Christian

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For other uses of the term Christian, see Christian (disambiguation).

A Christian is a follower of Jesus, whom they regard as the Christ. Christians believe Jesus to be the Son of God, who lived a life befitting that of the creator of the universe, free of sin, and at the end of his earthly life was crucified, and then on the third day after death rose from the dead, to give the message to his followers. This belief is true of all Christian groups. However sects known by mainstream christians to be nonchristian cults, such as Unitarians, do not regard Jesus as a son of God, Christian Non Realists do not believe that Jesus was in any way miraculous and some don't believe he was real (e.g. Don Cupitt), docetists believe that Jesus was a human possessed by a divine being and that the human part never rose from the dead, the various forms of gnostics believe that most of his life is allegory rather than historic fact, and Arians do not regard Jesus as having existed since the creation of the Universe, or as having the same nature as God.

Christians believe that Jesus offers salvation; there are somewhat different interpretations of the exact meaning of the salvation offered, although virtually all Christians agree that it is the perfect form of reconciliation to God, and that this is only possible because of Christ. Christians, by definition, are a part of Christianity. Most Christians identify themselves as monotheistic, believing that there is one God, although a small number are henotheist, believing in the existence of other deities but not worshipping them, and Mormons are sometimes considered semi-tritheistic, believing that there are three distinct and separate entities that make up the Godhead, being the God the Father, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Ghost. Today, it is estimated that there are around 2.1 billion Christians in the world making up 33% of the world population, with the largest Christian sect being Roman Catholicism.[Religions by Adherents] Adherents.com.

Usage of the word

As an adjective, the term may describe an object associated with Christianity. For many this also means to be a member or adherent of one of the organized religious denominations of Christianity. The term Christian means "belonging to Christ" and is derived from the Greek noun Χριστός Khristós which means "anointed one," which is itself a translation of the Hebrew word Moshiach (Hebrew: משיח, also written "Messiah"), (and in Arabic it is pronounced Maseeh مسيح). According to the New Testament, those who followed Jesus as his disciples were first called Christians by those who did not share their faith, in the city of Antioch. Hebrew is one of the only known languages to not call Christians "Christians" but "Nazerines" (Hebrew: נוצרי), because Jesus was from the province of Nazareth, heance the name Jesus of Nazareth or ישו הנוצרי, Yesho Ha-Naztri in Hebrew). Xian or Xtian is another word that has been used to describe Christians and is similar to using Xmas in place of Christmas; the X or Xt used as a contraction for "Christ" ("X" resembles the Greek letter Χ (Chi), the first letter of "Christ" in Greek (Χριστός [Christos]). Some Christians find these terms offensive and equate it to taking Christ out of the term.

The term "Christian" is used by various groups with diverse beliefs to describe themselves. Some people, including many born-again Christians, use a fairly specific definition of "Christian". They believe that in order to be a Christian, one must follow Jesus, and that the proof of this is found in agreeing to and following the doctrines set forth in their interpretation of the Bible.

Many Christians are grouped into ecclesial communities called denominations which are separated by certain aspects of their respective beliefs and theologies. The liturgical denominations, including Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy, Roman and Eastern Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Lutheranism, along with many constituent components of the reformed traditions of Presbyterianism, Methodism, Moravianism, et al., teach that the title Christian is honorificly bestowed upon those who have accepted the command of Jesus Christ (in [Mark 8:34]) to "take up your cross and follow me", and that the public mark of a Christian is to receive the sacrament of Baptism, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Many denominations advocate infant baptism, in addition to that of adult converts.

Others who refer to themselves as Christians require only that one believes that Jesus is the Son of God, and that he died and was resurrected from the dead in order to call oneself a Christian. Certain other denominations (The Church of Christ, International Churches of Christ, and the Independent Christian Churches) teach that the definition of a Christian is someone who has been baptized as a repenting adult "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."– ([Matthew 28:19]). For them, adult baptism is the transition from non-Christian to Christian. These varying definitions arise from different biblical interpretations and differences regarding the authority of scripture in context with tradition.

A small but significant minority of ecclesiastical groups are often referred to as Christian, whose creeds consider Jesus to be theologically significant but not God. Movements along these lines include Jehovah's Witnesses.

Followers of Serapis were called Christians as demonstrated in a letter from Emperor Adrian to Servianus, 134 A.D. (Quoted by Giles, ii p86)

Egypt, which you commended to me, my dearest Servianus, I have found to be wholly fickle and inconsistent, and continually wafted about by every breath of fame. The worshipers of Serapis (here) are called Christians, and those who are devoted to the god Serapis (I find), call themselves Bishops of Christ.

History

Early times

Church is taken by some to refer to a single, universal community, although others contend that the doctrine of the universal church was not established until later. The doctrine of the universal, visible church was made explicit in the Apostles' Creed, while the less common Protestant notion of the universal, invisible church is not laid out explicitly until the Reformation. The universal church traditions generally espouse that the Church includes all who are baptized into her common faith, including the doctrines of the trinity, forgiveness of sins through the sacrificial action of Christ, and the resurrection of the body. These teachings are expressed in liturgy with the celebration of sacraments, visible signs of grace. They are passed down as the deposit of faith.

Some minority traditions of Christianity have maintained that the word translated "church" in scripture most often properly refers to local bodies or assemblies. "Church" is a derivative of the Late Greek word "κυριακον", meaning Lord's house, which in English became "church". The Koine word for church is εκκλησία (ecclesia). Before Christian appropriation of the term, it was used to describe purposeful gatherings, including the assemblies of many Greek city states. Christians of this stripe maintain that a centralizing impulse in the church, present from the early days of the church through the rise of Constantine, represented a departure from true Christianity. They therefore reject the authority of the Nicene Creed or the Apostles' Creed.

The first millennium

Christians developed hierarchical structures to lead the visible Church over the course of many centuries. From the early formation of the Church until the Great Schism in 1054 AD, virtually all Christians subsisted within one Church as one visible organization, led locally by bishops, and regionally by patriarchs. However, minor divisions occurred over differences in doctrine as early as the Council of Chalcedon, and continued through the progression of ecumenical councils.

Medieval times

This wealth often expressed itself in the building of beautiful cathedrals which showed their great devotion and adoration to God. The Church's monasteries were seats of learning and study which evolved into modern universities. They also provided the first hospitals for the care of the sick.

Modern times

Widespread Christian missions, founded by all segments of Christianity in response to the command of Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20 (also known as the "Great Commission"), have created today's situation in which Christians are to be found in almost every part of the world.

Within Christian communities there are members who devote themselves to active participation in prophetic communication and miraculous healing (and anything else considered to be a 'spiritual gift') as represented in the early church, the pre-Christ prophets and in the Bible (most notably in the book of Acts). They are categorized as Charismatic Christians.

The opposing view is cessationalism. This was made popular in post-reformation times to discount several Roman Catholic Church Doctrines. The protestants claimed they had no biblical basis, but the Catholic church responded by saying that it was told to them through a prophetic message (specifically an apparition of Mary, or vision of Mary mother of Jesus). Certain protestants then responded by saying they were just 'making it up' but had no way of saying this with authority without having their own prophetic message (leaving the problem of 'who do we believe' open), so they decided to say that the power of the holy spirit (that they agree had been with the early church), left when the last apostle died. However not all protestants held this view point.

There are of course various other (some older) versions of cessationalism, (including that held by christadelphians) although some tend to use different names. In some cases the one belief (charismatic or cessationalist) will occupy the entire denomination as doctrine, most famously in the Pentecostal movement (founded on such charismatic principles), whilst other churches allow a more liberal view as to how widely these 'gifts of the holy spirit' are present in the modern church. Consequently there are charismatic Catholics and Anglicans, as well as the cessationalist counter-parts. Indeed the so called 'charismatic movement' began in high churches first, despite being attributed to more low-church style of worship.

Other movements within contemporary Christendom include the emergent church, fundamentalism, return to orthodoxy, messianic Judaism, liberalism, and the home church movement.

The life of a Christian is still characterized by faith in the figure of Jesus as represented in the New Testament. Sacraments aside, the concept of grace is still uniquely Christian: the idea that spiritual wholeness comes only as a result of a gift from God.

References