The Origins and History of Christianity Kylie Carrall The Background to Christianity

Christianity is the name given to that definite system of religious belief and practice which was taught by Jesus Christ in the country of Palestine, during the reign of the Roman Emperor, Tiberius, and was promulgated, after its Founder's death, for the acceptance of the whole world, by certain chosen men among His followers. According to the accepted chronology, these began their mission on the day of Pentecost, A.D. 29, which day is regarded, accordingly, as the birthday of the Christian Church. The Christian movement moved from Palestine to Greece and became a philosophy. It moved to Italy and became an institution. It moved to Europe and became a culture; it came to America and became an enterprise. Its early missionaries spread its teachings through Asia Minor to Alexandria and Greece and Rome Missions have remained a major part of Christianity to this present day. In the two millennia of its history Christianity has been plagued by schism, based on doctor and organizational differences. Today there are three broad divisions, Roman Catholic, Orthodox Eastern and Protestant, but within the category of Protestantism there is a particularly large number of divergent denominations.

Judaism and the Jewish Scriptures

Christianity is in a direct sense an offshoot of Judaism because Jesus and his immediate followers were Jews living in Palestine and Jesus was believed by his followers to have fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah, following a trend of proselytization in the Judaism of that period Christianity was from its beginnings expansionist. The whole history of the Jews as detailed in the Old Testament is seen, when read in the light of other events, to be a clear though gradual preparation for the preaching of Christianity. The fact that, eventually, the Jews misinterpreted their oracles, and identified the Messianic Kingdom with a mere temporal sovereignty of Israel, cannot invalidate the testimony of the Scriptures, as interpreted both by Christ's own life and the teaching of His Apostles, to the gradual evolution of that conception of which Christianity is the full and perfect expression. Mistaken national pride, accentuated by their galling subject to Rome led them to read a material significance into the predictions of the triumph of the Messiahs, and hence to love their privilege of being God's chosen people.

The Greek and Roman World of the First Century CE

Whether due ultimately to the Old Testament predictions or to the fragments of the original revelation handed down amongst the Gentile, a certain vague expectation of the coming of a great conqueror seems to have existed in the East and to a certain extent in the Roman worlds, in the midst of which the new religion had its birth. But a much more marked predisposition to Christianity may be noticed in certain prominent features of the Roman religion after the downfall of the republic. The old gods of Latium had long ceased to reign. In their stead Greek philosophy occupied the minds of the cultured, whilst the populace were attracted by a variety of strange cults imported from Egypt and the East. Whatever their corruption, these new religions, concentrating worship on a single prominent deity, were monotheistic in effect. Moreover, many of them were characterized by rites of expiation and sacrifice, which familiarized men's minds with the idea of a mediatorial religion. They combined to destroy the notion of a nation cultus, and to separate the service of the Deity from the service of the State. Finally, as a contributory cause to the diffusion of Christianity, we must not fail to mention the widespread Pax Romana, resulting from the union of the civilized races less than one strong central government.

The Founding Of Christianity The Life of Jesus

During his whole mortal life on earth, including the two or three years of his active ministry, Christ lived as a devout Jew, observing, and insisting on his followers observing, the injunctions of the Law. The sum of his teaching, as of that of His precursor, was the approach

of the "Kingdom of God", meaning not only the rule of righteousness in the individual heart, but also the Church (as is plain from many of the parables) which he was about to institute. Yet, though he often foreshadowed a time when the Law as such would cease to bind, and though he himself in proof of his Messiahship occasionally set aside its provisions, yet, as, in spite of Jesus miracles, He did not win recognition of that Messiahship, still less of His Divinity, from the Jews at large. He confined his explicit teaching about the Church to his immediate followers, and left it to them, when the time came, openly to pronounce the abrogation of the Law. It was not so much, then, by propounding the dogmas of Christianity as by informing the Old Law with the spirit of Christian ethics that Christ found himself able to prepare Jewish hearts for the religion to come. Again, the faith, which he failed to arouse by the numerous miracles he wrought, he sought to provide with a further and stronger incentive by dying under every circumstance of paint, disgrace, and defeat, and then raising himself from the dead in triumph and glory. It was to this fact rather than to the wonders he worked in his lifetime that his accredited witnesses always appealed in their teaching. On the marvel of the Resurrection is based in the counsels of God the faith of Christianity. By his death, and therefore, his return from the dead, Christ, as the event proved, furnished the strongest means for the effective preaching of the religion he came to found.

His Birth, Teaching and Ministry, Death, Resurrection and Ascension

Jesus birth was an immaculate conception. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary. Jesus during his lifetime preached The Kingdom of God to his 12 apostles and the apostles toke their belief and ministered their teachings in their priesthood. c. 24 - 26 Jesus is believed to have begun his ministry. According to the Evangelists, Jesus suffered under the high priest Caiphas (A.U.C. 772-90, or A.D. 18-36), during the governorship of Pontius Pilate A.U.C. 780-90). Jesus resurrected on Easter Sunday. Evangelists' agree that Jesus appeared to more than one person. 40 days after Jesus resurrection Jesus ascended into heaven. In the New Testament, the story of Jesus' ascension is after the risen Christ had spoken his final words to his followers, we are told: "As they were watching, Jesus was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight." The text then refers to them "gazing up toward heaven while he was going."

The Early Development of Christianity The Early Church as found in the New Testament
By the middle of the 2nd century the Christian Church was firmly established in Rome, and outposts had been planted still farther to the west in Gaul as well as across the Mediterranean in North Africa. c. 40 - 51 Paul travelled to Asia Minor and Cyprus, establishing churches and writing the earliest epistles that would became part of the New Testament canon 47 c. First recorded use of the term "Christian" occurred in Antioch, Syria, home of one of the earliest Christian churches. c. 100 Christian churches were established in Greece, North Africa, Italy, and Asia Minor.

The diversity and Change in the Historical Development of Christianity and the Development of Various Sub-Groups until the Present Division between East and West: Causes and Consequences
395 c. The Roman Empire was divided again between East and West, setting the stage for the eventual division of the Christian Church. Latin Christianity was based in Rome under the leadership of the popes, while Eastern Orthodoxy develops in the east in Constantinople under the leadership of patriarchs.

The Reformation and Counter/Catholic Reformation: Causes (key theological emphases) and Consequences
The Catholic Church was not caught unawares by the Reformation. It had been steadily battling opposition, resistance, and heresy for over four hundred years; much of the opposition against the church throughout the fifteenth century involved issues that closely paralleled those splitting the church in half during the early Reformation. In answer to the

growth of the Protestant movement, the Catholic Church instituted its own series of reforms that balanced real reform with a strident and conservative reaction to Protestantism. This movement was called the Counter-Reformation. The Protestant gains in Europe and the chaotic evolution of the Counter-Reformation finally forced Pope Paul III in 1545 to convene a council in Trent in order to define church doctrine once and for all. This council, called the Council of Trent, worked on this problem in three separate sessions from 1545 to 1563. This council eventually advised some farreaching reforms in the abuses practiced by the church, such as the selling of indulgences. The Council forced bishops to reside in the region they presided over and also forbad the selling of church offices. On the reactionary side, the Council advised that a seminary be built in every diocese so that church doctrine could be fully and accurately represented. The reforms were very bold in many respects, but they were too little and too late. The new Protestant churches were the wave of the future; and Catholicismalthough it would remain a major religionwould in a few centuries cease to be the majority religion in the Western world.

The Evangelical Awakening, Colonial Expansion and Missionary Impact

Evangelical awakening is a dramatic spiritual renewal in Western Christianity during the Age of Reason. The movement was interlaced by the personal ties of its leaders, but three regions were significantly changed: Germany by the rise of Pietism, the British Isles by the preaching of the Methodists, and the American colonies by the impact of the Great Awakening. To a large extent the development of the European and North American colonial enterprise and the Christian missionary movements wedded between the years of 1942-1910. During the colonial era, the non-western world and into the southern hemisphere the triumphant missionary expansion of the Christian Churches The non-Western world during the colonial expansion in the colonial era, of the Western world into the southern hemisphere, and, along with it, the triumphant missionary expansion of the Christian churches meant a cultural interchange is taking place within global Christianity such as the tremendous influence of Western Christian Fundamentalism and Pentecostalism around the world, or the increasing appeal of Eastern Religious sensibilities to Western Christian theologians. Whereas the former course focuses on historical expansion of Christianity into the non-Western world, this course emphasizes present trends in Christianity, especially those within marginalized cultures.

The Distribution and Practice of Christianity in Australia Today

The Practice of Christianity post colonialism meant that Christianity is practiced all over the world and that people all over the world when they move to Australia come along with their beliefs and thus is why Christianity is still present in the cynical world that is present today. Christianity is practiced in Australia in individual homes, in churches and in the Catholic schooling system.

Roman Catholics
The Principal Beliefs about: The Nature of God and the trinity: creating, sanctifying and redeeming
God: The chief doctrines of the church held in common with most other Christian churches are: Gods objective existence his interest in individual men, who can enter with relation to him (prayer). Roman Catholics only believe in one God, he is the father almighty creator of heaven and earth for all that is seen and unseen. Trinity: The trinity, the divinity of Christ, the immortality of the soul of each human being each one being accountable at death for his actions in life with the award of heaven and hell.

The Nature of Humanity- Created, Fallen and Redeemed through Jesus Christ
That centrality is, in one way or another, a feature of all the historical varieties of Christian belief and practice. Christians have not agreed in their understanding and definition of what makes Christ distinctive or unique. Certainly they would all affirm that his life and

example should be followed and that his teachings about love and fellowship should be the basis of human relations. In Christian teaching, Jesus cannot be less than the supreme preacher and exemplar of the moral life, but for most Christians that, by it, does not do full justice to the significance of his life and work. Roman Catholics base their life on Jesus moral teachings such as love one another just as I have loved you with his teachings and the 10 commandments and the main motive for ethical behaviour is the love of God. Christians are able to build their base of humanity standards. The doctrine concerning persons not Catholic is that since God affords each human being light sufficient to his salvation, all will be saved who persevere in what they believe to be good, regardless of ignorance. Only those who will be damned who persist in what they know to be wrong; among these are persons who resist the church when they know it to be the one, true church.

The Paradox Of Evil And The Place Of Suffering

The Roman Church stresses that since the members, living and dead, share in each others merits, the Virgin Mary and other saints and the dead in purgatory are never forgotten.

Eschatology- Heaven, Hell, Christs Return, Final Judgement

Belief on Hell: In the theological usage hell is a place of punishment after death. Hell in astrict sense is a place of punishment for the Damned, be they demons or men. The limbo of infants where those who die in original sin alone and without personal moral sin are confined and undergo some sort of punishment. The limbo of the fathers in which the souls of the just who die before Christ awaited their admission to heaven for the meantime heaven was closed against them in punishment of the sin of Adam. Purgatory where the just who die in venial sin, or who still owe a debt of temporal punishment of sin are cleansed by suffering before their admission to heaven. Belief on Heaven: The blessed in heaven are free from all pains. In the Holy Bible the term heaven denotes in the first place the blue firmament or the religion of the clouds that pass along the sky. Heaven is spoken of as the dwelling of God, for although God is omnipresent, he manifests himself in a special manner in the light and grandeur of the firmament. Heaven also is abiding of the angels for they are constantly with God and see his face. With God in heaven likewise, the souls of the just we are told that Christ conducted to heaven the patriarchs who have been in limbo. The term heaven has come to designate both the happiness and the abode of the next life. Christs return: Roman Catholics prepare for the Christs return by preparing the world for the coming of him to whom belongs the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Roman Catholics believe that he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. Final Judgement: God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to redeem humanity. Jesus became incarnate, (literally was born as a real man), of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and remains both fully man and fully God. He taught humanity how to live, and died on the cross for the sins of mankind. After three days He was resurrected and rose from the dead. At the end of time there will be a general resurrection of the dead, and a final judgement.

The Devotional Practices of Christianity and Their Relation to Belief: Public Christian worship with reference to the place of corporate worship and celebrations; features of worship, features of a church, communion, liturgies, rituals such as those for birth, reconciliation, initiation, marriage, ordination, anointing or death AND Private Christian Worship With Reference to Meditation, Personal Bible Study, Devotions and Prayer, Retreats
The church has from God a system of conveying His Grace direct to man. The ordinary Catholic frequents the sacraments of Penance (required at least once a year) and the Eucharist (required once every Easter time). The Eucharist is the centre of public worship, often embellished with solemn ceremony (mass). Private prayer is essential; contemplation is ideal, and all believers are expected to devote some time to prayer that is more than begging favours. Different methods of prayer are recommended (rosary). Self-renunciation is a necessary part of prayer (fasting in lent). The sacraments of Catholicism involve particular spiritual activities partaken of by believers, such as baptism, confirmation, penance, and

participation in the Mass. They are presided over by a Catholic priest who acts as a mediator between God and man. These special activities are held to dispense God's "grace" (here, as a spiritual substance or power) and God's favour. For the Roman Catholic his whole life from the cradle to the grave, and indeed beyond the grave in purgatory, is conditioned by the sacramental approach. Baptism (which is not repeated) cleanses from original sin, removes other sin and its punishment, provides spiritual rebirth or regeneration , begins the process of justification, and is "necessary for salvation." Confirmation (not repeated) bestows the Holy Spirit in a special sense, leading to "an increasing of sanctifying grace and the gifts of the Holy Spirit" as well as other spiritual power and a sealing to the Catholic Church. Confirmation is the rite of layering on the hands with prayer for the gift of the Holy Spirit for the encouragement and strengthening in discipleship of a person who confesses faith in Jesus Christ. Penance removes the penalty of sins committed after baptism and confirmation. Thus, mortal or "deadly" sins are remitted and the "justification" lost by such sins is restored as a continuing process. Holy Eucharist is where Christ is resacrificed and the benefits of Calvary are continually applied anew to the believer. Marriage is where grace is given to remain in the bonds of matrimony in dictates with the requirements of the Catholic Church. Anointing the sick bestows grace on those who are sick, old, or near death and helps in forgiveness of sins and sometimes the physical healing of the body. Holy orders (not repeated) confers special grace and spiritual power upon bishops, priests, and deacons for leadership in the Church as representatives of Christ "for all eternity."

Background to and Celebrations of Feasts, Festivals, Seasons and Special Days in the Christian Liturgical Calender
Christmas; Feast of the nativity of Jesus Christ (Dec 25). In liturgical importance it probably ranks after Easter, Pentecost and Epiphany (Jan 6). The observance probably does not date earlier than A.D 200 and did not become widely spread until the C4th. Christmas as the great popular festival of Western Europe dates from the Middle Ages. Lent: Christian period of fasting and penitence preparatory to Easter. Observance of Lent is as old as the C4th. Easter: Chief Christian Feast. Commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion. A feature of Roman Catholic life is the Easter duty, by which every member is required to receive communion sometime between Ash Wednesday (40 days before) and Trinity Sunday (Sunday after Pentecost).

The Influence of these Devotional Practices on the Everyday Life of People

Regardless, no one can argue with the statement that "... the Roman Church has been one of the most powerful influences in the history of all civilization...." Thus, because Roman Catholicism is a major world religion having some 800 million adherents, and because its influence in the world is sizable, a biblical evaluation of the teachings of the Church is vital. Roman Catholicism has influenced people of today spiritually and they are commended because they have a good understanding of the seriousness of sin and its consequences in eternal judgment. It has also influenced them socially for the Church has consistently maintained a high view of the sanctity of life and of marriage. Thus Roman Catholics lead their marriage in a very high regard and vow only to marry once and only to one person to they day they die. Therefore they take marriage very seriously. Catholics are required to hold and believe all the declared doctrines of the Church. Which affects their sexuality for it is a sin to be a homosexual; it affects their tolerance towards violence and their respect for higher person.

The Ethical and Moral Teachings of Christianity and their Application to everyday Living: Fundamental Christian values
The Roman Catholic Church teaches that God created the world. God is One, but subsists in three distinct, co-equal, and co-eternal persons - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity. To belong to the church one must accept as factually true the gospel of Christ as handed down in tradition and as interpreted by the Bishops in union with the Pope.

Fundamental in this divine tradition is the Bible, its text determined and disseminated by the Church. Adherents must also accept the church as possessing the fullness of revelation, and the church, according to the Roman Church catechism, is the only Christian body that is one, holy, catholic (universal), and apostolic. The doctrine of Apostolic Succession is of the keystones of the Catholic faith; it holds that the Pope and the Bishops have varying degrees the spiritual authority Christ assigned t his apostles. In Roman Catholic theology, the Deposit of the Faith (all the dogmas and beliefs of the Church) is expressed in two ways: the Bible and Sacred Tradition. Roman Catholics believe that Jesus Christ transmitted the entire Catholic Faith to the apostles; a portion of this Faith was written down and is found in the Bible, and the other portion was orally handed down through the centuries. The Bible is the normal rule of faith (Norma scriptura) and no Catholic belief or practice can contradict it.

Sources of Ethical Authority for Christians eg. The Bible denominational authorities, eg Assemblies, Councils, synods and the lived tradition
Jesus chose twelve principal disciples, known as Apostles, to whom He entrusted His Church. Unlike many Protestants, Catholics see the visible Church as a divinely ordained body, protected by God. The Church is, as scripture states, "the body of Christ" and is one united body of believers both in heaven and on earth. There is therefore only one true Church, not several. On earth the leadership of the Church was entrusted to Saint Peter, and subsequently to his successor bishops, known as Popes. Catholics hold to Jesus promise that the Church on earth will always be guided and maintained in truth by the Holy Spirit. In other words the Church will always and infallibly teach true doctrine. This truth is contained both in the written scriptures and the oral traditions passed down through the Church. To enter the Church one must have faith in Jesus Christ, accept His teachings and be given the sacrament of Baptism.

Beliefs About Sources of Authority that have affected the development of Ethical Systems and the Making of Moral Choices
Those who will be damned are those who persist in what they know to be wrong; among these are persons who resist the church when they know it to be one, true church. The teaching authority or magisterial of the Church bases its teachings on both Scripture and apostolic tradition. As well as ordained secular clergy, the Church encourages monasticism, and has many orders of monks, friars and nuns who live in celibacy, and devote their lives entirely to God. Members of the Clergy do not marry. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 85 states that authentic interpretation of the word of God is entrusted to the living Magisterial of the Church, namely the bishops in communion with the successor of Peter. Roman Catholic theology places the authoritative interpretation of scripture in the hands of the corporate judgment of the Church rather than the private judgment of the individual. In the tenth Commandment there are two authorities that are present that also effects Roman Catholics moral choices these are: You shall have no other gods before me. , You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. And Honour your father and your mother.