Questions and Answers Concerning Religion - Essay Example

Describe the teachings of Paul. How do they differ from those of Jesus in the Gospels? Paul’s teachings differ from those of Jesus according to the gospels in various ways. Firstly, theology scholars have argued that Paul’s teachings were different from those of Jesus in their theme. For example, Jesus’ teachings focused on the kingdom of heaven while those of Paul generally focused justification through faith. The ideological difference between the two is that Jesus’ teachings revolved around the kingdom of God, the grace of God, and the importance of repentance, while those of Paul dwelled on the importance of living a life of faith to ensure that one enters the kingdom of heaven. Paul’s teachings differ from those of Jesus’ in his definition of heaven. Paul describes heaven in his teachings as where the body of Jesus Christ dwells, while Jesus described the Kingdom of heaven as prophetic Kingdom of the Israelites here on earth. Paul’s also differed with Jesus when it comes to teachings on authority. Jesus directed that people should obey authority and pay taxes while Paul’s teachings mostly condemned authority. Paul also differed from Jesus in his teachings where he emphasizes that one’s faith alone is required in salvation. This is different from what Jesus taught since he stipulated that in order for a person to have salvation; faith, repentance, and Baptism are necessary. Another difference that characterizes Paul’s teaching from those of Jesus was how the teachings were delivered. Paul’s teachings were mostly in form of letters to different congregations while those of Jesus were mostly delivered in form of parables. 2. Explain the schism between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. There are various issues that contributed to the schism between the Roman Catholic and the Eastern orthodox churches. One issue that led to this difference and separations were the Holy crusades that took place between 1095 and 1290 (Fisher 328). This is where huge number of Christian soldiers under orders from the pope attempted to wipe out enemies of Christianity. These so called enemies of Christianity were mostly Muslims who had refused o convert to Christianity. Another factor that led to the schism between the two factions of Christianity were issues that surrounded priesthood, the major one being the celibacy of priests which the orthodox churches were greatly opposed to. The papal authority was one of the major issues that led to the schism between the west and the east. Eastern orthodox churches were greatly opposed to the religious and political power that revolved bishops and moreover the pope. These eastern orthodox churches argued that the pope was meant to be the servant of God thus to the people and not a form of authority on earth. In fact, before the separation of the two factions scholars have argued that the pope was the most powerful authority in the known world at the time. Disagreement over the Holy Spirit also contributed greatly o the two factions ex communicating each other (Fisher 328). For instance the western faction stipulated that the Holy Spirit came from the Son and the Father while the eastern faction stipulated that “the Holy Spirit proceeds only from the Father” (Fisher 328). 3. What issues did each of the Protestant Reformers (Luther, Calvin, the English Reformers) have with the Roman Catholic Church? Luther One of the major issues that that Martin Luther had against the Roman Catholic was the understanding of salvation. According to the Roman Catholic, in order for a person to be forgiven of their sins after being baptized they must seek repentance and then confess to a priest their sins. Martin Luther differed with this since after studying the bible intensely, he understood that salvation was available to anyone as long as they repented since God offered salvation to all people through the death of his son Jesus. Calvin John Calvin also had issues with the Roman Catholic on the application and understanding of salvation. His reforms were purely based on the “the principles of salvation by faith alone, exclusive authority of the bible, and the priesthood of all believers” (Fisher 336). His ideologies stipulated that human actions were insignificant to weather they go to heaven since God had already decided the specific fate of all human beings. This meant that there were those destined to eternal life while there was those destined to be dammed. English Reformers One of the notable English reformers to separate themselves from the Roman Catholic is the Methodists. John Wesley is considered the father of Methodism. Methodists’ main issue with the Roman Catholic was on salvation where they proposed that it would be obtained by personal holiness through repentance of sins. King Henry VIII was another reformer of Christianity from England whose main issues with the Roman Catholic were issues surrounding marriage and divorce. 4. There is a wide variation in Christianity as it is currently practiced. Identify and explain at least three points of difference among Christian groups. Reforms in Christianity led to the emergence of various Christian groups that are formed depending on key issues of controversies that face Christianity. One issue that these Christian groups came up was on their understanding of salvation. Christian groups all over the world differ from each other on how they understand salvation. For example, Roman catholic perceive that in order for one to have eternal salvation they must repent and confess their sins to a priest for him to forgive them in order for them to have salvation while Methodists believe that one gains salvation by repenting their sins and accepting Jesus as their personal savior. Another point of difference among the various Christian groups is the political structure of the church. Different Christian group have different leadership structures. Roman Catholics usually have a centralized leadership structure where power is concentrated. For instance the pope wields the most power descending downwards until the fathers and priest while in Presbyterian Christian group, leadership and power is divided between bishops, elders and presbyters. Finally, the various Christian groups today differ from each other in terms of priesthood. For instance, the Roman Catholic has strict regulation on priesthood where priests are not allowed to Mary while other Christian groups such as Anglicans usually allow priests to get married. Gender rights in terms of priest hood have also played a huge role when it comes to the emergence of different Christianity groups. 5. Pick one description from the section of subdivisions from your virtual tour. Describe how it developed and why it still exists Abortion Abortion has been one of the most controversial ethical issues around the world for quite some time. This being so, Christianity has also been involved in the ethical dilemma of whether Christianity is right or wrong. The website has tried to show Christianity’s stand on abortion by examining the various direction given by different Christian doctrines. For instance, the Church of England acknowledges the fact that the abortion issue is something that people will have different opinions about it (BBC). Despite this the governing body of the Church of England stipulates that Abortion is wrong but in some situations it is morally preferable. These situations include when the life of the pregnant woman is in danger as a result of the pregnancy. In fact, this is the only exception given to allow abortion according to the governing body of the Church of England. The issue of abortion still exists as some people are obligated by the situations they are in such as poverty or others just because they are not ready to have children and they end up performing the act. The issue of abortion has been a matter of contention for long and the Roman Catholic Church has a hard lined position about it and says that it is wrong. The former pope of the Roman catholic Pope John II compared abortion to murder since the Roman Catholic Church understands the beginning of life from the time of conception inside a woman’s womb. The Roman Catholic is clearly against this issue as various predecessors of the Pope John II have had the same rules of illegalizing it as it is seen as a way of going against the will of the creator. Works Cited BBC. The Church of England and Roman Catholic Church views on abortion. Retrieved From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/christianethics/abortion_1.shtml Fisher Mary Pat. Living Religions, Sixth Edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice- Hall, 2005. Print Read More