christianity beliefs and teachings

• Characteristics of the Christian God

  • Benevolent (loving)
  • Omniscient (all-knowing)
  • Omnipotent (all-powerful)
  • Eternal
  • Transcendent
  • Immanent
  • Personal
  • Forgiving
  • Judge
• Christianity is monotheistic, which means Christians believe in and worship only one God
• Trinity


  One God in three Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Some Christians believe there is an authority structure within the Trinity, but others do not
• Not all Christians believe in the Trinity - some feel that Jesus was not God
• Christians believe that God created the world
• Accounts of Creation


  • Genesis
  • Gospel of John
• Christians' beliefs about Creation

  • They are special because they are created in God's image
  • They should look after creation
• Some Christians believe the accounts of Creation should be interpreted literally, while others think they should be interpreted metaphorically
• Some Christians believe in the Fall - that Adam and Eve's sin caused human nature to become damaged
• Problem of evil and suffering

  It is hard to explain why, if God is powerful, loving, and righteous, he allows evil and suffering to exist
• Some Christians believe that evil and suffering exist as a consequence of the Fall and original sin
• Jesus


  The Messiah (anointed one) who came to save humanity from sin
• Christians refer to Jesus as 'Lord' and believe he is the Son of God - most of them believe that he is God
• Jesus showed Christians that they should love others, regardless of who they are, and regardless of the circumstances - agape
• Many of Jesus' teachings can be found in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7
• Incarnation


  Jesus was the incarnation of God: God in the flesh
• Because of the Incarnation, Christians may feel that they know what God wants through Jesus' teaching, and that they are saved through his sacrifice
• Christians believe that Jesus was crucified, buried, and then rose back to life
• After being witnessed by his disciples and giving them instructions, Jesus ascended to heaven
• Salvation


  Christians believe that Jesus' death and resurrection saved them, and allowed them to have a relationship with God
• Christians have different views on whether God only extends salvation to a few, or whether it is available to all who seek it and Jesus and the Holy Spirit in their lives
• Many Christians believe that Jesus fulfilled the Jewish law so that Christians could now be saved through Jesus, rather than by following rules
• Christians believe that salvation is an extension of God's grace
• Christians believe that all humans need saving because all have sinned
• Christian beliefs about the afterlife

  • Heaven
  • Hell
  • Purgatory
  • Resurrection of physical bodies
  • Immortal soul
  • Only Christians go to heaven
  • Imminent end of the world