Christianity: 101

Distinctive aspects of Christianity

• Circle graph of world religions
• Proselytizing: Built on premise of expansion of Judaism (evangelize)
• A religion that appropriated another's sacred text
• Prophetic, Sacramental, and Mystical
• Sacred text not essentially in original language (translations)
• Anchored in history i.e. linear history that is fulfilled, brought to perfection,
• progress is built into the foundation of the religion
• 4 gospels ,and many other issues, leads to a critical reading of scripture

From Judaism to Roman Empire

• Jesus was not the first Christian. He was a Jew.
• Paul's writing were the earliest testimony to the emerging Jewish sect
• Paul established the pattern of evangelism
• Only after the destruction of the temple by the Romans and dispersion (Diaspora) of the Jews did synagogue and church (ecclesia) separate

From Old Testament to "Holy Bible"

• All of the writers of the NT understood the Bible to be what we would call the Old Testament
• consensus on what was in the New Testament was not reached until 4th-5th c.
• while the Rabbis pruned their Hebrew Bible, Christians continued to use the Jewish Bible from 300 BCE
• Reformation (16th c. and following) brought new standards for what was in the Bible

Sacred Quest ch. 3: Appearance of the Sacred

Christianity displays each of the 3 patterns from Sacred Quest:

1. Prophetic
2. Sacramental
3. Mystical

Overlap of 2 religions

• From the beginning of Christianity there has been conflict and division with Judaism
• in teaching the Old Testament I came to realize that that text is the only one I am aware of that is sacred to two different religions
• interplay of how Jews interpret the text and how Christians approach it differently

Anchored in history

• eschatological
• fulfillment of linear history (progress)
• controversies over historical data are somehow peculiar to a particular brand of Christianity
• importance of rise of historical / critical

From Jesus to Christ

• Trailer
• Trailer focusing on Jesus' teaching
• Quotes from a PBS series on the early centuries of Christianity.
• Viewers guide with questions:

4 gospels (and others)

• the "good news" were each written to bring about new followers
• relatively few details that are common across all 4 gospels
• harmonizing vs. parallel
• Some places to explore: http://www.gospelparallels.com/ http://sites.utoronto.ca/religion/synopsis/

Origins

• Paul established much of groundwork of early Christianity, but he's not the only one
• Bishops, presbyters, deacons and growth of Orthodox Church
• reputation as pacifist, care for widows and orphans, unwillingness to worship idols
• in the 4th c. CE persecution pivoted to status quo after Emperor Constantine
• need for uniformity led to creeds and orthodoxy, establishing canon of NT, theology, liturgical practice, etc.

Theology to Creeds

1. Orthodox vs. Orthopraxis
2. Heresy repressed, censorship, persecution
3. Creed: "I believe …"

History overview

• "Dark Ages": slow recovery of classical thought, science, literature
• Rise of Islam: spreading advanced knowledge from engineering, medicine, and more
• Dissolution of Roman Empire
• Competition with local expressions of Christianity (Celtic)
• splintering of Protestantism
• religious wars
• from pacifism to blessing battleships
• current struggle for place of Christianity in a world of diversity