CHRISTIANITY History

Founder: Jesus Christ and St. Pau Founded in 1st century C.E. based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, spread by St. Paul the

missionary. Founded in the area of present-day Israel and Palestine, also known as the Holy Land Jesus born around 4 B.C.E. Throughout his life, spread the Good News and the Word of God, performed miracles Crucified in circa 30 C.E., three days later rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven James, Jesus’ brother, and Peter: spread Jesus’ teaching and values to Jewish community

after the death of Jesus St. Paul: traveled around Mediterranean Sea trying to convert people; invented many

values of Christianity today (original sin, promise of eternal life with God) New Christian calendar switched dates of feast days and changed year (1st year is around

Jesus’ birth year) Peter and Paul: martyred in Rome by Emperor Nero’s persecutions circa 67 C.E. Four evangelists: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Wrote the four Gospels circa 70-100

C.E. All are about Jesus’ teachings in his life, but the books are not exactly the same (some differences in teachings, names, times when events happened, etc.)

Various emperors of Rome issued persecutions of Christianity between 138 C.E. and 257 C.E.

New Testament finalized in 200 C.E. Council of Nicea: 325 C.E., sponsored by Emperor Constantine, gathering of Bishops,

established church doctrine and a network of churches in Roman Empire Emperor Theodosius - declared Christianity the official religion of Roman Empire in 399

C.E. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, wrote The City of God in the 4th to 5th centuries C.E., which

explained Christianity’s relationship to other religions and to the Roman Government Battles between the Roman Church and a splinter group, the Arians, lasted into the 5th

century C.E.; Arians defeated in battle Council of Chalcedon: established 4 centers of church organization (sees) in 451 in the

East: Antioch, Jerusalem, Alexandria, Constantinople Clovis, chief of the Merovingian Franks, converted to Christianity in 507; first barbarian

leader to do so Monasteries being built rapidly; by 600 C.E. England converted to Christianity by 700 C.E. Charlemagne - crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III on Christmas Day 800;

conquered Spain from Muslims, defeated Lombard rulers of Italy, and subdued German Saxons, all conquests “in the name of Christianity”

9th to 11th centuries: focus of conversion shifted to Northern Europe and parts of Asia Great Schism in 1054: formally divided Christianity into East Church and West Church 1204: confrontation between East and West: crusaders dispatched from Rome that were

directed toward Jerusalem sacked Constantinople instead

Lateran Declaration of 1216: called by Pope Innocent III, sanctioned a definition of the Eucharist

Martin Luther: started Protestant Reformation in 1517 when he wrote the 95 Theses, a collection of complaints against Roman Catholic Church

Treaty of Westphalia: signed in 1648, ended the 30 Years’ War in the Holy Roman Empire, a bloody war fought between the Protestants and Catholics in Germany

Thousands of small denominations of Christianity, particularly Protestantism, have come into existence and faded out in the past 3 centuries

Main Principles of the FaithThe basic main three types of religion are characterized by the number of gods a religion recognizes.

Monotheism – the belief in one god Polytheism – the beleif in many gods Henotheism – the belief in one, god but accepting the existence or possible

existence of other deities

Christianity is a monotheistic religion, recognizing only one god;Although there is one god, The God worshiped in Christianity is a trinity, meaning 3

people in one god. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are the three people that make up God. The Father is the father of Jesus, the Son is Jesus Himself, and the Holy Spirit is symbolized by the Dove, the spiritually active God in the World.

The Bible is the Holy Book of Christianity. Every denomination of Christianity recognizes the Bible The Bible is a written record of the Christian scriptures, consisting of the 66 books of the

Old and New Testaments written by about 40 authors (Jesus’ Disciples being some of them).

o The Old Testament : a collection of selected writings composed and edited by members of the Hebrew-Jewish community between the twelfth century B.C.E. and the beginning of the Christian era.

o The New Testament : focuses more on the development of Christianity rather than Jewish ideals, and contains many texts from the life of Jesus, used as teachings

the Ten Commandments, and the Beatitudes

The 10 Commandments

1. I am the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me.2. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain3. Remember thou keep the Sabbath Day.4. Honor thy Father and thy Mother5. Thou shalt not kill.6. Thou shalt not commit adultery.7. Thou shalt not steal.8. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.9. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife.10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's goods.

The Beatitudes:the Beatitudes are a set of eight blessings contained in the Sermon on the Mount in the

Gospel of Matthew. They target the less fortunate, promising them life after death.

Symbols of the Faith

Cross

seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity. It is related to the crucifix (a cross that includes a usually three-dimensional representation of Jesus' body). Represents Jesus’ suffering for the worlds sins.

The Dove

Symbolizes the Holy Spirit, the Spiritual god in the world. Also, represents peace and serenity.

The Fish

symbolizes one of the miracles Jesus performed, telling fishermen to cast their nets on the other side of their boat, resulting in catching 153 fish after a whole night spent without a catch.

Chi-Rho

In Greek the letter Chi corresponds to CH and the letter rho to R, making the first christogram and the abbreviation for CHRIST.

Religion and CultureCalendar (lunar or solar or other) and major holidays with customs

Christmas: Remembrance of the birth of Jesus Christ, the coming of Creator God into the midst of the human family.

Advent: The four weeks before Christmas are a preparation time for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus.

Epiphany: A time for celebrating the world wide (including space travel) nature of the Christian Way.

Lent: This is a 40 day event that is a time of fasting in imitation of Jesus' experience in the wilderness of temptation.

Holy Week: The days between Palm Sunday and Holy Saturday before Easter are known as Holy Week. These days observe the events in the life of Jesus from the entry into Jerusalem through the crucifixion and burial.

Pentecost: This celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit to a gathering of believers shortly after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus is a major observance for the Christian Way.

Ordinary Time (Kingdom tide) (Season after Pentecost): this season celebrates the growing life of the fellowship of Christians in the world of persons, nations and the natural world.

Easter: The principal and most ancient festival of the Christian church year is Easter and what has come to be known as the "Resurrection of Christ".

Special dietary practices

Depends on denomination of Christianity. For most Christians, eating meat on Fridays is prohibited during Lent because of the

preparation for the Resurrection of Christ. Christians are allowed to eat “clean” foods such as fish with fins and scales, and insects

of the locust family and any animals with cloven hoofs such as cattle, goats, sheep, and

deer.

“Unclean” foods included carnivorous birds, sea creatures without fins and scales, most insects, rodents, and reptiles

Special clothing

Clerical clothing- is non-liturgical clothing worn by priest monks and nuns

Vestments- liturgical clothing that is worn during service

Religion Today

Percentage of the World: 6.8% as of November 14 2010

Population in US: 159 Million as of 2001

World Population: 2.1 Billion as of October 7, 2007

Christianity in the World

Map of Faiths