Christianity: Who, What, When, Where, How - Research Paper Example

?Christianity: Who, What, When, Where, How When inquiring into the beliefs and practices of Christianity, a 2000 year old religion, we are faced withimmense diversity. Christianity is an umbrella religion, referring to many denominations and religious organizations which, according to the three ecumenical creeds (Apostles Creed, Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed) primarily have in common their basic beliefs in one omnipotent, omniscient and eternal God, creator of the universe; in Jesus Christ, the foretold messiah, Son of God; the Holy Spirit’s role in the lives of Christians; the Bible as the divinely inspired Word of God; and the power of redemption (BookofConcord.org). This paper will summarize the basic beliefs of Christianity, and some of its variation; identify Christianity in practice; identify their prophets and their stance on prophesy; describe the Bible and its various forms, as well as major supplementary scripture used by specific branches of Christianity; describe Christian rituals; and look at some of Christianity’s current developments. Most Christians, though not all, believe in a triune God, known as The Trinity. This means, according to the Athanasian Creed, that God is one, but is comprised of three aspects, or three manifestations: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (BookofConcord.org). God the Father was dominant in the Old Testament, and is the presence that walked with Adam and Eve, the One who gave Moses the Ten Commandments (consisting of rules for moral living), the One who entered into covenants with Noah, Abraham and others, and the One who sent Jesus. God the Son is Jesus, the one who taught the disciples, performed miracles, healed the sick and raised the dead, and died to redeem people from the wages of sin, and who conquered death, arose and ascended to Heaven. God the Holy Spirit is known as The Comforter, and is the living presence of God inside all Christians, the One who guides behavior and attitude , the One who bestows gifts on Charismatic Christians. Those gifts include speaking in tongues (I Corinthians 12:10), healing (I Corinthians 12:9), discernment of spirits (1 Corinthians 12:10), and prophesy (Romans 12:6). Some Charismatic Pentecostals become struck by the Holy Spirit and it causes them to run up and down the aisles of the church, wildly, to shout and laugh in a particular way, to fall backwards and even become unconscious. In fact, there is a lawsuit going on, at this time, filed by a woman who was seriously injured at church when another woman was struck by the Holy Spirit and fell onto some other people, knocking them into each other and landing on the woman, who suffered neck and spinal injuries (Crawford). Some Christian Holiness churches, especially in Appalachia, handle poisonous snakes and drink strychnine at church, as a demonstration that they are possessed of the Holy Spirit. It happens sometimes that they are bitten or taken ill. Deaths happen, even deaths of the ministers. Here are photos, documenting this practice. (Alison) Different Christian denominations have their own beliefs about medical issues and healing. The Jehovah’s Witnesses, for example, do not take blood transfusions, even if really needed. They interpret the Bible as teaching against it. Some Christian groups discourage their members from going to doctors or hospitals for medical help. They prefer to demonstrate their faith in God by trusting in divine healing. Various Christian churches and revival groups practice faith healing (Robinson). They believe that if your faith in God is strong enough, you will be healed, as others are praying for you. Another belief held by various groups of Christians is the importance of homeschooling children so that they will not be exposed to ideas and activities church families do not approve of. Some very conservative Christian groups, part of the Christian Patriarchy movement, do homeschooling through high school. They do not, however, send their daughters to college, instead keeping them home, training them for marriage and having many babies (Joyce). The most important belief, shared by Christians, is in the redemptive sacrifice of Jesus. Throughout the Old Testament of the Bible are prophetic references to the coming of the Jewish Messiah. Jesus fit all the foretold characteristics. An example is the 53rd chapter of Isaiah, which foretold the death of Jesus. Jesus was Jewish, born in Palestine to a virgin, Mary. He taught in the temple, with wisdom, when he was a pre-adolescent boy. He had a fairly brief but intense ministry as a storytelling teacher, a social reformer, and a healer, and then was crucified by the Romans. Three days later, he left his tomb and appeared to Mary Magdalene and to the disciples. Later he was caught up and returned to Heaven. This is referred to as the transfiguration. Christians believe that Jesus will come again, in the end times (Deem). Redemption refers to the basic situation that sin separated us from God originally, when the first woman, Eve, was tempted by the Serpent to eat the fruit of a tree which God had forbidden them to eat, and gave it to Adam, the first man, in the garden of Eden. Eating of this fruit changed their consciousness and caused them to be kicked out of the garden, punished with childbirth pain, hard work and suffering, and death (BookofConcord.org). Death was legislated by God to be the payment required for sin. But God did not give up on His earth children. He made a series of covenants and eventually, out of love, sent Jesus to make payment and restore eternal life, through his death and resurrection. Anyone who accepts that payment for their own salvation is assured of eternal life with God in Heaven. Anyone who fails to accept that payment for their own salvation is assured of eternal life with Satan in Hell (BookofConcord.org). Christianity’s prophets are in common with the Jewish prophets. They include the five books of the major prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel ) and the 11 books of the minor prophets, both groups being of equal importance but different sizes (Jackson). Some of the minor prophets are Malachi, Hosea, Obadiah, and Amos). Moses was a prophet and the Psalms also contained prophesy (Jackson). Different branches of Christianity have prophets not recognized by other branches. For example, the Mormons have Joseph Smith as their prophet, along with the head of their religion, and the highly conservative, polygamous break-away Mormons consider Warren Jeffs to be a prophet. This has been in the news a lot, recently, because their prophet is in prison for rape and sexual abuse, having taken various young girls as “wives”. He is still managing his sect, with an iron fist, from prison (Jones). The Bible is considered by all Christians to be the inspired Word of God. This Word, however, comes in various versions. The Catholics and the Protestants have Bibles that are a bit different, and the Catholic Bible includes books not contained in the Protestant Bible. The most famous version of the Protestant Bible is the King James Version. However, many people now find it difficult to read, due to archaic language, and so there are modernized versions in extensive use. The Mormons have a supplemental scripture, the Book of Mormon. The Bible essentially contains historical books, books of law, books of prophesy, books of songs, books of wisdom, the Gospels, books about the early Christian Church, the Epistles, and Revelations. It is divided into the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament is mostly about God’s dealings with the Israelites, and the New Testament is mostly about the teachings of Jesus, his death and resurrection, and application to daily Christian life. Prayer is considered by Christians to be a way of talking to God, something they feel can be done directly (Robinson). Although prayer is a practice common to all branches of Christianity, there are a variety of approaches. Some denominations, like the Catholics and the Episcopalians, have books of prayers which the priest leads them through in a mass or service. Other denominations, pray in a formal way, but without pre-arranged prayers. Some Christians pray in very informal ways, just saying whatever is on their heart, and not establishing a formal communication at all. Christian prayer can be done by a minister or priest, on behalf of the congregation or an individual. It can also be done as a group experience, with members of the group contributing praise or supplication one at a time or silently at the same time. Prayer can be done by an individual at any time, in any place (Robinson). Many Christians organize themselves into prayer chains. When there is a specific need for prayer, for example an illness or a temptation besetting someone, a phone call or email sets the chain in motion, and each person calls specified individuals so that all members are enlisted in prayer very quickly. Special prayer services are held, sometimes regularly, sometimes in response to specific situations. Healing services also involve the church community in prayer, directed on behalf of the person who has requested healing. Prayer is central to a Christian life because it keeps a person in constant touch with God (Robinson). Christians participate in a number of rituals, depending upon what denomination they belong to. One of the most common rituals is communion (celebrating the last supper that Jesus shared with his disciples and the gift of his body and blood for redemption). In this celebration, Christians eat a wafer or bread and drink wine or grape juice as mystical representations. Another common ritual is baptism. In some denominations, baptism is performed on infants, by sprinkling water on their heads, thus claiming them for Christianity. In other denominations, baptism is performed on children and adults, by immersion in water, on those who are mature enough to understand the meaning of dying to their old self and being born again with new life. Other rituals involve accepting an invitation to give your life to God; joining the church as a full member; giving testimonies about how God has been working in your life; confessing sins to a priest or to a congregation; circumcision for male infants; weddings; funerals and memorial services; potluck dinners; mass; choir music and prayer responses; faith healing; laying on of hands and anointing; congregational singing; scripture reading; exorcism of demons that may be troubling a church member; and various other rituals (Deem). Holy days or holidays vary by denomination, but Christmas (celebrating Jesus’ birth), Lent (giving up something you like, as a sacrifice), Palm Sunday (celebrating Jesus’ public recognition and honor), and Easter (celebrating Christ’s resurrection) are very basic (Wagner). A current global trend that should be mentioned is the rapid growth of Charismatic Pentecostalism (Robbins 118). It is an active spirituality that appeals to the emotions and releases tension, encouraging expressivity. Only one hundred years old, it has attracted 523 million followers, two thirds of whom live outside the West (in Latin America, Africa, Asia, Oceania, etc.), as do most of the nine million annual converts (Robbins 118). There is a lot more that can be said about Christianity, but this paper has been an effort to cover aspects common to most versions of Christianity and to give examples of ways in which denominations differ from each other in interpretation and emphasis. This paper has introduced Christian beliefs, practice; prophets, Scripture, rituals, and current developments. It will hopefully stimulate interest in further exploration of this intriguing and diverse religion. Works Cited Alison. "Snake Handling." 5 August 2010. Teenangster. Photo. 11 April 2012. BookofConcord.org. "The Three Ecumenical or Universal Creeds." nd. Book of Concord. Web. 11 April 2012. Crawford, Setrige. "Woman Sues Evangelical Church for Holy Spirit Injuries." 27 January 2012. Christian Post. Web. 9 April 2012. Deem, Rich. "What is Christianity?" 10 August 2011. God and Science. Web. 10 April 2012. Jackson, Wayne. "A Survey of the Major Prophets." 2012. Christian Courier. Web. 9 April 202. Jones, Melanie. "Warren Jeffs: Polygamous Leader Manipulates Sect From Prison as FLDS Splinters." 16 January 2012. International Business Times. Web. 9 April 2012. Joyce, Kathryn. Quiverfull: Inside the Christian Patriarchy Movement. Boston: Beacon Press, 2009. Print. Robbins, Joel. "The Globalization of Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity." Annual Reviews in Anthropology (2004): 33:117-43. Print. Robinson, B.A. "Christian Prayer." 12 October 2001. Religious Tolerance. Web. 10 April 2012. Wagner, Richard. "Christian Holy Days, Holidays, and Seasons." 2012. Dummies.com. Web. 10 April 2012. Read More