Chapter6 Christianity the Basic Facts

7/28/2019 Chapter6 Christianity the Basic Facts

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Religion Chapter 6: Christianity the Basic Facts

Judea: part of a mountainous area (now divided between Israel and Palestine)

that Jews believed had been promised to them by God

Jewish: name given to the people of Israel after their exile in Babylon; the

survivors were mainly from the tribe of Judah

Jerusalem: capital city of Israel; was also the capital city of Judea

The Temple: the temple built in Jerusalem

Roman Empire: Rome and the Roman Empire had, by Pauls time, controlled allthe lands surrounding the Mediterranean Sea including Judea and Jerusalem; the

Romans spoke Latin, but Greek was just as important

Messiah: the promised deliverer of the Jewish nation

Gospels: the story of Jesus life and teachings, especially as in the first four booksof the New Testament

Tenak: acronym for the Hebrew Bible that is made up of the Teachings: (Torah T), the writings from the Period of Prophecy (Neviim N) and other writings

from the remaining books (Ketuvim K)

Pharisees: a religious sect that was active in Jesus day

Sadducees: a high-status religious group of Jesus day

Essenes: a separatist religious group of Israel in the first century CE

Historical and cultural context

Christianity is close to 2000 years old, beginning in Judea, the Jewishpeoples kingdom

Jerusalem was the main religious and economic centre of the region,which contained the Temple, the main place of worship, where priests

tended to the house of their God and performed sacrifices and otherrituals

Christianity started as a Jewish development as the leaders and earlyfollowers were Jewish, and Christianity adapted religious ideas from

societies it moved into as it grew

At Christianitys beginning the Roman Empire obtained near completecontrol of Judea, resulting in religious and political tension

Jerusalem was once occupied by the Greeks under Alexander the Greatand the Persians before him, many Jews worried that their God

abandoned them


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Political and religious groups were attempting to find a way to free to freeJudea from Roman control and was a time of crisis and self-reflection for

the Jews

Some of them hoped that a Messiah would come and lead an independentand powerful Judea. This long awaited man a deliverer of political and

religious freedom is referred to often in the later part of Jewishscripture, the Hebrew bible, where prophets spoke of a saviours arrival.

Many Jewish people were waiting and hoping for change in the form ofthe Messiah, but there were other who grew fearful

As well as other political and religious tensions, Judaism was split intosmaller groups, e.g. the Pharisees, the Sadducees and the Essenes

The attitude of Jesus to these groups when he began his ministry showsthat he was attempting to revitalise Judaism

The Pharisees wereprogressive and held closely to Jewish religious laws,but added many of their own interpretations, and they declared

themselves more holy than any ordinary Jew. Jesus called themhypocrites for masking the true laws with so many other rules

The Sadducees, were opposed to the Pharisees, believed only in what waswritten in Hebrew scripture, and were a more conservative part of Jewish

establishment that Jesus berated

The Essenes aimed to remove themselves from the world and keepthemselves pure. Evidence of their community at Qumran was first

discovered in 1947, together with what are now called the Dead Sea

Scrolls, a number of texts found sealed in jars. These texts helped us

understand the ideas that were current when Jesus lived

Judaist Groups of Ancient Judea

Pharisees Sadducees Essenes

Modern

Presence

Developed into

modern Judaism

Disappeared as a

group after 70 CE

Some modern

Jewish sects

identify with the

Essenes

Approach to

Greek Culture

Apolitical and

against Greek

influence in Judaism

Were political and

in support of

Greek culture

Indifferent

Worship In the Temple, andafter it was

destroyed in 70 CE

by Romans, a

synagogue

Worshipped in theTemple

Led a monk-likeexistence

involving celibacy,

vegetarianism,

and refused to

keep slaves

Scripture Approached Jewish

scripture liberally

and interpreted it

within reason

Took Jewish

scripture literally

as the absolute

truth

Interpreted the

Jewish Bible in a

radically different

way; see Dead

Sea Scrolls

Politics Democratic and Conservative, Were against the


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liberal aristocratic and

supported the

Jewish monarchy

ruling family of

Judea (who acted

as governors for

Rome)

Ex-6.01Q1. List the way the Greeks, Romans and Jews may have influenced the origins of

Christianity.

A1.

The actions of the groups influenced the events leading to its creation Their cultures may have influenced the people Their forms of writing could affect who the bible was translated

Q2. What is the Messiah?

A2. The Messiah is the promised deliverer of political and religious freedom for

the Jewish people, who was often referred to in the later part of Jewish scripture.

The Messiah is believed to be the saviour, and Christians believe him to be JesusChrist.

Q3. List the major Jewish groups of Jesus day and identify their main features.A3. See table above

Jesus Christ/Jesus of Nazareth

Myth: a spiritual or religious idea expressed in human terms

Herod, King: Idumean King of Israel at the time of Jesus birth

Baptism: a religious act of purification by water that allows recipients

membership of Christianity

Ghostic: from the Greek word gnosis meaning wisdom; Gnostic doctrines holdthat the world and humanity are corrupt and only wisdom of secret matters

allows humans to connect with the small spark of the divine within them

Apostles: students whom Jesus had chosen and trained for a mission of healing

and preaching

Disciples: Jesus students during his time on Earth

Sermon on the Mount: the large section of Jesus teaching contained in the Gospelof Matthew (chapters 5-7)

Parable: a short story containing a religious lesson

Miracle: an effect in the physical world, which surpasses all known human or

natural powers and is therefore ascribed to supernatural agency


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Just about all that is known about Jesus is drawn from the NewTestament, there are few references to him outside Christian texts

Little is known about Jesus except the last three years of his life Jesus was born about 6 BCE, and seemed to grow up in Nazareth It is possible that Jesus was not born in Bethlehem, as Christians would

like to think Jesus was born there to promote a political connection

An extensive genealogy in the Gospel of Matthews opening chapters linksJesus with King David

It is said Jesus family fled to Egypt due to King Herod ordering toslaughter of the male babies of Bethlehem, but there isnt evidence inhistory that King Herod actually did this

Jesus was baptised at age 30 by John the Baptist Jesus wandered the wilderness for some time and resisted the

temptations of the devil, and then returned to Judea and preached for

about three years

He selected twelve apostles, and then became known as a teacher andmiracle worker A number of women disciples were part of his group Jesus encouraged his listeners to move beyond the strict legalism their

days Judaism and look at motives for actions, he stated that he came tofulfil the law of Judaism and he mixed freely with people who were

considered sinners and outcasts

His teachings were radical and inspiring, using parables as an effectiveteaching device, which had various meanings for different people

Jesus also worked miracles: healing the sick, removing demons, evenbringing people back from the dead, which had been a part of Jewish andClassical magic, because of which he came into a conflict with the Jewish

and Roman authorities

In the last weeks of his life Jesus enter Jerusalem and got involved with aseries of public debates with the Pharisees and Sadducees

After the Last Supper on the Thursday evening (the celebration of theholy communion in the Christian Church) Jesus was arrested and brought

to trail before Pontius Pilate, the Roman procurator

He was sentenced to death and crucified on what is called by Christians asGood Friday, but his death was believed to be necessary, by Christians, to

bring salvation for all

On the Sunday morning, his tomb was found to be empty and angelsdeclared that he had risen from the dead

Over the next few weeks, believed by Christians, he was seen on severaloccasions by over five hundred people

Forty days after his resurrections he was said to have ascended intoheaven

Interpreting the Principal Events in the Life of Jesus

What Jesus did during his life has been a long discussion since there areonly occasional references to him outside Christian texts, and there is noone simple account of his life


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The four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) were written by earlyfollowers, each concentrating on various aspects of Jesus life

A text called Q is supposed to be one of the earliest accounts of Jesus,containing much of his teachings, but is now lost

Mark is taken to be the earliest account, concentrating on the last fewyears of Jesus life

The book of John is quite different from the other Gospels, being a moretheologically reflective document and had a different purpose

In Johns account we are told Jesus is the Word made flesh, and Jesus goesfrom being a Messiah to God in human form

Trinity is the concept of one God and three persons (Father, Son and HolySpirit), which was the basis of Johns development of the Jesus story

John introduced elements and assumptions that are Greek, and calledJesus Christ, a pagan term similar to Messiah, in Mark Jesus was careful

about stating whether or not he was the Messiah, but in John it was

declared openly, illustrating how Christian attitudes developed Text written close to the life of Jesus are still being discovered

The Ministry of Jesus

Passover: the Jewish feast that celebrates the Exodus and related events

Communion: literally, fellowship; has become applied to the sacrament of Holy

Communion

Anti-Semitism: prejudice against Jewish people

Orthodox: literally meaning keeping to the correct teachings of the Church; has

come to refer to the Eastern Church

After his contact with John the Baptist he was able to perform a numberof miracles: driving out demons, healing the sick, turning water into wine

Sceptical scholars suggest that these were later exaggeration written intothe story, misunderstandings or only partially true

Some believe that the stories are just myths that allow an understandingof essential truths

Ones position in this long debate is ultimately a matter of faith On both religious and political levels, Jesus spoke of the Kingdom of God,

which is a highly metaphorical term that could have meant, e.g. the re-

establishment of Judea or the Christian heaven

Jesus said and did radical things, preached universal love and gave hopeto the downtrodden

During the Last Supper Jesus offered his followers communion of breadand wine, which he likened to his body and blood, which became a central

part of Christian worship


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At the time Jesus went to the Temple, he caused a disturbance byoverturning the money changers stall located there and protested againstcommerce in a holy place, which could have been the cause of his arrest

Romans used Crucifixion for executions while Jews used stoning, and theNew Testament suggested that the Jews were responsible for the death of

Jesus, which had terrible consequences in the form of anti-Semitism The resurrection of Jesus three days after the execution is regarded by

believers as his greatest miracle and is what asserted his divinity

The story is re-enacted during the Easter celebration, from Good Friday toEaster Sunday

Jesus as the Model of Christian Life

Jesus is seen as sinless, as well as compassionate, and is the example allChristians should strive to emulate

Jesus left in his teachings commands that are applied to ethical behaviour,but lived a life that Christians should follow

Christians are expected to follow his example so others can turn to God The writer of the letter to the Hebrews in the New Testament suggested

that Jesus was the first of a new faith who brings perfection

Ex-6.02Q1. Recall where we learn about the life of Jesus.

A1.

Church Bible: the 4 Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John

Q3. Outline what the Kingdom of God is.

A3. The Kingdom of God can be interpreted as a number of things, due to the

term being partially metaphorical. One of the earliest examples was that it would

be a re-established Judea. The most commonly believed meaning for the

Kingdom of God is that it is where people ascend to when they die, where theycan find peace and eternal life.

Development of early Christian Communities

Catholic: actually means universal; the denomination usually called Catholic is

the Roman Catholic Church

Pope: the head of the Roman Catholic Church

Protestant: those churches that split from the Catholic Church in the 16th century

in protest at the Churchs teachings

Proselytising: encouraging converts from one religion to another

Baptist: a denomination of Christianity that rejects infant baptising, believingthat followers should choose to be Christian of their own accord


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Great Schism: the split between the Western and the Eastern Church in the

eleventh century CE

Icons: Stylised pictorial representations of saints, biblical characters or stories,

used as aids to worship in the Orthodox churches

Filioque clause: literally, from the Son; this clause was added to the Nicene

Creed and caused great debate about the divinity of the Father compared with

that of the Son.

95 Theses: writings by Martin Luther that expressed his displeasure at the sale of

indulgences

Anglican

The Anglican Church of Australia is closely linked to the Church ofEngland

Was part of the Church of England until it received its own Australianconstitution in 1962, and was named the Anglican Church of Australia in

1981

The Church of England was established by the English King Henry VIII Henry passed acts of Parliament between 1534-1535 that made the head

of the Catholic Church in England the English King instead of the Pope in

Rome.

Henry primarily did this because the pope would not permit him todivorce his first wife.

Henrys son, Edward VI, surrounded by Protestant councillors, from 1547turned a part of the Catholic Church into a Protestant church

Edwards successor, his sister Mary, tried to eradicate Protestantism andrejoin England to the Catholic faith.

Elizabeth I turned England and its church into a Protestant domain, beinga type of compromise between Catholic and Protestant extremes

Traditionally, the Anglican Church highlights the importance of scripture,reason and tradition and determining matters relating to beliefs and

practices

The Anglican church of Australia is more closely related to Catholicism Anglican churches are more ritual-oriented and referred to as Anglo-

Catholic, but still refuses the authority of the Pope.

The Catholic Church See the apostle Peter as the first pope, due to him being given a sacred

mission by Jesus, which is passed onto all the other popes

The pope gives authority to priests, bishops and cardinals Church claims to represent the true legacy of Jesus life Other Christian churches see the pope as a Christian figure of outstanding

authority, but argue he has no automatic claim of authority over their

churches

Believes that confessing sins to a priest will aid in salvation


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Priests take the role of being mediator in the Church through whichothers can gain access to God

Recognises seven sacrament: Baptism Confirmation Holy communion Penance (confession) Ordination Marriage Extreme unction (anointing of the sick)

Popes in Rome claimed that the Church had authority over kings andscientists

Church officials started selling indulgences, exchanging donations to theChurch for the cancellation of sin

In 1517, Martin Luther, a monk in Germany, attacked the Church for thiscorruption, and eventually created, although not his original intention, hisown religious group based only on scripture

Orthodoxy

First thousand years of the Catholic Church, orthodox churches existed inthe Eastern half of the Roman Empire

In 1054 CE, the Eastern Church, (the Orthodox Church) split from theWestern Church (the Roman Catholic Church), this split is called the Great

Schism

Both churches developed different ideas and practices, but both tracetheir origins to the apostles

Popes authority was not accepted in the East and icons were used in theEast

The clergy can marry in the East, but not in the West Orthodox churches became regional churches and reflect the culture and

identity of their people

Pentecostalism

Began as a revival movement within Christianity in the early twentiethcentury

Its central concept is that it is possible for Christian believers to be madeperfect by the will of God, referred to as baptism by the Holy Spirit

Keep to a strict moral code The Pentecost is a time of the Jewish calendar, possible to have originally

have been a harvest festival

Emphasise that God is the emotional heart of this form of ChristianityProtestantism

Not a single church, but a movement of religious groups in Europeopposed to various non-Biblical doctrines of the Catholic Church, and not

accepting the Roman Catholic Popes power

Began with the nailing of Martin Luthers 95 Theses to the door of aGerman Cathedral in 1517


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Luthers protest led to the breakdown of the authority of the Holy RomanEmpire

Emphasises the authority of the Bible as opposed to the authority of thePope, the grace of God that brings forgiveness as opposed to purchasing

indulgences, and the importance of faith as opposed to the idea of earning

salvation through good works Recognise two sacraments, baptism and holy communion, compared to

the seven of the Catholic Church

Clergy can marry in Protestant church and have more flexible styles ofchurch government

Principal Beliefs

Council of Nicea: the first council of Christian Church; also produced the Nicene

Creed, the Christian statement of faith

Ecumenism: movement towards unity within the Christian church between

different Christian denominations

Creed: statement of religious belief, condensing the major concepts one religion

Organised its beliefs into a systematic theology, drawing from the sacredwritings and traditions of the Church

Jesus as Human and Divine

There were a number of different points of view on the subject of Jesusrelationship with God: some could understand that a man could become a

god, but why a god made himself into a man?

Paul of Samosata believed in co-equality but difference of God and Jesus Arius suggested Jesus was created by God to put his plans into action on

Earth, and Jesus was not eternal and less god-like than God

Anthanasius thought that Jesus is the same nature as God and fully human The Roman Emperor Constantine, interested in Christianity, wanted the

dispute resolved. He summoned the Council of Nicea, and Athanasius

theory was adopted as the correct teaching of the Church, but other ideas

and theories lingered in the East and North Africa for many centuries There are clear statements about both Jesus divinity and humanity in the

New Testament. He is described in terms that suggest he is divine, e,g, he

is worshipped, he is spoken of as the equal of God, Lord of all

Death and Resurrection of Jesus

The resurrection of Jesus consisted of him dying in human form on thecross, and three days later rising from the dead to live forever

The resurrection proves to believers that there is life after death Death being conquered by Jesus shows his mythical power to bring all of

his followers to life after death


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The Nature of God and the Trinity

The creeds (statement of faith) of Christianity developed early on, as partof ritual and worship, or to simply sum up the beliefs of the religion

Language makes strong connections between God and Jesus The central creed in the Western Church is the Apostles Creed, although

it is unknown whether or not the apostles of Jesus used it, which citiestheir authority

In 325 CE the Apostles Creed was expanded and developed at the Councilof Nicaea and is now named the Nicene Creed and is used in Catholic and

Orthodox Anglican rituals

Traditionally, the Trinity has talked about in terms that state God is one,but three persons make up the Godhead, making this a Christian mystery

Revelation

A revelation is the disclosure of something which could not have revealedwithout the will of God

The main Christian revelation was revealed by God through Jesus, whichlater took on the form of the Gospels

One can distinguish between general and special revelation General revelation comes to Christians through the work of God that is

seen evident in creation, and in their conscience

Special revelation is the understanding that God provided of himselfthrough Jesus and the sacred writings of Christianity

Salvation

Jesus death was a ritual sacrifice and he knew itwas coming In Judaism, killing animals is a way of cleansing a person, or even the

whole Jewish nation, of impurities they may have

Salvation in Christianity can mean three different things:1. Deliverance from sin2. Being resurrected to an afterlife3. Being healed through the power of the divine and united with God

The Catholic rites of reconciliation concern the first of these forms ofsalvation, and offer individuals the opportunity to repent, and therefore

be saved, from punishment for their sins

The Christian belief in Christ resurrection is central to the belief that afterdeath resurrection to heaven is possible for those who are forgiven

The third aspect of salvation, see above, occurs even today, e.g. it isbelieved that the water obtained from the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes

is believed to have healing properties for Christians

In the New Testament, salvation has a past aspect (forgiveness of sins), apresent aspect (living as a saved person) and a future aspect (lookingforward to a life in heaven).

Salvation is as much a present reality as a future deliveranceEx-6.04


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Q1. Write down three of the technical terms used in this chapter and your own

definition of those terms.

A1.

Messiah: the one who would bring salvation to the world

Parable: a Christian story that is told because of its religious meaning

Protestant: Christian churches that split from the Catholic Church and do notbind themselves to the authority of the Pope

Q2. Explain the Christian view of the human and divine aspect of Jesus.

A2. There are a number of different theories concerning this subject, but

according to the bible two things are true, that Jesus is the incarnation of God on

Earth and was made man.

Sacred Texts and Writings

Torah: the word of God in Judaism

Ten Commandments: the summary of the law given to Moses

Epistles: letters, a term used in the Bible from the Greek word

The sacred text for Christians is known as the Bible The word bible comes from the Greek term biblia, which means books

The Bible

The Christian Bible is made up of several texts, some clearly Christian andothers that are borrowed from the Jewish religious tradition

The Bible is made up of several major sections and is a closed canon,meaning that it is considered complete and no new books can be added

More than two-thirds of the bible is comprised of Jewish scripture,including five books of the Torah, believed to be written by Moses

The Torah contains the Ten Commandments and the miracles Godpreformed to protect the Jewish people at various stages of their history

The New Testament constitutes the last third of the bible, beginning withthe four gospels, the first three concerning the last three years of Jesus

life, while the fourth reflects the book of Genesis The Acts of the Apostles follow the Gospel of John, but are unrelated in

style and content, record the events experienced by Jesus followers afterhis death as well as the spread of the early Church, and also provide hints

of interest about the communitys early life

The Epistles, or letters, follow, which were written by Paul and otherearly followers of Jesus

The final book is the Revelation of St John, or the Apocalypse, which isdifficult to understand due to it being rich in imagery and symbolism,

which led to many different interpretation of the end of the world

The Catholic and Orthodox versions of the Bible also include twelve bookscalled theApocrypha, which are not accepted by Protestants, but are


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valuable in filling in understanding of historical events and developing

religious ideas

Importance of the Bible

Christianity is the only religion that reads from the New Testament,showing how Jesus is the fulfilment of the Hebrew Bible

The New Testament retains a strong focus on the last three years of theJesus life, demonstrating he was not only a religious revolutionary, with

included political dimensions, but also Gods incarnation on Earth

Many Christian beliefs were introduced, or developed, in the Bible The Bible is used for the spiritual development of Christians, as well as

their devotional lives and understanding of God

The Bible possesses a role of a guide for Christian behaviour and in thepractices of Christians, e.g. personal prayer and liturgical worship

Ex-6.05Q1. Discuss what the term closed canon means.A1. The term closed canon could refer to the Bible being complete and cant beexpanded by other writers, which could be because of legal or religious reasons.

Q3. Describe why the Bible is important to Christians.

A3. The Bible is important to Christian because it aids in their spiritual lives and

understanding of God, and it instructs them in Christian practices.

Core Ethical Teachings

The core ethical teachings of Christianity come from a range of sources,including the Hebrew Bible and the Christian New Testament

Some churches, e.g. Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox, also draw theirethical teachings from the statements of Church Councils, the Bishops and

the Pope

All Christians stress how important an individuals conscience indeveloping ethics

The Ten Commandments

The most important laws dictated by God to the Jewish prophet Moses The first two commandment are concerned with how to worship The commandments tell us that we:

1. Shall Worship the Lord2. Shall not worship carved images3. Must notuse Gods name in vain4. Must keep the Sabbath day Holy5. Must honour and respect our parents6. Shall not commit murder7. Must honour our marriage vows and avoiding premarital sex8. Are forbidden to steal9. Must not lie when speaking of another


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10.Must love our neighbours and not desire their property, as wellas to look at motives as well as actions

The Beatitudes

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Chapter6 Christianity the Basic Facts