Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recounted in the Gospels.[2] Christians believe Jesus to be the Messiah, and thus refer to him as Jesus Christ. With an estimated 2.1 billion adherents in 2001, Christianity is the world's largest religion.[3] It is the predominant religion in the Americas, Europe, Oceania, and large parts of Africa.
Christianity began in the 1st century AD as a Jewish sect[4], and therefore shares many religious texts and early history with Judaism — specifically, the Hebrew Bible, which Christians call the Old Testament (see Judeo-Christian). Like Judaism and Islam, Christianity is considered an Abrahamic religion.
In the New Testament, the term "Christian" first appears in Acts 11:26: "The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch." (Greek accusative Χριστιανούς; Christianous).
Within Christianity, there are numerous distinct traditions, denominations, and church bodies, many with various doctrinal differences related to culture and place. The 2001 edition of World Christian Encyclopedia estimates that there are 33,830 Christian denominations. Since the Reformation, Christianity is usually represented as being divided into three main branches:
* Roman Catholicism: The Roman Catholic Church, the largest single body, which includes several Eastern Catholic communities and totals more than 1 billion baptized members.[3] (Not part of the Catholic Church but closely related are certain smaller communities, e.g., the Old-Catholics.)
* Eastern Christianity: Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Assyrian Church of the East, and the Eastern Orthodox Churches (including Western Orthodox churches which preserve Latin practices while accepting Orthodox theology), with a combined membership of more than 300 million baptized members.[3]
* Protestantism: Numerous denominations and groups such as Anglicans, Lutherans, Reformed, Evangelical, Charismatic, Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, Nazarenes, Anabaptists, and Pentecostals. The oldest of these separated from the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century Protestant Reformation, followed in many cases by further divisions. Some Protestants identify themselves simply as Christian, or born-again Christian. Others, particularly among Anglicans and in Neo-Lutheranism, identify themselves as being "both Catholic and Protestant". Worldwide total ranges from 592 to 650 million.[3]
Other Christian denominations and churches which distance themselves from the above classifications and some of their major beliefs claim around 275 million members. These include African indigenous churches with up to 110 million members (estimates vary widely), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also called Mormons) with more than 12 million members[5], Jehovah's Witnesses with approximately 6.6 million members[6]
In addition to official denominations, break-away sects, orthodox movements within denominations and sects, and heretical movements, there is also a wide variety of extra-church groups associated with Christianity.
Monotheism
Christianity adopted from Judaism a belief in the existence of a single God (YHWH) who created the universe and has divine power over it.[1] The understanding of God is modified and expanded in the light of other Christian beliefs about the divinity of Christ and the nature of God as a Holy Trinity,[7] which in brief considers that the three persons of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) together form a single substance of God. Due to this some consider the Christian definition of monotheism to be unique[8] and believe some attempts at understanding the nature of God and the interrelationship of his attributes have led Christians towards implicit polytheism.[9] Christians explicitly deny holding such a view of God and consider monotheism a central tenet of Christianity. [10] All Christian creeds affirm that there is only one God (e.g., Nicene Creed, Athanasian Creed, and Chalcedonian Creed).
Messiah
The title Messiah comes from the Hebrew word מָשִׁיחַ (mashiakh) meaning the anointed one, for which the Greek translation is Χριστός (Christos), the source of the English word Christ.
Christians identify Jesus as the Messiah. This view holds that Jesus' coming was the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy and the inauguration of God's Kingdom. Jesus was anointed as ruler and saviour not only of the Jewish people, but of all humankind.
Jesus as God and Man
Most Christians believe that Jesus is "true God and true man" (or fully divine and fully human). Jesus is believed to have become fully human in all respects, including mortality, and to have suffered the pains and temptations of mortal man, yet without having sinned. From being true God he was capable of breaking the bonds of death and rising up again through what is known as the resurrection. The Chalcedonian Creed (which is not accepted by the Oriental Orthodox Churches) defined this as Christ having "two natures in one person", a doctrine known to theologians as hypostatic union
Holy Trinity
Most Christians believe that God is one single eternal being who exists as three distinct, eternal, and indivisible persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus), and God the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost). Most Christians believe the three persons of the Trinity together form a single substance of God.
Christianity began in the 1st century AD as a Jewish sect[4], and therefore shares many religious texts and early history with Judaism — specifically, the Hebrew Bible, which Christians call the Old Testament (see Judeo-Christian). Like Judaism and Islam, Christianity is considered an Abrahamic religion.
In the New Testament, the term "Christian" first appears in Acts 11:26: "The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch." (Greek accusative Χριστιανούς; Christianous).
Within Christianity, there are numerous distinct traditions, denominations, and church bodies, many with various doctrinal differences related to culture and place. The 2001 edition of World Christian Encyclopedia estimates that there are 33,830 Christian denominations. Since the Reformation, Christianity is usually represented as being divided into three main branches:
* Roman Catholicism: The Roman Catholic Church, the largest single body, which includes several Eastern Catholic communities and totals more than 1 billion baptized members.[3] (Not part of the Catholic Church but closely related are certain smaller communities, e.g., the Old-Catholics.)
* Eastern Christianity: Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Assyrian Church of the East, and the Eastern Orthodox Churches (including Western Orthodox churches which preserve Latin practices while accepting Orthodox theology), with a combined membership of more than 300 million baptized members.[3]
* Protestantism: Numerous denominations and groups such as Anglicans, Lutherans, Reformed, Evangelical, Charismatic, Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, Nazarenes, Anabaptists, and Pentecostals. The oldest of these separated from the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century Protestant Reformation, followed in many cases by further divisions. Some Protestants identify themselves simply as Christian, or born-again Christian. Others, particularly among Anglicans and in Neo-Lutheranism, identify themselves as being "both Catholic and Protestant". Worldwide total ranges from 592 to 650 million.[3]
Other Christian denominations and churches which distance themselves from the above classifications and some of their major beliefs claim around 275 million members. These include African indigenous churches with up to 110 million members (estimates vary widely), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also called Mormons) with more than 12 million members[5], Jehovah's Witnesses with approximately 6.6 million members[6]
In addition to official denominations, break-away sects, orthodox movements within denominations and sects, and heretical movements, there is also a wide variety of extra-church groups associated with Christianity.
Monotheism
Christianity adopted from Judaism a belief in the existence of a single God (YHWH) who created the universe and has divine power over it.[1] The understanding of God is modified and expanded in the light of other Christian beliefs about the divinity of Christ and the nature of God as a Holy Trinity,[7] which in brief considers that the three persons of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) together form a single substance of God. Due to this some consider the Christian definition of monotheism to be unique[8] and believe some attempts at understanding the nature of God and the interrelationship of his attributes have led Christians towards implicit polytheism.[9] Christians explicitly deny holding such a view of God and consider monotheism a central tenet of Christianity. [10] All Christian creeds affirm that there is only one God (e.g., Nicene Creed, Athanasian Creed, and Chalcedonian Creed).
Messiah
The title Messiah comes from the Hebrew word מָשִׁיחַ (mashiakh) meaning the anointed one, for which the Greek translation is Χριστός (Christos), the source of the English word Christ.
Christians identify Jesus as the Messiah. This view holds that Jesus' coming was the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy and the inauguration of God's Kingdom. Jesus was anointed as ruler and saviour not only of the Jewish people, but of all humankind.
Jesus as God and Man
Most Christians believe that Jesus is "true God and true man" (or fully divine and fully human). Jesus is believed to have become fully human in all respects, including mortality, and to have suffered the pains and temptations of mortal man, yet without having sinned. From being true God he was capable of breaking the bonds of death and rising up again through what is known as the resurrection. The Chalcedonian Creed (which is not accepted by the Oriental Orthodox Churches) defined this as Christ having "two natures in one person", a doctrine known to theologians as hypostatic union
Holy Trinity
Most Christians believe that God is one single eternal being who exists as three distinct, eternal, and indivisible persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus), and God the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost). Most Christians believe the three persons of the Trinity together form a single substance of God.
بود كه افول و به سرانجام رسيدن آن روشن گشت، بارى واكنش نوارتدوكسى (هرچند هنوز جاذبه آن از بين نرفته بود و انجيل گرايى محافظه كارانه به نحوى غيرقابل شك گوهر خود را از آن گرفته بود)، در روند و طرحى كه در واقع بخشى از خود مدرنيته بود، به نظر بيش تر يك عقب نشينى موقت بود تا بازيافت يقينيات (= اصول يقينى) قديمى. به عبارت ديگر، مشكلات و مسائل الهياتى اى كه ليبراليسم درصدد حلّ آن ها بود برجاى خود باقى ماندند; زيرا چنانچه مذهب ارتدوكس بخواهد ارج و عزّت خود را محفوظ ببيند نمى تواند از چالش هاى انتقادى (اعم از چالش هاى فلسفى يا تاريخى) اجتناب كند. خطاى جدّى خود بارث اين بود كه از پرداختن به اعتبار تاريخى مسيحيت گريزان بود و از آن طفره مى رفت. بى شك اين مشكلات و مسائل لاينحلّ، در اين گرايش و تمايل الهى دانان مؤثر بود كه دستاوردهاى ليبراليسم را به نحوى همدلانه تر مورد تجديدنظر قرار دهند
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