Heresies in Christianity
Throughout the history of Christianity, many Christian heresies have appeared within it. There were attempts to connect paganism with Christianity, which resulted in the emergence of Gnosticism. The history of the Ecumenical Councils is the history of the struggle with different teachings within Christianity: Arians, Nestorians, Monophysites, Monothelites, etc. Due to the emergence of many different teachings, the Christian Church had to more clearly formulate its doctrine, emphasize certain points, separate where the true teaching of Christ is, where is the delusion?
The Holy Scriptures are books containing Divine Revelation and written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit by holy men, prophets and apostles.
Christians recognize the Bible—the Old and New Testaments—as Holy Scripture, considering them to be one whole. The word "Bible" comes from the Greek "τα βιβλια" which means "books". The term “Covenant” means an alliance, an agreement, i.e. it is the union of God with His people. The essence of this agreement is that God leads man to salvation, and man fulfills the commandments of God. The Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament have no absolute meaning for Christians. Its importance lies in the fact that it is also a Divine Revelation. Defining the meaning of the Old Testament, the Apostle Paul called it a teacher to Christ.
There are slight differences between different denominations in recognizing the canonicity of some books of the Old Testament.
Christians recognize 4 Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). Over time, after the death of the apostles, counterfeit Gospels began to appear, inscribed with the names of the apostles. But these writings were never recognized by the Church and were called “apocrypha.”
Christian doctrine is based on the Holy Scriptures. Although some dogmatic terms are not in the Holy Scriptures (Trinity, consubstantial), in essence it is present there.
For example, Jesus Christ taught about the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, who is one God. Thiophilus of Alexandria coined the term “Trinity” to designate the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The term “consubstantial” was taken from philosophy to designate the words of Christ – “I and the Father are one.”
What will help you understand the essence of Christianity?
Before Christ came to earth, Solomon was considered the wisest man on earth. It was he who most clearly expressed the problem of humanity as a whole, writing:
“I spoke in my heart about the sons of men, so that God might test them, and so that they would see that they are animals in themselves. Because the fate of the sons of men and the fate of animals is the same fate: as they die, so these die, and everyone has the same breath, and man has no advantage over cattle, because everything is vanity! Everything goes to one place: everything came from dust and everything will return to dust” (Eccl. 3:18-20).
Man was created “in the image and likeness of God” to have dominion over the earth, and Scripture tells it this way:
“God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. Let all the beasts of the earth fear and tremble at you, and all the birds of the air, everything that moves on the earth, and all the fish of the sea: they are given into your hands” (Gen. 9: 1, 2. Also: Psalm 8: 4 -9.).
However, you should pay attention to the fact that man was created on the same day, the sixth, along with the animals. Instincts such as the instinct of self-preservation, reproduction, dominance over other individuals are often uncontrollably transformed into greed and betrayal, adultery, envy and war... why?
This is the answer to the fact that the first people so easily succumbed to sin: “God saw everything that He had created, and behold, it was very good. (And there was evening and there was morning: the sixth day)” (Gen. 1:31). They were perfect according to the flesh, without defect, but at the same time, Adam was not blessed spiritually - but it was the seventh day that was blessed (Gen. 2:3.). The Apostle Paul wrote:
“we who have believed enter into rest... For nowhere is it said about the seventh [day] like this: and God rested on the seventh day from all His work... Therefore there still remains a Sabbath for the people of God. For whoever has entered into His rest has also rested from his own works, just as God did from His” (Heb. 4:3,4,9,10).
And if we are talking about the essence of Christianity, then we cannot help but remember that it was Christ who was the Lord of the Sabbath, into which each of us has to “enter.” This Leader said:
“I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).
“Thus it is written: The first man Adam became a living soul; and the last Adam is a life-giving spirit... The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second person is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, so are the earthy; and as is he that is in heaven, so are those that are in heaven” (1 Cor. 15:45,47,48).
If we carefully examine the Scriptures, it becomes clear that before the coming of Christ, all those who were pleasing to the Most High God Yahweh were all moved by the Holy Spirit.
For example, in the Israeli kingdom of Samaria there was not a single righteous king - however, in the kingdom of Judah, true worship was restored from time to time... why is that? We will find the answer in the words of the prophet Ahijah: “so that the lamp of David my servant may remain always before me in the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen for myself for my name to dwell there” (1 Kings 11:36). In the kingdom of Samaria, the Most High also preserved the prophets for Himself by the Spirit, so that spiritual light would remain for people (Rom. 11: 2-6.). Thus, by carefully studying biblical history, we can understand that without the Spirit of God, man cannot be pleasing to Him; for this, you simply need to be blessed (Rom. 9:10-14.).
We all need to honestly admit that we are flesh, created on the “sixth day” along with the animals, that we are children of the carnal Adam; If he had not sinned, then instead of him, there in paradise, we would have sinned. And for us, it is important to be led into that “rest” by the second “Adam,” the Eternal Father, Christ (see: Isaiah 9:6.).
The first people were created without sin - but it was they who soon left it to us as a heritage. So we come to the fact that in the biblical sense, the number SIX is the number of the flesh, of which the devil is the god:
“For the flesh desires what is contrary to the spirit, and the spirit what is contrary to the flesh: they oppose each other, so that you do not do what you would like. If you are led by the spirit, then you are not under the law. The works of the flesh are known; they are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, quarrels, envy, anger, strife, disagreements, (temptations), heresies, hatred, murder, drunkenness, disorderly conduct and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do this will not inherit the Kingdom of God. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, meekness, self-control. There is no law against them. But those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal. 5:17-24).
The law left through Moses was only a “schoolmaster” to the Messiah (Galatians 3:11,24.) - but the Jews took it literally, not understanding the essence; Thus, the Law was for them an educator of EXTERNAL behavior. Not having the Spirit from God, the Jews were not able to understand the Law; This was their main problem and mistake, the way they thought themselves - and how they judged others.
The scribes and Pharisees were blind guides who did not understand that the Law began not with external education - but with the internal world (Matt. 23:26.). The history of Israel, through the Mosaic Law, shows us all: no matter how much the Almighty God admonishes and punishes, without the Holy Spirit there is no full meaning. Scripture says:
“An ox knows his owner, and a donkey his master’s manger; but Israel does not know [Me], My people do not understand... What else should we beat you with, who continue their stubbornness? The whole head is full of ulcers, and the whole heart is withered. From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there is no healthy place: sores, spots, festering wounds, not cleansed and not bandaged and not softened with oil” (Isa. 1: 3, 5, 6).
This is why it is important for all of us to realize that, without that “Sabbath” blessing, we cannot truly draw closer to God. “As it is written: There is none righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; no one seeks God; they have all turned aside from the path, they are worthless to one; there is none who does good, no, not one” (Rom. 3:10-12).
Paul goes on to explain that it is only through the sacrifice of Christ that we receive the gift of justification and sanctification by the Holy Spirit. Here is how it is written about it in the prophecy of Jeremiah:
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. Not such a covenant as I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; They broke that covenant of mine, although I remained in covenant with them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law within them, and write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they will be My people. And they will no longer teach one another, brother to brother, and say, “Know the Lord,” for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord, because I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sins no more” (Jer. .31:31-34).
This is confirmed by the prophet Ezekiel:
“And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; And I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh, and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My commandments, and to keep My statutes and do them” (Ezek. 36:26,27).
This happened on Pentecost, after Christ gave His life for us, thereby demonstrating the greatest love. And only THEN, humanity had the opportunity, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, to understand the essence of Christianity, the essence of the Law. Pavel wrote:
“We preach the wisdom of God, secret, hidden, which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the authorities of this age knew; for if they had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory... God revealed [this] to us by His Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, and the depths of God...we have not received the spirit of this world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we might know what has been given to us by God, which we proclaim not in words learned from human wisdom, but in words learned from the Holy Spirit, comparing spiritual with spiritual. The natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, because he considers them foolishness; and cannot understand, because this [must] be judged spiritually” (1 Cor. 2:7,8,10,12-14).
The main tenets of Christianity
1. God is one in essence.
2. God is threefold in Persons.
3. God became incarnate in the Virgin Mary by inspiration from the Holy Spirit, becoming Jesus Christ.
4. Jesus Christ was crucified, died and rose again on the third day.
5. Christ will come at the end of times to judge the world.
6. At the end of time the dead will rise again.
7. In Jesus Christ, the Divine and human natures are united inseparably, inseparably, inseparably, unchangeably.
8. In Christ there is one Person - Divine.
Christianity is a religion of salvation, and salvation comes through Jesus Christ. The meaning of Christian life lies in deification, i.e. God-likeness.
The main commandments are to love God with all your heart, mind and will, and to love your neighbor as yourself. Moreover, if a person does not love his neighbor, then even more so he cannot love God.
The Essence of Christianity
The essence of Christianity lies in Jesus Christ Himself, God incarnate. He came to earth to save people from the power of sin over man, to heal human nature infected with sin. God took on human nature, but He Himself did not have personal sins, and He healed it with His resurrection, in which the transformation of human nature took place. For this reason, the doctrine of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central dogma of Christianity, and without this dogma Christianity loses its meaning.
Main directions of Christianity: Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Protestantism
Christianity created the ideal of universal human behavior, their existence, a holistic worldview and attitude.
The basis of Christianity is the teaching about Jesus Christ - the God-man, the son of God, who came to people with good intentions, commanding them the laws of righteous life and accepting suffering and martyrdom crucified on the cross in atonement for human sins. Christians believe that the world was created by one eternal God, and there was no evil in this world. The resurrection of Christ marked for Christians victory over death and the possibility of eternal life with God. The main idea of Christianity was the idea of sin and human salvation. People are sinners in the face of God, this makes everyone equal, all people are sinners, all are God's servants.
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The Christian religion claims that suffering on Earth gives a person peace and heavenly bliss in the afterlife, and resistance to evil is the path to moral improvement.
Note 1
The main directions in Christianity are Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and Protestantism.
The reason for the split in religion is that, starting from the 4th century, Roman Christianity increasingly united with the state and absorbed its pro-pagan spirit. The Catholic Church, being based on the traditions of Rome, gravitated more towards Roman practicality and cruelty. Orthodoxy absorbed the spirit of Byzantium and gravitated towards sublime Greek philosophizing.
In other words, the two traditions had their origins in two different worlds - Greek and Roman, and therefore began to move away from each other.
Church
The concept “Church” has two meanings, one broad, the other narrow. In a broad sense, Christ founded His Church on earth, promising that it would remain in the world until the end of time, and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. The Church appears in Scripture as an image of a human organism, the head of which is Jesus Christ Himself, and His followers are members/parts of the organism. “Church” in Greek is “ekklesia”, which means “assembly”. The birthday of the New Testament Church is considered to be the day of the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles (Pentecost).
From this day the worldwide preaching of Christianity began. There were thousands of believers. Initially, preaching came with extraordinary gifts from God: preaching in different languages, healings, prophecies, etc. In a narrow sense, a church is established communities of Christians in different cities.
Hierarchy
The apostles of Christ, founding churches in different cities, ordained clergy. Most likely, initially there were only two degrees of hierarchy - deacons and bishops/priests. It's hard to say at this point because there is confusion in terminology in the New Testament books. Be that as it may, three degrees of hierarchy very quickly took shape: bishops, priests and deacons.
Great Schism
Contradictions between the Hellenic and Romanesque principles, between the Eastern and Western parts of the empire existed even in the classical world. In the 11th century, they led to the largest schism in church history - the great schism. Disagreements have accumulated over the centuries. After the division of the empire into two independent states (395), the heads of rival churches (the popes and the Eastern patriarchs) entered a period of political confrontation. The reason for the final break was a dispute over lands in Southern Italy that belonged to Byzantium. Having learned that the Greek rite was being replaced there, Michael Cerularius, the Patriarch of Constantinople, closed all the temples of the Latin rite in the Byzantine capital. When papal ambassadors led by Cardinal Humbert arrived in Constantinople, the patriarch refused to meet them in person. The enraged Humbert accused Cerularius of several heresies and arbitrarily declared an anathema on him; in response, an anathema was sounded at the entire embassy. According to the logic and norms of church law, these mutual excommunications should have lost force after the death of the quarreling hierarchs and could not serve as a legal justification for a church schism. However, an ordinary conflict caused by the clash of ambitions of two princes of the church acquired “historical significance inappropriate for it” (M. E. Posnov), ending the period of the “common fate” of the two Christian churches.
Divine service
The worship of the Church was formed under the influence of synagogue worship. However, over time it has changed. There were periods of heyday in Christianity of hymnography. The center of Christian worship was the Eucharist / Liturgy / Application of bread and wine to the Body and Blood of Christ. The Eucharist (Greek for “thanksgiving”) remains the center of worship in almost all Christian denominations, with the exception of Protestantism. Eating the Flesh and Blood of Christ was never understood by the Church as cannibalism, although pagans accused Christians of this. The Sacrament of the Eucharist itself was established by Christ before the Crucifixion. In this Sacrament, the risen Christ is united with bread and wine, Christians are united with God.
