Compare and contrast Christianity and Islam

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Chapter 9

Christianity

Living Religions

Tenth Edition

Learning Objectives (1 of 3)

9.1 Discuss the four gospels on which Christian beliefs about the life and teachings of Jesus are founded.

9.2 Outline the major events in the life of Jesus as described in the gospels.

9.3 Discuss the significance of Paul in the early Christian Church.

9.4 Summarize the division between the Eastern and Western Churches in the Middle Ages.

Learning Objectives (2 of 3)

9.5 Identify the major reforms of the Protestant and Roman Catholic Reformations.

9.6 Describe the distinctive features of Orthodox spirituality.

9.7 Summarize the central beliefs in contemporary Christianity.

Learning Objectives (3 of 3)

9.8 Define “sacrament” and outline the seven sacraments observed by the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches.

9.9 Differentiate between evangelicalism and Spirit-oriented movements.

David Vandiver Quote

“What did it mean to ‘love my neighbor as myself’?”

David Vandiver

David Vandiver, interviewed 1998, 2011.

The Christian Bible (1 of 2)

On which four gospels are Christian beliefs about the life and teachings of Jesus founded?

Roman rule inspired apocalyptic texts that predicted an imminent end of the present age

Hebrew Bible is the Christian Old Testament

27 books of New Testament written after Jesus’ earthly mission

Some Bibles include Apocrypha or Deuterocanonical books: noncanonical Jewish texts

The Christian Bible (2 of 2)

Hermeneutics: interpretations of Bible

Allegorical method

Eighteenth-century critical reading from historical view

Gospels (“good news”): stories of Jesus’ life

Composed in Greek or Aramaic

Synoptic gospels (“seen together”): Matthew, Mark, and Luke

Gospel of Thomas discovered in 1945

The life and teachings of Jesus

What are the major events in the life of Jesus, as described in the gospels?

Jesus’ life cannot be reconstructed from the gospels.

New Testament stories are nevertheless important to Christians.

Scholars believe many sayings attributed to Jesus are authentic.

Birth

Incarnation: God becomes flesh

A few years before the Common Era (CE)

Mary, mother of Jesus, and Joseph, father and carpenter

“Jesus” means “God saves”

Luke recounts witness of poor shepherds

Matthew recounts visit of Gentile (non-Jewish) Persian Magi

Preparation

Visit to the Temple at Passover

Age 30: baptized by John the Baptist

After: 40 days in the desert; tempted by Satan

Ministry (1 of 2)

Gathered first disciples

Taught desire for spiritual treasures instead of material wealth

Miracles

Water to wine

Healing the sick

Raising the dead

Preached radical ethics

Table fellowship

Fair treatment of marginalized people

Ministry (2 of 2)

Welcomed women as disciples

Radically egalitarian vision

Teachings

Main teaching: love of God and others

God forgives those who repent.

Beatitudes: statements about supreme happiness

Jesus used short stories or parables to relate his teachings.

Challenges to the authorities (1 of 2)

Jesus did not challenge Mosaic law.

He challenged its interpretation of law by the Pharisees and Sadducees.

He confronted priests about commercial interests in the Temple.

Challenges to the authorities (2 of 2)

Gospel accounts appropriate Jesus as Messiah, “perfected,” and the Christ, “anointed one”

Transfiguration: Jesus showed three disciples his transcendental self.

Crucifixion (1 of 2)

At the Last Supper, Jesus maintained the Jewish Passover tradition of Seder.

Jesus and three disciples went to the garden of Gethsemane, where he was captured.

Passion narratives describe Jesus’ suffering from Judas’s betrayal to death.

Crucifixion (2 of 2)

He was taken before the high priest Joseph Caiaphas.

Roman governor Pontius Pilate sentenced him to death by crucifixion, a common death torture in the Roman Empire.

Resurrection and Ascension

Resurrection: Jesus raised from the dead

Jesus appeared to disciples

Ascension: Jesus miraculously ascended bodily into the highest heaven

Acts of the Apostles: extends the Ascension into belief that Jesus will return bodily to earth in the future

The early Church

How important was Paul’s role in the development of the early Christian Church?

Jesus’ followers persecuted

By 380 CE, Christianity became official religion of Roman Empire

From persecution to empire (1 of 2)

Apostle: Christian missionary from early church.

50 days after Passover (Pentecost), 3,000 people converted to Christianity

Paul

Originally named Saul, a Pharisee tentmaker

Conversion after vision of Jesus on road to Damascus

New name Paul

Martyred in Rome

Tried to convince Jews that Jesus was fulfillment of Old Testament

Also attempted to convert Gentiles

From persecution to empire (2 of 2)

Teachings of Paul

Salvation came through faith in Christ’s grace.

People forgiven by God are justified through their faith.

By 200 CE, Christianity spread through Mesopotamia.

312 CE: Roman Emperor Constantine had a vision of the cross.

Constantine was baptized as a Christian just before his death.

By the fifth century, Christianity was the faith of the majority of the vast former Roman Empire.

Evolving organization and theology

Gnosticism: mystical perception of knowledge

Holy Trinity: three equal persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Church developed a number of creeds

325 CE: Council of Nicaea adopted Nicene Creed

Christology: attempt to define the nature of Jesus

Early monasticism

By the fourth century, Christian monks and ascetic women (ammas) lived in desert caves.

By the fifth century, monastic life shifted from solitary, unguided practice to formal spiritual supervision.

Church administration (1 of 2)

Why did divisions between the Eastern and Western Churches worsen in the Middle Ages?

Bishop of Rome eventually known as the pope

Major seats of Christianity

Rome

Constantinople

Alexandria

Antioch

Jerusalem

Church administration (2 of 2)

The Roman pope claimed universal authority.

In the fifth century, Pope Leo I argued that all popes were apostolic successors of Peter.

Gregory I (“the Great”)

Founded monasteries and fed the poor

Sent missionaries to England

Worship of relics was a major feature of popular Christianity.

Those who disagreed with church authority could be excommunicated or removed from participation in the sacrament and, thereby, redemption.

East–West division

1054: leaders of Eastern and Western churches excommunicated one another over:

Disagreement about Holy Spirit

Papal claim

Eucharistic bread

1204: Western Christian crusaders destroyed the Hagia Sophia

Eastern Church divided after Council of Chalcedon, 451 CE

Bishops who did not accept that Jesus was both divine and human were declared “out of communion” with both Eastern and Western Churches and excommunicated.

Social chaos and the papacy

Papal authority began unifying Europe

Church and states began struggle for dominance

Inquisition: an ecclesiastical court from 1230 meant to suppress heresy

Reform efforts

What were the major reforms of the Protestant and Roman Catholic Reformation?

Yearning for spiritual purity was pronounced in monasticism.

Twelfth century: new monastic orders formed—Cistercians, Gregorians, Carthusians

1225: Dominican Order formed to teach the faith and refute heresies

Franciscans followed St. Francis of Assisi by wandering without personal property.

Medieval mysticism

Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) founded two monasteries and had frequent visions of God.

St. Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) underwent radical spiritual transformation and “left the world.”

In fourteenth-century Italy, people gathered around saintly individuals.

Catherine of Siena sought to restore spiritual purity and religious discipline to the Church.

The Protestant Reformation (1 of 4)

Church sold indulgences for remission of sins and decreased time in Purgatory (intermediate place of suffering while awaiting heaven)

Martin Luther (1483–1546)

Questioned the selling of indulgences

Argued for justification through faith

Believed the only sacraments were baptism (ritual to cleanse sin) and Eucharist (partaking of bread and wine)

1517: nailed theses about doctrine to university door

1521: excommunicated

Protestant Reformation (2 of 4)

Ulrich Zwingli (1484–1531) rejected practices not in the Bible

Protestantism grew from these reforms

Movement was never monolithic but developed into several denominations (organized groups of congregations)

John Calvin (1509–1564)

Salvation by faith alone

Exclusive authority of Bible

The priesthood of all believers

Afterlife predestined

Movement became known as Calvinism

Protestant Reformation (3 of 4)

Church of England

Henry VII declared English Church’s independence

1559: Elizabeth I finalized breach with Rome

Now called Anglicanism

Methodism

Originated with evangelist John Wesley (1703–1791)

Emphasis on holiness and methodological devotion

The reformation of the German Church became known as Lutheranism.

Protestant Reformation (4 of 4)

Calvinism led to two major Reformed Churches:

Scottish Presbyterianism (led by presbyters)

Congregationalism (emphasis on independence of local church)

Anabaptists

Rejected infant baptism

Continued as Baptists, Mennonites, and Amish

Related to Quakers, who have no planned liturgy

Nineteenth- and twentieth-century denominations

Seventh-day Adventists believe the second coming is imminent.

Jehovah’s Witnesses criticize other churches for developing false doctrines.

The Roman Catholic Reformation

“Counter-Reformation” in response to Protestant Reformation

Started with Council of Trent (1545–1563)

Good works and faith

transubstantiation: bread and wine transformed into the body and blood of Jesus

Emphasized its dogmas: authoritative truths

Jesuits—the “army of God”—missionized Asia

The missionary enterprise

European countries spread influence through colonization

Conquered people by converting them to Christianity, “saving” them from “pagan” practices

Liberal trends

Eighteenth-century Enlightenment in Europe exalted human reason and rejected biblical miracles

Led to invigoration of traditional faith

Led to increase in Protestant missionary activities

Unitarianism: Protestant movement that adopted simple theism

The Second Vatican Council

Called by Pope John XXIII in 1962 to update and energize the Church

Allowed for liturgy in local languages

Greater emphasis on sacred music

Major focus on ecumenism among branches of Christianity

Opened dialogue with Judaism and Islam

Orthodox world today (1 of 2)

What are the distinctive features of Orthodox spirituality?

15 self-governing Orthodox Churches worldwide

Majority of Orthodox Christians live in Russia

Patriarchate of Constantinople plays central role

Patriarchate of Alexandria includes all of Africa

Greek Orthodox Church dominates Greek religious life

Archbishop of the Church of Cyprus is also a political leader

Orthodox world today (2 of 2)

synod: council of officials

Philokalia: writings of the saints of the Church

Central practice: “unceasing prayer”

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Distinctive feature: veneration of icons, stylized paintings of Jesus, Mary, and saints

Central beliefs in contemporary Christianity

What are the central beliefs in contemporary Christianity?

Christian Church is vast and culturally diverse

Beliefs

Central belief in divine Sonship of Jesus

Jesus as the Savior of the world

Humanity inclined to sin because of original sin

Jesus associated with love

Jesus as model of sinlessness

Sacred Practices

sacrament: “mystery” or sacred rites of Christianity

liturgy: ritual of public worship

Eucharist: consumption of bread and wine central part of regular worship

penance: reparation for the guilt of sin

baptism: first sacrament

confirmation: conscious and personal commitment to Christianity

The liturgical calendar (1 of 2)

Christmas: celebration of Jesus’ birth

Epiphany: celebration of the visitation of the Magi

Advent: joyous month in anticipation of Christmas

Lent: 40-day period of repentance and fasting prior to Easter

Good Friday: commemoration of Jesus’ death

Easter: celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection

The liturgical calendar (2 of 2)

Ascension: celebrated 40 days after Easter honoring Jesus’ bodily Ascension

Pentecost: 50 days after Jewish Passover, celebrates the descending of the Holy Spirit.

Transfiguration: August 6, celebrated by some; Jesus on the mountain in supernatural radiance

Assumption: August 15, celebrated by some as the day Mary ascended to heaven

Contemplative prayer

Contemplative tradition re-emerging

Thomas Merton (1915–1948)

Trappist monk

Most influential contemplative

Veneration of Mary, saints and angels

Mary most venerated of all saints

Perhaps related to goddess worship

Annunciation: the announcement of Jesus’ conception

Mary is the New Eve

Immaculate virgin

Appears to believers across the world

Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches emphasize prayer to saints and angels

Contemporary trends (1 of 2)

How do evangelicalism and Spirit-oriented movements differ?

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople, is called the “Green Patriarch” because of environmentalism.

Orthodox Coptic monasteries began to flourish in twentieth century.

Contemporary trends (2 of 2)

2013: Pope Francis of Argentine elected

Nonjudgmental on homosexuality and divorce

Return to mission of protection of the weak

Decline in membership in Protestantism

Growth of “megachurches”

2014: Church of England approved ordination of women

Evangelicalism

Emphasis on “born-again” experience

Important evangelists

John Wesley (1703–1791)

George Whitefield (1714–1770)

Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758), “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” (1741)

fundamentalism: return to uncompromising tenets of Biblical inerrancy

Anticipate the imminent return of Jesus and rapture (transport to heaven) of believers

Spirit-oriented movements

Charismatic experience of the Holy Spirit

No typical pattern of worship

Pentecostalism: emphasizes gifts of the Spirit like speaking in tongues and being “slain in the Spirit”

Brought women to forefront

Most rapidly growing religious movement in the world

The great reversal

65 percent of worldwide Christians are non-Western

48 percent of Africa is Christian

Latin America: Jesus viewed as liberator of oppressed people

Missions now being sent to the West

Christian faith and justice

Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968): great civil rights leader

Movement now called liberation theology

Gustavo Gutierrez coined phrase “theology of liberation”

Bakole Wa Ilinga, Archbishop of Kananga, warns against riches and power

Feminist Christianity

Attempt to sort cultural and historical from theological concerns

Attempt to recover female role models from Bible

Attempt to recover nonpatriarchal models of God

Women have won ordination in some Christian denominations

Creation-centered Christianity

“Dominion”: the duty to care for the earth

Emphasis on the miracle of earth’s creation

Many leaders urging people to limit environmental destruction

Ecumenical movement

Contemporary attempt to unite all churches around points of agreement

World Council of Churches

Founded in 1948

Cooperation of all denominations regardless of doctrinal disagreements