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Christianity

Christianity is the world's largest religion, with over 2.4 billion followers. It is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, who Christians believe is the Son of God and savior of humanity. Christianity grew out of Second Temple Judaism in the 1st century CE and spread throughout the Roman Empire and beyond. It is divided into three main branches - Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Protestantism - due to theological and ecclesiastical disputes over the centuries.

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35 views3 pages

Christianity

Christianity is the world's largest religion, with over 2.4 billion followers. It is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, who Christians believe is the Son of God and savior of humanity. Christianity grew out of Second Temple Judaism in the 1st century CE and spread throughout the Roman Empire and beyond. It is divided into three main branches - Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Protestantism - due to theological and ecclesiastical disputes over the centuries.

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dwarika2006
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Christianity[note 1] is an Abrahamic monotheistic[1] religion based on the life, teachings and purported

miracles of Jesus of Nazareth, known by Christians as the Christ, or "Messiah", who is the focal point of the
Christian faiths. It is the world's largest religion,[2][3] with over 2.4 billion followers,[4][5][6] or 33% of the global
population, known as Christians.[note 2] Christians make up a majority of the population in about two-thirds of the
countries and territories in the world.[6] They believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the savior of
humanity whose coming as the Messiah (the Christ) was prophesied in the Old Testament.[7] Christianity has
played a prominent role in the shaping of Western Civilization.[8][9][10][11][12]
Christianity grew out of Judaism[13][14][15] and began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the mid-
1st century.[16][17] Originating in the Roman province of Judea, it quickly
spread to Syria, Europe, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Transcaucasia, Egypt, Ethiopia and the Indian subcontinent,
and by the end of the 4th century had become the official state religion of the Roman Empire.[18][19][20] Following
the Age of Discovery, Christianity spread to the Americas, Oceania, sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the
world through missionary work and colonization.[21][22][23]
Christian theology is summarized in creeds such as the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed.
These professions of faith state that Jesus suffered, died, was buried, descended into hell, and rose from the
dead, in order to grant eternal life to those who believe in him and trust in him for the remission of their sins.
The creeds further maintain that Jesus physically ascended into heaven, where he reigns with God the
Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, and that he will return to judge the living and the dead and grant eternal
life to his followers. His incarnation, earthly ministry, crucifixion and resurrection are often referred to as "the
gospel", meaning "good news".[note 3]The term gospel also refers to written accounts of Jesus' life and teaching,
four of which—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—are considered canonical and included in the Christian Bible,
as established by the 5th century[24] for the ancient undivided Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions, a period
sometimes referred to as the Great Church, before the East–West Schism in 1054.
Throughout the history of Christianity, theological and ecclesiological disputes have resulted in schisms with
many distinct denominations. Worldwide, the four largest branches of Christianity are the Catholic
Church, Protestantism, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and Oriental Orthodoxy. The Catholic, Eastern Orthodox
and Oriental Orthodox churches broke communion with each other in the East–West Schism of 1054, and
the Chalcedonian schism in 451. Protestantism, while not a single denomination but a collective term, emerged
in the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, splitting from the Catholic Church.[25]

Contents
[hide]

• 1Beliefs
o 1.1Creeds
o 1.2Jesus
o 1.3Salvation
o 1.4Trinity
o 1.5Scriptures
o 1.6Ecclesiology
o 1.7Eschatology
• 2Worship
o 2.1Sacraments
o 2.2Liturgical calendar
o 2.3Symbols
o 2.4Baptism
o 2.5Prayer
• 3History
o 3.1Early Church and Christological Councils
o 3.2Early Middle Ages
o 3.3High and Late Middle Ages
o 3.4Protestant Reformation and Counter-Reformation
o 3.5Post-Enlightenment
• 4Demographics
• 5Major divisions
o 5.1Catholic Church
o 5.2Eastern Orthodox Church
o 5.3Oriental Orthodoxy
o 5.4Assyrian Church of the East
o 5.5Protestantism
o 5.6Restorationism
o 5.7Other
• 6Culture
• 7Ecumenism
• 8Criticism and apologetics
• 9See also
• 10Notes
• 11References
o 11.1Bibliography
• 12Further reading
• 13External links

Beliefs
There are many important differences of interpretation and opinion of the Bible and sacred tradition on which
Christianity is based.[26] Because of these irreconcilable differences in theology and a lack of consensus on the
core tenets of Christianity, Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox often deny that members of certain other
branches are Christians.[27]

Creeds
Main articles: Creed § Christian creeds
creeds, and List of Christian creeds

Wikisource has
original text related to
this article:

Apostles' Creed

Wikisource has
original text related to
this article:

Nicene Creed

Concise doctrinal statements or confessions of religious beliefs are known as creeds (from Latin credo,
meaning "I believe"). They began as baptismal formulae and were later expanded during
the Christological controversies of the 4th and 5th centuries to become statements of faith.
Many evangelical Protestants reject creeds as definitive statements of faith, even while agreeing with some or
all of the substance of the creeds. The Baptists have been non-creedal creedal "in that they have not sought to
establish binding authoritative confessions of faith on one another."[28]:p.111 Also rejecting creeds are groups with
roots in the Restoration Movement,, such as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the Evangelical Christian
Christ.[29][30]:14–15[31]:123
Church in Canada and the Churches of Christ
An Eastern Christian icon depicting Emperor Constantine and the Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea (325) as holding the
Niceno–Constantinopolitan Creed of 381

The Apostles' Creed is the most widely accepted statement of the articles of Christian faith. It is used by a
number of Christian denominationsfor both liturgical and catechetical purposes, most visibly by liturgical
churches of Western Christian tradition, including the Latin Church of the Catholic
Church, Lutheranism, Anglicanism and Western Rite Orthodoxy. It is also used
by Presbyterians, Methodists and Congregationalists. This particular creed was developed between the 2nd
and 9th centuries. Its central doctrines are those of the Trinity and God the Creator. Each of the doctrines found
in this creed can be traced to statements current in the apostolic period. The creed was apparently used as a
summary of Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in the churches of Rome.[32]

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