CHRISTIANITY

OVERVIEW

Christianity developed out of Judaism in the 1st century C.E. It

is founded on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of
Jesus Christ, and those who follow him are called "Christians."
Christianity has many different branches and forms with
accompanying variety in beliefs and practices. The three major
branches of Christianity are Roman Catholicism, Eastern
Orthodoxy, and Protestantism, with numerous subcategories
within each of these branches. Until the latter part of the 20th
century, most adherents of Christianity were in the West,
though it has spread to every continent and is now the largest
religion in the world. Traditional Christian beliefs include the
belief in the one and only true God, who is one being and
exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and the belief that Jesus
is the divine and human Messiah sent to the save the world.
Christianity is also noted for its emphasis on faith in Christ as
the primary component of religion. The sacred text of
Christianity is the Bible, including both the Hebrew scriptures
(also known as the Old Testament) and the New Testament.
Central to Christian practice is the gathering at churches for
worship, fellowship, and study, and engagement with the
world through evangelism and social action.

Quick Fact Details:

 Formed: This is the traditional date for the death and

resurrection of Jesus Christ. Some scholars date the rise
of Christianity as a religious belief system later in the
first century under the leadership of the apostles.
ORIGINS

Beginnings

Christianity originated in the life

and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who was born circa 4
B.C.E. in Roman-occupied Palestine, a Jewish province of the
Roman Empire.
The first century of the Common Era was a time of political
instability, insurgency, and suffering. Poverty, taxation,
famine, and epidemics of disease had made life intolerable for
many. In the year of Jesus' birth, the Roman authorities had
punished an armed uprising by crucifying approximately
2,000 people.
 Many Jews of the time thought they
were living in the "end times," a time of trial and tribulation
that would end with God's intervention. They looked for God
to destroy the enemies of the Jews and institute a kingdom of
justice and righteousness, which would be the Kingdom of
God. Most Jews hoped that God would expel the Romans, and
that his envoy, the Messiah, would appear to rule the new
world. They believed the Messiah would be a king or a
military leader from the line of King David, and that his
coming was foretold in scripture, e.g., Isaiah 9:1-7.
Isaiah 9:5
For a child is born to us,
A son is given to us;
Dominion will rest on his shoulders,
And he will be given the name
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace.
Most of what we know about Jesus' life and teaching comes
from the four Gospels of the New Testament. The New
Testament's Book of Acts gives an account of the founding of a
new community by Jesus' disciples, along with a new convert
named Paul.
Four New Testament Gospels
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
According to the Gospels, Jesus launched a public ministry
sometime in his late twenties. He was one of many Jewish
preachers of the time who viewed themselves as reformers and
prophets. John the Baptist, another preacher, baptized

him. He called twelve men to be his

disciples, and together they traveled around Palestine,
preaching and teaching about the coming Kingdom of God.
The Gospels report that after about three years Jesus was
arrested while in Jerusalem at Passover. Convicted as a
threat to public and religious order, Jesus was whipped and
nailed to a cross. This form of execution, called crucifixion,
was a common practice of the Roman authorities.

The Gospels place Jesus' death on

a Friday, so he was buried before the start of the Sabbath at
sundown. On the following Sunday, several women who were
followers of Jesus returned to anoint his body with oil, and
found the tomb empty. Other followers described encounters
with Jesus, and his disciples became convinced that Jesus had
been raised from the dead.
 The account of Jesus' life and ministry
concludes in the Book of Acts with his ascension. Acts 1:9
says that "he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud
hid him from their sight." As the disciples stood gazing up into
the sky, two men in white robes appeared beside them and
said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the
sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into
heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go
into heaven" (Acts 1:11). The disciples took this as a promise of
Jesus' return.
Continued from Page 1

They then gathered in Jerusalem on

the festival of Shavuot (also called Pentecost), where a
dramatic event took place. "Suddenly a sound like the blowing
of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house
where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues
of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them" (Acts
2:2-3). The disciples began to speak in multiple languages, and
Jewish pilgrims from distant locations could understand
them, each in their own language. One of Jesus' disciples,
Peter, stood up and preached the first Christian sermon. This
day is commemorated by many Christians as the Birthday of
the Church.

The disciples
began baptizing people, and their community of baptized
Jews grew quickly. They continued to think of themselves as
Jews and continued attending the temple, reading the Jewish
scriptures, keeping the Sabbath, and adhering to Jewish
dietary and religious practices. But other Jews, viewing them
as a sect that worshipped a false messiah, persecuted them.
Persecution forced the spread of Jewish Christians from
Jerusalem to the country districts of Judea and Samaria.

The Book of Acts reports that the first Christian martyr was a
deacon named Stephen, who was stoned to death for
witnessing to Jesus as the Messiah.
A Jew named Saul, a Roman citizen from Tarsus in Asia
Minor, joined in the persecution of the Jewish Christians.
However, Acts 9 reports that Saul had a vision of Jesus on the
road to Damascus.

As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from

heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a
voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" "Who
are you, Lord?" Saul asked. "I am Jesus, whom you are
persecuting," he replied. "Now get up and go into the city, and
you will be told what you must do" (Acts 9:3-6).

Thereafter Saul, later known as Paul, became the great

Christian missionary, energetically evangelizing around the
Mediterranean, particularly among non-Jews. Paul is credited
with extending the reach of the Christian message beyond the
Jewish communities of Palestine, founding non-Jewish
Christian communities in several important cities of the
Roman Empire.
Study Questions:
1. Describe the political instability at the time of
Christianity's origin. Why was Jesus' identity as a Jew
important?
2. Where does Christianity's account of Jesus' life originate?
What key points within his life are stressed?
3. What was Pentecost? How did it mark the birth of the
Christian Church?
4. Why did Jews persecute early Christians? Provide a
famous example.

Influences

Christianity originated in Jewish

Palestine, a province of the Roman Empire. The first
Christians were Jews who attended temple, read the
Jewish scriptures, kept the Sabbath, and adhered to Jewish
dietary and religious practices. In the decades following the
death of Jesus, Jewish Christians quickly spread to other
Mediterranean provinces of Rome and began converting
Gentiles.
Two or three centuries passed before a religion completely
separate from Judaism took shape, a religion that we now
recognize as Christianity. The Jewish, Greek, and Roman
cultures of the first two centuries of the Common Era had
deep and lasting influence on the new faith during this
formative time.
Jesus, his disciples, and the first Christians were all Jews
who kept Jewish laws and customs and studied the
Jewish scriptures. Christianity preserves the Jewish
scriptures in the Old Testament, incorporating the essential
Jewish view of God as the God of history.

Like Judaism, Christianity teaches

that creation is the act of a single God, and throughout history
this God has intervened, showing divine power through
mighty deeds. God's role in history will culminate in the future
in "the day of the Lord," when evil will be conquered and a
new world will arise. In that new world, God will reign as a
king of peace and righteousness (Isaiah 2:12; Joel 1:15;
Zephaniah 1:7; Malachi 3:17). The first Christians believed that
Jesus was the Messiah (in Greek, Christos, or Christ) whose
death and resurrection was a sign that God's promised "day of
the Lord" was coming soon.
Early Christian missionaries carried this belief into the
major population centers around the Mediterranean. The
message found a receptive audience in the non-Jewish
communities of the Roman Empire, including Greek-speaking
Gentiles who were trained in classical philosophy. This
brought Greek intellectual culture into the heart of
Christianity.
Christian leaders explored the core beliefs of Christianity in
accordance with their intellectual training, launching
theological controversies over the use of philosophical terms
such as person and substance to define and understand the
nature of God. The Christological controversies over the
nature of the incarnation of God in Jesus and
the Trinitarian controversy over the relationship of God,
Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were particularly sharp and of
continuing significance. Both the conclusions formulated and
some of the controversies associated with them persist to the
present day.
 The politics of the Roman Empire
had two significant and lasting effects on Christianity. In the
first case, the fledgling Christian communities suffered official
persecution by the Romans for almost three centuries, leaving
a lasting legacy of martyrdom. In the second case, early
Christian communities responded to questions of communal
organization by adopting the hierarchical model of Roman
political organization. This is most apparent in the roles and
relationships of clergy, where bishops have authority over
priests, and archbishops or popes have authority over
everyone.

Study Questions:
1. How was Christianity linked to a Jewish identity?
2. Why was Jesus revered amongst early Christian
followers?
3. How did the Roman Empire influence Christian
communities?

Sacred Texts
The canonical Christian Bible
(bracketed books are not accepted by all denominations)
Old Testament
Pentateuch Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1
Historical
Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, [Tobit], [Judith], Esther,
Books
[1 Maccabees], [2 Maccabees]
Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, (Song of
Wisdom Books
Songs), [Wisdom], [Sirach]
Major Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, [Baruch], Ezekiel, Daniel
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk,
Minor Prophets
Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah, Malachi
New Testament
Gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, John
Apostolic
Acts
History
Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians,
Letters of Paul Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1
Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon
Other Letters Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude
Apocalypse Revelation
Christian scriptures are gathered in the Bible. The
word bible comes from the medieval Latin biblia, which means
books. Not all the literature produced in Judaism and
Christianity is in the Bible. The list of books collected in the
Bible is called the canon, a Greek word that means rule or
norm. The canon contains only those books considered
authoritative, and therefore read regularly, studied, and used
in religious services.
Christianity collects the Jewish scriptures in the Old
Testament. Twenty-seven manuscripts from the 1st century of
the Common Era are collected in the New Testament. The
first Christians defined testament in the sense of "will and
testament," or "covenant," so the Old Testament is the record
of the sacred covenant between God and the people through
Abraham and Moses, and the New Testament is the record of
the new Christian covenant through Jesus.
Because Judaism and Christianity canonized, or
authoritatively affirmed, the scriptures separately, the first
Christians included seven books in the Old Testament that
were not in the Jewish canon. The Christian Old Testament
and the Jewish scriptures were different until the Protestant
Reformation, when reformers revised the Old Testament
canon to agree with the Jewish canon. The Catholic Bible now
refers to these seven books as deuterocanonical (meaning
"belonging to the second canon"), while the Protestant Bible
refers to them as apocryphal (meaning "outside the canon"),
and some Protestants do not recognize them as having any
kind of canonical status.
The early followers of Jesus were Jews, and so their scriptures
were the Jewish scriptures. They read them and studied them,
praying their prayers and singing their songs. When
eyewitnesses to the life of Jesus began dying, their memories
became precious. People began writing them down. Soon there
was a proliferation of gospels and letters, and churches began
the process of vetting them for authenticity.

The idea of a New Testament canon first emerged in the 2nd

century C.E., when Church leaders began making lists of the
books determined to be authentically apostolic. In 367,
Athanasius of Alexandria listed all twenty-seven books of the
New Testament in a letter and referred to it as the canon.
Athanasius's list was widely recognized in the eastern
churches, and then was approved by a number of authoritative
councils in the West. In this way the New Testament became
the second part of the Christian Bible.

The twenty-seven books of the New Testament

were all written in Greek. The four Gospels each give an
account of the life of Jesus, highlighting the events leading up
to and including his death by crucifixion and subsequent
resurrection. They conclude with the events after his death,
when followers shared stories of having seen Jesus alive again.
The Book of Acts, which was originally part of the Gospel of
Luke, gives an account of the first Christians and
the apostles Peter and Paul.

The twenty-one epistles, or letters, are

examples of communications between individuals and groups
within the Christian communities of the first century. The last
book, Revelation, is also an epistle, though it is distinctly
symbolic and apocalyptic in content.

Each Gospel was written anonymously, but is traditionally

attributed to an apostle or a follower. The Gospel According to
Matthew, probably written during the last decades of the 1st
century, is traditionally attributed to the apostle and
eyewitness Matthew. It was written for a Church coping with
persecution and internal dissent. Matthew stresses that Jesus
was the Jewish Messiah, the fulfillment of God's promise,
and that his followers are the true Israel.
 The Gospel According to Mark,
written around 65-70, is alternately attributed to the Mark
named in 1 Peter 5:13 or the John Mark mentioned in Acts
12:12. It was probably written for a community that was
suffering persecution and seeking the immediate return of
Jesus. Mark describes the people of Jesus' time, including his
followers and the religious authorities, as unable to
comprehend Jesus' true nature. The Gospel assures its
audience that the revelation of Jesus' true nature was
accomplished through his suffering, death, and resurrection.

The Gospel According to Luke,

written around 80-85, is traditionally attributed to "the
beloved physician" named in Colossians 4:14. It was written
for a predominantly Gentile community in a Greek-speaking
setting. Luke argues that the return of Jesus and the end of the
world is not imminent, saying that the time cannot be known.
Instead, Luke's Gospel emphasizes the nature of the Kingdom
of God and the way it is made real in the lives of the
communities of believers.
New Testament Gospels
Synoptic Gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke
Non-synoptic Gospels John

The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke have a number of

similarities, including similar stories told in a similar order.
They are called the synoptic Gospels (synoptic is a Greek word
roughly translated as "seen together"). The Gospel According
to John is noticeably different from the synoptic Gospels. It is
traditionally attributed to the apostle John, son of Zebedee. Its
date of composition is uncertain, but probably falls around 90-
100. It places a strong theological emphasis on Jesus as the
Son of God and on the possibility of eternal life through faith
in him.
Books attributed to Luke(c. 80-85 CE)
*The Gospel According to Luke
*Acts of the Apostles

The second volume of the Gospel According to Luke, the Acts

of the Apostles, was written at the same time as Luke, around
80-85. Its main characters are the apostles Peter (chapters 1-
12) and Paul (chapters 12-28). This book is the only known
continuous record of the expansion of the communities of
believers during the thirty years following Jesus' death. The
author hopes to establish a common theological outlook
between Peter and Paul in regard to faith and its relationship
to the Jewish law.
New Testament Epistles
(many scholars doubt whether Paul wrote the bracketed letters)
Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, [Ephesians],
Letters of Paul Philippians, [Colossians], 1 Thessalonians, [2 Thessalonians], [1
Timothy], [2 Timothy], [Titus], Philemon
Other Letters Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude
Apocalypse Revelation
The New Testament contains twenty-one epistles, or letters.
Christian leaders like Paul used letters to maintain contact
with congregations. Most of the epistles are attributed to early
community leaders. Thirteen are attributed to Paul, although
Ephesians, Colossians, and 2 Thessalonians differ from Paul's
other letters in either style or theological perspective. Many
doubt that 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus, the so-called Pastoral
Letters, are genuinely works of Paul. Paul's letters are clearly
correspondences with specific communities, while the pastoral
letters show concern with sending advice on pastoral or
practical matters.

The non-Pauline epistles include one anonymous work

(Hebrews), two that are attributed to Peter, one attributed to
James (an early Christian leader), three attributed to the
apostle John, and one attributed to Jude (another early
Christian leader). Most of these are addressed to believers
generally; James, for example, is a circular, and Hebrews is a
sermon.
Books attributed to John, son of Zebedee (c. 95 CE)
1. The Gospel According to John
2. 1 John
3. 2 John
4. 3 John Revelation

The final book of the New Testament is Revelation. Its author

is uncertain, although it is traditionally attributed to the
apostle John, son of Zebedee, also credited with the Gospel
According to John and the epistles of 1, 2, and 3 John. It was
probably written around 95, and is addressed to seven
congregations in the Roman province of Asia, although it is
also intended for "the churches." While also an epistle,
Revelation is an apokalypsis or Apocalypse, a literary genre
common in Judaism around this time. It is distinctively
Christian, and the only complete apocalypse included in the
New Testament. Revelation is carefully constructed and is full
of symbolic numerology, also common at the time in both
Jewish and Greco-Roman writings. It predicts the fall of Rome
and the transformation of Jerusalem into a heavenly city, the
center of God's fully redeemed world.
The Bible has been published, in whole or in part, into over
2,000 languages. It is also easily accessible in several
translations on the internet.

Study Questions:
1. What is the biblical canon? What does it contain and how
is it organized?
2. How did Christianity's canon differ from Judaism's?
3. Describe the four gospels of Christianity.
4. What is an apocalypse? What book of the Bible could be
classified as this, and why?
BELIEFS

Sacred Narratives

Since Jesus and the earliest

Christians were devout Jews, Christianity shares a great deal
of the worldview of Judaism. Among the many Jewish
scriptures found in the Christian Bible is the Book of Genesis,
which includes the sacred story of the creation of the universe
and the fall of humanity. The Book of Exodus relates the
sacred story of Moses and contains the Ten

Commandments. The Christian

Bible also includes the stories of the prophets of Israel, in
whose words Christians see the life and death of Jesus
foretold. These scriptures, written before the time of Jesus, are
included in the Christian Old Testament.
The New Testament is that portion of the Christian Bible that
was written after the time of Jesus' death. The New Testament
includes the Gospels, which relate the sacred story of the life
and teachings of Jesus. Historically the Church has believed
these stories to be literally true. In modern times, some
Christians have viewed them as being

symbolic. But they are

sacred to all Christians because they reveal God's plan for
humanity, which includes salvation and eternal life.
The Gospels of Matthew and Luke contain infancy narratives,
the stories of the birth and youth of Jesus. According to the
story told in Matthew, Jesus' mother, Mary, was a virgin
betrothed to a carpenter named Joseph when she discovered

she was pregnant. Joseph was going

to leave her quietly, but an angel came to him in a dream and
told him not to be afraid because Mary's unborn child was
from the Holy Spirit. The angel then told Joseph to name the
child Jesus and said that the child would save the people.
Joseph did what the angel told him to do.
 Matthew's Gospel says that
Jesus was born in Bethlehem during the reign of Herod, King
of Jerusalem. A group of magi (Eastern astrologers or wise
men), came to Herod's court, saying that they had seen a star
in the sky that, to them, was a sign that the king of the Jews
had been born. Upon hearing this, a jealous King Herod slyly
told the magi to seek the child and report back. Following the
star to Bethlehem, the magi stopped at the place where Jesus
was staying. Seeing the child with his mother, the magi were
overjoyed and worshipped him. They gave him presents of
gold, incense, and myrrh. They then returned to their home
without alerting Herod as to the child's location.
An angel came to Joseph in a dream again, and warned Joseph
to flee Bethlehem and take the child and his mother to Egypt.
Joseph again did what the angel told him. Determined to
destroy the infant Jesus, Herod ordered the death of all boys
under the age of two living in the vicinity of Bethlehem.
Fearing for their lives, Joseph remained with his family in
Egypt until Herod died.

After Herod died, an angel told

Joseph in a dream to return to the land of Israel. Joseph was
afraid to return to Judea, where Herod's son was the ruler,
because he had received another warning in a dream. Joseph
then took his family to Nazareth and settled there.

In this story, the writer of Matthew

shows how the life of Jesus was foretold by quoting the Jewish
prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah, and Hosea. The Gospel of
Luke tells a similar story of Jesus' birth, but without the
prophecies. Luke's Gospel fills the narrative with poetry and
song.
Song of Mary (also called "Magnificat")
from Luke 1:46-55
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed;

the Almighty has done great things for me and holy is his name.

He has mercy on those who fear him,

from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm and has scattered the proud in their conceit,

Casting down the mighty from their thrones

and lifting up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things

and sent the rich away empty.

He has come to the aid of his servant Israel,

to remember his promise of mercy,
The promise made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children for ever.
All four Gospels tell the story of Jesus' adult life, arrest and
trial, crucifixion, and resurrection. The stories of Jesus'
miracles, stories (called parables), sermons, exorcisms, and
the raising of the dead are interwoven with reports of his
debates with prominent Jews and conversations with his

disciples. At the end of three years

of ministry in and around Roman Palestine, the Gospels report
that Jesus was arrested in Jerusalem at the time of Passover.
They relate how he was whipped, taunted, nailed to a cross,
and left to die.
According to the story, Jesus died on a Friday and was quickly
buried shortly before sunset, just as the Sabbath was
beginning. After the Sabbath, some of his followers went to
care for his body, but his tomb was empty. They began to
report appearances of Jesus. His followers were convinced
that Jesus was resurrected, or come back to life.

The Book of Acts reports that

Jesus remained with his followers for forty days, instructing
them in God's plan for them. He promised to send them the
Holy Spirit, and cautioned them against calculating the time of
his return, saying that no one can know the date or time. He
then ascended to the sky until a cloud hid him.
The end of the story of Jesus' life in earth is not quite the end
of the story. After Jesus' ascension, Christians believe, Jesus
went to reign in heaven with God, whom Jesus called Father.
Jesus is also still invisibly present in the world among his
followers. Someday, he will return to judge both the living and
the dead, and to usher in a golden age on earth.

Study Questions:
1. In what ways do followers of Jesus connect with Jewish
narratives?
2. What does the New Testament reveal about Jesus' life?
3. How are the gospels similar? Where do they differ?
4. How does the Christian narrative continue, even after
Jesus' death and resurrection?

Ultimate Reality and Divine Beings

Christians believe in one God

who, in a great act of love, created the universe, heaven, earth,
and all things therein. Because it was created in love,
everything in creation is good and special to God. Christians
emphasize God's parental love in particular, teaching that God
created humans to be God's children. God wants to share a
loving close personal relationship with each of them.
The universe is not only good and moral, but ordered and
purposeful. Everything in the cosmos is part of God's divine
plan, a plan too great for humans to fully comprehend.
While Christian doctrine traditionally teaches that God is pure
spirit, and therefore has no gender, Christians follow Jesus'
example and call God Father. The intimacy suggested by the
term emphasizes the parental wisdom and love that Christians
often ascribe to God. It also describes the relationship that
Christians believe Jesus had with God.

Christians teach that Jesus was

both human and divine. As a human being he was perfectly
obedient to God the Father, and Christians believe they are
called to follow his example. As a divine being, he was not
another god but a visible incarnation of the one God. He is
called the Son of God, the Word of God, or the Image of God as
a way of describing his divine origin and nature, and his
relationship with God the Father.
Out of the many devotional and honorific titles given to Jesus,
the best known is Christ, meaning "anointed," a term that
refers to a ceremony in which a king or ruler is consecrated
with oil. Christ is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew
title Messiah, or ruler, an indication of the Christian belief that
Jesus was sent by God to rule humanity.
Through the miracles he is said to have performed, Jesus
revealed God's love, while his teaching revealed God's will. His
life and death as a human being were part of God's plan to die
voluntarily in order to atone for those who have wronged
God.

Christianity teaches that Jesus was raised, or

resurrected, on the third day after his death on the cross, and
forty days later ascended to heaven, where he lives and reigns
alongside God. Christians worship Jesus and pray to him. He
is not physically visible now, but is still present wherever his
followers gather. Christians expect Jesus to return at some
future date to judge humanity and usher in a golden age.
There is a third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit. In
both Jewish and Christian thought, the Spirit is God's
instrument for creating or bestowing life. The Gospel of
Matthew says that Mary became pregnant with Jesus through
the power of the Holy Spirit; Jesus' own life and ministry were
carried out in conjunction with and empowered by the Holy
Spirit; and the Gospel of John reports that Jesus assured his
followers that although he had to leave, the Spirit of God
would come to strengthen them. The Book of Acts describes
how, on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended on
the assembled apostles like powerful wind and flames, and
when the Holy Spirit filled them, they were able to speak in
languages understood by the pilgrims visiting Jerusalem from
far away. Christians view the Holy Spirit as God's active
presence in the world.
Although the word Trinity does not appear in the New
Testament, it was in use by the early 3rd century.
The Nicene Creed states that Jesus is "of one substance"
with God the Father. The Holy Spirit "proceeds from the
Father," and together with the God the Father and God the
Son, "is worshipped and glorified." The idea of the Trinity
expresses the Christian belief that the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Spirit are three persons in one God. Affirming itself as a
monotheistic faith, Christianity has taught that the Trinity is a
mystery, beyond the complete comprehension of humans.
Christianity also teaches that there are invisible beings that
can influence individuals and events. Created by God, they can
be either benevolent angels or malevolent demons. Angels are
often described in the Bible as messengers from God,
frequently delivering their messages to people in dreams.
Demons are thought to be rebellious angels, led by a fallen
angel who was once called Lucifer, meaning "bearer of light."
Now he is called the Devil or Satan, meaning "adversary."
For Christians, all creatures, visible and invisible, are subject
to God's will and are to play a role in God's divine plan. While
it may not be possible for humans to fully understand or
explain how God's plan is being worked out, Christianity
teaches that God is all-knowing and benevolent, and that all
things will ultimately work together for the good.

Study Questions:
1. Why is God often referred to as “Father”?
2. What is the relationship between God and Jesus? How
does each reveal the other?
3. What do Christians believe happened to Jesus after he
was crucified?
4. What is the Trinity?
5. What do Christians believe about a divine plan for
creation?
Human Nature and the Purpose of
Existence

Christianity teaches that the

universe was created through love by an intelligent power,
namely the God of the Bible. Creation was purposeful, not
arbitrary, and therefore the universe is not morally neutral,
but fundamentally good. In this purposeful creation,
everything and everyone is intrinsically valuable. God's design
or purpose for creation reflects God's intention that all
creatures enjoy perfect love and justice. God works in human
history to fulfill that purpose. God created human beings in
the divine image, enabling humans to have some
understanding of God and of God's vast and complex design.
The purpose of life is to love and serve God in order to help
bring about God's glorious plan for creation.
Reason is a unique gift bestowed by God on humans and
enables them to reflect on their own nature and conscience,
and from that derive knowledge of God's will for creation. But
a complete understanding is beyond human reach. To fulfill
the goal of wholeness in an existence perfected by both justice
and love, something more is needed. Humans are not expected
to accomplish the divine plan alone. The fulfillment of God's
purpose depends on God's grace. For Christians, grace is God's
freely-given favor and love.
Reason is a good gift, sometimes misused for selfish, willful, or
prideful purposes. The substitution of selfish ambition for
God's will is a condition that Christians call sin, meaning
separation or alienation from God.
 The Christian concept of sin
originates in the story of Adam and Eve found in chapters 2-3
of the Book of Genesis, a story that has central importance for
Christians. The story relates the creation by God of the first
humans, a man and woman. God placed them in a beautiful
garden called Eden, which provided for all their physical
needs, as well as companionship with each other and
fellowship with God. For these first humans, God had but one
rule. In the garden stood "the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil," whose fruit Adam and Eve should not eat. When
Adam and Eve later broke the rule and ate the fruit, God
banished them from the garden, condemning them and their
descendants to a life of hard work, pain, disease, and eventual
death, and submitting the earth itself to "bondage." Christians
call this humanity's "fall" from innocence.
Some Christians believe that these events actually took place,
while others understand this story to be symbolic of the
human condition. But all Christians tend to view the story as
essentially meaningful for all of humanity–that God is in a
personal relationship with humans who must decide how to
respond to God. They can obey God's will, working together
with God to take care of each other and creation, or they can
follow their own desires, rebelling against God's will and
design.
 The story illustrates the Christian belief
in the inevitability and universality of sin. Throughout their
lives, people will pursue their personal interests instead of
seeking to serve God and follow God's will. Some believe in the
doctrine of original sin, following Augustine, Bishop of Hippo
in North Africa, who theorized that the rebellion of the first
human parents is physically passed on to all human beings
from one generation to the next. Others believe that sin
originates with Satan, who first tempted Eve and now preys
on humankind, seeking souls to devour. Many contemporary
Christians seek ways of understanding sin separately from the
story of Adam and Eve, believing that we must take
responsibility for our tendency to sin and the harm it does to
our loving fellowship with both God and each other.
 Christianity teaches that everyone
is equally prone to sin and so it focuses not only on human
behavior, but also on human nature. In his letter to the
Romans, Paul wrote that "there is no difference, for all have
sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:22-23).
Even though there can be a considerable scale of wrongdoing
in sinful human activity, a person's sin does not make him or
her less valued by God; everyone is equally a candidate
for redemption.

Study Questions:
1. Why might Christians argue that humanity is inherently
good?
2. What is meant by reason? Why must it be coupled with
grace?
3. Where do Christians believe sin originated?
4. Why is sin part of everyday life? How is it overcome?
Afterlife and Salvation

In his letter to the Romans, Paul

wrote, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). This
single sentence neatly summarizes the Christian doctrine of
atonement, which teaches that the reconciliation of sinful
humanity with the God of love was accomplished by God in
the sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ, on the cross.
Christianity teaches that God hates sin and will punish the
transgressor. It is in the nature of humans to sin, so all people
risk separation from God, the source of all life and love. Cut off
from God, we suffer anxiety and despair in an insignificant
and unhappy life. We become hateful toward others and
ourselves, inflicting pain on each other and on the rest of
creation.

Christians also believe that

human existence does not end at physical death. There is a
world to come, and the consequences of sin will follow humans
there. As the judge of all, God will assess each individual's
relationship to Christ; people risk a sentence of eternal
punishment and spiritual death, forever separated from God.
A great deal of Christian art and writing has vividly depicted
the grotesque torture and suffering of those damned to hell.
As a consequence, salvation is the foremost concern for
Christians. It is fallen human nature to sin, yet God punishes
sin. Humans are, at least according to some Christian
doctrine, therefore helpless, vulnerable to punishment and

damnation. Since it is impossible to

save themselves, humans need God's saving work on their
behalf. That divine action, salvation, comes through Jesus
Christ. In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote,
"God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself" (2 Cor.
5:19). The belief that God was in Christ is expressed in the
Christian doctrine of incarnation, which teaches that Jesus,
although fully human, was nonetheless the fullness of God.
God chose to become human, voluntarily living a life of sinless
obedience and suffering pain and death on the cross in order
to reconcile humanity with divinity.
Images/Christianity/Christianity_Anno2_101.jpg
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our trespasses; the
(5) punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his suffering we are
healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own path; and the
(6)
Lord has laid on him the transgressions of us all
(7) He was oppressed and afflicted, but he did not open his mouth; he was led like a
 lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before the shearers is silent, so he did
not open his mouth.
Christianity uses rich imagery to describe this reconciliation
by Jesus. For example, Christians use chapter 53 of the Book
of Isaiah, which tells of God's suffering servant on whom is
placed all the sins and burdens of the people, so that he can
atone for them. The Gospel of Matthew likens Jesus' death to
the payment of ransom, which is what redemption means
(Matthew 20:28). The Gospel of John calls Jesus "the Lamb of
God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). This
recalls the many accounts in the Old Testament of the
sacrifice of a lamb to atone for the sins of the people. Jesus'
death on the cross is the greatest sacrifice of all, for it
redressed the sins of all humankind for all time, restoring the
loving relationship between God and humans.

In the 11th century, Anselm,

Archbishop of Canterbury, wrote Why God Became Man,
arguably the most influential explanation of the atonement in
the west. Anselm proposed that the incarnation was a logical
process. Wanting to uphold the moral order, God could not
ignore sin. Sin, in Anselm's view, cannot be forgiven without
some kind of satisfaction, but the debt owed by humanity on
its sinfulness was too great for humankind to pay. Only a
redeemer able to pay the huge debt of humankind's sin could

set humanity free. Such a redeemer must be

both God and man, for the death of God incarnate would be of
infinite value and would therefore pay for the sins of the entire
human race.

Afterlife and Salvation

In his letter to the Romans, Paul

wrote, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). This
single sentence neatly summarizes the Christian doctrine of
atonement, which teaches that the reconciliation of sinful
humanity with the God of love was accomplished by God in
the sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ, on the cross.
Christianity teaches that God hates sin and will punish the
transgressor. It is in the nature of humans to sin, so all people
risk separation from God, the source of all life and love. Cut off
from God, we suffer anxiety and despair in an insignificant
and unhappy life. We become hateful toward others and
ourselves, inflicting pain on each other and on the rest of
creation.
 Christians also believe that
human existence does not end at physical death. There is a
world to come, and the consequences of sin will follow humans
there. As the judge of all, God will assess each individual's
relationship to Christ; people risk a sentence of eternal
punishment and spiritual death, forever separated from God.
A great deal of Christian art and writing has vividly depicted
the grotesque torture and suffering of those damned to hell.
As a consequence, salvation is the foremost concern for
Christians. It is fallen human nature to sin, yet God punishes
sin. Humans are, at least according to some Christian
doctrine, therefore helpless, vulnerable to punishment and

damnation. Since it is impossible to

save themselves, humans need God's saving work on their
behalf. That divine action, salvation, comes through Jesus
Christ. In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote,
"God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself" (2 Cor.
5:19). The belief that God was in Christ is expressed in the
Christian doctrine of incarnation, which teaches that Jesus,
although fully human, was nonetheless the fullness of God.
God chose to become human, voluntarily living a life of sinless
obedience and suffering pain and death on the cross in order
to reconcile humanity with divinity.
Images/Christianity/Christianity_Anno2_101.jpg
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our trespasses; the
(5) punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his suffering we are
healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own path; and the
(6)
Lord has laid on him the transgressions of us all
He was oppressed and afflicted, but he did not open his mouth; he was led like a
(7) lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before the shearers is silent, so he did
not open his mouth.
Christianity uses rich imagery to describe this reconciliation
by Jesus. For example, Christians use chapter 53 of the Book
of Isaiah, which tells of God's suffering servant on whom is
placed all the sins and burdens of the people, so that he can
atone for them. The Gospel of Matthew likens Jesus' death to
the payment of ransom, which is what redemption means
(Matthew 20:28). The Gospel of John calls Jesus "the Lamb of
God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). This
recalls the many accounts in the Old Testament of the
sacrifice of a lamb to atone for the sins of the people. Jesus'
death on the cross is the greatest sacrifice of all, for it
redressed the sins of all humankind for all time, restoring the
loving relationship between God and humans.

In the 11th century, Anselm,

Archbishop of Canterbury, wrote Why God Became Man,
arguably the most influential explanation of the atonement in
the west. Anselm proposed that the incarnation was a logical
process. Wanting to uphold the moral order, God could not
ignore sin. Sin, in Anselm's view, cannot be forgiven without
some kind of satisfaction, but the debt owed by humanity on
its sinfulness was too great for humankind to pay. Only a
redeemer able to pay the huge debt of humankind's sin could

set humanity free. Such a redeemer must be

both God and man, for the death of God incarnate would be of
infinite value and would therefore pay for the sins of the entire
human race.
The Eastern Orthodox tradition places less emphasis on
Anselm's idea of satisfaction of debt. Eastern Christianity
emphasizes the victorious and triumphant King on the cross,
glorious in the divine defeat of sin and death. This
interpretation focuses on Jesus as the Christus Victor, the
conqueror of all evil. Jesus' death accomplished God's final
victory over the power of sin that had entered the world.

Branches of Christianity differ on how

humans can and are to respond to this gift of God, but all
Christians agree that the resurrection of Jesus made eternal
life possible for humans. Eternal life begins not after death,
but at the moment of spiritual new birth, understood in some
Christian traditions as occurring at the time of baptism and in
others as occurring at a point of conscious trust in Christ, and
death is but a passage of the eternal soul. Although the
physical body dies, the soul of a person is rewarded or
punished based on a life of faith. Those who believed in Jesus'
work and who expressed that faith in good works will be
rewarded with heaven and will live in the presence of God;
those who refused to believe in Jesus and lived wickedly will
be punished in hell. Finally, Christianity also teaches that at
the end of time, after divine judgment, those who have eternal
life will also be physically resurrected, just as Jesus was.
Many contemporary Christians struggle with the thought that
a loving God would not receive either all or the vast majority of
people into heaven. They often decide to leave that question to
the love and mercy of God. Jesus promised he would return to
judge all people, and Christians see this not as a reason to fear,
but as a promise of the return of a Savior, the friend and
brother of sinners. Most importantly, Christian belief about
salvation holds that eternal life cannot be earned by human
striving, because no one would deserve salvation if judged
entirely on merit. Eternal life is a gift from God.

Study Questions:
1. What is the Christian understanding of atonement?
2. Describe the relationship between sin and death.
3. Why was Jesus believed to have provided the way to
salvation?
4. What does it take for one to receive eternal salvation?