Christianity

• Christianity is the main religion in Great Britain
• Main traditions of Christianity

  • Catholic
  • Protestant
  • Orthodox
• Monotheistic


  Belief in one Supreme Being, God
• Different branches of Christianity

  • Catholic - based in Rome and led by the Pope
  • Orthodox - split from Catholic Christianity in 1054 CE and practised in Eastern Europe
  • Protestant - split from Catholic Christianity in the 16th century and branched out into different denominations (distinct groups), e.g. Baptist, Pentecostal, Methodist, United Reformed Churches
• Protestants agree that the Bible is the only authority for Christians
• God

  The creator and sustainer of all that exists, works throughout history and inspires people to do God's will
• People can have a relationship with God through prayer
• God

  Spirit (neither male nor female) but has qualities of both, holy (set apart for a special purpose and worthy of worship)
• Jesus

  God's son, the true representation of God on earth
• Omnipotent


  • God is the Supreme Being who is all-powerful, has unlimited authority
• Benevolent

  • God uses his power to do good, shows his love by creating humans and caring for them, showed his love by sending God's Son, Jesus, to earth
• Just

  • God is a just judge of humankind, will never support injustice, ill-treatment, prejudice or oppression
• If God is benevolent, why does God allow people to suffer, and to hurt others?

  Christians believe a just God treats people fairly, so they trust God even when things seem to be going wrong
• If God is omnipotent, why does God not prevent evil and suffering, such as the suffering caused by natural disasters?

  Christians believe a just God treats people fairly, so they trust God even when things seem to be going wrong
• If God is just, why does God allow injustice to take place?


  Christians believe a just God treats people fairly, so they trust God even when things seem to be going wrong
• Trinity

  Christians believe there are three persons in the one God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Each person of the Trinity is fully God
• The persons of the Trinity are not the same
• God the Father

  The creator of all life, acts as a good father towards his children, is all powerful (omnipotent), all loving (omnibenevolent), all knowing (omniscient) and present everywhere (omnipresent)
• God the Son

  Became incarnate through Jesus who was both fully human while on earth and fully God at all times, called the Son of God to show his special relationship to God the Father
• God the Holy Spirit

  The unseen power of God at work in the world, who influences, guides and sustains life on earth
• God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit existed from the beginning and were involved in the creation
• Many Christians believe that the story of the creation in Genesis, while not scientifically accurate, contains religious truth
• Some Christians believe that God made the world in literally six days
• God created everything out of choice and created everything 'good'
• Christians believe that God continues to create new life today
• Although God the Father is referred to as the creator, the Holy Spirit was active in the creation, according to Genesis
• In John's gospel, everything was created through the Word, who was both with God and was God. The Word refers to the Son of God who entered history as Jesus
• Christians believe that the Son of God, the Word of God, was involved in the creation
• Incarnation


  Christians believe that Jesus was God in human form
• Christians believe that Jesus was the Son of God, one of the persons of the Trinity
• Mary conceived Jesus without having sex, which is evidence for the Christian belief that Jesus was the Son of God, part of the Trinity
• Through the incarnation, God showed himself as a human being (Jesus) for around 30 years
• Jesus

  Fully God and fully human, which helps explain his miracles and resurrection, his words, deeds and promises have great authority because they are the word of God
• Most Jews expected a Messiah who would come to save Israel and establish an age of peace, but do not believe that Jesus was that person
• Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah, but a spiritual rather than a political one
• Jesus was sentenced to death by Pontius Pilate, a death by crucifixion (fixed to a cross)
• Jesus forgave those who crucified him and promised one of the men crucified with him that he would join God in paradise
• Jesus' body was buried in a cave-like tomb
• Jesus' crucifixion

  Although Jesus was fully God, he was also fully human so suffered pain and horror